Teemu Rannikko, one of Finland’s all-time basketball players, returned to the parquet once again after a serious injury. However, the long playing career is coming to an end, but Basketball Coast is not leaving. “Coaching has always been of interest,” he says.
“Immediately it was clear that it had happened badly now. ”
Like any basketball player, there is Teemu Rannikko experienced several injuries in his long career. However, none of them has responded to the setback that happened to him on the first Sunday of 2020 on Salohalli’s familiar parquet.
In the league match between Salon Vilppaa and Kouvola Kouvo, a record audience for Vilppaa had gathered in the stands. Nearly 2,400 people witnessed how the home team’s brightest star, then 39-year-old Coast, jumped toward a rebound born of his own throw.
On the way down, something went wrong, and there was a click on his left leg. It soon became apparent that the leg was broken and could only be repaired by surgery – if at all.
“At first, I wouldn’t have believed, or at least wanted to believe, that the injury would be so serious. After that, it went pretty foggy for a while, ”says Rannikko about 15 months later.
Through grueling rehabilitation, the Coast has made its way to the hardwood floors yet for the final games of his career.
The sporting legend known by the nickname “Magician” and Salon Vilpas will also receive Helsinki Seagulls, the biggest champion of the Basketball League, in the semi-finals starting on Monday.
It would be from the point of view of the story, it is convenient to say that the decision to pursue a career that led to this point would have been made immediately. That games should end on their own terms.
However, the situation was much more complicated, especially as the coronavirus pandemic completely messed up the whole world.
“I had to look at how the rehabilitation is going. After all, no athlete would want to end their careers with an injury, and I immediately thought so. That thought pushed through difficult moments. ”
“In the late summer, it started to look like this could still be used as a tool to go on the field. That was when the decision was made. ”
The time of return was finally on January 26, 385 days after the injury. In total, Rannikko had six more games in the regular season and four more in the quarterfinals. There aren’t a huge ten games, but according to the Coast, it’s still enough to find a reasonable gaming feel.
“It’s hard to say exactly what condition is. That foot may never be the way it was before the injury. Of course, it also affects gaming. ”
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“The NBA was a dream, not a goal.”
Teemu Rannikko carried the ball in practice.
On the coast the road took him to the world in 2000. He rose quite quickly to the top of Europe and also to the few Finns who played in the Euroleague.
However, the second toughest basketball series in the world in the mid-2000s may not have been fully appreciated, even in sports circles, let alone in the eyes of the general public. Only a combination of three letters meant to them: the NBA.
Back in the early millennium, the NBA also had some sort of opportunity for the Coast. His name was announced a couple of times at the booking ceremony, and Coast went to New York to train in front of talent seekers. He never got closer to that billion league.
“The NBA was a dream, not a goal,” Coast describes.
“At a later stage, I would have been able to play in the summer league, but I didn’t see that I was good enough. Maybe it had that Finnish modesty. ”
The coast emphasizes that nothing is left in the tooth cavity, even though today he might do things differently.
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“On the other hand, it’s hard to say in my forties that I would have been a twosight at my best.”
Teemu Rannikko played for the Slovenian Grand Club Olimpija Ljubljana on two occasions, the first of which took place in the second half of the 21st century. In the Euroleague, Rannikko scored more than 13 points on average over two seasons.
In Europe The coast was part of numerous top teams in the continent’s best series in Italy, Spain, Russia and Slovenia. The best basketball of his career Rannikko says that, at least in the light of statistics, he played for Olimpija Ljubljana in 2005–2007.
“On the other hand, it’s hard to say in my forties that I would have been a twosight at my best,” Rannikko laughs.
“There were big injuries in the bad places, after which I might not have been able to get to the very previous level.”
There are still good memories of every place. With special warmth, the Coast recalls the time in Varese, Italy in the early 2010s, but not so much for playful reasons.
“The daughter was born there. It was also a big deal personally that I got to be the first foreign captain in the company, which is quite legendary in European basketball. ”
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“My family and I had come to Finland and decided that we would be here.”
Teemu Rannikko and Joensuu Kataja were able to celebrate the Finnish championship twice, first in the picture in 2015 and for the second time two years later. As the children grew up, it was time to return to their homeland, when Salon Vilpas changed.
To Finland Rannikko returned in the summer of 2013, when he made a two-year contract with Kataja in Joensuu. Would he have believed at the time that his career would not end until eight years from now?
“By no means,” is the concise answer.
“I wanted to come to Finland when I could be of benefit to the team and hopefully also to Finnish basketball.”
