Mountaineers carry an international flavor
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MORGANTOWN -- While the game of basketball may have its roots in a YMCA gymnasium in Springfield, Mass., the brainchild of Dr. James Naismith, the sport of basketball has taken root all across the globe and, on Saturday night, when West Virginia returns to action at 6:30 p.m. in the Basketball Hall of Fame Classic against UMass it does so with a team that provides evidence of just how international the sport has become.
That is an evening that may be a turning point in the Mountaineers basketball season as Kris Kriisa, a native of Tartu, Estonia, comes off his nine-game suspension for admittedly accepting unapproved benefits while playing at Arizona.
Kriisa's skills are unquestioned and should make a huge difference in the play of the Mountaineers.
At Arizona, Kriisa was a fan favorite, his headband a trademark and he would be almost as likely to blow the fans a kiss at home than to blow by a defender.
Azuolas Tubelis, a Lithuanian who played with Kriisa at Arizona last year and against him in international play, described him this way last year to Tucson.com"
"He always had this energy on the court, so it was really hard to play against him. His team was always energetic, and every time he makes a play, he celebrates. So that's like a positive thing It's really good to have that kind of play on the team because it brings a lot."
And Kriisa isn't going to be intimidated in the Big 12. He's played against the best … not just in college play, but in international play.
It doesn't matter who the opponent is, he'll be chirping at him the whole time.
Take his meeting with NBA all-star Luka Doncic when Estonia played Slovenia in a FIBA World Cup qualifying game in August 2022.
"Estonia was leading late in the first quarter, 23-18, when Kerr Kriisa started talking trash to Doncic," Basketball News reported. "Soon after, Doncic led Slovenia on a 17-0 run, giving them a 35-23 lead."
Among other things, Basketnews.com reported that Kriisa waved his finger at Doncic when the Slovenian star tried to argue a foul call. The website said Kriisa said later "it was pretty easy to get into his head."
It is stuff like that -- along with his ability to work magic with the basketball -- that is sure to make a quick favorite with the student section and the home crowds.
But Kriisa is just part of the international array of talent WVU brings to Massachusetts.
Think of it this way, if first-year head coach Josh Eilert would opt to, he could present a starting lineup of five foreign-born players with Kriisa, Jesse Edwards of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Akok Akok, a native of Cairo, Egypt; walk-on Ali Ragab, also originally from Egypt, and Israel-born Ofri Naveh.
And, there will come a time during the game when Eilert will take a peek down his bench at his assistants and see DerMarr Johnson, whose post-NBA career took him to China, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Columbia, Lebanon, the Philippines, Argentina, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic; former Mountaineer Alex Ruoff, whose professional career saw him play in Belgium, Finland, Germany, Spain and Japan, while former WVU great Da'Sean Butler adds professional experience playing in Europe and Asia.
It makes for a locker room filled with far more than uniforms and sneakers. It is a locker room filled with tales of adventure from around the world and with diversity in upbringing, food, music … all of it wrapped like a Christmas gift for all of them in the guise of a basketball player.
Early on, as they were coming together, before they knew of Kriisa's suspension; before they had a "final" decision on RaeQuan Battle's eligibility, which currently remains in limbo as the case goes to court under a challenge of the transfer rule from seven states' attorney generals, the players talked about the melting pot that is this Mountaineer team.
"Yeah, it's fun, because everybody has different cultures, different backgrounds," Edwards admitted. "Everybody has a different background and you have to come together."
Edwards transferred to WVU after four years playing for Jim Boeheim at Syracuse and has been the dominant scorer and rebounder they thought they would have when he came because didn't have much adjusting to do.
"I'm used to it, because I'm international myself," Edwards said. "For the American guys, it might be something new, seeing all these dudes with different ideas and accents."
Edwards has shed any form of accent he may have had.
And having been in London, The Netherlands and the U.S., let's just say he has a versatile palate when it comes to food.
"My dad is from London, so he's all about tea and cookies," Edwards said. "I got everything except his (British) accent. I love tea and cookies. I got his tastes. I love pudding and all of that weird stuff."
Kriisa, who also has spent a good bit of time on U.S. soil -- or hardwood arena floors, if you prefer -- has his own favorite dishes from Estonia.
"Nothing beats my grandmother's soup," he said. "Soup, and she makes the best meatballs, too, with some great potatoes."
If he missed anything when he first got to Arizona, that was it.
When he spoke about it, Kriisa had not yet been introduced to West Virginia pepperoni rolls, but his time in Arizona had introduced him to something that he probably never dreamed he'd be eating before leaving Estonia, which is located across the Baltic Sea from Finland.
"I had never eaten Mexican food until I got to Tucson, and the next thing you know, all you had to eat was Mexican food," Kriisa said. "I was in the bathroom pretty often; my stomach couldn't take it. I had a good three years in Tucson, but I'm taking a break from Mexican food."
And Naveh, who was recruited by Butler through his Israeli connections, is young and not nearly as physically developed as others
"I need to add 20 to 25 more pounds," Naveh said. "Right now, I'm 6-6, 180, so I'm working with coach (Shaun) Brown every day. He's making sure I eat the right stuff, I eat enough and I've gained 16 pounds in three months over here.
"The weight lifting is new to me. We did core and mobility exercises every day at home with a strength coach."