'Just something little for the big victory': Ex-Wildcat Kyryl Natyazhko braves war zone to help Ukraine

It was a picture-perfect morning when Kyryl Natyazhko entered a Zoom call from his home country of Ukraine. The former Arizona Wildcats center sat outside, a reservoir off in the distance. Birds chirped peacefully, even as war raged nearby.

Donning an army green camouflage vest and cap, Natyazhko says he wants to become “the eyes and the mouth for anyone who doesn’t understand … fully or is misunderstanding what is going on” with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which began in late February.

“This is a disaster. There’s no other word for it. For a nation like Ukraine, there’s 40 million people, it’s a big-sized country, and now what’s going on is there’s not one square meter that is safe in Ukraine right now,” said Natyazhko, who played at Arizona from 2009-12 before embarking on a professional overseas career.

“They bomb, (send) air bombs all over Ukraine, like disaster type of stuff. Violence, rapes — all that. So, there’s no correct words to say.”

The 31-year-old Natyazhko helps the Ukrainian cause as a supplies driver, bringing clothes, food, beverages and other necessities to Ukrainian soldiers.

“I’ve always played on championship teams, including Arizona, so my motivation was doing my little job to help the team,” he said. “That’s always helped me in my career. I’m trying to do the same here. Just something little for the big victory.”

Natyazko joined The Wildcast podcast to explain why he’s risking his life to help the cause, and what Americans can do to help. (The full audio interview can be found on Apple, Spotify or The Wildcaster app).

What’s a day like for you now compared to several months ago?

A: “As the time goes, of course you adjust a little bit. It’s the human way to adjust to anything. People live in Africa without water, so for here, for sure you adjust, but now there’s a bunch of sirens. … We hear (the sirens) — depending on the day — between five to 10 times with the duration of about 30 minutes each. For a regular day, you’re just happy to get some good sleep. …

“Something needs to be done. Personally, I try to be the bridge between the foreign help and domestically; (finding out) who needs to be helped and what they need, so I try to use my connections that I made over the years playing basketball in different countries in Europe and USA.

“Right now, we’re speaking to show people what’s really going on, and maybe somebody has the ability to help out with something.”

How would you summarize the conflict it in your own words?

A: “For me, I still don’t get why. I still don’t know why (the Russians) are here, why they came or why they tried to come or what they’re trying to do. I don’t understand. I don’t have any correct words (to say) or any good words to say. My uncle, my mother’s brother, is in Russia. We’re not talking to him. It’s impossible, because they’re like zombies. They listen to their TVs and to them, America, Europe (and) other countries are evil. ‘(Other countries) want to bomb Moscow’ — how do you say it, propaganda? They don’t catch any other news, they don’t catch any reality.

“In America, it’s a free-speaking country. You can say whatever you want to, you can express any emotion you want and say anything, as long as it’s not offending other people, but you can still express, you know? In Russia, you cannot come outside with the sign of peace. In 2022, your president makes it forbidden to say (the word) peace? They can send you to jail for the word peace? In 2022? It’s barbaric. So, what is going on? It’s propaganda …

“Their people want us to take this punishment. They bomb us in 2014, and then now they blame us? You’re on our territory. War is always on our territory, not their territory. They want to separate us and take our territory. It’s totally not normal and not understandable in 2022. Not one person still in the Ukraine wants them.”

Going back to your family in Russia, did you have a relationship with them prior to the last few months?

A: “Of course, it’s been normal. We all check up, wish happy birthday, holidays and all of that. … But when you get a message, ‘That’s what you deserve,’ from some of your relatives, that’s not normal. I have family members in Russia and we tell them, ‘Your army is bombing our cities.’ Then they say, ‘No, it’s your army bombing your cities. Why are you lying? Everything is normal. I saw it on TV; everything is normal.’ It’s forbidden for them to use American news, European news, anything. They can’t use the website unless it’s Russian or their propaganda.”

