BC Kalev/Cramo

Kalev/Cramo
Leagues	Korvpalli Meistriliiga VTB United League Baltic Basketball League
Founded	1998
History	Canon ENM (1998–1999) Ehitustööriist (1999–2005) BC Kalev/Cramo (2005–present)
Arena	Saku Suurhall
Capacity	7,200
Location	Tallinn, Estonia
Team colors	Blue, White
President	Ivar Valdmaa
Head coach	Alar Varrak
Championships	8 Estonian Championships 5 Estonian Cups
Website	www.bckalev.ee
Uniforms
Home Away

BC Kalev/Cramo is a professional basketball club based in Tallinn, Estonia. They play in the Korvpalli Meistriliiga (KML) and in the regional VTB United League. Their home arena is the Saku Suurhall.

Kalev/Cramo have won 8 Estonian Championships and 5 Estonian Cups.

History

Early years (1998–2005)

Founded in 1998, the club started out as Canon ENM. Coached by Allan Dorbek the team joined top-tier Korvpalli Meistriliiga (KML) for the 1998–99 season. The club's first season was a disappointment, as the team finished in last place without winning a single game. In 1999, the team was renamed Ehitustööriist. The team's results improved slowly as Ehitustööriist finished the league in 7th place for four consecutive seasons. In 2003, the club merged with Audentes and became Ehitustööriist/Audentes, while the former Estonia national basketball team coach Maarten van Gent was hired as head coach. The team finished the 2003–04 season in 5th place. After the season, Ehitustööriist/Audentes dissolved and both clubs continued separately.^[1]

In 2004, Ehitustööriist moved to the new 7,200-seat Saku Suurhall. The team finished the 2004–05 regular season with a 12–4 record and dominant in the playoffs. In the KML Finals, they faced TÜ/Rock. Ehitustööriist won the series and the team's first Estonian Championship 4 games to 3. Howard Frier was named Most Valuable Player of the season.^[1] The team also competed in the regional Baltic Basketball League for the first time, finishing in 7th place with a 8–10 record.

BC Kalev/Cramo (2005–present)

Coming off their first Estonian Championship, Ehitustööriist leased the trademark "Kalev" from AS Kalev and became BC Kalev/Cramo.^[1][2] Allan Dorbek was replaced as head coach by former Estonia national team shooting guard Aivar Kuusmaa for the 2005–06 season. On 2 October 2005, the team won their first Estonian Cup, defeating TÜ/Rock 70–64 in the final. Kalev/Cramo also made their debut in Europe, entering the 2005–06 season of the FIBA EuroCup but failed to advance past the group stage with just one victory in 6 games.^[3] In the KML, Kalev/Cramo finished the regular season in first place with a 21–3 record and reached the finals in the playoffs. Led by Rait Keerles and James Williams, the team defended their title, defeating TÜ/Rock 4 games to 3, winning the deciding seventh game 69–68. Williams was named KML Finals MVP and Kuusmaa won the Coach of the Year award. Despite that, Kuusmaa was replaced by Veselin Matić for the 2006–07 season.

Valmo Kriisa (left), and Kristjan Kangur (right) have both been named Estonian Player of the Year while playing for Kalev/Cramo.

The team won their second Estonian Cup in 2006, but was unable to defend the title. Kalev/Cramo reached the finals but lost the series 2–4 to TÜ/Rock. Despite losing in the finals, Valmo Kriisa won the Estonian Player of the Year award, while Travis Reed was named KML and BBL MVP and Matić won the Coach of the Year award.^[1] Kalev/Cramo saw limited success in Europe, reaching the second round in the 2006–07 FIBA EuroCup and competing in the European second tier 2007–08 ULEB Cup, but a record of 3–7 wasn't enough to advance past the group stage. The team won another Estonian Cup in 2007 and reached the KML Finals in the 2007–08 season, but were swept by TÜ/Rock.

