Ovidijus Galdikas is a Lithuanian professional basketball player currently playing for Wilki Morskie Szczecin of the Polish Basketball League, on loan from Herbalife Gran Canaria.
Background
Galdikas spent 2006-2007 training with the Žalgiris-Arvydas Sabonis school but, after suffering a broken arm, he stopped playing basketball at the behest of his mother and spent the next two years working various menial jobs to support his family.
Career
In around 2009, basketball agent Šarūnas Broga (his current agent) and Klemensas Patiejūnas (a Lithuanian basketball player who was playing in France at that time) started hearing stories of a 7 footer in Kaunas who wasn"t playing basketball anywhere. Having found Galdikas, they realised that he wasn"t yet ready for professional basketball and started working with him. Klemensas took him to France and, upon his return, Galdikas joined Vilnius KM-Magnus (a third-tier club) during the 2009-2010 season, where he averaged 21.2 points, 10.9 rebounds.
Next season, he moved up a tier to Anykščiai Puntukas and averaged 14.8 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3 blocks.
He missed the 2011-2012 season due to injuries. In 2012 he joined Šiauliai.
However, the team didn"t give him much playing time as they also had the more experienced Papa Dia. According to reports, the Knicks have been watching him for over 3 years, and Knicks" president visited Šiauliai during the 2012-2013 season to meet with Galdikas and watch him play, however, Galdikas was injured at the time).
In August 2013, the New York Knicks again showed interest in Galdikas, describing him as a "diamond in the rough" and the "third best Lithuanian center after Jonas Valančiūnas and Donatas Motiejūnas.
During the 2014-2015 season he was scoring 11.2 points (74% FG), grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking 2.6 shots, while representing Asseco Gdynia club in Poland. Following it, he decided to participate in the National Basketball Association Summer League to seek his dream of representing National Basketball Association club He represented the New York Knicks in the National Basketball Association Summer League.
On August 29, 2015, Galdikas signed with the Spanish team Herbalife Gran Canaria.
He debuted by scoring 10 points, grabbing 4 rebounds and blocking 6 shots. On 19 February 2016, Gran Canaria announced Galdikas would be loaned to Polish club Wilki Morskie Szczecin until the end of the 2015-2016 PLK season.