How are you helping defend Ukraine?

A: “First of all, I have a lot of friends in the (Ukrainian) army on their own will. At first, so many people wanted to join the army, so there were so many people who wanted to fight with guns. Guns are OK, yes, but I don’t have the ability to help out with guns. I have the ability to help with clothes, shoes, socks, hats and all that. We try to buy everything in outside countries, even American. We buy it, send it here and give it to the people here, so they have something to wear — especially in February and March, because it was pretty cold. It’s snowing and it’s spring.

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“Right now, I’m in a vest and it’s May, so it’s not normal weather. Don’t think there’s polar bears walking here. But I try to help out, and when I posted pictures (on social media), at first I didn’t want to show anyone, but I figured if I post something, more people see it and I get more people involved and catch their attention. … This one guy from Lithuania, Jonas, he played with me at IMG (Academy) in Florida, and his father is a businessman in Lithuania. He’s also a big businessman as well, so I talked to him and asked him for three cars. … He provided me with the cars and a lot of stuff like energy drinks. No guns, just energy drinks or other drinks and stuff like that. … Most people need help. We need food, diapers, medicine, some simple stuff so when it’s a war, it’s not so simple.”

How can people in Arizona or anywhere in the U.S. help you out from afar?

A: “For me, the problem right now is this: If I get any donations, I still cannot use the money, because it’s forbidden to send money out of Ukraine. It’ll be useless if I get the money here, because I cannot buy anything, so where do I send it to? There are guys who are helping and bringing stuff inside the Ukraine. I cannot say what place, but it’s always changing, and they bring stuff inside the Ukraine. How is it helping? Men ages 18 to 60 are allowed to go to war. They are eligible to go to war and they can’t leave the country, it’s forbidden. I get a lot of shipments, but I can’t pick it up outside of the country like in Poland or Romania, because it’s useless. But (the guys helping me from other countries), they’re bringing stuff in the country, and then I go pick it up. I go there with my friends by car or by train. We went by train one time and the night before the station was bombed seven times, so it was delayed. But we still went. There’s people helping that way, but for me, I have to have a responsible person to collect the (money) and send it to these guys in Lithuania.

“People have contacted me a lot and wish to help, but in the Ukraine we don’t have Venmo or Cash App or Apple Pay — it doesn’t work the way it does in the states. But like I’ve said, $1 can save a life. A dollar across 1,000 people is $1,000. For $1,000, you can buy a lot of stuff. … If anyone wishes to be the responsible person to collect (the money) and send it, we’re open for it. Like I said, $1 can save a life. When you see kids, 3 or 5 years old, and they’re telling their mom, ‘Can I put two sugars in the tea?’ Or it’s coffee for older people, but they say, ‘Look, only one. Don’t put too many,’ because they’re trying to save for other people. Now with gas and diesel here, you’re not allowed to put more than two gallons in your car. It’s a two-gallon limit, and the gas stations’ lines are like 40 cars (deep). I need to start taking pictures to show people. … If anyone wants to buy some clothes or something to send over, perfect. Fine. It’s great. Anything, please contact me. My Instagram (account), my Facebook is working.”

Does it frustrate you when you log onto social media and see friends and followers around the world gripe about the surging gas prices?

A: “Not really. It’s hard to say, and I understand everything from both sides. For me, I lived all my life — 30 years — in peaceful countries. I never heard any gunshots or missile shots. I never had to move my family. It’s hard for me to explain to everybody what’s going on. Something over the phone, you still don’t get the feeling of it. But when you leave somewhere or wonder, ‘Will you wake up? Will you hear your family relatives?’ To me, that’s more important than gas prices. Here in the Ukraine, gas prices are almost (doubled) now. It’s $10 per gallon. … I have a friend and he was with me, and he had a friend from Europe call him and say that gas prices went up. My friend (Sergei Kravchenko) said, ‘Listen, I’d pay $10 per gallon just to not hear this and go back to my home.’ His home is destroyed. It was missiled by helicopters. … He has a beautiful house (about 20 miles from the Russian border), and he worked all his life for it. He’s a four-time U.S.S.R. champion of boxing, and he fought a lot of matches between the U.S.S.R. and the United States, so he’s a well-known guy. He’s an athlete and bought this house for close to $1 million. He’s lived there his whole life. He’s a big guy and 50 years old, but his family had to move, because a helicopter went and sent a missile to his house.

