It´s always a delight when the ambitious German youth programs waltz into Basketball City Mainhatten and in the last week, there had been no lack of it. Last weekend the mighty FC Bayern Munich 2 displayed their talented young players winning a tough and tight 78-73 nail bitter and this week it was Orange Academy that came to do battle with the Fraport Skyliners Juniors. Orange Academy have been developing young talents for years that have continued to move on and play for their easyCredit BBL team ratiopharm Ulm. This season they have been a delight to observe in the Pro B as they are in first place in the Pro B south. With young prospects like Polish guard Igor Milicic, athletic forward Nat Diallo and 16 year old Jacob Ensminger who´s brother Zach has made a steady transition to the Pro A and their father Chris is a BBL legend, the team always have interesting up and coming players to watch. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors had their hands full coming into the game in tenth place and sporting only a 2-10 record, but their spirited and more improved game of the last few weeks carried over into the match against Orange Academy as they survived a real nail bitter winning 85-82. After two poor performances where easyCredit BBL license player Len Schoormann scored only two points in the last two games, the 18 year old German guard found his love to the ball again and stroked home 29 points in helping Frankfurt win only their third game of the season. After the 40 minute battle, Fraport Skyliners Juniors head coach Miran Cumurija was delighted about how his boys played. “We really heightened our game in the last week. There was a big change noticeable in how the team played against Munich. We really needed to win a close game. Everybody played well tonight and the team made a huge step. Everybody supported each other and the team executed the game plan”, stressed Miran Cumurija. Orange Academy gave it a massive fight for 40 minutes and last second come back and could have brought the game to overtime on the last shot, but the basketball God was on the side of the Fraport Skyliners Juniors. “I thought that we played solid offense in this game, but what hurt us the most in this game was that we didn´t play transition defense”, stressed Orange Academy guard Igor Milicic.

The Fraport Skyliners Juniors had a great start in the first quarter, but how it often it is in basketball games, Orange Academy was able to match Frankfurt´s run and storm back into the game and make it interesting. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors offense started to click rapidly as they broke out to a 11-4 lead. Orange Academy actually got on the board first as 212cm big man Nicholas Bretzel scored inside quickly after only 12 seconds as he showed what kind of an evening the Frankfurt defense would have as he would play havoc in the Frankfurt paint all night long. But Frankfurt then went on a 11-2 run spreading the offense nicely. They tried to get undersized German big man Noah Kamdem into a rhythm quickly and did as he scored twice while athletic German guard Maxi Begue who has heightened his offense in the last weeks also got going as he made two lay in´s including one on transition. Schoormann also contributed to the early onslaught with a transition lay in. Orange Academy was lazy on transition defense and Begue´s early aggressiveness helped spark the Frankfurt offense. Frankfurt continued to keep the offensive pressure on extending their lead to 18-8  as they practiced nice inside out basketball getting a lay in from Schoormann and one from German Jordan Samare while ex Wurzburg guard Philipp Hadenfeldt who has 5 BBL games on his resume drained a trey. But Orange Academy didn´t let up, but closed out the first quarter on a 8-4 run. German forward Nat Diallo who won the Albert Schweitzer tournament came off the bench getting a bucket and lay and then followed that with two more free throws. 17 year old German Jakob Hanzalek also added a basket while Frankfurt got added production from Schoormann who displayed his crazy athleticism with a massive two handed stuff from the baseline. “After a good start, we let up a bit on defense. Our help side wasn´t good and we didn´t communicate well”, said Len Schoormann. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 71% from the field and 50% from outside and had 9 rebounds and 5 turnovers while Orange Academy shot 33% from the field and 0% from outside and had 7 rebounds and 3 turnovers.

