‘My team said it was no big deal’: US basketballers on life in Ukraine and Russia
As is often the case in times of war, Jordan Swing and Troy Barnies struggled with who to believe at the start of February as Russian troops gathered on the border of Ukraine, where they both played professional basketball. On one hand, Joe Biden had urged American citizens to leave Ukraine within 48 hours. On the other hand, their teams had said they should stay where they were. Swing, a former standout at the University of Alabama-Birmingham, said his team went as far as threatening him with fines should he leave.
“My Ukrainian team [MBC Mykolaiv] initially told us not to worry,” Barnies recalls. “Our team’s management and teammates didn’t talk much about it. We were hearing reports that Russian troops were surrounding the country. But our team’s management, and some teammates, told us that it was no big deal. They said Russia is always bullying countries and Ukraine is one of them.”
Although Barnies and the other Americans at MBC Mykolaiv were never presented with a plan to ensure their safety, he decided to remain with the team and played one more game before receiving a call from his agent, who urged him to leave the country immediately, saying “you don’t have another day”.
Barnies bought a plane ticket out of Ukraine without collecting his final paycheck. Two days later, Russia invaded. And despite pushback from his team, Swing decided to walk away from his contract and flee Ukraine before the invasion, along with several other of his American teammates. “We got together and decided to get out of there, which was a tough decision because the team really wasn’t on our side,” Swing says.
Across the border in Russia, Adaora Elonu wasn’t in immediate physical danger but she was just as confused as Swing and Barnies. For American basketball players who were signed to
Russian teams, a lack of information coincided with the propaganda issued by the country’s media.
Elonu, a native of Houston who has represented Nigeria at international level, was playing for Nadezhda Orenburg. She says that team management wanted her to remain in Russia and “wait it out.” Her Russian teammates said little to nothing about the reports of an invasion, possibly fearing repercussions from the government.
“I tried to be mindful that my teammates couldn’t say too much,” Elonu says. “At the time, they really didn’t think that it was going to escalate. They were also feeling a lot of pressure from people that are not in Russia who are blaming them for something they have no control over. So they really didn’t say much or give me information.”
Following guidance from her agent, Elonu decided to get out of Russia on 1 March, two days after the US State Department told American citizens to leave the country immediately.
Elonu, Swing, and Barnies have stayed in contact with their former teammates who remain in Russia and Ukraine as the war continues. Barnies recently posted a video chat on Twitter with Oleksandr Tishchenko, MBC Mykolaiv’s captain. Explosions could be heard in the background as Tishchenko
provided Barnies with insight on how he’s coping as war tears through his country. Barnies also shared a photo of a MBC Mykolaiv team doctor who turned his bathroom into a makeshift shelter, his bathtub serving as his bed.
“I want to provide awareness,” Barnies says. “It’s emotional to see someone you know go through this. I’m posting to show exactly what my guys are dealing with. Their lives have changed completely.”
In Russia, Elonu’s former teammates are also facing repercussions. Sanctions have caused Russia’s currency, the ruble, to decrease significantly in value. And in an attempt to limit access to information from outside the country, the Russian government has severely limited foreign publications and social media.
“I spoke with a teammate a few days ago,” Elonu says. “She let me know that they have shut down most social media apps, except for WhatsApp. So for them to communicate, they have to purchase a VPN. They’re dealing with so much right now and facing a lot of restrictions.” Elonu is also concerned for WNBA star Brittney Griner, who played in Russia for UMMC Ekaterinburg before the invasion but was detained by authorities for allegedly possessing vape cartridges containing cannabis oil.
“When I first heard about the arrest, I was hoping that it wasn’t true,” Elonu says. “There wasn’t much information given at the time. But when it was confirmed, I was concerned because I knew that this was a big deal.”
Barnies, who has played in Russia as well as Ukraine, believes heightened political tension between the US and Vladimir Putin’s regime may have consequences for Griner.
“With Brittney’s situation, the timing couldn’t have been any worse,” Barnies says. “With so many people trying to leave Russia, I think they were checking people a little bit more than normal. Especially people with an American passport. I would hope that she wouldn’t be used as a political pawn, but I wouldn’t put anything past Putin.”
The future of professional basketball in Ukraine and Russia remains uncertain. But, despite the tumultuous conclusion to his playing days in Ukraine, Barnies would be open to returning to the country.
“I’d go back,” says Barnies, who recently signed with Pärnu Sadam of the PAF Estonian-Latvian League. “I made a lot of good friends there and I respect the team that I was on. Even if I didn’t sign with MBC Mykolaiv and I played for a different team. For sure, I would return.”