Sasha KAUN
#8

There’s a reason why Kaun’s game remains a work in progress despite his age.

He wasn’t much of a basketball player until high school, when he landed in the USA as a skinny exchange student, with education as his goal.

Kaun’s height got him a spot on a local team and his hard work soon resulted in a scholarship at Kansas.

2008 was a pivotal year for Kaun, when in a span of only a few weeks, he received his Computer Science diploma, won an NCAA title, got drafted in the NBA, signed with CSKA Moscow and nearly made the Team Russia roster – only being cut days before the Olympics.

A back injury held Kaun off the National Team last summer, but his increased role with CSKA proved him to be a valuable big man on both ends of the floor. “I just try to finish every play with a reliable shot, preferably with a dunk”, Kaun said of his game after yet another successful Euroleague game as CSKA’s starting center - adding that this approach makes team-mates trust him and keep on feeding him the ball.

Kaun quickly emerged as Russia’s best center and it’s no wonder the Cleveland Cavaliers - who hold his rights -plan to bring him over to the NBA.