Seven games of VTB United League will be played from Saturday through Tuesday.
October 5, Saturday
Tsmoki-Minsk (Belarus) – Lokomotiv Kuban (Russia)
Time: 14:45 (14:45 MSK)
Venue: Беларусь, Минск, Falcon club
Broadcast: Match! Strana, League site
Tsmoki-Minsk will open the season against rebuilt Lokomotiv. In 14 matches between these teams the Dragons could only win once in the OT of a dramatic game year and a half ago. But the key players of that win are not in the team anymore – Devon Saddler plays in Israel. Despite the offseason signings (we can note Vladimir Veremeenko), the guests are favored to win.
Lokomotiv-Kuban shall not expect and easy walk. The team was renewed in the summer, lost two key players Khvostov and Ponitka. Krasnodar compensated the loss with new signings, but the rookies still have to fit in the team. The great story of the game is the official debut of Luca Banchi. Another point of interest is how many minutes will get Grigoriy Motovilov and performance of Mantas Kalnietis after his comeback. In 2013, he got Eurocup title with Loko.
Nizhny Novgorod (Russia) – PARMA (Russia)
Time: 17:00 (17:00 MSK)
Venue: CEC Nagorny, Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia
Broadcast: League site
Nizhniy Novgorod must be optimistic. Zoran Lukic said the team finally dealt with numerous injuries, which was the main problem of the previous season. In the end of September, they beat Polish Legia twice and qualified to the Champions League.
PARMA started the season with a great fight against CSKA, having the lead up for grabs for 3 quarters. Maxim Grigoryev, the star of Nizhniy, was the best PARMA player in that game. Unfortunately, injuries are a struggle for his career: last year he played only 4 games for Nizhniy. The key storyline is how he performs against his ex-team.
October 6, Sunday
Enisey (Russia) – Khimki (Russia)
Time: 18:00 (14:00 MSK)
Venue: Arena Sever, Krasnoyarsk, Russia
Broadcast: League site
Enisey made a sensation in the start of the season beating CSKA for the first time in their history. Now they have to face another strong opponent, Khimki who started with two wins and take the first place in standings. It’s not correct to say Khimki are surely favored to win here. They’ll play the third game in 10 days in United League plus a Euroleague game played on Thursday. Enisey is supposed to be fully recovered with only one game played this season.
Khimki started well in the Euroleague beating Maccabi. Alexey Shved’s contribution (22 pts) was critical. His absence did not make a difference in Tallinn, but Khimki lacked his guaranteed 20 points facing Zielona Gora. Another factor is Janis Timma and his long-range shots. In the first two games he made 1 of 20, but in Euroleague game he improved to 5 of 12.
Avtodor (Russia) – Zielona Gora (Poland)
Time: 17:00 (16:00 MSK)
Venue: Crystal SP, Saratov, Russia
Broadcast: League site
Avtodor vs Zielona Gora face-off was levelled last season – 1:1. Both games were hot: Avtodor won 112:106, Zielona Gora 108:100. Fans expect to see the same energy in Saratov. Both teams have ambitious plans for the season, but the key storyline of Avtodor is Nikita Mikhailovsky’s performance who wants to build a reputation before NBA draft 2020. Avtodor’s signings did not go as planned – Devon Saddler had to leave the team, which means Mikhailovsky will get more minutes.
Zielona Gora fought back in season-opener almost erasing 16-points differential, but couldn’t response to Zenit’s offense. Avtodor is not a top contender which means the hosts can expect a win. Both main center of Avtodor are rookies in the team, so Zielona Gora will try to use Drew Gordon a lot.
UNICS (Russia) – Astana (Kazakhstan)
Time: 18:00 (18:00 MSK)
Место: Basket hall, Kazan, Russia
Broadcast: League site
UNICS did not live up to their hopes – they were beaten by Brescia in Eurocup despite Jamar Smith’s 22 points. Priftis’ side will try to make amends facing the ambitious Astana. Last season Kazakh team was not easy to beat, UNICS had to struggle to win the first game (83:79), and lost the second. Kazan team did not make sensational signings, so Astana will meet the roster of last year.
Astana’s last season was the best for the team in United League. They were close to take the fifth place in the regular season, and Emil Rajkovic was the best coach of the season. However, summer has changed a lot, half of the roster left the club. The main signing is Coty Clarke, well-known in Kazan, who played in Montenegro last year. Emil Rajkovic will still have to build a new team or at least recover the competitive squad.
October 7, Monday
CSKA (Russia) – Zenit (Russia)
Time: 19:30 (19:30 MSK)
Venue: USH CSKA, Moscow, Russia
Broadcast: Match TV, League site
CSKA will face Valencia in Euroleague before the center match of VTB League week, and this will affect their form. The red-blues will likely try to maintain slow tempo against Zenit. St Petersburg was not an easy opponent in the past, last season Zenit was one of three teams to beat CSKA, and their current roster looks as strong as CSKA’s. It’s hard to predict the result of this game.
Zenit was the hottest newsmaker of the transfer market. In the first game they destroyed Zielona Gora. But the real test will happen in Moscow, and on October 4, Zenit will finally make their debut in Euroleague facing Alba. By the way, club’s office says Khvostov can be ready to play against the German team which means we can expect him in game against CSKA.
Tuesday, October 8
Nizhniy Novgorod (Russia) – Kalev (Estonia)
Time: 19:00 (19:00 MSK)
Venue: CEC Nagorny, Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia
Broadcast: League site
Nizhniy Novgorod as told above started with the Champions League qualification beating Legia. Curious fact is that the key player of the second game was Chavaughn Lewis (24 points), the one who led Kalev last season and helped them get to VTB League playoffs for the first time. Lewis will face his ex-team for the first time.
Kalev failed the game against Khimki. It was a big loss that can be explained by a huge number of injuries: Aigars Skele was the only foreigner in the roster. Roberts Stelmahers said it was hard to plan the game not knowing who could get on court. The head coach will face the same challenges on Tuesday, it’s doubtful that Kalev’s key players recover earlier.
