Timofey Mozgov

Timofey Pavlovich Mozgov (Russian: Тимофей Павлович Мозгов, IPA: [tʲɪmɐˈfʲej mɐˈzɡof], born July 16, 1986) is a Russian professional basketball player for Khimki of the VTB United League and the EuroLeague. Mozgov won an NBA championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016, becoming one of the first Russians to do so, alongside Sasha Kaun. As a member of the Russian national team, he won the bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics, as well as a bronze medal at EuroBasket 2011. Mozgov signed with the Lakers in 2016 before being traded to the Nets in the 2017 offseason. In the 2018 offseason, he was traded to the Magic before returning to Khimki in 2019.

Timofey Mozgov
Mozgov in 2011
Free agent
PositionCenter
Personal information
Born (1986-07-16) July 16, 1986
Leningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
NationalityRussian
Listed height7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)
Listed weight275 lb (125 kg)
Career information
NBA draft2008 / Undrafted
Playing career2004–present
Career history
2004–2006LenVo St. Petersburg
2006CSK VVS Samara
2006–2010Khimki
2010–2011New York Knicks
20112015Denver Nuggets
2011Khimki
20152016Cleveland Cavaliers
2016–2017Los Angeles Lakers
2017–2018Brooklyn Nets
2019–2020Khimki
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Professional career

European career

Mozgov began his professional career with LenVo St. Petersburg, in the Russian second-tier division, during the 2004–05 season. In 2006, he moved to CSK VVS Samara 2, the second-level club from Samara. Before the 2006–07 season, he joined Khimki Moscow Region, where he played through the 2009–10 season.

New York Knicks (2010–2011)

Mozgov as a member of the Knicks

In 2010, Mozgov signed a three-year, $9.7 million contract with the New York Knicks.[1]

On January 30, 2011, after a three-week stint on the bench, Mozgov finally saw significant minutes against the Detroit Pistons. He had a career game, scoring 23 points and grabbing 14 rebounds to lead New York to a 124–106 victory. He played 40 minutes and was treated to loud chants of "Mozgov! Mozgov!" in the final minute.[2]

Denver Nuggets (2011–2015)

Mozgov in a game as a member of the Denver Nuggets

On February 22, 2011, Mozgov was traded to the Nuggets in a three-way blockbuster deal, which also involved the Minnesota Timberwolves that brought Carmelo Anthony to New York.[3]

On July 21, 2011, he joined Khimki Moscow Region for the second time[4] during the 2011 NBA lockout.[5]

On July 27, 2013, Mozgov re-signed with the Nuggets.[6]

On April 10, 2014, he recorded career highs in points and rebounds with 23 and 29, respectively, in a 100–99 win over the Golden State Warriors.[7]

Cleveland Cavaliers (2015–2016)

On January 7, 2015, Mozgov was traded, along with a 2015 second-round pick, to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for two protected 2015 first-round picks (via Oklahoma City and Memphis).[8] Having always previously worn number 25, he was forced to change that upon joining the Cavaliers due to the franchise having the number retired for Mark Price. He instead chose number 20 as it was the number his father, a Soviet handball player, used while he played the sport.[9] On January 9, he made his debut for the Cavaliers, recording nine points and eight rebounds off the bench in a 112–94 loss to Golden State.[10]

On June 4, 2015, he became the first Russian to play in the NBA Finals, as the Cavaliers lost Game 1 of the series to the Warriors.[11] The Cavaliers went on to lose the series in six games; Mozgov started all six.[12]

On June 23, 2015, Cleveland exercised its option on Mozgov's contract for the 2015–16 season.[13] He played a reduced role throughout the season, as the Cavaliers made it to the 2016 NBA Finals, where they defeated the Warriors in a rematch. Mozgov and teammate Sasha Kaun became the first Russians to win an NBA title.[14]

Los Angeles Lakers (2016–2017)

On July 8, 2016, Mozgov signed a four-year, $64 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers.[15][16] The Lakers received "league-wide criticism" for the size of Mozgov's contract.[17] The contract has been described as "huge",[18][19] "dreadful",[20] and "indefensible".[21]

Mozgov made his debut for the Lakers in their season opener on October 26, 2016, recording 12 points and eight rebounds in a 120–114 win over the Houston Rockets.[22] On March 14, 2017, the Lakers shut down a healthy Mozgov for the rest of the season to give the majority of playing time over the final 15 games to the team's younger players.[23][24]

Brooklyn Nets (2017–2018)

On June 22, 2017, Mozgov was traded, along with D'Angelo Russell, to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Brook Lopez and the rights to Kyle Kuzma, the 27th pick in the 2017 NBA draft.[25]

Orlando Magic (2018–2019)

On July 6, 2018, Mozgov was traded, along with the draft rights to Hamidou Diallo, a 2021 second-round draft pick, and cash considerations, to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Dwight Howard.[26] A day later, he was traded again, this time to the Orlando Magic in a three-team deal.[27]

On July 6, 2019, Mozgov was waived by the Magic without having played a game, due to a knee injury.[28] On November 28, 2019, the NBA approved the Magic's petition to have Mozgov's salary removed from their books due to the knee injury. [29]

Khimki (2019–present)

On July 31, 2019, Mozgov signed a one-year deal to return to his home country and play once again for Khimki of the VTB United League and the EuroLeague.[30]

National team career

Mozgov playing for the Russian national team

Mozgov has also been a member of the senior Russian national basketball team. He played at EuroBasket 2009, EuroBasket 2011, and the 2012 Summer Olympics, winning bronze medals at the latter two.[31]