“For what reason? For what reason? There’s no tanks in the neighborhood, no army, no nothing. They just came by, sent a missile, and left.”

I hope there weren’t any family members still living in the house.

A: “No, he left. But who is responsible for that? I have some crazy stories. I want to talk about this butchering, because it scares my heart. … At a (neonatal intensive care unit), where babies are born, I live about a mile away from where they dropped the bombs and killed more than 1,000 people. They say it was Ukrainians (who did it), like how Nazis were. In their eyes, if we like our country and support our country, we’re Nazis. And if they like their country, they’re patriots.”

How have you been personally affected by this? Have you had to move your family out of the country?

A: “I have a little son, he’s a year-and-a-half (old), but he’s actually American. He’s not Ukrainian, because he was born in Miami. I had to move him, of course. My mother moved, my wife moved, my mother-in-law moved — all the ladies were removed from our city and were moved to the western part of Ukraine. It’s not completely safe there. My father-in-law is at war, and he’s resisting. My sister is still here as a dentist, and since she’s a doctor, she feels a responsibility — even though she has two young kids. I tell her, ‘These kids need to be removed, they’re too young.’ But she’s a dentist and feels work needs to be done for the people. She’s a baby dentist, so she’s working with kids. …

“Me? Should there come a time where I have to go to war, I will go to war. I try to avoid it as much as I can, and our government is doing a great job. … Our whole country has come together like never before. Guys are moving, moving, moving and helping, helping, helping and helping anyone who needs help. … Everyone is working so much and it’s amazing. As an athlete, I’ve always worked with teams. Basketball, I know how to be within a team. For me, this is a perfect atmosphere, because we’re ready to fight.

“Sean Miller would always say, ‘A game is a war,’ but I really know what war is right now. … If evil isn’t stopped, it’ll continue to do so. … It’s terrorism, and America knows more than anybody about terrorism. … America always showed their power to stop the terrorists to bring peace and freedom to the country. Now the terrorism is near us and inside our territory. We need to stop the terrorists and the evil. As long as we combine, it’ll be all good. Not only guns save lives, but a small reaction helps a lot.”

What does being a proud Ukrainian mean to you?

A: “I’ve lived more than one-third of my life outside the Ukraine; I played basketball, I studied in America and I never had any problems being Ukrainian or being foreign. Thank God, I never experienced that. You know how in Arizona, a lot of dudes are from California? They’re from California, and people from Tucson are from Tucson, but you never have a problem with it. So, if evil comes to your house, you’ll defend it. That’s what I’m doing. I don’t overreact to the word ‘patriot,’ but I just like my country. As men, we need to defend our women, our children, our territory — none of this butchering stuff in my house and territory.

“That’s how all the men around here feel. That’s what it means to me. It’s my home and it’s where I was born, where my (late) father … learned how to live. I have all these people all over the world say, ‘Come to America or come to Lithuania. Come to France, Germany.’ I said I can always come, but it’ll have to be on vacation when all of this is over with and done here.”

What made you want to stay and help rather than locate safety like so many others?

A: “Some guy told me, ‘We’re going to be in history for a long, long time.’ … God gives his toughest battles to his strongest soldiers. For other people who are staying in peaceful countries, silence is violence. … It’s time for people to hear what’s actually happening, and it’s big-time. If a lot of people are doing their job, evil will be stopped.”

‘THIS IS A DISASTER. THERE’S NO OTHER WORD FOR IT.’