Arizona Basketball: Ryan Luther gets chance to play overseas

Former Arizona Basketball transfer Ryan Luther has decided to take his talent s overseas and play for the Latvian team BK Ventspils.

Add Ryan Luther to list of former Arizona Basketball players who have or still are currently playing overseas. He will be playing for the Latvian team BK Ventspils, who has been a major powerhouse club in the Latvian League over the last couple of decades. They’ve won 10 league titles in since 2000 to give some perspective on how dominant they are.

Great to see someone of his talent level get a chance to continue to play at the next level. It’s not the NBA, but it gives Luther the experience needed to build his skills and hopefully get a chance down the road to play in the league. Plus, he’ll get paid for playing basketball which is a bonus. May not be the like of what NBA players are getting but it’s something.

There have been many talented former Wildcats to have played overseas, including Derrick Williams and Kyle Fogg. Yes, everyone wants to make it to the NBA, but sometimes the journey to get there is different. Luther has the skillset and potential to possibly make it, but he will need to put in the work.

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As a graduate transfer, Luther only played one season at Arizona. In 32 games played, he averaged 8.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game.  He was one of the Wildcats top three-point shooters, shooting 37.5% from beyond the arc.

Listed at 6 foot 8 and 225 pounds, he has the ability to play both the three and the four. For him to succeed at the next level, Luther will need to become more confident and not be afraid to shoot the ball from all distances. He already has good ball-handling skills for someone of his stature and will need to use that to his advantage for BK Ventspils.

Against California, he was on fire from long range, but also showed he could take it the rim!

Luther provided fans with many exciting moments during the 2018-19 season and will surely do the same for Latvia fans. The upside is there for Luther to be successful at the next level. It will be up to him though on how far he wants to go.

At Zona Zealots, we would like to congratulate Ryan Luther on getting to play for BK Ventspils. Time for Luther to show Latvia fans what it means to Bear Down!