Although the level in Finland was lower than the top series, it was not really about cooling. Rannikko was still a goal-oriented top athlete, who was selected, among other things, twice in a row as the Player of the Year player of the Basketball League.
“Even in Europels, I was able to show that I can still play at a high level. There were some contract offers from abroad, but that page had already been translated. My family and I had come to Finland and decided that we would be here. ”
With Juniper, Rannikko won the championships in the spring of 2015 and 2017. On both occasions, he was also chosen as the best player in the finals.
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“Salo has been a big part of my childhood.”
Teemu Rannikko and Aatu Kivimäki at Vilppaa’s rehearsals on Wednesday in Salo.
In Varese In the autumn of 2017, it was time for the born daughter to start school, which meant the family returning home to the Turku region.
“We had already decided many years earlier that at that point we would return to our home region. The last of the juniper years ended in the championship, and at that point I still didn’t know if I would even play anymore. ”
A new home was found in Kaarina after a long search. Soon, also found a new employer, the coast very familiar place half an hour’s drive away.
“Both of my parents are from Salo. Salo has been a big part of my childhood. My grandparents have lived in Salo, and there I spent a lot of summers. “
At first, however, it was unclear whether Vilpas would be able to make a good enough contract offer. Eventually, a consensus was reached and the fruits of the cooperation have been enjoyed by all parties. With Vilppa, Rannikko has been involved in the championship battle every year, and everything also works outside the field.
“After Joensuu, I thought that there could not be as good an organization in Finland as Kataja. Here I noticed that even in Vilppa, things are handled in the same way on top of the last. There is also a good hall where to play, and the fan group Vilpas Ultras has been something I have never experienced in Finland before. ”
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“The World Cup in Bilbao was an incredibly great experience.”
Teemu Rannikko had already had time to end his national team career, but returned to help Finland at the 2017 European Championships, where Finland will host one starting block. Picture of a victorious Greece match.
Korisliiga In the semi-finals, Vilpas and Rannikko will face Helsinki Seagulls, the winner of the regular season. The coast is waiting for a difficult but also inspiring series of matches starting on Monday.
“It’s nice to go challenge the biggest champion favorite and play against a team that plays very good basketball. We try to put as much as possible into the combs so that they can’t do their own thing. ”
Seagulls is starring, among other things, Coastal’s long-time national teammates Shawn Huff and Tuukka Kotti. Rannikko himself represented Finland in a total of 136 A national matches, including three European Championships and the 2014 World Championships.
“The World Cup in Bilbao was an incredibly great experience when thousands of Finns left to watch Susijeng’s games in Spain. It’s still hard to believe. Successfully, however, the Games were disappointing, we should have been able to move forward from the starting block. ”
In general One could not have even dreamed of participating in the World Championships when Rannikko started his national team career in 1997. He was involved in elevating a group later known as Susijeng from mediocrity to the forefront of Europe.
“The big turning point was the first European Championship venue in 2011. Before that, we played in Division B for a long time and we couldn’t make any progress. After entering the competition, the gates opened differently. ”
“While playing abroad, he waited to get to play the Suomi shirt with good friends. It has been a big strength that we have always blown one coal and gone ahead with the team. ”
Since then, Rannikko has moved from the field to the commentary for Yle’s international match broadcasts. Criticizing ex-fellow extracts hasn’t seemed difficult either.
“It’s a job that I try to do as well as possible and professionally, and that the conclusion I have enjoyed.”
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“Yes, this career will be packaged next month.”
Teemu Rannikko has strong family ties to Salo.
Is once again, has the decision to close last year been firmly held, or would some kind of backdoor have been left open anyway?
“Yes, this career will be packaged next month,” Coast insures.
When the buzzer ever rings for the last time, it is at first a place of respite. The coast says it has not yet considered the future in more detail.
“At some point, we sit down and think about what to do next. Here has been such a long time to be printed as a player that you first have to breathe and think about what has happened in your career. ”
Most likely, the prediction seems to be that Coastal’s journey would continue with basketball as a coach. He was recently selected to complete the HKVT coaching degree, which is set to begin in May.
“Coaching has always been of interest, and at least graduation is ahead in next year’s program. Let’s see what it might sometimes mean in concrete terms. ”
Teemu Rannikko
■ Born on September 9, 1980 in Turku.
■ A basketball player who currently represents Salon Vilpa, who is currently playing in the Basketball League.
■ 136 national matches in the Finnish A-national team in 1997–2017.
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source https://pledgetimes.com/basketball-when-an-ominous-click-came-from-his-leg-teemu-rannikko-realized-that-it-had-happened-badly-but-now-the-magician-is-preparing-for-the-last-trick-of-his-long-career/
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