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Estonia men's national basketball team

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This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Estonia women's national basketball team.

The Estonia men's national basketball team (Estonian: Eesti korvpallikoondis) represents Estonia in international basketball matches. They are controlled by the Estonian Basketball Association. The team competed in their first international tournament at the 1936 Olympic Games. Estonia has also qualified for the EuroBasket six times overall, with their best results coming in 1937 and 1939. However, after 1939, Estonia halted national team activities due to the occupation of the Baltic states during World War II. Estonia would later rejoin FIBA in 1991, after regaining independence from the Soviet Union.

Estonia
FIBA ranking43 Increase 1 (26 November 2024)[1]
Joined FIBA1934
1991
FIBA zoneFIBA Europe
National federationEstonian Basketball Association
CoachHeiko Rannula
Olympic Games
Appearances1
MedalsNone
FIBA World Cup
AppearancesNone
EuroBasket
Appearances6
MedalsNone
First international
 Latvia 20–16 Estonia 
(Riga, Latvia; 29 April 1924)
Biggest win
 Estonia 91–1 Finland 
(Kaunas, Lithuania; 25 May 1939)
Biggest defeat
 Yugoslavia 113–58 Estonia 
(Antalya, Turkey; 1 September 2001)

History

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Early years (1920s–1930s)

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Estonia played their first ever international match against their Baltic neighbors Latvia, on 29 April 1924, a 20–16 defeat in Riga. Ten years later, on 30 November 1934, Estonia would become a member of FIBA. Two years after that, the national team played in their first international tournament at the 1936 Olympic Games, held in Berlin. It was the first Olympic tournament to hold basketball as an official medal event. Led by head coach Herbert Niiler, Estonia played their opening match of the tournament against France, where the team came away with a 34–29 win.[2] The national team lost their subsequent second round game to the United States 28–52, but passed the consolation round and faced the Philippines in the third round, losing 22–39.

 
Game between Estonia and Lithuania at EuroBasket 1937.

Estonia participated at the European Basketball Championship for the first time in 1937. The team won its first game against Egypt 44–15, but failed to advance past the group stage after suffering a 15–20 defeat against Lithuania, and a 20–30 defeat against Italy. Estonia would finish out the rest of the tournament to place fifth in the final rankings, after defeating Czechoslovakia 30–20 and Latvia 41–19.[3]

Two years later at the EuroBasket 1939, the tournament used a different format from the previous championship, with eight teams facing off in a round-robin competition. Estonia would finish the tournament with a (4–3) record and once again finished in fifth place at the event. Heino Veskila was the tournament's scoring leader averaging 16.7 points per game.[2][4]

In 1940, Estonia was occupied by the Soviet Union and the team was disbanded.

National team restored (1990s)

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After the restoration of independence, the Estonian Basketball Association rejoined FIBA in 1991. Estonia qualified for EuroBasket 1993, held in Germany. Despite missing star players Martin Müürsepp and Tiit Sokk, the team, coached by Jaak Salumets won their group in the preliminary round, finishing ahead of Slovenia, Belgium, and hosts and eventual champions Germany. In the second round, Estonia finished third in their group and advanced to the quarter-finals, where the team lost to Russia 61–82 to be eliminated. In the classification rounds, Estonia defeated Bosnia and Herzegovina 99–91 and lost to Spain 80–119, finishing the championship in sixth place with a (6–5) record.[2] Aivar Kuusmaa was the team's scoring leader with 19.9 points per game.[5]

2000s–2010s

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Gregor Arbet, Kristjan Kangur and Janar Talts led the national team during the 2010s.

Estonia once again qualified for the EuroBasket, after failing to qualify for the tournament on three occasions after 1993. The team went (7–3) during the qualification period to reach EuroBasket 2001, held in Turkey. Coached by Üllar Kerde, Estonia lost all three of their preliminary round matches against Germany, FR Yugoslavia and Croatia, failing to advance past the group stage and finishing the championship with a disappointing (0–3) record and a 14th place finish. Martin Müürsepp led the team in scoring with 18.3 points per game, while Margus Metstak collected 6.0 rebounds per game, and Rauno Pehka and Tanel Tein averaged 2.7 assists per game.[6] After 2001, Estonia failed to qualify for another major international basketball tournament for 14 years. Although the team competed at the second tier Division B competition in 2011, winning their group.

