pic credit: ArizonaMBB

If one looks at the rising basketball career of German Ivan Kharchenkov (201-F-2006) over the last few years, then one comes to the conclusion that he really has achieved a lot. He won 2 Gold medals at European youth championships, 2 pro titles in the easyCredit BBL with top sports brand FC Bayern Munich and an NBBL (U-19) title all before his 19th birthday. He could of remained with FC Bayern Munich and continued to fight for minutes and gain extra vital experience, but instead he went with the trend and played in the NCAA this past season with Arizona (NCAA). It was the logical route as so many Euro players were doing it as well as fellow German colleagues like Christian Anderson and Hannes Steinbach who are projected NBA first round pics in June 2026. He had the opportunity to play with a top basketball school, get an education and get paid millions. He helped win the Big 12 title and they came up a bit short losing in the NCAA final 4 against Michigan. All in all he made the right decision as his team had success and he was able to develop further with his Swiss army knife game. “I had no real expectations going to Arizona. Everything was new for me. I was living on a new continent and the game was different. I was thrown into cold water. My goal before the season was to get better each day and get minutes. I have to say that I was able to fullfill my expectations”, stressed Ivan Kharchenkov. As a guy who lives for the game and is always a competitor, he embraced the American lifestyle as it was like night and day compared to what he experienced in Germany in the easyCredit BBL. “What I appreciated right away about the lifestyle there was how much people are involved with the game and how emotional everyone is. It doesn´t matter who you talk to there, all have knowledge of the game. If your having a down period, the people always have energy and try to help you. No one is shy to showcase their emotions. In Munich it is more an event thing with some clapping. In Arizona it´s a big thing”, warned Ivan Kharchenkov.

Pic credit: ArizonaMBB

I reach Ivan Kharchenkov in early May for our 12th interview since the 2021-2022 season as he had returned back to Germany and was spending time with his family in Landsberg, Bavaria. In German basketball leagues, players arrive usually in mid August to prepare for the season starting in October, but in Arizona, Ivan was already there in July 2025 to start to prepare for the season starting in November. All Americans that come overseas for the first time always have a wake up call to living in Europe, but how was it for him coming from Germany to USA? “My wake up call was all the fast food that is present. It seems like it is around every corner. In Munich it is a lot easier to find healthy food. The eating standard is a lot higher in Europe”, said Ivan Kharchenkov. The team practiced for months before the season started and he was able to recognize early the differences between how NCAA teams practice in comparison to his ex team FC Bayern Munich. “The practices were a lot more physical, longer and more intensive than with Munich. We practiced between games while with Munich we didn´t. The practice standards were higher with Arizona, but one can´t forget that you have like 85 games in Europe and only 40 in the NCAA”, stated Ivan Kharchenkov. The team began hot winning 21 games in a row while the young German needed time to find his game. Did the team feel pressure with every new win in that winning streak? “It took time to get used to the new rules. It was strange having 2 20 minute halves, not taking transition fouls and players being able to call timeouts. I don’t think that pressure grew. We always went game by game. We had some shaky wins in that streak. We were still finding each other. We were lucky that we were good enough to still win games even when we didn´t play our best. That gave us the opportunity to learn from our mistakes”, remembered Ivan Kharchenkov.

Winning streaks never last forever as Arizona suffered their first loss of the season against Kansas. Then they were shocked right away in the next game losing again against Texas Tech. Arizona then wouldn´t lose again until April in the Final 4 against Michigan. The team definitely took the Texas Tech loss to heart and learned from it. “We had some guys out including Koa Peat. We were shocked and struggled. It was the perfect time to face adversary. Other guys had to step up and did. That showed us just how versatile we could be. That helped us in the long run and later beating Houston. We had a short rotation and were successful”, added Ivan Kharchenkov. He battled against German national team teammate Christian Anderson of Texas Tech finishing with a 13/4/3/2 game while Anderson had a 19/6/8 game. Anderson´s season was so good that his route to the NBA will follow now. “Anderson became a lot more consistent. He had a bigger role and made less mistakes. He got bigger physically and learned to read the game better as well”, commented Ivan Kharchenkov. After beating Houston for the Big 12 title, Arizona then had a great run at March madness beating LIU Brooklyn, Utah State, Arkansas and Purdue until losing to Michigan. “It was just one of those days where we didn´t play our best game. They hit three´s early and we got down fast and it was tough climbing back up the mountain. We lost to the eventual champion. It can happen. They shot only 2/18 in the final and still won. Life goes on”, added Ivan Kharchenkov. He had amazing teammates like Koa Peat who is a projected NBA first round pick in June. “He is a very physical player and built like a football player. He has a real nice touch around the rim. He really developed well during the season learning to expose the defense really well”, remembered Ivan Kharchenkov. Two other incredible teammates that he had were Brayden Burries and potential 2026 NBA draft pick Jaden Bradley who gave Arizona one of the best guard duo´s in the country. “Bradley was our veteran. He was the right hand of the coach. He had a lot of experience and led us the whole season and was great closing games. Burries didn´t start the season well, but never hung his head. He found his groove and was a great teammate and always did all he could to help the team win. He was our best player”, stated Ivan Kharchenkov.

