Oklahoma men's basketball coach Porter Moser learned of Russian big man Kirill Elatontsev and his unique situation just like everyone else: a post on X from Field of 68 college basketball insider Jeff Goodman. However, Moser turned the same curiosity the rest of us had into a big-time addition to his roster at the perfect time.
On Oct. 9, Goodman posted that Elatontsev, a 23-year-old Russian pro basketball player listed at 6-foot-11, was cleared as eligible by the NCAA with one semester of college eligibility left. Then, last week, nearly two months later, it was again Goodman who broke the news that Elatontsev had committed to OU and was expected to join the program midseason.
Elatontsev ultimately signed with the Sooners on Sunday, and by Monday, he made his college basketball debut in OU's 93-69 win over Mississippi Valley State in the Sooners' nonconference finale before SEC play tips off against Ole Miss on Saturday.
Porter Moser credits Jeff Goodman's tweet for Sooners landing Kirill Elatontsev
Russian big man Kirill Elatontsev has been cleared by the NCAA and has one year of eligibility in college, source told @TheFieldOf68.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) October 9, 2025
Kirill Elatontsev, 23, is a versatile 6-11 center who has been playing for Lukomotiv Kuban in the VTB United League - and been named league’s…
In his collegiate debut Monday night, Elatontsev posted six points, four rebounds and an assist in 18 minutes after coming off the bench to replace starting center Mohamed Wague. His addition came at the perfect time with freshman center Kai Rogers injured and conference play just around the corner.
Moser said after the game that it's the first midseason addition he's ever had, but he wouldn't admit if he actually agreed with the new college basketball trend of adding international professional players in the middle of the season. However, Moser was clear that since it's legal, OU better evolve before getting left behind.
That post from Goodman, though, seemed like an answered prayer for Moser and the Sooners. Alec Blair's in-season departure left an empty roster spot and the Sooners were desperate for more size before taking on physical SEC opponents on a weekly basis.
"We kind of knew we had only two guys (at the 5), but it kind of started with that tweet," Moser said. "We did our due diligence, watched him, started recruiting him, did that whole process. In the back of our mind, just kind of went through the process, but the whole country saw that tweet. He had a lot of calls, not just us.
"And we recruited him, showed him we had a need for him. But we didn't do anything getting him cleared for the NCAA. That tweet, we saw it, it was, 'He's already been cleared by the NCAA, it was Oct. 9.' And we were like, 'He's already been cleared by the NCAA. He's 6-11.' And that's how it started."