PBC Lokomotiv Kuban () is a Russian professional basketball team based in Krasnodar. It participates in the VTB United League.
Their honour list includes a EuroCup championship in the 2012–13 season, and two Russian Cup victories in 1999-00 and 2017–18.
History
The history of the Lokomotiv starts back in 1946 in Mineralnye Vody. Lokomotiv played in the first league championship for a number of years, until in 1994 it finally got into the elite of the national basketball. In 1999, Lokomotiv got the right to represent Russia in the European tournaments, such as the FIBA Korać Cup and won the Cup of the International Railways Sports Union. Lokomotiv won 3rd place in the Russian League in 2001, and playing in the Korać Cup finals in 2002.
The season 2002–03 became the final for the team from Mineralnye Vody. Lokomotiv hardly reached the play-off, taking the 8th place out of 10, where it lost to the champion CSKA Moscow in all three matches. The decision was hence made to move the club to a more developed and economically growing area – Rostov region. The basketball club Lokomotiv Rostov was established in 2003 in Rostov-on-Don.
During the next six years, the club played in the city of Don. The best achievement of the Lokomotiv during these years was the 5th place in the Russian National Championship (2006–07 season) and the finals of the FIBA Europe Cup (2004–05 season). In the summer of 2009, the president of the Russian Railways, Vladimir Yakunin, made the decision to move the club from Rostov-on-Don to Krasnodar. The main reason for that was that the arenas in Rostov were not satisfying the requirements of the Russian National Championship and the club's European tournaments.
First year in Krasnodar (2009–2010) After relocating to Krasnodar, Lokomotiv changed its name to Lokomotiv Kuban. Sašo Filipovski was named the head coach. Lokomotiv settled on the second place in standings for the first half of the season. However, the second half of the season was not successful, as losses became far more often and by the end of 2009, Lokomotiv plummeted in the standings. Lokomotiv Kuban also played in the EuroChallenge, but lost all six games in the regular season, and soon, Filipovski was replaced by the Lithuanian national basketball team head coach – Kęstutis Kemzūra. Gerald Green, who joined the team in December, and center Grigory Shukhovtsov got an invitation to the Russian national basketball team at the end of the season. In the Russian League, despite elimination in the quarterfinals at the hands of Dynamo Moscow, Lokomotiv Kuban finished in 5th place.
2010–11 season
Under the direction of coach Kęstutis Kemzūra, Lokomotiv in the PBL League finished 4th, after a loss in the semifinals to champions CSKA Moscow and a loss in the bronze medal series to EuroCup champions UNICS Kazan. Lead by Jeremiah Massey, Mike Wilkinson and Lionel Chalmers, Lokomotiv in the FIBA EuroChallenge went all the way to the finals - despite being favorites to win, Lokomotiv lost to KK Krka 77:83 in the finals. The success in the tournament lead to Lokomotiv, along with champion Krka, qualifying to the EuroCup, the second tier competition in Europe.
2011–12 season
In the 2011–12 season, Lokomotiv Kuban signed coach Božidar Maljković - the team made their debut in the EuroCup tournament - lead by Massey and Ali Traore, Lokomotiv had success in the regular season and the Top16, where they finished 1st in their group, reaching the quarterfinals, where they were eliminated by future champion Khimki. Lokomotiv won the bronze medals in the Russian League over BC Triumph Lyubertsy.
The club from Krasnodar also made its debut in the VTB United League. A loss in the semifinals to UNICS Kazan 86:87 prevented the team from reaching the finals. In the 3rd place game, Lokomotiv lost to BC Lietuvos rytas 83:91.