The severe magnitude of disappointment can always be categorized from minimal to great depending how critical one looks at the picture. For Boston Redsox fans, the unbelievable, shocking and painful September slide in which they came into September with a 9 game lead in the Wildcard race, but a 7-20 September record and 4-3 loss in a do or die game in the last game in minor Bill Buckner fashion must of uttered a new famous phrase in Boston “not again”, great tennis player Ivan Lendl coming to Wimbeldon so many times, but never leaving the hallowed grass courts as a true Wimbeldon champion and possibly removing the word grass from his vocabulary which is difficult to do for him considering he is a passionate golfer or Paris Hilton after walking her little dog walking into a harmless kids food fight in a corner of Central Park west and getting her designer clothes dirty. These are all painful occurrences for these people, but what Walter Tigers Tuebingen fans recently endured with the sudden unannounced overnight disappearance of full bearded center Kenny Wiliams could be classified as deep unexpected hurt. This would have been the fourth season for the Miami native, but instead he is gone having left a very young and inexperienced Tiger team standing on brittle thin ice shortly before the start of the season. Ex teammate Steven Wright seemed concerned who is playing in Finland this season. “I was shocked when I heard that Kenny had left. I don´t know all the details, but knowing Kenny, it really wouldn´t seem like he would leave in the middle of the night if it wasn´t really urgent. Istill haven´t talked to him, but people have told me that he is ok.  Kenny is a good player that always worked hard and is a good rebounder. We didn´t do too much off the court, but he was a cool guy and will be missed under the basket”, warned ex walter Tiger Tuebingen guard Steven Wright. Beko BBL players have noticed the void that has been left under the court even if experienced Velimir Radonovic was brought in, Wiliams had played in Tuebingen for years and knew the system well. “He will be missed obviously underneath the basket on both ends of the floor, his rebounding and just his presence is a key loss for the team. He was real active at both ends on the floor and we had to focus on keeping a body on him at all times. he can hurt you on the offensive glass”, stated TBB Trier guard John Bynum. “Kenny was one of our leaders and was going to play a huge role on our team. It definitely was a setback but I think we have grown closer as a team because of it.Kenny could always make me laugh so easily and his friendly personality was so contagious which is why so many people in Tübingen liked him”, remembered Vaughn Duggins.

Since coming into the BBL in 2004-2005, the Walter Tigers Tuebingen have been treading water in the BBL middle standings and at times scrapping the deregulation area. The best finish of the club was 2006-2007 as they finished in 10th place. The Tigers have been more a harmless creature that seems to have their mouth sealed with little power escaping instead of showing their absolute unconquerable qualities of a tiger on the court. The team has been known for developing  a healthy fan base and letting guys like Rasko Katic and AJ Moye(his first year) develop into top BBL players, but then again also have gone the usual BBL route of signing an abundance of Americans and closing an eye for further developing German players and the organization also has been prone to getting involved with minor scandals like in 2006 with Tamien Trent and Mike Moten who were banned by the German basketball federation following  a drug test. Making the jump to the BBL is not easy and if one were to ask experts in the Tuebingen surrounding, one would always here two things. A  slim budget and not getting the right mix of players seemed to be the most important reasons why the club has never been able to play games in May when it counts most. Since entering the Beko BBL in 2004, the team has always hovered between 10^th and 15^th place and their best finish was 2007 as they were in 10^th place.

Last season, The Walter Tigers Tuebingen finished in 12^th place with a record of 15-19. Lacking more consistence at home in the Paul Horn arena showed  with their 9-8 record. Last season the team celebrated huge victories against The EWE Baskets Oldenburg, Alba Berlin and The Telekom Baskets Bonn before the Allstar break, but then again showed their inconsistency losing games to teams like the Mitteldeutscher BC or Phoenix Hagen. Just like the season before, The Walter Tigers Tuebingen made a dash for the Beko BBl playoffs in winter winning six games in a row and  heightening the playoffs hopes for the fans with big wins against Bonn Oldenburg and Ulm. However then as if each player had seen a black cat and then walked under a ladder for so called bad luck went on an unlucky losing streak losing six games in a row and finishing the season 2-7 and once again not making the playoffs. A 40 point loss to Bamberg in the heat of their six game winning streak and an 18 point loss to the LTi Giessen 46ers just seemed uncharachteristic after their successful run. “It was an up and down season. The season started rough, then we had a nice winning streak, but then had a long losing streak, but closed out the season well. We hurt ourselves with our inconsistency. We were unable to bring the same effort night in and night out which killed us”, stressed ex Walter Tigers Tuebingen forward Chris Oliver who is playing in France this season with SIG Strassburg.

