Rasim Başak

Rasim Başak — Biography

Rasim Başak is a power forward who won the Turkish Basketball League title three times with Fenerbahçe, in 2007, 2008 and 2010, and was noted for his rebounding. Born in Baku as Ruslan Avleev to a Russian mother and an Azerbaijani father, he holds both Turkish and Azerbaijani citizenship and played for both national teams. He is a retired player.

His career began at Oyak Renault, with whom he won the Turkish youth championship in 1998. From 2003 to 2010 he played for Fenerbahçe: although his minutes were limited, he stood out on the boards, reached a European Final Four in 2005, and won the President's Cup in 2007 and the Turkish Cup in 2010. He then wore the colours of Türk Telekom (2010-11) and Antalya Metropolitan Municipality (2011-12), and in 2012 joined Trabzonspor, helping the club win the second-division title and reach the top flight in 2013. He later played in Baku for Aztop and won the Azerbaijan Basketball League in 2016.

Internationally, he was in Turkey's squad at EuroBasket 2003 but did not get on the court in the tournament. With the permission of the Turkish Basketball Federation, he has played for the Azerbaijan national team since July 2010. He stands 2.02 m tall and wore number 8 for most of his career; his birth date is sometimes given as 17 January 1980.