I couldn't worry about my manicure!

Hi everyone!

The VTB United League season is over. The new competition format--16 teams played each other twice--was a success: providing the most exciting regular season yet in league history. As you know, CSKA ultimately won the championship.

More was expected from the postseason, but the Army Men bulldozed Astana and Nizhny Novgorod 3-0 on the way to the finals. The other semifinal series between Lokomotiv-Kuband and Nizhny Novgorod, however, went a dramatic five games. Khimki's unbreakable spirit deserves an enormous amount of respect. Despite injuries and fatigue, Khimki proved the doubters wrong by advancing to the finals.

But Moscow Region ran out of steam in the final series vs. CSKA. The Army Men played with laser focus and intense motivation to capture the championship. The season ended in Game 3 in Khimki as the Army Men drenched the floor in champagne to celebrate the title. 

When it comes to this season's heroes, Andrey Vorontsevich is the first person I'd like to recognize. He was named to All-Month teams throughout the regular season, while picking up Defensive Player of the Year and Top Russian Player awards. In the end, he was also named the Playoff MVP!

It's really nice to see Vorontsevich play at such a high level and reach his full potential. And some say we need to tighten restrictions on foreign players... Don't mix up football and basketball! If someone can contribute and produce and listen to the coach's instructions, no one's going to keep him on the bench. 

Sergey Monia was another playoff hero. He also proved that foreign players couldn't stop him from leading the team in minutes played, knocking down big shots and playing effective defense.

I'd also like to mention Andrei Kirilenko, who decided to return home during the middle of the season. Kirilenko not only made the Army Men better; he also helped increase interest in basketball and our league. I remember the big crowd that showed up for Andrei's first game with CSKA at the USH. Everyone wanted to see the living legend in person.

We're going to miss Sasha Kaun, who enjoyed an excellent season, but decided to finish his career with the Army club. 

The VTB United League got a new mascot during the playoffs. The athletic leopard wearing #29 entertained kids and adults, dunked the ball and even showed off his six-pack.

I also had a chance to hang out with the league mascot. The first time was in Krasnodar when Leo and I drank ginger tea together after a semifinal game. The second time was in Moscow's Sokolniki Park, where we had a master class together.

As you know, the leopard's name is now Buba. That's the nickname for Nizhny Novgorod's Evgeny Baburin and the fans voted to give the new league mascot the same name during the playoffs. The name also now belongs to a leopard in the Land of the Leopards wildlife park. I hope that we were able to educate the public about this rare species of animal, the Far Eastern leopard, and the nonprofit that supports and protects it. 

I had two opportunities to be a coach at the end of the season with two very interesting teams. First, there was the #likesofkindness team, which included famous Russian athletes, actors and politicians. It was a charity game. All of the money went to help children with cerebral palsy. I'm very happy that I had an opportunity to participate in this event, which was organized by Gosha Kutsenko, help children, and coach such a star-studded team.

My second game as coach was during the annual VTB United League Friends of Basketball game. Prior to Game 1 of the playoff finals, journalists took on the league office staff on CSKA's home court. I coached the VTB United League team, which included stars like Jiri Zidek, Tomas Pacesas, Pavel Astakhov, Sergey Kushchenko, Oleg Fokin and more.

We held a practice the day before the game. When I entered the Army club's gym and saw the lonely hoop, I felt like playing basketball for the first time in two years. Some kind people found a practice uniform for me to use and I got to practice for the first time in a long time. While I shook off my rust, the journalists were merciless, blocking and pushing me. But once I started to regain my touch, I got going on offense and remembered my signature moves on defense. I couldn't bother about my manicure!

There were plenty of memories to go around - my opponents got all scratched up and I really enjoyed playing. The next day I decided not to play during the official game and regretted it. We lost in the final minute... Nikita Zagday refused to let the game finish in a tie, 45-45. Our team lost the ball and Zagday scooped it up, sprinted down the court and scored. The basket counted. We decided not to go to video replay and left the court with our dignity intact. But it was still frustrating to lose, even in such a friendly game!

My responsibilities have increased this season. Together with Jiri Zidek, I represent the VTB United League at Euroleague, ULEB and FIBA meetings. There were a lot of interesting trips and productive conversation, which helped me gain invaluable professional experience.

Up next - more FIBA and Euroleague board meetings. The club season is over, but the offseason promises to be just as interesting. As always, there is plenty to discuss in European club basketball. But I'll talk about that another time...

We shouldn't forget about women's basketball! The European women's championship is in full swing right now. Our national team is off to a good start. They beat Croatia and Great Britain with ease! I was expecially happy about the second win, given I've got some history with the Brits...

We got a little unlucky in the third game against Latvia, but who said it would be easy?! We have a very interesting team this year. A nice mix of experience and youth. The two centers Osipova and Vadeeva are a perfect example. Irina is still a shut-down defender in the paint and dominates the glass, while Masha, who is just 16 years old, has a lot of similarities to her famous namesake, Stepanova.

Russia beat Serbia by 24 points in the final game of the group stage, pulling together after the disappointing loss to play an excellent game.

Good luck to our girls! I'm going to Hungary in a few days to support our team. I believe everything will work out for our team!

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