This season, The Walter Tigers Tuebingen might use a motto that German basketball player Christian Standhardinger might be using after a few miscues in the NCAA and always coming back to try his luck in the NCAA with “If you don´t succeed at first then try try again” in hopes of reaching the Beko BBL playoffs. However if a strong starting five last season with Bane Ratkovica, Johannes Herber, Chris Oliver, Dane Watts and Anatoly Kashirov wasn´t potent enough for May basketball, how does the team see making an impact this season in the even stronger Beko BBL and a new starting five? Guys like Dane Watts had a very strong season whereas other starters solid seasons, but were still able to double their market value and get better financial contracts with other teams. Some teams play for titles, while other teams play for the playoffs and in the last years , The Walter Tigers Tuebingen seem to be a team that brings in younger talented players guaranteeing them playing time so they can develop further and then go to more attractive and more lucrative teams. “You can expect a group of guys that play with a lot of passion and play extremely hard. We will defend well and can score with anybody in the Bundesliga”, warned Vaughn Duggins. Last season, Tuebingen already had established Beko BBl players like Dane Watts and Chris Oliver, but this season the team has their youngest team ever having six guys that were only 23 years old this summer. With Beko BBL babies Vaughn Duggins, Tyrone Nash and Adnan Hodzic coming from the NCAA and Americans Reggie Redding and Josh Young coming off their rookie years last season and born in 1988, Igor Perovic has indirectly shown that these guys will have perform right away getting their feet wet quickly. Perovic has much experience with thirty something players Lou Campbell and Velomir Radiovic and Nicolai Simon who has title experience with Alba Berlin, but still many young bucks that will be in a nasty shark infested basketball pool each weekend. “. I think if you have a good chemistry of players then it is a good thing. Experience is key in close games early in the season but once your out on the court all that age goes out the window in most cases. It is risky but if you got good chemistry it will help in a lot of ways. I think the team will play hard and will surprise a lot of teams. Young teams are usually hungry and they may struggle at times but just like most young teams we may not know which team may show up. But they will be a team that competes just like the rest of the BBL”, warned TBB Trier guard John Bynum. Still having so much youth can also be a positive thing. “I think their strength will be them playing hard, I didnt really get a chance to see them in preseason but on paper they have some solid individual players. I really dont know about weaknesses but I’m sure that will show up as the season goes along”, added John Bynum. “We just need to continue to get better as a whole. Our ceiling with how good we can be is so high because we are so young. If we get better every day we will be fine during the season”, added Walter Tigers Tuebingen guard Vaughn Duggins. The glue for the Walter Tigers Tuebingen will be Lou Campbell and teams will learn quickly that keeping the American in check will make basketball life on the court very difficult for the Tigers. “I think they Campbell is a key but we have to see what the newcomers bring to the table as well. To put so much pressure on one guy meaning Campbell isnt fair but I think they got some young guys who can make a difference as well”, stressed John Bynum. One Skyliner that will be motivated to play hopefully his first official professional game and against the NCAA players is Michael Thompson who is aware of the NCAA rookies in Tuebingen. “I will be great to be on the court with those three great players with Duggins, Nash and Hodzic. All three had great careers in the NCAA. I played against Nash. We will have to keep an eye on him. He can do it all, shoot the three, play with his back to the basket and play aggressive defense”, warned Michael Thompson.
