“It would be cool to voice a cartoon bear. I would love to try it.” Interview with Mozgov

NBA champion, bronze medalist at the London Games Timofey Mozgov – one of the most charismatic basketball players of our time. Timofey lives in two countries: in Russia and the United States. As he says, the place of his residence at one time or another largely determines the climate: a native of St. Petersburg does not tolerate the cold well. While it is warm in Moscow, it would be a sin not to take the opportunity not to communicate with the world basketball star. And there was something to talk about.

From Mozgov’s interview with you will learn:

On July 16, Mozgov turned 38. Our conversation took place the next day.

— Timofey, how did you celebrate your birthday?

– Wonderful! Received the warmest congratulations. I noticed in a close circle: nearby were my parents, my wives, our children and some of our relatives.

—And there wasn’t even anyone from the basketball world nearby?

– There was one person. He stopped playing basketball a long time ago. We are very good friends. He is the godfather of one of my children, Nikita Shabalkin.

— What gift do you remember the most?

– Well, we celebrated in a closed circle. There were not many gifts. Everything was homemade, within the limits of decency (laughs). There was nothing cool. I don’t know what to emphasize.

“By declaring that sport is outside of politics, they continue to push politics inside. Very sad.”

— There is just over a week left before the start of the Games in Paris. How do you perceive the fact that our athletes, in fact, will not be at the Olympic Games? Only 16 people will travel in neutral status.

– It is sad, very sad. And it is not good when, by declaring that sport is outside of politics, they simply put politics into it. The situation as a whole is difficult.

But at the same time, let’s be honest: this is not our first Olympics without a flag. Before that, we had performances under a neutral flag on doping control issues. As you can see, the reasons may vary, but it all comes down to the fact that it’s politics. In general, it’s not good when people cheat.

— Will you be following the Olympic basketball tournament?

– Yes. It will be interesting to watch what happens in the United States, France and Serbia. Well, and probably in Canada. Because Canadians have a lot of NBA players. They are not as bright and brilliant as American basketball players. It is interesting to see how they will view this tournament.

As for Asian teams, they don’t have the strongest leagues and lose to big teams with big scores. But it seems to me that European teams can create problems for everyone. So it will be interesting to take a look.

“CSKA 2014 would have beaten the current one”

— Many people note that the level of the United League has increased over the past year. Do you agree with this opinion?

— The level of organization has of course increased. But if we talk about the sporting side, I will be honest: it is almost not at the level of the time when our teams played in the Euroleague. That was when CSKA played there, and Khimki and UNICS went there. Perhaps at that time we had the strongest championship in Europe. But of course, Spain had a very strong championship at that time, and Turkey could also be singled out.

— Has two years of absence from the international scene affected that?

– How else? Of course, it could not have a positive effect. I even think that CSKA of 2014 or 2015 would have beaten the current “red-blue” team. The same can be said about UNICS and Lokomotiv. We will not talk about Khimki, since they are currently playing in another championship. But if the teams of that time had played ten games with modern teams, they would have won seven.

— On July 20, a grandiose sporting event will take place in Moscow: the KHL and NHL All-Star Game. Are you planning to visit it?

– Definitely! I will definitely go. You know, as an amateur, I probably only discover hockey now. I have a good hockey friend who will participate in this match – Vlad Gavrikov. I will support him.

Before, it wasn’t that I didn’t like hockey, but I wasn’t interested in the sport. But I attended the games last season, I went to Spartak’s games – and I was delighted. So, I think hockey will be very interesting for me now. Now we need to find a team to support…

“I thought you were a Spartak fan.”

— The word “sick” is probably not quite correct here. But if I still went to hockey, I would go to Spartak. That’s probably true.

— From hockey to football. Have you followed the events of EURO 2024?

— I watched exactly half of a match of the Spanish national team, but I don’t remember who they played with, well, I saw the final – that’s my whole European Championship. Well, I don’t understand: the teams rolled the ball for 94 minutes (the referee added four minutes), tried to push the ball into the goal – and pushed it only three times. In a way, it wasn’t very spectacular: there weren’t enough emotions.

“Farewell match? Maybe I’ll do it closer to New Year’s.”

— You have already announced that you have finished your career. When is the farewell match?

– We should probably do it. Maybe closer to New Year. I still need to lose 15 kilos (laughs).

– Have you recovered?

— Last month I didn’t train at all, I didn’t do anything. So now I’m going to pull myself together. I won’t be young anymore, but I’ll become as beautiful as before (laughs).

— A few days ago, Sergei Elevich spoke about you in a conversation. He pointed out that in the NBA you play as a center, so you had to gain a certain amount of weight. Elevich believes that without this circumstance, you could have extended your career. Do you agree?

– To some extent – yes, to some extent – no. Sergei Nikolaevich always loved high fives. When I was taken to Khimki, Elevich sometimes even put me in the position of a small forward. I’ll be honest: it was not easy for me. Probably there was a lack of coordination, skill and speed somewhere.

I came to the USA at the age of 23. At some point, every man starts to swear and get fat. In a word, he turns from a young man into a man. That’s where most of the story takes place. In other words, I just got stronger, I got stronger, but I wouldn’t say that I really improved that much… As for ending my career, then, it’s probably no longer negligence, but rather an incorrect diagnosis and, as a consequence, incorrect treatment. Well, the consequences…

“I live in the United States, not because it’s America or not, it’s a question of climatic conditions”

— You live in two countries. Why do you like living in the USA?

– We live here and there. My two children were born in the USA. My wife is of Muscovite origin, and I was born in St. Petersburg, but I grew up to be a sexy Caucasian man (laughs). I have been registered in the Republic of Adygea for a long time, that’s why I’m joking.

Well, saying “I like it in America” ​​is probably wrong. I like places where it’s warm and there’s no winter. That’s why I live in the United States. If I was playing in Spain, where it’s that warm and I had kids there, I’d probably go to Spain right now.

To be honest, I don’t like winter. When I played Runa in Moscow, even before the cold, I was afraid that winter was coming and I wouldn’t be able to survive it. When you come for two weeks in winter, it’s normal, but if you’re here all winter, it’s difficult.

Therefore, in answer to your question, I will say that it is not a question of America or not, but of the climatic conditions that suit me. Unfortunately, even in Sochi we do not have such a climate. In the United States, I live in California. It is clear that a person can survive in any climate, but if I can choose, why not choose a more comfortable one? If I had a job or something else that would force me to live here in the winter, of course, I would stay. I am not an idiot. I have been in New York for a long time. There is also snow and frost. If I do not have to work now, why should I be cold?

— You have excellent diction and an interesting voice. Have you ever wanted to try your hand as a commentator, presenter or TV presenter?

– I don’t know. If they paid me… I have to train, read books, tongue twisters all the time. I certainly wouldn’t want to be a presenter. In my opinion, it’s not very creative: they give you a text and you read it. However, the same commentator can express his thoughts.

I don’t rule out trying something in that area, but everyone tells me I have a pretty deep, low voice. So maybe someone would be interested if I voiced a cartoon, some kind of cartoon bear. I think that would be cool! That’s something I’d like to try.

TV Match

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