Here comes the Final Four! The excitement here is phenomenal, the preparation for the Final Four and all activities surrounding it is still at the highest level like it has always been. As you all know, this is my third trip to the Final Four, but it just as special as the first time and I am looking forward to it, just as the rest of the team is. We are all very excited and prepared, because we are going there on a mission. There is no sign of overconfidence in this CSKA team. Coach Messina really has insisted on this: We are going to Athens thinking that, first of all, we have to play a tough opponent in Unicaja. We know that the loss of Daniel Santiago and the fact that Tusek may not play may damage them, but they still have players that will step up for them. That makes them a little more dangerous, because Unicaja is a good team and the expectations of everybody are kind of worn away. There are a lot of people in the media that already picked us to go on to the final and that is what makes Unicaja a bit more dangerous.

Of course, Marcus Brown will be very motivated in this game. He has the opportunity to play against his old team, CSKA, the team he helped to make it to the Final Four twice. Definitely, this is a special game for him. Unicaja is a team with pride and with very good players. They know what championship basketball is all about, even if they don't have a lot of Final Four experience, I think, or at least not as much as our team. Like I said before, that's not the issue right now, as it all depends on who plays the best basketball in Athens. Our team does have a lot of Final Four experience. Aleksey Savrasenko is in his seventh... more

SWISH!

What's up? CSKA made the Final Four for the fifth consecutive time, which I believe is a record. It's great to be part of someting special like that and have the opportunity to go to another Final Four. This is my third Final Four in four years and it is always special to be there. I am used to playing basketball around this time of the year and being involved in Euroleague games. It is a great feeling, nonetheless it has become more like a normal feeling, something that I got used to. You always want to have that feeling at this time of the year. I have family and friends flying to Athens to see the games and enjoy the atmosphere, because this is something special you want to share with everybody every time you get it. Some of our players have never been to any Final Four, but even to those of us who have been there before, is always special, because you never know how many chances like this you can get in your career.

My first Final Four was in 2004 with Montepaschi Siena in Tel Aviv. The weather was really hot and our hotel was right on the beach. Everything looked calmed and relaxed in there but things were different on court. Everything surrounding the Final Four was exciting and wonderful. The fans in Tel Aviv were basketball crazy and I guess we can expect the same in... more

What's up Blog readers!!?? As a basketball fan, you gotta love this time of year! First of all, the winter weather starts to break, and the sun shines a little brighter...Also you have the "meat and potatoes" of the season! The time where every game means that much more, and teams fight for their seasons! one loose ball or rebound or missed free throw could mean the end of your season, while a made shot or defensive stop could save your team's dream! Fans scream and yell until their voices are gone, because they know this might be the last time they get to see their team play in the Euroleague this season. This is the time of the season I LOVE!! Players call it "CRUNCH TIME", or "MONEY TIME"!

Damn, I wish I wasn't injured!

On to the matter at hand! OK, OK, CSKA lost to Macabbi in Tel Aviv... I don't know if anyone was listening after we won the first game, but Coach Messina even said that people shouldn't write us into the Final Four so quickly just because we won by a lot in Moscow. He said they'd be even tougher at home, and that we should expect a fight. Macabbi has a very good team, with pride and heart, and they played like it at home! Their fans are incredible, and they showed why opposing teams have such a tough time in Tel Aviv. Some people say we were "surprised" in Tel... more

First of all, it's good to be in first place. We have been working hard the whole season to be in a position to have the opportunity to succeed and get to the Final Four. We have been able to do that, battling injuries, going through different type of things like expectations or pressure. We didn't feel like we had pressure, but it was there, since we are the defending champions and we want to be in the same situation to defend our title. Right now we are going into the next round as the group champions, we've got the home court advantage in the best-of-three playoff series and we feel we are in the best situation possible to try to get to the Final Four. This is one of the goals that we set to ourselves.

Honestly, until the media and the people started to talk about our 16-game winning streak, we didn't even know or pay attention of that. We just try to win games and reach the goals we had in the beginning of the season. We always wanted to go to the Final Four: this is what our focus has been, so we never thought about keeping this streak alive. We just try to go out there, play the best we can and try to win, and we have been fortunate to do that. It is kind of funny, you see some of these winning streaks in the NBA right now, with teams like the Dallas Mavericks or the Phoenix Suns. The... more