The first and most important signing this past summer for the EWE Baskets Oldenburg was Lou Campbell who is a 32 year old 190cm point guard from New Jersey that played three years in Japan was easily the top playmaker in the BEKO BBL in 2009-2010. Had he been with Oldenburg in 2009-2010, he might have made the difference between an early exit in the playoffs and a second championship. After getting  a jump start in Giessen from 2004-2006, he played for the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven in 2009-2010 leading the team into the playoffs playing 43 games averaging 13.0ppg, 3.6rpg, Assists-2(5.7apg), 1.1spg, FGP: 48.7%, 3PT: 35.2%, FT: 81.6% . He can guide an offense, but also score when needed especially in crunch time. However a lot of the magic that he had for Douglas Spradley two years ago wasn´t present last season for Predrag Krunic and the EWE Baskets Oldenburg as he played 40 games averaging 9.8ppg, 2.4rpg, 3.4apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 49.6%, 3PT: 27.8%, FT: 82.1%. However what many didn´t know, Campbell has a serious Adductor injury. Most guys would of sat out, but he continued to play, because Oldenburg had no other alternative at the point. With the departure of Kenny Wiliams, the team recently had to respond and brought in experienced Velimir Radinovic that played in the Beko BBL the last two years for MBC. Radinovic is a 30 year old 212cm Serb-Canadian that played at the well know Ohio State and has gathered experience playing for top clubs FMP Zeleznik Beograd and KK Hemofarm Vrsac. He alos played in France and Greece and last season for MBC played 27 games: 6.6ppg, 4.1rpg, FGP: 52.6%, FT: 68.8%. he scored in double figures seven times and his best scoring game was 16 points against the EWE Baskets Oldenburg.” Velimir is so big and strong that he can clog up the middle and give us a shot blocking presence. He is a smart player with a high basketball IQ and can be a leader for the young guys”, stressed Vaughn Duggins.  Even though Nicolai Simon is only 24 and should belong to the younger generation, is the third most experienced player on the roster. He is a 191 cm guard that is playing his second season in Tuebingen. He is made a comeback in The BEKO BBL in 2009-2010 after coming into the BEKO BBL in 2006-2007 after being heralded as a big German talent. In 2006-2007, he was able to play 33 games for Alba Berlin despite being on a team with a deep roster. In 2007-2008, he injured himself playing only five games. Last season, he took a step back and played for Ergas Ehingen in the German PRO B averaging 8,9ppg, 2,4rpg and 5,2apg. and to develop further as a professional basketball player. In 2009, he played at the World University games in Belgrad averaging 4,1ppg, 3,6rpg and 1,4apg. Last season for Tuebingen, he played 31 games: 2.8ppg, 1.4rpg.

Vaughn Duggins is a Beko BBL rookie that is a 24 year old 187cm guard from Pendelton, Indiana. He played at Wright State from 2006-2011 including his freshman season with 2011 Beko BBL MVP Dashaun Wood as has fond memories of the Alba Berlin guard on the court and their one on one battles. “Every once in a while at practice I’d be walking by Dashaun and he would stop me and tell me exactly how he was going to score on his opponent that next possession and sure enough he would go out there and do that exact thing and look at me and laugh while running down the court. Thats easy! Dashaun beat me 9 out of 10 times on one on one.  I was a young puppy out of high school and he was the horizon league player of the year. I don’t remember him having any weaknesses other than he was smaller than me so I could post him up”, stressed Vaughn Duggins. In his senior year, the American played 33 games: 18.0ppg, 3.8rpg, 2.2apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 44.7%, 3PT: 31.1%, FT: 82.2%. Beko BBL teams will have to be aware of the dangerous game of the American. He is a scorer, but also has hidden attributes. “My jumping ability isn´t always noticed. I’ve surprised a lot people when I get up to block a shot or dunk”, warned Vaughn Duggins. Another Beko BBL rookie this season is Tyrone Nash. Nash is a 23 year old 203cm forward from Queens, New York. He played together with FC Bayren Munich guard Ben Hansbrough at Notre Dame and in his senior year played Notre Dame 34 games: 9.5ppg, 5.9rpg, 2.6apg, FGP: 48.7%, 3PT: 50.0%, FT: 68.9%. Another Beko BBL rookie for the Tigers is Adnan Hodzic who is a 23 year old 203cm forward from Bosnia and Herzegovina. He played at Lipscomb (NCAA) from 2007-2011 together with BG Goettingen guard Josh Slater and in his senior year played  30 games: 17.7ppg, 7.5rpg, 1.0apg, FGP: 56.3%, 3PT: 12.5%, FT: 72.6%. Despite playing for a less known school and losing some credibility of his worth, he had some great performances at the NCAA level which brought notice. “It did hurt a bit, however, some of my best games were against bigger schools and better competition. The best player I played against in the NCAA was my junior year. I played against Derrick Williams. I had 34pts 13reb I just play hard every night. The critics and doubters will always be there”, warned Adnan Hodzic. Hodzic also has a hidden strength. “One strength that is very overlooked is my ability to shoot from outside. All spring and summer I have been working on expanding my game. I have developed a good mid range and long range shot. I am also good at driving the ball to the rim”, stressed Adnan Hodzic.

