“We want to work for a long time and for the process of “producing” basketball players to be continuous.” Secrets to the success of the United League debutant

– MBA is in fourth place in the VTB United League regular season standings – an incredible result for a tournament rookie. Did you expect such agility yourself?

– At this level, from our point of view, it is difficult to argue how natural this is. But we were preparing to enter the United League and were very scrupulous about all the regulations and the sporting aspect. Our main task was to justify confidence, not to disappoint the league and adequately represent Moscow in the best tournaments of our country.

So, in general, we just try to do our job professionally, building a system of training basketball players in Moscow and moving from game to game. That’s all. We don’t have high expectations. Every game for us is both a holiday and an exam. And we try to do our job well. Thank goodness we’re still doing it. The most important thing is that there is a team responsible for an idea. We are going in the right direction. I hope this will continue.

– Since things went so well, probably you can make a top three swing at the end of the season?

“Before the start of the season, we didn’t set ourselves specific goals. The main thing is to look decent and go from game to game. But, of course, the appetite comes eating. And now, with the second round going on and there are 11 wins, naturally we want to get into the top six after two rounds, which is already going up, and the teams that will move up from 7th at the 12th line will be competing for two places in the play-off, so locally at this stage the task of entering the top 6 looms.This goal is close, and we are already touching it with our fingers.

But this task was born during the championship. It would be naive to say that before the start of the season we thought we were going to win so many matches and be top of the table. The team simply solves its problem in each individual match and plays to the fullest.

There are victories, the guys are growing – that’s the most important thing. And these confirmed basketball players who joined us this season are now experiencing a second youth. There are players in the squad who were with us in the Super League. And now they’ve reached the top level, consistently proving they can keep it up. If we maintain this structure of the game, then the results will be.

“I think you are clearly modest. No doubt the MBA will be in the top six…

I’m glad no one doubts. So we do everything right. But for us, in addition to the result in the league, the progression of the players is also important, and now this balance can be traced, which can only please.

– MBA is the only club in the United League not to have foreign players. Can we expect foreign players to appear in the near future?

– Whether there are legionnaires or not – it doesn’t matter. I’ll say it again, from day one of joining the United League, we’ve been declaring one message – to look worthy. We now have a battle-ready team that can compete with the best in the country.

If there’s a need to attract legionnaires, then of course we’re not rejecting anything for ourselves, but at this point our guys are fine, we’re working with our basketball players, there’s a certain vibe in the team, and everyone likes it.

– Nevertheless, it was not without a fly in the ointment in a barrel of honey. In October and November, two prominent MBA point guards, Makar Konovalov and Alexander Khomenko, dropped out for a long time. How is the search for a replacement going?

– Of course, we hoped for Alexander and Makar. They are an important part of our team concept, but unfortunately both got injured and were out for a long time. Khomenko and not at all – until the end of the season. After extensive consultations, we decided to send him to the best clinic in Italy, which specializes in this type of injury. Tomorrow, he will undergo an operation of the plastic cruciate ligament of the knee. But the experience of such operations shows that the recovery will last at least six months. We will not force recovery. The main thing for us is to get an even better fighter than he was before. If objectively, he will recover by the pre-season before the next championship.

As for Konovalov, we hope he will recover (soon). The recovery is already delayed somewhere, but the momentum is positive, and that’s the most important thing.

The situation with the leaders, of course, is not the easiest, but still there is a positive moment. In such a difficult period, in the middle of the season, when it is quite difficult to find players, especially a point guard who suits the team in terms of concept, we have already managed to find a player in our system. This is our pupil Yegor Pokinko, who has never played at such a high level as the United League before, but recent games show that he is making a significant contribution to the result and maintaining that level.

And it is also a victory for the club when it manages to find internal reserves in this stressful and force majeure situation. That is to say, we ourselves, as a system, manage. It is an indicator both of the work of our youth team and of the process of “producing” players and training them.

The work to find the first number never stops. But, again, we patiently and restrainedly analyze the market and not in a hurry. We need a person who will ideally fit into the philosophy and fit into our microclimate. Naturally, when looking for in-house reserves, we look at Super League and VTB League teams. Everyone evolves differently. There can be mutually beneficial interactions with various clubs. Just in the middle of the season is not easy to reach agreements. Everyone has different needs depending on the season. For example, we need a back rower, someone needs a front row player. So there are a lot of nuances here. It takes time and a lot of work. But we are exploring all options.

— This season, our teams are not taking part in international competitions. How do you personally perceive the situation when our players do not play in the Euroleague and European competitions?

— International experience is invaluable. It is one of the factors of progress and development of sport. Of course I want to compete, but even now there are enough very high quality matches in the United League. The other day UNICS with “Zenith” released a great game.

As for the IBA, we have recently reached this level, and any meeting of the VTB League is a step forward for us. In principle, there are enough quality foreign players in the United League. Yes, maybe there has been a rotation somewhere in the Legionnaire teams, but still there are a lot of great basketball players, so there are also enough decent games.

– The US Olympic Committee has come out in favor of allowing Russian athletes to participate in the 2024 Olympics in a neutral status. How do you look at it?

— I think it is good news that the international community is reacting to the fact that sport should be out of politics. Here, you can think anything, but in any case, you have to prepare, do your job well and hope that the situation will change for the better. So when we return to the international scene, we will have to be ready for that so as not to drop in level.

– Many experts believe that MBA basketball players will form the backbone of the Russian men’s team in the future.

– We really hope so. This is the main reason why we pay a lot of attention not only to our flagship team, the United League team, but also to our youth project, which trains and selects quite well. Now our team ranks first in VTB United Youth League and successfully performs in Junior Junior League. These are all important positions for the club, as we want to work long hours and ensure that the process of “producing” athletes is continuous.

Ideally, we would like several people to join our first team each year. This is the main task. In terms of priority, it is no less important than the performance of the club’s main team, as it is key to our future success. So we will regularly find reserves within our system, guys who “shoot” will appear.