PBC CSKA Moscow (Russian: ПБК ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian professional basketball team based in Moscow, Russia. The club is a member of the VTB United League, and was a member of the EuroLeague. On February 28, 2022, EuroLeague Basketball suspended all Russian teams because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
CSKA won two titles between 2006 and 2008, as well as between 2016 and 2019, in Europe's principal club competition, the EuroLeague, making the final in all seasons these years, and in total has advanced to the EuroLeague Final Four 18 times in the 21st century. CSKA is dominating in VTB United League, winning all but three titles to date. With 8 EuroLeague championships, 1 NEBL championship, 53 home league championships, 7 home cups, 2 home Supercups and 12 VTB United League titles in total, CSKA is the most successful basketball team in Russia (former Soviet Union), and is also one of the most successful basketball teams in Europe.
In EuroLeague in 2006 CSKA won its first title in a long time, defeating Maccabi Tel Aviv 73–69 in the final in Prague. Next year the team lost in the 2007 final 93–91 to Panathinaikos on the Greens' home floor, the Nikos Galis Olympic Indoor Hall in Athens. In 2008, they won a rematch of the 2006 final against Maccabi Tel Aviv 91–77 in Madrid. In 2009, they lost a rematch of the 2007 final against Panathinaikos 73–71 in Berlin. The club competed in eight consecutive EuroLeague Final Fours from 2003 to 2010, which is an all-time record. Later the team beat its own record by making it to nine consecutive Final Fours from 2012 to 2021 (with 2020 Final Four cancelled due to COVID-19 situation). CSKA then won its seventh title in 2016, after beating Fenerbahçe in the final by a score of 101–96 in overtime. The last European title up-to-date was won in 2019, when CSKA defeated Anadolu Efes in the final in Vitoria-Gasteiz.
Well-known players who have played for the club over the years include: Sergei Belov, Gennadi Volnov, Viktor Zubkov, Yuri Korneev, Vladimir Andreev, Anatoly Myshkin, Stanislav Yeryomin, Ivan Edeshko, Armenak Alachachian, Alzhan Zharmukhamedov, Heino Enden, Jaak Lipso, Sergei Tarakanov, Rimas Kurtinaitis, Vladimir Tkachenko, Sergei Bazarevich, Sasha Volkov, Andrei Kirilenko, Trajan Langdon, Darius Songaila, Gordan Giriček, Dragan Tarlać, Marcus Brown, Matjaž Smodiš, Sergei Panov, Aleksey Savrasenko, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Theo Papaloukas, Nenad Krstić, J. R. Holden, Sasha Kaun, Miloš Teodosić, Victor Khryapa, Nando de Colo, Kyle Hines, Cory Higgins, Sergio Rodriguez and Will Clyburn. Also, Alexander Gomelsky, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame basketball coach, worked in CSKA for more than 20 years. Nowadays, CSKA has the reputation for being one of the richest sports clubs in Europe, having been previously owned by Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, and being currently owned by Norilsk Nickel.
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