In 2008, New Zealand national basketball team coach Nenad Vučinić replaced Matić as head coach. Kalev/Cramo won their fourth consecutive Estonian Cup in 2008. The team finished the 2008–09 regular season in second place. In the semifinals, Kalev/Cramo easily dispatched TTÜ in three games to reach the KML Finals. In the Finals, the team defeated TÜ/Rock 4 games to 2 and captured their third title. Forward Kristjan Kangur was named the KML Finals MVP and the Estonian Player of the Year. In 2009, the team joined the newly established VTB United League.^[1] In December 2009, Vučinić left Kalev/Cramo. The team struggled in the 2009–10 season and finished the regular season in fourth place with a 19–9 record under the former assistant coach Alar Varrak. The team lost in the semifinals to TÜ/Rock but won the bronze medals in the third place games, winning the series in two games against TTÜ.

Gregor Arbet has been named to the All-KML Team a record 5 times, 4 while playing for Kalev/Cramo.

In July 2010, Aivar Kuusmaa returned to Kalev/Cramo. Led by Gregor Arbet and Armands Šķēle, the team finished the 2010–11 regular season in first place. In the playoffs, Kalev/Cramo swept Rakvere Tarvas in the semifinals 3–0 and TÜ/Rock in the finals 4–0. Šķēle was named Finals MVP and Kuusmaa won his second Coach of the Year award. Led by star players Gregor Arbet, Bamba Fall and Tanel Sokk, Kalev/Cramo defended their title in the 2011–12 season, defeating Tartu Ülikool in the KML Finals in a four-game sweep. Sokk was named Finals MVP and Kuusmaa once again won the Coach of the Year award.^[1]

Kalev/Cramo struggled early in the 2012–13 season and after a 69–95 defeat to Rakvere Tarvas on 22 November 2012, Kuusmaa was sacked, with assistant coach Alar Varrak taking over the coaching reins.^[4] Despite the poor start, Kalev/Cramo finished the regular season in first place and swept the playoffs. Kalev/Cramo won 6th Estonian Championship as Tanel Sokk claimed his second straight KML Finals MVP award. Alar Varrak was named Coach of the Year. The team also placed third in the 2012–13 Baltic Basketball League. With star players Gregor Arbet and Frank Elegar and the additions of Vlad Moldoveanu and Rain Veideman, the team's success continued in the 2013–14 season. Kalev/Cramo once again finished the regular season in first place and was undefeated in the playoffs. Kalev/Cramo won their fourth consecutive Estonian Championship, while Moldoveanu was named KML Finals MVP and Varrak won his second Coach of the Year award. The team finished the 2014–15 regular season in second place. Kalev/Cramo swept TTÜ in the quarterfinals and Rapla in the semifinals. In the Finals, Kalev/Cramo once again faced TÜ/Rock, but lost the series 1–4. On 20 December 2015, Kalev/Cramo won their fifth Estonian Cup, defeating TÜ/Rock 73–55 in the final. Kalev/Cramo finished the 2015–16 season regular season in first place and undefeated. The team extended their winning streak in the quarter- and semifinals. In the KML Finals, the team faced TÜ/Rock and won the series 4 games to 1, the single loss being the team's only defeat in the season. Rolands Freimanis was named Finals MVP.^[5][6]

Sponsorship naming

Kalev/Cramo has had several denominations through the years due to its sponsorship. In 2005, the team leased the trademark "Kalev" from AS Kalev and became BC Kalev/Cramo.^[1]

• Canon ENM: 1998–1999
• Ehitustööriist: 1999–2001
• Ehitustööriist/Kalev: 2001–2003
• Ehitustööriist/Audentes: 2003–2004
• Ehitustööriist: 2004–2005
• BC Kalev/Cramo: 2005–present

Home arenas

Saku Suurhall is the home arena of Kalev/Cramo since 2004.

