Georgy Zhbanov: "I wanted to play in one team with Dmitry Kulagin"

Zenit forward Georgy Zhbanov spoke about his intresting summer, medical examinations and testing ahead of the start of preseason training camp, as well as the challenges he is facing in the upcoming season.

— Georgy, the first team preseason training camp is just around the corner. How did the medical examination and additional testing go?

— The medical examination went as usual, nothing new there. But these movement tests were definitely something new. We are introducing some of the latest technologies. We’ll see whether they help us or not.

— Are you happy to see your teammates again?

— There aren’t many players left from the previous roster, but I’m very happy to see those who stayed. And I’m incredibly happy about the new signings. In particular, Dmitry Kulagin. I wanted to play on the same team as him, and I think it will be interesting, to say the least.

— This summer, you organized the Friends Game in your hometown of Yekaterinburg. Tell us about this basketball celebration for the kids.

— It was a game between two schools where I trained. I started out in Yekaterinburg and then spent a year and a half in Polevskoy. I’m on good terms with the people running both schools, as well as the coaches, and I decided to organize this kind of celebration for the younger generation — to come there myself, watch the game and give them some attention. I think everything went pretty well, maybe a seven out of ten. It can always be better, so we’ll think about what we can improve next year, and there will definitely be something new next summer.

— You shared moments from your individual offseason training on social media, including sessions with Alexander Mrykhin, Zenit U19 strength and conditioning coach. How did you end up spending part of the summer training camp together?

— Let’s not forget about Sergey Marikhin, my basketball skills coach, though! Sasha Mrykhyn and I have known of each other for a very long time, probably since 2015. We studied at the same Olympic Reserve School in Moscow: he was there for athletics, while I was there for basketball. When I saw that he had signed with Zenit, we had a warm conversation and greeted each other.

In the summer, when I got injured, I started my recovery with the doctors at Zenit FC rehabilitation center, and Sasha was in contact with the doctor. I thought it was a great combination of the coach and the doctor working together to help me recover as quickly and effectively as possible, so we continued working together. I went to Nizhny Novgorod and brought Sasha and Seryoga with me. We continued working there under close supervision and stayed in touch with the doctor.

— What emotions are you entering the new season with? Do you have any personal goals or challenges you’ve set for yourself?

— Personal goals are definitely secondary. I’d probably like to win the Best defensive player award for the second year in a row. As for other individual awards, we’ll see how things go. Overall, I’m very excited to start working with a EuroLeague-level coach like Duško Ivanović. And not just a EuroLeague coach, but someone with such extensive experience. When I worked with Xavi Pascual, I could feel his level and see the touch of a master. So I hope that with Duško we can take another step forward and avoid repeating the mistakes we made in the past.