CSKA Moscow announced on Thursday morning the arrival of big man Jeff Ayres for the next two months. Ayres (2.06 meters, 29 years old) spent last season in the D-League with the Los Angeles D-Fenders, where he averaged 16.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.2 assists, earning him a spot in the All-NBA D-League First Team. Near the end of the season, he returned to the Los Angeles Clippers of the NBA, where he finished the campaign. Ayres played college ball in Arizona State and then made his NBA debut in 2009 with Portland. He also played with the Indiana Pacers and the San Antonio Spurs, with whom he won an NBA championship in 2014. He was picked with the overall first selection for the D-League in 2015 by the Idaho Stampede, but early that year he signed short contracts with the Clippers, before returning to the D-League, where he was traded to the D-Fenders, having a stellar campaign there. Ayres will now make his European debut with the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague champions.

The signing of Ayres for two months coincides with CSKA being without several big men during preseason. Club president Andrey Vatutin recently said that Joel Freeland, who missed much of last season with a shoulder injury, is not expected to practice until December; that Kyle Hines, who had wrist surgery, needs one more month of recover; and that Pavel Korobkov, who had knee surgery, is out indefinitely.