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
   Won an NBA championship

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2010–11 New York 341413.5.464.000.7053.1.4.4.74.0
2010–11 Denver 1106.0.524.000.7501.5.0.1.22.5
2011–12 Denver 443515.6.526.000.6844.1.5.31.05.4
2012–13 Denver 4118.9.506.000.7692.6.2.1.42.6
2013–14 Denver 823021.6.523.167.7546.4.8.31.29.4
2014–15 Denver 353525.6.504.333.7337.8.5.41.28.5
2014–15 Cleveland 464525.0.590.000.7086.9.8.41.210.6
2015–16 Cleveland 764817.4.565.143.7164.4.4.3.86.3
2016–17 L.A. Lakers 545220.4.515.000.8084.9.8.3.67.4
2017–18 Brooklyn 311311.6.559.222.7673.2.4.2.44.2
Career 45427318.0.535.190.7384.9.6.3.86.8

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2012 Denver 7514.1.480.000.5003.3.4.3.94.0
2015 Cleveland 202026.5.500.000.7907.3.7.41.810.6
2016 Cleveland 1305.8.400.000.7501.6.2.2.21.2
Career 402517.6.489.000.7634.8.5.31.16.4

See also

References

  1. Berman, Marc (July 11, 2010). "Knicks spy Russian". New York Post. Retrieved February 7, 2011.
  2. Beck, Howard (January 30, 2011). "Timofey Mozgov Comes Off Bench to Lead Knicks". The New York Times. Retrieved February 7, 2011.
  3. "Nuggets acquire five players, three picks in three-team trade". NBA.com. February 22, 2011. Retrieved March 19, 2013.
  4. "Khimki brings back Mozgov, adds Quinn". EuroLeague.net. July 21, 2011. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
  5. Report: Mozgov to sign with Russian team Archived October 16, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Denver Nuggets Re-Sign Center Timofey Mozgov". Denver Nuggets.
  7. "Notebook: Nuggets 100, Warriors 99". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. April 10, 2014. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
  8. "Cavs Acquire Timofey Mozgov". NBA.com. January 7, 2015. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  9. Fedor, Chris (January 10, 2015). "With No. 25 retired, Cleveland Cavaliers center Timofey Mozgov will wear No. 20". cleveland.com.
  10. "Cavaliers at Warriors". NBA.com.
  11. "Cavaliers at Warriors". NBA.com.
  12. Exner, Rich (June 16, 2015). "Cleveland Cavaliers plus-6 with Timofey Mozgov in NBA Finals; minus 41 vs. Golden State Warriors without him". cleveland.com.
  13. "Cavaliers Exercise 2015-16 Option on Center Timofey Mozgov". Cleveland Cavaliers.
  14. https://www.rbth.com/sport/2016/06/20/russian-players-win-nba-title-for-first-time_604679
  15. "Lakers Sign Timofey Mozgov". Los Angeles Lakers.
  16. "Source: Lakers, Mozgov agree on 4 years, $64M". ESPN.com. July 1, 2016.
  17. "Lakers' Luol Deng, Timofey Mozgov mindful of criticism about their play, contracts". March 6, 2017.
  18. Wells, Adam. "Lakers Rumors: Timofey Mozgov Reportedly Shut Down to Give Young Players Minutes". Bleacher Report.
  19. "Lakers Acquire Brook Lopez For Russell, Mozgov". Hoops Rumors.
  20. Jun 30, Christopher Lavinio/FanSided via Hoops Habit Fansided; ET, 2017 at 10:28p (June 28, 2017). "Timofey Mozgov: The good, the bad and the ugly". FOX Sports.
  21. Buckley, Zach. "The 5 Worst NBA Contracts from the Last 5 Years". Bleacher Report.
  22. "Young Lakers roar past Rockets 120-114 to win Walton's debut". ESPN.com. October 26, 2016. Retrieved October 27, 2016.
  23. "Lakers shut down healthy Timofey Mozgov for remainder of season". ESPN.com. March 14, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  24. Shelburne, Ramona (March 15, 2017). "Sources: Healthy Luol Deng, Timofey Mozgov agree to sit out rest of Lakers' season". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  25. "BROOKLYN NETS ACQUIRE D'ANGELO RUSSELL AND TIMOFEY MOZGOV FROM L.A. LAKERS". NBA.com. June 22, 2017. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
  26. "Hornets Acquire Mozgov, Two Second-Round Draft Picks From Nets". NBA.com. July 6, 2018. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
  27. Denton, John (July 8, 2018). "Magic Acquire Jerian Grant and Timofey Mozgov in Three-Team Trade". NBA.com. Retrieved July 8, 2018. ...the Orlando Magic acquired point guard Jerian Grant and reserve center Timofey Mozgov on Saturday night.
  28. "The Orlando Magic have waived center Timofey Mozgov, President of Basketball Operations Jeff Weltman announced today. Mozgov did not play in any games with Orlando last season due to a knee injury". Orlando Magic PR on Twitter. July 6, 2019. Retrieved July 6, 2019.
  29. https://www.slamonline.com/nba/magic-granted-salary-cap-relief-for-timofey-mozgov/
  30. "Khimki, center Mozgov reunite". EuroLeague.net. July 31, 2019. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  31. "Timofey Mozgov Bio, Stats, and Results". Olympics at Sports-Reference.com. Archived from the original on April 17, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
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