 
Tiit Sokk coached Estonia from 2004 to 2007 and from 2009 to 2019.

Coached by Tiit Sokk, Estonia qualified for EuroBasket 2015, with preliminary round matches held in Riga, Latvia. Estonia's first two performances were poor as the team suffered heavy defeats in matches against Czech Republic 57–80 and Belgium 55–84. However, the team bounced back with a 78–71 victory over Ukraine, their first EuroBasket victory since 1993.[7] The next game saw Estonia defeated in a close game by Lithuania 62–64. In their final group phase match, Estonia were up against Latvia, which resulted in a 64–75 loss and failing to advance to the knockout stage.[8] Estonia finished the championship in 20th place with a (1–4) record. Gregor Arbet was the team's scoring leader at 11.6 points per game, while Siim-Sander Vene averaged 6.4 rebounds and Sten Sokk contributed 4.2 assists per game.

In qualification for EuroBasket 2017, Estonia won their first two games against, Belarus, and Portugal to put the team at a record of (2–0). However, Estonia would drop three of their final four matches to eliminate the team from qualifying.[9]

After missing their opportunity to reach EuroBasket 2017, Estonia turned their focus toward qualifying for the 2019 FIBA World Cup. The team first went through European Pre-Qualifiers, where they accumulated a (3–1) record during the process, to advance.[10] Entering the first round of European Qualifiers, Estonia would split their first four matches for a record of (2–2), before losing their final two games to Great Britain and Greece respectively. Although by defeating Great Britain in their first match of the qualifiers between the two, it proved enough for Estonia to move on to the second and final phase of European qualifiers. There, the team lost their first four games of the round, before managing to salvage their final two matches before being eliminated.[11] In October 2019, the Estonian Basketball Association named Jukka Toijala as the new head coach of the national team.

2020s

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Estonia competed in the EuroBasket 2022 with group phase games played in Milan, Italy. The team started the tournament with a 62–83 loss to the hosts, followed by two narrow defeats against Ukraine (73–74) and Croatia (70–73). Estonia then won 94–62 against Great Britain before losing to Greece 69–90. The team failed to advance to the round of 16 and finished the tournament in 19th place.[12] Maik-Kalev Kotsar averaged the team-best 12.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, while Kerr Kriisa led the team with 5.8 assists per game.

Competitive record

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Results and fixtures

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See also: Estonia men's national basketball team results (2020–present)

  Win   Loss

2024

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23 February 2024 North Macedonia   69–74   Estonia Skopje, North Macedonia
19:00 (UTC+1) Scoring by quarter: 20–19, 23–17, 10–21, 16–17
Pts: Dimitrijević 25
Rebs: Happ 10
Asts: Dimitrijević, Happ 3 		Boxscore Pts: Kotsar, Vene 16
Rebs: Rosenthal 6
Asts: Jõesaar 5 		Arena: SRC Kale
Attendance: 2,000
Referees: Kerem Baki (TUR), Ventsislav Velikov (BUL), Orhan Çağrı Hekimoğlu (TUR)
26 February 2024 Estonia   65–59   Lithuania Tallinn, Estonia
19:00 (UTC+2) Scoring by quarter: 17–18, 24–19, 9–13, 15–9
Pts: Jõesaar 18
Rebs: Kotsar 13
Asts: Kullamäe 9 		Boxscore Pts: Ulanovas 16
Rebs: Tubelis 7
Asts: Dimša, Tubelis 3 		Arena: Unibet Arena
Attendance: 6,471
Referees: Sergii Zashchuk (UKR), Franko Gracin (CRO), Ivor Matějek (CZE)
21 November 2024 Poland   78–82   Estonia Włocławek, Poland
18:00 (UTC+1) Scoring by quarter: 18–19, 22–19, 13–19, 25–25
Pts: Ponitka 23
Rebs: Balcerowski 9
Asts: Sokołowski 7 		Boxscore Pts: Tass 19
Rebs: Kullamäe 6
Asts: Kullamäe 11 		Arena: Hala Mistrzów
Attendance: 3,435
Referees: Paulo Marques (POR), Aleksandar Glišić (SRB), Viola Györgyi (NOR)
24 November 2024 Estonia   86–88   Poland Tallinn, Estonia
18:00 (UTC+2) Scoring by quarter: 25–22, 17–18, 21–22, 23–26
Pts: Kullamäe 21
Rebs: Tass 12
Asts: Kullamäe 6 		Boxscore Pts: Michalak 29
Rebs: Ponitka 8
Asts: Ponitka 3 		Arena: Unibet Arena
Attendance: 6,679
Referees: Martin Horozov (BUL), Sergii Zashchuk (UKR), Ilias Kounelles (CYP)