• Kalev Sports Hall (1998–2002)
• Valtu Sports Hall (2002–2003)
• Audentes Sports Center (2003–2004)
• Saku Suurhall (2004–present)

Players

Current roster

Kalev/Cramo roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. Age PG 5 Sokk, Sten 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) 80 kg (176 lb) 27 – 14 February 1989 SG 6 Veideman, Rain 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) 90 kg (198 lb) 25 – 1 October 1991 PF 9 Tass, Matthias 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 99 kg (218 lb) 17 – 23 March 1999 SG 10 Liutych, Vitali 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 88 kg (194 lb) 24 – 9 May 1992 PG 11 Dorbek, Martin 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) 85 kg (187 lb) 25 – 21 January 1991 C 12 Simmons, Cedric 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) 107 kg (236 lb) 30 – 3 January 1986 SF 13 Arbet, Gregor (C) 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 90 kg (198 lb) 33 – 19 June 1983 PG 15 Gavrilov, Aleksandr 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 88 kg (194 lb) 20 – 10 April 1996 SG 22 Harper, Demonte 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) 88 kg (194 lb) 27 – 21 June 1989 PF 23 Tollefsen, Mark 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) 90 kg (198 lb) 24 – 21 November 1992 SG 25 Jurno, Silver 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 80 kg (176 lb) 20 – 13 April 1996 SF 31 Keedus, Erik 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 92 kg (203 lb) 26 – 27 April 1990 C 32 Gladness, Mickell 2.11 m (6 ft 11 in) 104 kg (229 lb) 30 – 26 July 1986	Head coach Alar Varrak Assistant coach(es) Martin Müürsepp Indrek Reinbok Legend (C) Team captain Injured Roster Updated: 1 December 2016

Depth Chart

Pos.	Starting 5	Bench 1	Bench 2	Bench 3
C	Mickell Gladness	Cedric Simmons
PF	Mark Tollefsen	Erik Keedus	Matthias Tass
SF	Gregor Arbet	Vitali Liutych
SG	Demonte Harper	Rain Veideman	Silver Jurno
PG	Sten Sokk	Martin Dorbek	Aleksandr Gavrilov

In

• Matthias Tass (from CSP Limoges)
• Vitali Liutych (from Tsmoki-Minsk)
• Aleksandr Gavrilov (on loan from CSKA Moscow)
• Mickell Gladness (from San Lorenzo de Almagro)
• Demonte Harper (from Czarni Słupsk)
• Mark Tollefsen (from Arizona Wildcats)
• Cedric Simmons (from Maccabi Tel Aviv )

Out

• Mario Delaš (to Orlandina Basket)
• Sten Olmre (to TTÜ)
• Janar Soo (to Tartu)
• Rolands Freimanis (to Uşak Sportif)
• Shawn King (to Gravelines-Dunkerque)
• Sharaud Curry
• Robert Upshaw

