A great Russian tale

VALENCIA (Jeff Taylor's London Calling) - There’s been a wonderful story in Russian basketball this season.

The name of it is Triumph Lyubertsy.

The team is coached by Vasily Karasev, and one of the leading players is his son Sergey Karasev.

Vasily was the long-time point guard for Russia's national team, a man who played in five European Championships and three World Championships.

Three times he reached the Finals of major events.

He played in the gold medal games at the 1993 European Championship in Munich, the 1994 FIBA World Championship in Toronto and the 1998 FIBA World Championship in Athens.

There was no greater honor for him than to wear the Russia shirt.

Sergey is only 18, yet he is already known as the brightest of the stars in a new generation of Russian players.

Last year, he played at the FIBA U19 World Championship and helped the Russians upset the United States in the Quarter-Finals.

The team eventually captured a bronze medal.

The two are with Triumph at the EuroChallenge Final Four this weekend in Debrecen, Hungary.

That is not the only cause for celebration for all basketball-loving fans in Russia.

In addition to Sergey Karasev, a 2.02m shooting guard/small forward, Triumph have a rebounding machine in 2.05m forward Evgeny Valiev, who is another player in the Russian youth teams.

Then there are the 1.97m guard in Dmitry Kulagin, and 1.96m guard Artem Vikhrov, two of Karasev’s Russia teammates last year in Riga.

Vasily Karasev never looked prouder as a coach than he did after his team completed a surprise 2-1 victory over Spanish outfit Mad-Croc Fuenlabrada five weeks ago to punch their ticket to the EuroChallenge Final Four.

"They are the future of the Russian national team," he said of his youngsters.

What makes this even better is the genuine love and respect that all of these players have for each other and their coach.

For Sergey Karasev, he distinguishes between Vasily Karasev the coach and Vasily Karasev the father.

"When we come home, we speak about life - father and son - not like coach and player," he says.

Kulagin says Vasily Karasev has been an inspiration, and a friend.

"He was a brilliant player: speedy, smart, and full of self-sacrifice,” Kulagin said.

“I can learn a lot from his game.

“We all respect Karasev a lot.

“We consult with him not only about basketball, but life."

Sergey Karasev says that when it comes to basketball, the biggest lesson he has learned from his dad is that he can’t back down from anyone.

Maybe that’s why he has been fearless this season, playing big minutes to not only help Triumph reach the EuroChallenge Final Four but also clinch third place in the Russian PBL regular season.

"My father was a very aggressive player," Sergey says.

"He didn't want to be the fifth or sixth player in the team but the first.

"I want to do the same.

"When I came to Triumph, I was the young one.

"But I take the ball and try to be aggressive."

All of the players have a long way to go before they can compare themselves to Vasily Karasev.

But they are having a great start.

This week, Russia coach David Blatt announced that Sergey Karasev has a shot at playing at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT).

The youngster, who won the dunking contest at the U18 All-Star Game at last year’s EuroBasket in Lithuania, has been included in Russia’s 16-man preliminary squad for the OQT in Caracas, Venezuela.

Jeff Taylor

FIBA

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