Sergei BYKOV
#6 | Guard

Last season, Dynamo Moscow often resembled an NBA team in terms of tactics, where a superstar always had the ball and racked up big numbers in points and assists – think of Dwyane Wade in Miami.

Hit by a financial crisis, Dynamo had to get rid of all the foreign players and become an all-Russian team by necessity.

The extra responsibility was assigned to combo-guard Dmitry Bykov, who responded by becoming one of the leading scorers in the league.

Big-time scoring is a rare feat for a Russian player on a top-tier team (and Dynamo has won the ULEB Cup title and played in Euroleague just a couple years ago).

Ironically, it was Bykov’s defense that earned him a spot on a star-studded team at the time.

Doing his job and learning new tricks along the way, he was progressing as a scorer on the top level and when the opportunity came, he was ready.

After a productive season like that, CSKA Moscow brought Bykov over this summer to help the team in another Euroleague title run.

Fans should hope that his added confidence will translate into much-needed points for the national team.