The League General Manager Ilona Korstin appreciated the start of the newcomers MBA and Samara in the 2022/23 season.
MBA – young and motivated
I was pleasantly surprised by MBA game at the start of the season. On the other hand, such a result is encouraging. This means that we made the right choice this summer when we took MBA to the League. We were worried about the fact that the Moscow club did not sign a single foreigner. The newcomers are well aware of what they were told at the League Board – that this season is a trial. Their future in the League depends on how they prove. But, despite the fact that MBA does not have a single legionnaire, the team performs quite confidently. 3 wins are proof it great at the start of the season. I was especially impressed by the first game with Loko. MBA was stronger than the Krasnodar team.
Why is MBA performing so well at the start of the season now? My opinion: the team is quite young, the players are motivated, their eyes are burning, their legs are fresh, they are ready to play fast basketball, they are ready to defend. This is all Vasily Karasev style, who has found his players and his team. MBA has a fairly balanced roster. There is no clear leader here, but there are several players who successfully replace each other. Wide rotation allows to keep fresh for an active fast game and aggressive defense. All MBA players want to show that they are ready and can play at the level of the VTB United League.
The real test for MBA will take place on Monday against CSKA. It will be interesting to see this game. But in general, MBA makes a pretty pleasant impression, I wish them not to slow down.
Samara – focus on legionnaires
Samara has a slightly different situation. On the one hand, the team was very seriously filled the roster in the offseason, signing five Americans. I think that the club has really invested a considerable part of its budget in foreign players. All Americans are suitable for this team is a question. Yes, this is just the beginning of the season, and we see that unlike MBA, where team play is noticeable, everything revolves around the leading legionnaires – Marcos Knight and James Ennis. They spend the most time on the court and score the most points, most of the combinations are went through them.
In addition, unlike MBA, Samara has a more difficult start to the season. The first game was against CSKA, in which the Army team were much stronger. I think this loss became revival for Samara. Then Bazarevich team played with Loko, who, after losing to MBA, worked on mistakes and did not want to lose to another newcomer of the League. The third game with Enisey was successful. If we compare the two teams on paper, then Samara has a stronger squad than the Krasnoyarsk team. And at the same time, Enisey showed desire to win, led for a long time and lost only in overtime. We expected a little more from Samara, but this is only the beginning of the season, there were only 3 games. Both Samara and MBA still have everything ahead.
About the newcomers teams’ marketing
During the offseason, our marketing department did a lot of work with the newcomers of the League on how they could reach a new level. Both MBA and Samara listened to our advice and really did a lot this summer, fulfilling almost all the wishes. We see that at their home games there is a good quality TV picture, excellent light and conditions.
Of course, it is difficult for two newcomers to get used to a new level right away, it takes time to adapt both in sports and marketing. This primarily concerns the ticket program and the opportunity to earn money by selling tickets. Both clubs currently have a fairly large percentage of invitations – this is something that needs to be changed in the near future. Clubs should understand that they can get the main income from tickets from the sale of tickets to the VIP seats. So it is necessary to think through competent construction, VIP support, catering. By the way, Samara did a good job in the off-season in organizing the seats and it immediately gave results. It’s nice to see that both newcomers are striving to gain a foothold in the League and work even better in marketing terms than some of our clubs that have been playing in the League for a long time.
