Basketball
A Russian athlete was unexpectedly released in Europe. Daniil saved from American prison
Daniil Kasatkin has already returned home. A real miracle!
Many young basketball players dream of going to the USA to play in the strongest league on the planet. Russian Daniil Kasatkin recently had a real chance of going to America, though not to join LeBron James and other basketball stars on the court.
Our athlete overseas was facing prison.
Fatal mistake
CSKA graduate Daniil Kasatkin managed to try his hand at the Dynamo and Khimki systems at the beginning of his career and even played briefly at the school and student level in the USA. But the basketball player achieved significant success already as part of the capital’s MBA, with whom he twice won Russian Cup medals. After another success in the 2024/25 season, the Russian athlete went on vacation to France with his fiancee. The voyage to the very heart of Europe was a fatal mistake.
On June 21, the Russian was detained at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. The French police acted at the request of the United States, and the Americans accused Kasatkin of cyber fraud. It is not entirely clear why a professional basketball player who played in the poorest league in the world would work for hackers. But the story, which for the time seemed like some kind of stupid joke, turned into a real drama for Daniel.
Not only his career was at stake, but also the fate of the Russian. In the USA, Kasatkin faced imprisonment for up to 25 years. And the likelihood that Daniel would go overseas increased with every week he spent in a French prison. The basketball player was initially denied bail, and at the end of October a Paris court decided to extradite the athlete to America.
“Welcome Home”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stood up for Daniil, but given Russia’s difficult relations with France and the United States, there was little faith in a positive outcome of this story. However, the non-public negotiations appear to have been successful. Immediately after Christmas, a real miracle happened.
“On January 8, 2026, basketball player Daniil Kasatkin, a citizen of the Russian Federation detained in France, who was subject to extradition to the United States of America, was returned to his homeland,” the FSB press service reported.
Kasatkin was exchanged for the French journalist Vinatier Laurent*, who, having earned the status of a foreign agent in Russia, was sentenced to three years in prison for evading the implementation of legislation on foreign agents; he was also accused of espionage.
Now the most important thing is that Daniil is free, and whether the 26-year-old athlete will be able to return to his previous level and continue his professional career is still a secondary question. Still, over the past few months he has not had decent conditions to keep in shape. However, the former team is already waiting for the basketball player.
— At Christmas, wishes tend to come true. Welcome home, Danya! We are waiting for you at training,” says the IBA-MAI press service in a statement.
* An individual performing the functions of a foreign agent in Russia
Source: Sportbox
I am a sports journalist who has been writing for a news website since 2015. My work primarily focuses on sports news, but I have also written about other topics such as technology and the arts. I have an extensive background in journalism, having worked as a reporter for a local newspaper before moving to a news website.
The Italian Basketball Federation (FIP) and the Serie A Basketball League (LBA) announced the club’s expulsion from the Italian championship. “Trapani Shark”.
According to the National Sports Judge, the team was expelled from the Italian league, also fined 600 thousand euros and its president Valerio Antonini was suspended from basketball for the next three months.
This decision was taken after two technical defeats against Virtus Bologna and Aquila Trento.
Trapani has experienced financial difficulties in recent months, resulting in most of the players leaving the club and the team suffering from a shortage of players to fill the full squad.
At the time of their elimination, the Sharks were 13th in Serie A with a 5-10 record and had reached the qualifying round of the Champions League.
Source: Sport UA
Ralph Bean is a writer for Sportish. Ralph has written about sports news for the last two years, and is currently an author on the site. He enjoys writing about sports, and hopes to cover more stories in the future.
Europa League reported NBAAccording to Eurohoops, legal action may be initiated in case of negotiations for a new project in Europe between the American league and the clubs that have signed an agreement with the Euroleague for the next ten years.
A letter was sent to the NBA last week and all EuroLeague clubs currently holding License A were notified.
It was also reported that a remote meeting will be held between Euroleague shareholder clubs on January 13, as they are the only shareholders who have not yet signed a new license for the next 10 years, and the main purpose of this will be for Real Madrid, Barcelona, Fenerbahçe and ASVEL to decide on the future.
On Friday, January 16, the deadline set by Euroleague shareholders ends to fully confirm the common future of the tournament. Therefore, answers may come within a few hours. However, we should also point out that, legally, according to existing contracts, clubs can sign their new licenses until June 30, 2026, so it is very difficult to predict anything.
Among the remaining Euroleague clubs, there is optimism that Barcelona and Fenerbahce will agree on a position with other shareholders and continue the agreement. At the same time, Real Madrid remains a mystery and ASVEL’s days in the Euroleague appear to be over.
Each case is expected to be handled individually, and in the case of ASVEL, no resistance is expected from the Euroleague if the club led by Tony Parker wants to withdraw from the tournament.
Meanwhile, the clubs that are currently participating in the Euroleague and do not have an A-license also sent a joint letter and requested their presence at the meetings regarding the future of the tournament. But most likely they will not participate in tomorrow’s negotiations.
Source: Sport UA
I am a sports journalist who has written for various websites and magazines. I currently work as an author at Sportish, a news website that covers sports news. My main focus is writing about soccer, rugby and other sports in the world.
A new date has been determined for the match between. “Miami” And “Chicago”The match was planned to be held on January 8, but was postponed due to the moisture in the ground making the field unplayable.
The NBA said Miami’s game scheduled to be played in Chicago on Thursday will be played on January 29. In addition, the Bulls-Heat matches, which were planned to be played in Miami on January 30 and February 1, will now be played on January 31 and February 1.
Chicago and Miami will begin a four-game series in five days later this month to make up for last week’s game being canceled due to slippery ground.
This also means the Bulls and Heat will play three consecutive games against each other.
Chicago will play Indiana on January 28 before a rescheduled home game against Miami. The Heat will host Orlando on January 28 and begin a three-game series against the Bulls the following night.
Source: Sport UA
Ralph Bean is a writer for Sportish. Ralph has written about sports news for the last two years, and is currently an author on the site. He enjoys writing about sports, and hopes to cover more stories in the future.
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