ak bars

my 'professional' basketball team had it's second game with coach conover at the helm this afternoon. we played one of the lower level teams in our league and came out with a fairly easy 102-62 victory. the team has really taken to the new offense that i have taught them and they are really playing well. moving without the ball... setting screens... taking the best, open shot. things aren't going so well on the other side of the ball. our defense is porous at best. my guys don't help out. they don't rebound well (and we are a pretty tall team). and they don't put forth much effort. i tried the old "chuck hayes" inspiration speech but it didn't translate too well into russian i think.

either way. next saturday we play our rivals (and the number one team in the league) tulpar. the coach i replaced mid-season was fired after having lost to tulpar. so there is no pressure there!

on a side note - friday night i met with the team's owner and the league's vice president to talk about my contract. they offered to pay me $1000 a month to coach the team. but they are deducting money for the three day time practices and two weight lifting sessions that i miss when i am working at the school. so that knocks the amount down to $300 a month. doesn't sound like much but when you think about that the average monthly salary of a local here is around $350 a month - i can't complain. the owner of my team is self proclaimed russian mafia and i thought for that i was going to be offered girls, drugs and cigarettes in lieu of cash payment. maybe i will hold out for that on my next contract. i am suppose to receive the official contract and my first pay (for the past two months) at the end of next week. at which point i will be an official member of the russian basketball federation and a professional basketball coach.

i love central asia!