Jonas Kazlauskas leaving as China basketball coach

Jonas Kazlauskas is stepping down as head coach of China's national basketball team, the International Basketball Federation reported Thursday.

Kazlauskas' tenure ended with last month's Beijing Olympic Games, where he led China into the semifinals, and he has since returned to his native Lithuania, FIBA reported on its Web site adding that no decision has been made on his replacement.

Team manager Bai Xilin declined to confirm the news, saying the team was reviewing its performance at the games and would make no decisions until next year.

"We're right now in the process of summing up," Bai told The Associated Press in a telephone interview.

Despite the lack of an official announcement, Kazlauskas was widely expected to leave after four years at the helm.

At a news conference following China's elimination from the Olympics by Lithuania, Kazlauskas aired a note of regret saying there had been only so much he could do with the relatively inexperienced Chinese squad.

"I was thinking that we can do something more. But not everything has to do with practice and games," Kazlauskas said.

Although Bai refused to comment on a possible successor, the FIBA report said assistant coach Guo Shiqiang was among those being considered. It quoted Guo as praising Kazlauskas' leadership, saying he had helped speed up the learning process for Chinese coaches on the staff.

"I've learned a lot from Jonas," Guo was quoted as saying.

Kazlauskas played in the former Soviet Union's Supreme League and has coached two top teams in his native country, as well as Lithuania's national team.

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On the Net: http://www.fiba.com/