2025

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21 February 2025 Estonia   vs.   North Macedonia Estonia
Boxscore
24 February 2025 Lithuania   vs.   Estonia Lithuania
Boxscore

Team

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Current roster

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Roster for the EuroBasket 2025 Qualifiers matches on 21 and 24 November 2024 against Poland.[13]

Estonia men's national basketball team roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr.
PF 3 Kaspar Treier 25 – (1999-09-19)19 September 1999 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Napoli Basket  
SG 7 Mikk Jurkatamm 24 – (2000-09-18)18 September 2000 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) Fel Des Avellino  
C 9 Matthias Tass 25 – (1999-03-23)23 March 1999 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) Filou Oostende  
SF 10 Hugo Toom 22 – (2002-10-25)25 October 2002 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) BC Kalev/Cramo  
PF 11 Siim-Sander Vene (C) 34 – (1990-11-12)12 November 1990 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Stal Ostrów Wielkopolski  
PF 13 Kregor Hermet 27 – (1997-06-09)9 June 1997 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) BC Kalev/Cramo  
PF 14 Taavi Jurkatamm 27 – (1997-10-10)10 October 1997 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in) TalTech/ALEXELA  
PG 18 Kasper Suurorg 22 – (2002-05-27)27 May 2002 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) BC Kalev/Cramo  
SG 21 Janari Jõesaar 30 – (1993-12-08)8 December 1993 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Dziki Warszawa  
SG 25 Joonas Riismaa 22 – (2002-03-06)6 March 2002 1.99 m (6 ft 6 in) Pallacanestro Cantù  
SF 34 Artur Konontšuk 24 – (2000-05-09)9 May 2000 2.02 m (6 ft 8 in) EWE Baskets Oldenburg  
PG 77 Kristian Kullamäe 25 – (1999-05-25)25 May 1999 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) Surne Bilbao Basket  
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • Club – describes last
    club before the competition
  • Age – describes age
    on 20 November 2024

Depth chart

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Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2 Bench 3
C Maik-Kalev Kotsar Matthias Tass Henri Veesaar Rauno Nurger
PF Siim-Sander Vene Kaspar Treier Kregor Hermet Mihkel Kirves
SF Henri Drell Sander Raieste Artur Konontšuk Hugo Toom
SG Janari Jõesaar Joonas Riismaa Mikk Jurkatamm Leemet Böckler
PG Kristian Kullamäe Kerr Kriisa Märt Rosenthal Kasper Suurorg

Recent call-ups

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Current notable players who have played for the national team:

Players previously called up roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr.
SF 0 Henri Drell 24 – (2000-04-25)25 April 2000 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) Rip City Remix  
SG 1 Märt Rosenthal 25 – (1999-03-15)15 March 1999 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Stal Ostrów Wielkopolski  
SG 2 Sander Raieste 25 – (1999-03-31)31 March 1999 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Baskonia  
PF 8 Mihkel Kirves 27 – (1996-12-06)6 December 1996 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) CBet Jonava  
PF 19 Henri Veesaar 20 – (2004-03-28)28 March 2004 2.13 m (7 ft 0 in) Arizona Wildcats  
PG 44 Kerr Kriisa 23 – (2001-01-02)2 January 2001 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) Kentucky Wildcats  
Legend
  • Age – describes age
    on 20 November 2024
  • Club – describes last
    club

Coaches

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Coach Period Competition Result
  Herbert Niiler 1929–1940 1936 Olympic Games 9th
1937 EuroBasket 5th
1939 EuroBasket 5th
  Jaanus Levkoi 1991–1992
  Jaak Salumets 1993–1997 1993 EuroBasket 6th
  Maarten van Gent 1997–1999
  Üllar Kerde 1999–2001 2001 EuroBasket 14th
  Heino Enden 2001–2004
  Tiit Sokk 2004–2007
  Üllar Kerde 2007–2009
  Tiit Sokk 2009–2019 2015 EuroBasket 20th
  Jukka Toijala 2019–2024 2022 EuroBasket 19th
  Heiko Rannula 2024–

