Timofey Mozgov Was so in the Zone, He Answered a Reporter's Question in Russian

Not enough can be said about the power of “the zone”—that weird Bermuda Triangle of the mind that athletes fall into before and during games.

Once inside the zone, it’s difficult to leave, which brings us to Timofey Mozgov’s pregame interview prior to the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 117-92 throttling of the Brooklyn Nets at home on Wednesday night.

The 7’1” Russian center joined Cavaliers sideline reporter Allie Clifton for some brief words about the team returning to Quicken Loans Arena after a lengthy stretch on the road. Busted Coverage's James Lumalu (h/t Reddit) spotted video of the interview. Mozgov, locked in as he was, answered Clifton's first question entirely in his native tongue.

Clifton nodded and smiled through Mozgov's answer.

“Nothing better than the best fans in the NBA,” Clifton said. 

It wasn’t until he began answering the next question in English that Mozgov realized he had been speaking Russian.

“We just have to be working and...oh, what?” Mozgov said, laughing.

The big man clapped a hand over his face and, after a lengthy blush, continued the interview.

Credit both for handling the moment well—Clifton for her seamless reaction to a curveball, and Mozgov for his adorable reaction. The reporter later called the moment a brief lesson in “Russian 101.” 

Streamable

Mozgov’s language study with Clifton was just the first of several lessons the center dished out on the evening. He would go on to dump 17 points in 17 minutes on the Nets, shooting a ridiculous 87.5 percent from the floor on seven of eight shots. Mozgov was in a zone, where every ball drops in and questions get answered in whatever language happens to fall out of his mouth.

A note for American reporters: When Timofey starts speaking Russian, just nod your head and smile. It’s not a prank. He’s just in Mozgawd Mode.

Dan is on Twitter. He took a Russian foreign-policy class in college and still thinks the Cold War was mostly a disagreement over the triangle offense.