Russian national basketball team may hold new training camp in February, head coach says

Head coach of the Russian men’s national basketball team Zoran Lukic summarizes the summer collection.

The first part of the camp took place in Moscow from July 23 to August 3, after which the players and coaching staff traveled to Perm, where they continued their training. In Perm, Russian basketball players played two friendly matches with the Iranian team, having won two matches with a score of 72:59 and 71:57, respectively.

“One of the obvious positives is that the players are returning to their clubs more fit, physically and functionally. It’s pretty good for the start of the season. Although it may interfere with some coaches in preparation – after all “, each coach has his own philosophy, his imprint is visible on each team. But I hope that the experience gained will help each player more. More precisely, all the same: it will not spoil anything in preparation for the new championship.

– What were the goals of the collection as a whole?

– The tasks were the same as in previous training camps – since we are working with a young team, it was important to watch all the players, to see their reactions. We had different opponents in the friendly matches: the game of Iran is very different from the game of Belarus. One way or another, at training camp, we continue to follow the planned path – preparing for the future, for when Russian basketball will return to the world stage. The young team is preparing for it and, I hope, our basketball is waiting for new great successes.

– Valery Tikhonenko joined the national team as general manager. Have you made contact?

– After the suspension of our participation in international tournaments, our team has the opportunity to do the so-called restructuring. And I consider this time to be the most appropriate to join such an expert as Valery Tikhonenko. Because the team is starting a new stage, as they say, from scratch. We are facing new challenges, and we have to be very careful and use this time properly.

It was felt by our coaching staff, the team and the guys. I’m sure Valery Alekseevich was very comfortable in these training camps. We communicate a lot, exchange opinions on the future. Now we are building a team for the future. And, I am sure, in this regard, as a general manager, he will contribute both to communication and to enrichment through new experiences. Next time we will meet at the VTB United League Super Cup and we will continue to develop plans for the future.

– Are the objectives of the training camp fully achieved or would you be working on something else?

– You can work with young players indefinitely. What was important for us during these training camps and the previous ones, of course, we accomplished and obtained a lot of important information for us.

— Are you considering any of the new players for the future training camp? When should it take place?

– We watch all players, follow all players, exchange information and impressions. Each of the coaches has their own opinion on this. As for the new training camps, we will try to organize them in February, during the VTB United League All-Star Game,” the Russian Basketball Federation press service quoted Lukich as saying.

The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) previously suspended the national teams of Russia and Belarus from participating in competitions under the organization’s auspices.