To get back into shape faster

From arena to arena

The red-blues officially returned to practices after the New Year's break on January 2, when foreigners who were leaving Moscow for the holidays joined those who were working out individually. The final pre-game session took place this evening, when CSKA moved to the capital of Kazakhstan on a regular Aeroflot flight. By the way, this time the basketball players went back to the familiar court, in the center of the local velodrome - this is where the first game of the year will take place.

In the meeting with the league’s outsider, the coaching staff decided to go without three veterans. Tonye Jekiri, Nikita Kurbanov and Casper Ware remained in Moscow.

"We want to start the new year well, to play better and get back into shape faster than we did after the previous break," said CSKA head coach Andreas Pistiolis. "I hope everyone will take advantage of the chance they will be given."

A winless opponent

The Kazakhstani club is experiencing perhaps one of the most difficult seasons in its history. An unsuccessful start was compounded by legal inconsistencies with payments to foreign players, all of which was multiplied by a change of coach, and, as a result, Astana is at the bottom of the standings without a single win to its credit.

Formally, the best player in the current roster according to statistics is T.J. Starks (15.7 points, 4.3 assists), but he has not played for quite some time due to injury. Now Daniel Utomi (14.6 points) is the only Astana player with a double-digit scoring numbers. Three other foreigners also play leading roles: Grigory Motovilov (7.9 points, 3.3 assists), Galin Smith (6.9 points, 5.4 rebounds) and CSKA youth team graduate Danila Pokhodyaev (6.8 points, 5.1 rebounds). The graduates of Kazakhstani basketball, who receive significant playing time, have not yet made an equally significant contribution to the game.

Past matchups

Win-loss record: 30-0
Games of 2024-25 season:

02-Oct-2024. Astana – CSKA: 48-91 (+43)
16-Nov-2024. CSKA – Astana: 110-50 (+60)

Short dossier

BC Astana (Astana, Kazakhstan)
Founded: 2000
Colors: yellow, blue
Home courts: SC Velotrack/Saryarka (9,270), Zhekpe-zhek Martial Arts Palace (5,000)
CEO: Samson Arakelian
Head coach: Gleb Plotnikov
Website: pbcastana.kz
Trophy case: 11-time Kazakhstan champion (2012-15, 17-23), 11-time Kazakhstan Cup winner (2011-14, 17-21, 23, 24), FIBA Asian Champions Cup bronze winner (2017)