Coaches

Allan Dorbek 1998–2003 Maarten van Gent 2003–2004 Allan Dorbek 2004–2005

Aivar Kuusmaa 2005–2006 Veselin Matić 2006–2008 Nenad Vučinić 2008–2009

Alar Varrak 2010 Aivar Kuusmaa 2010–2012 Alar Varrak 2012–present

Season by season

Season	Tier	Division	Pos.	Postseason	RS	PO	Estonian Cup	VTB United League			Baltic Basketball League			European competitions
1998–99	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	6	–	0–25	–	N/A	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
1999–00	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	7	–	2–28	–	N/A	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
2000–01	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	7	–	10–25	–	N/A	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
2001–02	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	7	–	3–27	–	N/A	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
2002–03	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	7	–	14–25	–	Quarterfinalist	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
2003–04	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	5	–	15–27	–	Semifinalist	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
2004–05	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	2	Champion	14–4	9–3	Quarterfinalist	–	–	–	Baltic Basketball League	7th	8–10	–	–	–
2005–06	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	1	Champion	21–3	7–3	Champion	–	–	–	Baltic Basketball League	9th	15–17	3 EuroCup	RS	1–5
2006–07	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	2	Runner-up	31–5	7–4	Champion	–	–	–	Baltic Basketball League	QF	17–13	3 EuroCup	T16	2–8
2007–08	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	2	Runner-up	33–3	5–4	Champion	–	–	–	Baltic Basketball League	QF	8–14	2 ULEB Cup	RS	3–7
2008–09	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	2	Champion	23–5	7–2	Champion	–	–	–	Baltic Basketball League	QF	13–8	3 EuroChallenge	RS	2–4
2009–10	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	4	Third place	19–9	6–4	Runner-up	VTB United League	RS	0–6	Baltic Basketball League	7th	7–11	–	–	–
2010–11	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	1	Champion	29–3	7–0	Third place	VTB United League	RS	1–9	Baltic Basketball League	9th	12–10	–	–	–
2011–12	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	2	Champion	23–5	7–0	Runner-up	VTB United League	RS	2–14	Baltic Basketball League	QF	13–10	–	–	–
2012–13	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	1	Champion	28–4	10–0	Third place	VTB United League	RS	3–15	Baltic Basketball League	3rd	14–6	–	–	–
2013–14	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	2	Champion	29–2	10–0	Runner-up	VTB United League	RS	2–16	–	–	–	2 Eurocup	RS	3–7
2014–15	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	2	Runner-up	26–6	7–4	Third place	VTB United League	9th	13–17	Baltic Basketball League	T16	8–4	–	–	–
2015–16	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	1	Champion	32–0	10–1	Champion	VTB United League	14th	8–22	–	–	–	3 Europe Cup	RS	0–6
2016–17	1	Korvpalli Meistriliiga	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	VTB United League	N/A	N/A	Baltic Basketball League	N/A	N/A	–	–	–

Trophies and awards

Trophies

Estonian Championship

• Winners (8): 2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2015–16
• Runners-up (3): 2006–07, 2007–08, 2014–15

Estonian Cup

• Winners (5): 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2015
• Runners-up (3): 2009, 2011, 2013

Individual awards

Estonian Player of the Year Valmo Kriisa – 2007 Kristjan Kangur – 2009 KML MVP Howard Frier – 2005 Travis Reed – 2007 KML Finals MVP Tanel Sokk – 2012, 2013 James Williams – 2006 Kristjan Kangur – 2009 Armands Šķēle – 2011 Vlad Moldoveanu – 2014 Rolands Freimanis – 2016 KML Best Defender Bamba Fall – 2012 Gregor Arbet – 2014 KML Coach of the Year Aivar Kuusmaa – 2006, 2011, 2012 Alar Varrak – 2013, 2014, 2016 Allan Dorbek – 2005 Veselin Matić – 2007 Nenad Vučinić – 2009 BBL MVP Travis Reed – 2007

All-KML Team Gregor Arbet – 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016 Kristjan Kangur – 2007, 2008 Tanel Sokk – 2012, 2013 Frank Elegar – 2013, 2014 Howard Frier – 2005 Víctor González – 2005 Rait Keerles – 2006 Valmo Kriisa – 2007 Travis Reed – 2007 Charron Fisher – 2010 Armands Šķēle – 2011 Bamba Fall – 2013 Rain Veideman – 2014 Scott Machado – 2015 Shawn King – 2016 Sten Sokk – 2016

References

1. "Klubist" (in Estonian). BC Kalev.
2. "Kalev on surnud? Elagu Kalev!" (in Estonian). Delfi. 30 June 2005.
3. "BC Kalev trash PAOK for first victory.". FIBA Europe. 29 November 2005.
4. "AMETLIK: Kalev/Cramo lõpetas Kuusmaaga koostöö, peatreenerina jätkab Varrak" (in Estonian). Delfi. 24 November 2012.
5. "Kalev/Cramo kindlustas meistritiitli koguni 27-punktise võiduga!" (in Estonian). Delfi. 27 May 2016.
6. "Kalev/Cramo purustas Tartu Rocki ja tuli Eesti meistriks" (in Estonian). Postimees. 27 May 2016.

External links

• Official website