Valentin Pastal

Valentin Pastal — Biography

Valentin Pastal was born on 9 June 1984 in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan. A citizen of both Turkey and Turkmenistan, he stands about 2.10 metres tall. He is generally classed as a small forward but can also play power forward, and his versatile game has at times drawn comparisons with national-team star Hedo Türkoğlu.

He began his professional career in 2002 with Efes Pilsen and stayed until 2005. He was part of the team during its run of consecutive league titles; in his first season he averaged 2.0 points, and in the playoff series against Beşiktaş he played 14 minutes and scored five points. His role was smaller in 2004 and 2005, and he left in 2005 averaging 2.3 points, 1.6 rebounds and 0.8 assists. He later played for Pınar Karşıyaka, then joined BEST Balıkesir in 2016, Antalyaspor in 2017 and Antalya Belediyespor in 2018. In all he represented seven teams in the Turkish Basketball League.

He also wore the Turkey national team jersey, with most of his appearances coming in 2004 and 2005.