Start Lublin, officially Polski Cukier Pszczółka Start Lublin for sponsporship reasons, is a Polish basketball club based in Lublin. The team plays in the Polish Basketball League (PLK) since 2014.[1] Its home arena is the Globus, which has places for 5,000 people. The basketball team is a part of MKS Start Lublin, which also holds chess and athletics sections.

Polski Cukier Pszczółka Start Lublin
Polski Cukier Pszczółka Start Lublin logo
LeaguesPLK
ENBL
Founded1953; 71 years ago (1953)
ArenaGlobus
Capacity5,000
LocationLublin, Poland
PresidentArkadiusz Pelczar
Head coachWojciech Kamiński
Team captainFilip Put
Websitewww.startlublin.pl

History

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MKS Start Lublin was founded in 1953, along with the basketball team. After seven years of existence, Start promoted to the Polish Basketball League (PLK), the national highest league. In the 1964–65 season, Start captured its first bronze medal. In 1978, Start was the first Polish club to sign an African-American played in Kent Washington. Washington was named PLK Most Valuable Player in 1980.

In the 2002–03 season, Start returned to the PLK after winning the First Division. After two years, the team relegated once again.

In the summer of 2014, Start Lublin received a wild card from the PLK because of the expansion from 12 to 16 teams.

Lublin had its most successful season in the 2019–20 PLK season, which was curtailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. When the season was ended, the team was in second place with a 17–5 record. As such, it qualified for a European competition for the first time in the 2020–21 Basketball Champions League.[2]

Honours

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Polish Basketball League

  •   Runners-up (1): 2019–20
  •   Bronze medal (3): 1964–65, 1978–79, 1979–80
Polish Basketball Cup

Sponsorship names

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Due to sponsorship reasons, the club has been known by several names:

  • Start Jadar (1992–93)
  • Start Instal (1993–96)
  • Start Faelbud (1996–98)
  • Gala Start (1998–99)
  • AICE Start (2000–01)
  • Start Lublin (2002–2005)
  • Start AZS Lublin (2005–2008)
  • Start Lublin (2008–2009)
  • Olimp Start Lublin (2009–2011)
  • Start Lublin (2011–2012)
  • Wikana Start S.A. Lublin (2012–2015)
  • TBV Start Lublin (2015–2019)
  • Pszczółka Start Lublin (2020)
  • Polski Cukier Pszczółka Start Lublin (2021–present)

Season by season

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The Globus, home arena of Start Lublin
Season Tier League Pos. Polish Cup European competitions
2006–07 2 I liga 10th
2007–08 2 I liga 16th
2008–09 3 2 Liga 1st
2009–10 2 I liga 9th
2010–11 2 I liga 12th
2011–12 2 I liga 12th
2012–13 2 I liga 8th
2013–14 2 I liga 4th[a]
2014–15 1 PLK 14th
2015–16 1 PLK 17th
2016–17 1 PLK 15th
2017–18 1 PLK 9th Quarterfinalist
2018–19 1 PLK 10th
2019–20 1 PLK 2nd[b]
2020–21 1 PLK 6th 2 Champions League RS
2021–22 1 PLK 12th Runners–up
2022–23 1 PLK 13th Runners–up R ENBL SF3rd
2023–24 1 PLK 9th Quarterfinalist R ENBL RS
  1. ^ Lublin received a wild card to play in the PLK, due to the expansion of the league.
  2. ^ The 2019–20 PLK season was cancelled prematurely because of the COVID-19 pandemic in Poland.

Players

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Current roster

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Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

Polski Cukier Pszczółka Start Lublin roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name Ht.
SF 0   Krasuski, Michał 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 24 – (2000-05-21)21 May 2000
PG 3   Ramey, Courtney 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 25 – (1999-10-02)2 October 1999
C 6   De Lattibeaudiere, Tyran 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 33 – (1991-01-25)25 January 1991
G 7   Pelczar, Bartłomiej 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 24 – (2000-02-05)5 February 2000
SG 8   Kępka, Wiktor 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) 21 – (2003-04-05)5 April 2003
G/F 9   Karolak, Jakub 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 31 – (1993-09-26)26 September 1993
SG 10   Brown, Tevin 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 26 – (1998-09-23)23 September 1998
SF 15   Williams, C. J. 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 34 – (1990-02-06)6 February 1990
C 19   Szymański, Roman 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) 33 – (1991-04-09)9 April 1991
PG 20   Lecomte, Manu 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 29 – (1995-08-16)16 August 1995
PF 21   Put, Filip (C) 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 31 – (1993-04-08)8 April 1993
C 23   Drame, Ousmane 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) 31 – (1993-12-15)15 December 1993
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
  •   Michał Sikora

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  •   Injured

Updated: December 2, 2024

Individual awards

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PLK Most Valuable Player

Notable players

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References

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  1. ^ Eurobasket.com profile
  2. ^ "Strongest BCL lineup to date ahead of season 5". Basketball Champions League. 3 July 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2020.