Pic Credit:ArizonaMBB

The physical player who remembered Swede and current Stanford (NCAA) guard Julius Price as his toughest opponent back in 2022 had a solid freshman season in the NCAA averaging 10/4/2/1. Years ago he was the classic 3 and D player, but did his game grow into a Swiss army knife? “I was content with my season. I didn´t know my role at the start, but then it became clear. My role was to be the heart of the team, bring energy and be a vocal leader. Never be shy and defend the other team´s best player. I feel like I was always a Swiss army knife. I can do a lot of things and always give my team what it needs to win. I let the game come to me and didn´t force anything. I just try to play correct basketball”, warned Ivan Kharchenkov. His three pointer continues to be a work in progress. However he made big strides at Arizona as he finished at 32% from downtown in the season. “My role wasn´t so big for me to get many shots. I had the best season in my career with my shooting %. I feel a lot more sure with my shot. Now I have a long summer where I can continue to work on my shot and let it develop further”, expressed Ivan Kharchenkov. His excellent defense was lauded from the start by the Arizona experts and fans. He had to try to lock down the other team´s best players every night.” My defense grew having to defend top talents. I tried my best slowing down top players Aj Dybantsa of BYU and Darryn Peterson of Kansas. I think that I did a good job keeping them to 20 points on 25 shots. I was able to read the game well on the run”, stressed Ivan Kharchenkov. He was the first Arizona freshman to record 5 steals against a top 25 team Alabama. “That is a cool achievemen. In USA there are stats for all. But to be honest, I didn´t go into the game to record that record”, smiled Ivan Kharchenkov. He was fortunate to play for a coach in legend Tommy Lloyd who let him sparkle with his versatile play and also knows that the Wild Cats haven´t seen the best of him yet. “I learned from coach Tommy to let the game come to me and that my time will come”, warned Ivan Kharchekov.

The big guard with the killer instinct has announced that he will return for a second season to Arizona. His goal is to be drafted by the NBA. He wasn´t a frequent visitor on 2026 NBA Mock drafts as he had too many offensive options on the team. Next season his role will grow the same it did for Christian Anderson. But there are also other advantages for returning back to Tucson for a sophomore campaign. “I can continue to work on my game. I´m still a raw diamond. Plus I know how everything works now. It is also good to play for coach Tommy again. I know how he ticks”, stated Ivan Kharchenkov. Arizona will lose some guys, but should be competitive once again as they have kept Motiejus Krivas and have 3 very interesting guys coming in with ex Washington (NCAA) guard JJ Mandaquit, ex North Carolina (NCAA) guard Derek Dixon and highly touted Georgia high school player Caleb Holt. Bryce James the son of Lebron James also will play after being a red shirt last season. “The goal is always to win the NCAA title. The question is will it be realistic. We still need 2 big men”, stressed Ivan Kharchenkov. It was recently reported that raw Dutch center Endurance Aiyamenkhue of German team Orange Academy is one of those 2 centers that will suit up for Arizona next season. He won´t play for the German national team this summer as he remained in Germany in May and had his first camp in mid May with his half brother Nikita and dad. “I like to work with kids and give back to the community. This will be my first camp ever. I have heard that I could do this in the future as well in Tucson”, said Ivan Kharchenkov. He will head back to Arizona in June and then his focus will be on his game and Arizona. He will have a lot of time to remember big moments in the 2025-26 season on and off the court. “My favorite moment on the court last season was when Jaden Bradley hit a buzzer beater over Iowa State. I will never forget how we all jumped on him on the court. My coolest experience off the court was just how much a family we are. In Europe basketball is strictly business. In Arizona we spent so much time together as a team. We had incredible chemistry on and off the court. If I needed something, I could always go to the coach. I would never do that in Europe. I felt more comfortable in USA”, warned Ivan Kharchenkov.