Gleb Plotnikov’s team wrapped up the VTB United League season in 12th place with 2 wins and 42 losses. Let’s be honest — it was an extremely challenging year for Astana. A coaching change, serious and prolonged injuries that left the rotation razor-thin, and an inability to sign new players during the season all significantly impacted the team’s final position on the table.
Yet, despite the difficulties, there were important positives.
Kazakhstan-born players had their long-awaited opportunity to prove themselves at the highest level. This season, Kazakh players logged a total of 3,944 minutes — up from 2,044 minutes in the 2023/2024 season, and a massive increase from 1,157 minutes during Astana’s most successful VTB season in 2018/2019 (6th place, 15-11 record).
Centre Askar Maidekin, now in his seventh VTB season, posted the best numbers of his career. This year alone, Askar scored 220 points — more than his combined total from all six previous seasons (129)! He also grabbed 100 rebounds and shot 77.4% from the free-throw line (89/115).
Team captain Rustam Murzagaliev finished second in scoring this season, logging 951 minutes, 202 points (51/182 from beyond the arc), 85 rebounds, 84 assists, and 22 steals. Beyond this season’s achievements, Murzagaliev set a historic mark: he now ranks first in total points scored by a Kazakh player in VTB United League history with 816 points — surpassing Anton Ponomarev (780 points) and Rustam Yergali (381 points).
Ruslan Aitkali rounded out the top three in team scoring among locals, playing 502 minutes and scoring 110 points with 51 rebounds. Alongside Vadim Shcherbak (587 minutes, 86 points, 59 rebounds), they consistently provided a strong spark off the bench. Reliable bench players? Absolutely!
The «Most Improved» title for the season confidently goes to Alexander Orazbekov. Stepping up in the absence of the injured Grigory Motovilov, Orazbekov often took on primary playmaking duties — and delivered. His season stats: 500 minutes, 85 points, and 91 assists. Highlight moment? In a November game against Loko, Alexander dished out 12 assists, setting an all-time VTB record for most assists by a Kazakh player.
Astana’s roster featured 10 Kazakh players this season, six of whom came from the youth development programme: Magzhan Sarsengaliyev, Vladislav Isayenko, Sardal Abashidze, Ilya Pestov, Valery Simonov, and Aset Amangeldinov. Before this year, they had only competed in Kazakhstan’s national league — but now, each of them has debuted and scored their first points in the VTB United League.
Imagine — one day you’re playing for the youth team, and the next you’re facing CSKA Moscow’s main squad! That’s exactly how Ilya Pestov’s VTB story began. In his debut against CSKA, Ilya didn’t shy away: in 11 minutes, he scored 4 points, made 3 steals, grabbed 1 rebound, and handed out 1 assist.
Another memorable debut came from Sardal Abashidze, who first appeared in the VTB on 4 December 2024. In just 9 minutes against UNICS, he scored 6 points and dished 4 assists.
Vladislav Isayenko joined the roster on 2 October 2024 for the game against CSKA and hit a three-pointer in his very first outing. His standout performance came in a December match against Uralmash, where he scored 10 points in 27 minutes.
Magzhan Sarsengaliyev took on the tough role of starting point guard at times this season and handled it impressively for a VTB rookie. In a November game against Pari NN, he scored 10 points in 21 minutes on the court.
