Ainars Bagatskis couldn't hold back tears during a post-match press conference following Ukraine's victory over Slovakia in the World Cup pre-qualification match. The head coach of the Ukrainian national basketball team delivered an emotional speech after his squad secured an 80-71 win in their nominally home game held in Riga.
"Seriously... I lived and worked in Ukraine. We played basketball at the national team level, participated in EuroLeague, competed in EuroCup. We filled the arena, had many spectators, and honestly, I would say—I wish we could return sooner. Because for these guys... Sorry for the emotions...," Bagatskis said, struggling to find words.
The Latvian coach didn't mince words when discussing Ukrainian NBA players who declined to join the national team. He contrasted their absence with the dedication shown by the current squad.
"These guys give everything completely: they come to the national team, train, sweat, fight. Others... scumbags... don't come," Bagatskis stated bluntly.
Bagatskis finished his emotional address by applauding the team, calling the match winners "real fighters" and thanking them for their dedication.
Interestingly, before the qualification began, Bagatskis and his coaching staff had expected the arrival of Ukraine's NBA talents—Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk, Dmytro Skapintsev, and Oleksiy Len—which would have significantly strengthened the roster. However, none of them made it to the national team's training camp.
For context, Bagatskis has an impressive coaching resume. He began coaching in 2005 while still playing for "Barons" before ending his playing career with "Zalgiris." Since then, he's worked with various clubs including "Valmiera," "Yenisey Krasnoyarsk," Georgian "Sukhumi," and Ukrainian clubs "Kryvbasbasket" and "Budivelnyk," with whom he won two Ukrainian championships.
He also led "Nizhny Novgorod" in EuroLeague, served as David Blatt's assistant at "Darussafaka," and headed Tel Aviv's "Maccabi" and German "Brose." Since July 2019, Bagatskis has been the head coach of "Kyiv-Basket" and Ukraine's national team.
Can Ukraine build on this emotional victory as they continue their World Cup qualification journey? Only time will tell.
