BC Dinamo Tbilisi

BC Dinamo Tbilisi
Leagues Georgian Super Liga
Founded 1934
Arena Tbilisi Sports Palace
(capacity: 10,000)
Location Tbilisi, Georgia
Team colors Blue and White
         
Head coach Georgia (country) Irakli Khoshtaria
Championships 4 Georgian Championships
4 USSR Championships
1 Euroleague
Website http://bcdinamo.ge/
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BC Dinamo Tbilisi (Georgian: საკალათბურთო კლუბი ,,დინამო’’) is a professional basketball club based in Tbilisi, that plays in the Georgian Superliga. It is one of the oldest and most successful basketball clubs of Georgia and the former USSR, having won numerous national titles and the 1962 FIBA European Champions Cup. The club's traditional colours are blue and white, but for sponsorship reasons, they currently play in orange and white strips (colours of Bank of Georgia).

History

BC Dinamo was established in 1934 as the basketball division of the Dynamo Sports Society. During the 1950s and the 1960s, it was one of the leading teams of the USSR. During this period, the club won the Soviet League championships 4 times, the Soviet Cup 3 times, and finished in medal positions (top 3) of the league championship a further 8 times.

In 1960, Dinamo reached the final of the FIBA European Champions Cup (the predecessor of the current Euroleague), where they were defeated by ASK Riga in 2 games. 2 years later, they once again reached the final of this competition, and on that occasion, they were crowned as Europe's best team by defeating Real Madrid in a one-off game in Geneva. The club's coach at that time was the legendary Otar Korkia, who had earlier starred for the club as a player, and was voted as one of FIBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1991. Dinamo also reached the final of the Saporta Cup (FIBA's second-tier level competition) in 1969, where they were defeated by Slavia Prague.

Dinamo became the very first winners of the independent Georgian championships in 1991. In total, they have won 4 Superliga titles, and one Georgian cup. Failure to attract major sponsorship saw the club struggle for a long spell in the 2000s. However, Bank of Georgia became the club patrons in 2011, which allowed the squad to be strengthened with foreign imports, and more ambitious targets to be established for the future. The success finally materialised in the 2013/14 season, with Dinamo making their first appearance in the play-off finals for over a decade, and winning the title in a convincing manner.

Honours

USSR

Georgia

Europe

Current roster

BC Dinamo Tbilisi roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. Age
4 United States Karim, Lamar 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) 80 kg (176 lb)
5 Georgia (country) Lezhava, Ioseb 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 79 kg (174 lb)
6 Georgia (country) Chikviladze, Beka 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 74 kg (163 lb)
7 Georgia (country) Liluashvili, Zezva 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 70 kg (154 lb)
9 Georgia (country) Chochia, Aleksandre 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)
10 Georgia (country) Kobaidze, Koba
11 Georgia (country) Ioseliani, Davit 2.07 m (6 ft 9 in) 92 kg (203 lb)
12 Georgia (country) Niniashvili, Tornike 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) 95 kg (209 lb)
13 Georgia (country) Keidia, Irakli 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 95 kg (209 lb)
20 Georgia (country) Ormotsadze, Giorgi 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in)
23 Georgia (country) Gelazonia, Shota 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 75 kg (165 lb)
32 Serbia Oluic, Milan 2.10 m (6 ft 11 in) 103 kg (227 lb)
33 United States Clayman, Flynn 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 95 kg (209 lb)
Head coach
  • Georgia (country) Irakli Khoshtaria
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Injured

External links