Past rosters

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1936 Olympic Games: finished 9th among 23 teams

3 Erich Altosaar, 4 Artur Amon, 5 Aleksander Illi, 6 Vladimir Kärk, 8 Robert Keres, 9 Evald Mahl, 10 Aleksander Margiste, 11 Bernhard Nooni, 12 Leonid Saar, 13 Heino Veskila, 14 Georg Vinogradov (Coach: Herbert Niiler)

1937 EuroBasket: finished 5th among 8 teams

3 Oskar Erikson, 4 Aleksander Illi, 5 Vladimir Kärk, 6 Robert Keres, 7 Evald Mahl, 8 Albert Suurna, 9 Heino Veskila, 10 Ralf Viksten, 11 Alfred Zimmermann (Coach: Herbert Niiler)

1939 EuroBasket: finished 5th among 8 teams

3 Valdeko Valdmäe, 4 Oskar Erikson, 5 Herbert Tillemann, 6 Ralf Viksten, 7 Georg Vinogradov, 8 Artur Amon, 9 Hans Juurup, 10 Erich Altosaar, 11 Heino Veskila, 13 Evald Mahl (Coach: Herbert Niiler)

1993 EuroBasket: finished 6th among 16 teams

4 Toomas Kandimaa, 5 Aivar Kuusmaa, 6 Erki Kivinukk, 7 Ivo Saksakulm, 8 Margus Metstak, 9 Andrus Nagel, 10 Indrek Rumma, 11 Sergei Babenko, 12 Marek Noormets, 13 Aleksandr Karavajev, 14 Gert Kullamäe, 15 Rauno Pehka (Coach: Jaak Salumets)

2001 EuroBasket: finished 14th among 16 teams

4 Tanel Tein, 5 Indrek Varblane, 6 Toomas Kandimaa, 7 Valmo Kriisa, 8 Margus Metstak, 9 Andre Pärn, 10 Indrek Rumma, 11 Tarmo Kikerpill, 12 Marek Noormets, 13 Martin Müürsepp, 14 Toomas Liivak, 15 Rauno Pehka (Coach: Üllar Kerde)

2015 EuroBasket: finished 20th among 24 teams

4 Rain Veideman, 5 Tanel Sokk, 6 Gert Dorbek, 7 Sten Sokk, 8 Janar Talts, 9 Gregor Arbet, 10 Erik Keedus, 11 Siim-Sander Vene, 13 Joosep Toome, 14 Kristjan Kangur, 15 Reinar Hallik, 20 Tanel Kurbas (Coach: Tiit Sokk)

2022 EuroBasket: finished 19th among 24 teams

0 Henri Drell, 2 Sander Raieste, 7 Sten Sokk, 9 Matthias Tass, 11 Siim-Sander Vene, 15 Maik-Kalev Kotsar, 20 Rauno Nurger, 21 Janari Jõesaar, 22 Martin Dorbek, 33 Kristjan Kitsing, 44 Kerr Kriisa, 77 Kristian Kullamäe (Coach: Jukka Toijala)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "FIBA Ranking Presented by Nike". FIBA. 26 November 2024. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
  2. ^ a b c "Eesti korvpall 95" [Estonian basketball 95] (in Estonian). Estonian Basketball Association. 3 June 2010.
  3. ^ "Estonia - EuroBasket 1937 tournament results". fibaeurope.com. 7 May 1937.
  4. ^ "Season 1939". FIBA Europe. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  5. ^ "Season 1993". FIBA Europe. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  6. ^ "Season 2001". FIBA Europe. Retrieved 18 July 2015.
  7. ^ "Estonia revel in historic success". eurobasket2015.org. Archived from the original on 11 September 2015. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  8. ^ "Latvia battle back to punch Last 16 ticket". eurobasket2015.org. Archived from the original on 14 September 2015. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
  9. ^ "Estonia during the EuroBasket 2017 Qualifiers". Retrieved 17 September 2016.
  10. ^ "Estonia during the 2019 FIBA World Cup European Pre-Qualifiers". Retrieved 19 August 2017.
  11. ^ "Estonia during the 2019 FIBA World Cup European Qualifiers". Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  12. ^ "Estonia at the EuroBasket 2022". Retrieved 8 September 2022.
  13. ^ "Estonia". Retrieved 21 November 2024.
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