The former Russian basketball player Serguei Babkov, twice runner-up of the World Cup with his national team and who played for several seasons at Unicaja Málaga and also landed at Joventut and in the German League, has died in his country suddenly at the age of 56, the Andalusian club said in a statement.
Babkov, played in Unicaja from 1994 to 1999, when he directed the team Javier Imbroda, playing in that period a total of 213 games with an average of 16.6 points and 38% in triples. In 1995 he was runner-up of the ACB League with Unicaja in that anthological final against Barcelona that needed five games to elucidate the champion.
The Russian player played in his country and in the German League before making the leap to Unicaja and concluding his journey in Spain in Joventut, to return from his new to the Russian League where he retired in 2001.He was international with Russia 32 games, achieving two world silver medals and a silver and a bronze in different European Championships.
Serguei Babkov was last May in Malaga witnessing one of the semifinal matches between Unicaja and Barça.Unicaja lamented the death on its social networks with a message: "Today we are in mourning. Sergei Babkov has died. A legend of the Club and a very dear person is leaving. From Unicaja Baloncesto we send a very strong hug to his family and friends. Rest in peace, Serguei."