The team also brought in Reggie Redding who will be starting his second professional season despite being only 23 years old. Redding is a 196cm guard from Philadelphia and possesses a great feel for the game, moves well without the ball, offers size and the ability to score from the guard position. He played at Villanova (NCAA) with ex BG Goettingen forward Dwayne Anderson and in his senior year played 23 games: 7.3ppg, 4.7rpg, 2.4apg, 1.4spg, FGP: 40.8%, 3PT: 39.5%, FT: 63.8%. he reached the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2008.  Last season he played for InterCollege Etha Engomis (Cyprus-Division A) winning the league and cup title and played 16 games: 9.5ppg, 4.3rpg, 2.1apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 46.1%, 3PT: 44.4%, FT: 73.9%; EuroChallenge: 8 games: 7.0ppg, 3.4rpg, 2.3apg, FGP: 40.0%, 3PT: 31.3%, FT: 62.5%. The club also brought in Josh Young who makes the jump from the PRO B to the Beko BBL. Young is a 23 year old 185cm guard from Shawnee, Oklahoma. He played at Drake from 2006-2010 including two years with ex Skyliner Adam Emmenecker. In his senior year, he played 32 games: 14.4ppg, 3.9rpg, 2.7apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 44.0%, 3PT: 35.8%, FT: 73.0%. Last season he came to Germany and played for Bayer Giants Leverkusen (Germany-ProB) tearing up the league playing  11 games averaging 26.7ppg, 6.4rpg, 3.0apg, 2.3spg, FGP: 45.2%, 3PT: 45.3%, FT: 79.0%. Rueben Spoeden is a 22 year old 202cm forward from Frankfurt that is playing his second season in Tuebingen. He started his basketball career with Eintracht Frankfurt an dthen played for TV Langen where his teammate was Robin Benzing. He also has a license for Ergas Ehingen. Last season he with the Walter Tigers Tuebingen he played  8 games: 1.3ppg; also played at ErdgaEhingen/Urspringschule (ProB): 28 games: 7.4ppg, 3.8rpg, FGP: 50.4%, 3PT: 21.7%, FT: 60.7%. German American Akeem Vargas rounds out the roster. He is a 21 year old 190 cm guard that started his basketball career with the SG Urspringschule junior team in 2005. In 2009-2010, he got experience in the States playing for Iowa Lakes CC (JUCO): 31 games: 5.6ppg, 3.0rpg, 1.5apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 53.0%, FT: 94.0%. Last season with Tuebingen, he got into 12 games: 0.4ppg; and also had also a license to play for Erdgas Ehingen/Urspringschule (2. Bundesliga Pro B)playing 27 games: 8.6ppg, 3.7rpg, 1.9apg, 1.4spg, FGP: 50.4%, 3PT: 25.5%, FT: 77.6%.

This Saturday, The Fraport Skyliners will be looking to rebound from their disappointing home opening  72-53 loss to the EWE Baskets Oldenburg. In the loss, The Fraport Skyliners had a dismal shooting day, had an off day under the basket and turned over the ball and a frightening 18 times something that was less prevalent in the preseason a time when turnovers can be more common. Frankfurt had a not 100% Justin Gray against Oldenburg and were without ex NBA player Jermario Davidson and Beko BBL rookie Michael Thompson due to injuries. Thompson could be back in the lineup to give the point guard position more of a push when Gray is taking a breather. Gray suspects a totally different game and no one should worry after only one loss. “We only played one game so far. We have to look at our mistakes form the Oldenburg game, come up with a new game plan and execute better in Tuebingen. A lot of the Fraport Skyliner mistakes started in the offense which transformed into their defense. “We have to communicate better on defense and just be more aggressive on offense and defense”, warned Skyliner guard Quantez Robertson. The Walter Tigers Tuebingen will be highly motivated as they start their season at home against the Fraport Skyliners. One match up to watch will be at the point guard position with Lou Campbell and Justin Gray. “. Cambpell has a lot of experience and I’m sure he has something to prove after having a so called down season from what we expect to see from him. Gray is a rookie in this league although he has experience playing but it should be a great matchup to see”, warned John Bynum. The Fraport Skyliners go into the game as the favorite and Tuebingen have nothing to lose and will give everything that they have. “. Frankfurt just has to play their game and control the tempo and the boards and use their experience in crucial parts of the game”, warned John Bynum. “It’s going to be a hard fought game but I think the team that is the most aggressive and the team that plays the hardest for the longest will win”, warned Vaughn Duggins. The Walter Tigers Tuebingen host The Fraport Skyliners on Saturday October 8^th at 20:00.