                The second quarter witnessed two runs by the two clubs as the Fraport Skyliners Juniors had another superb start and led by as much as 10 points only to see it subside as Orange Academy sped back to trail only by one point at the break. Like in the first quarter, Orange Academy got on the board first as 17 year old 206cm Montenegran Andrija Grbovic nailed a trey to cut the Frankfurt advantage to 22-20. Frankfurt then rushed out on a 8-2 run to extend their lead to 30-22. In the run they allowed it to rain three´s as ex TV Langen forward Leon Pullen and Len Schoormann connected and Noah Kamdem scored a left handed hook shot over Bretzel. Kamdem did a super job all night long on offense not getting taken advantage of Bretzel´s length, but doing a great job scoring. German Marius Stoll made a perfect alley-oop pass to Bretzel who slammed the ball home. Frankfurt kept the lead as they continued to feed Kamdem the ball inside and he executed at a high rate scoring twice. Two time ANGT player Alvin Onyia scored on transition and Schoormann finally found his three point shot again scoring twice. Orange Academy got a three pointer from versatile Nicholas Bretzel and also got 5 points from Igor Milicic who drilled home a trey and scored on a back door cut, but Frankfurt still led 42-32. “Being able to hit a consistent three is all mental. I made a few lay up´s and then I started to hit three´s. I wasn´t thinking about my shot. When I start to think too much is when I start to struggle”, stressed Len Schoormann. It seemed like the Fraport Skyliners Juniors would cruise into half-time with a very comfortable lead, but instead allowed Orange Academy to stage a comeback going on a 11-2 run to trail only 44-43 after 20 minutes. In the Orange Academy run, they were led by German forward Moritz Krimmer who has 8 BBL games on his resume. The German who was a pest the whole night always being in attack mode hit a three pointer and left handed hook shot while 17 year old Polish national player Jeremy Sochan hit a trey, lay in and free throw. “We had problems with 1-1 defense in this quarter. We didn´t help and rotate well. We gave them too many easy baskets”, stated Len Schoormann. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 69% from the field and 63% from the three point line and had 17 rebounds and 10 turnovers while Orange Academy shot 47% from the field and 38% from the three point line and had 11 rebounds and 5 turnovers.

                The third quarter was a real dog fight as there were six lead changes and no club led by more than five points, but after 30 minutes the guests led by one point. Orange Academy had the better start in the second half going on a 10-3 run to take the52-47 advantage. In the run Orange Academy got more active in the paint and executed the pick and roll over and over as Bretzel scored three times as Frankfurt had absolutely no cure for stopping it. Energy bunny Marius Stoll did a great job always finding him in the right spot. Krimmer and 19 year old German guard Julius Ferber also scored in the paint. But the Fraport Skyliners Juniors didn´t let the paint domination of Orange Academy hinder their focus and motivation as they rallied back going on a slick 8-2 run to recapture the lead 55-54. In the run, Frankfurt was carried again by Len Schoormann who hit four free throws and also made a bullet pass assist to ex Nurnberg guard Matthew Meredith while Hadenfeldt also connected on a jumper. In the run, Frankfurt was carried by Schoormann´s aggressiveness which allowed their self-confidence to rise and they also played better pick and roll defense. Frankfurt held the lead momentarily as ex Hanau forward Calvin Schaum dropped a trey and free throws, but Orange Academy fought back getting the lead back 60-59 with a Latrell Grosskopf lay in as he waltzed to the rim as if he was on a Sunday afternoon stroll through the park. Orange Academy kept the lead 63-62 after three quarters as Grbovic hit another three pointer. “Bretzel really hurt us on the pick and roll. I feel like Noah Kamdem still did a good job on him. It wasn´t easy defending him with his length”, said Len Schoormann. “We came out with more energy. Nicholas Bretzel was key in us staying in the game with his pick and roll game”, added Igor Milicic. Orange Academy shot 47% from the field and 32% from the parking lot and had 25 rebounds and 7 turnovers while the Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 58% form the field and 46% from the parking lot and had 26 rebounds and 15 turnovers.

                The Fraport Skyliners Juniors did a good job staying aggressive on offense and building a nine point advantage, but Orange Academy didn´t sink their heads in the sand and staged two come backs and could have brought the game to overtime on the last shot. Once again Orange Academy got on the board first with a Nat Diallo lay in for the 65-62 lead, but Frankfurt was in run mode again scoring nine unanswered points to retake the lead at 71-65. In the run, they spread out their offense again getting two three´s from Schoormann which resulted in a 4 point play and Hadenfeldt while Samare scored in the paint. Schoormann entered the contest shooting 14% from outside and needed some kind of a boost again with his trey. He shot 4/5 from the parking lot and was all smiles after his 29 point game. “I watched a lot of video this week. I wasn´t playing good defense. I saw with the video that I wasn´t doing enough off the ball. I had to be more in love with the ball. I talked more and got more balls which resulted in my shots to fall”, stated Len Schoormann.. Frankfurt also had another good phase on defense stopping Orange Academy´s pick and roll monster Nicholas Bretzel. One couldn´t totally shut down Bretzel as he continued to attack the rim scoring with a lay in and free throw cutting Frankfurt´s lead to 71-68. Frankfurt then found some new offensive daylight going on a 6-0 run to extend their lead to 77-68. In the run, Begue hit another trey and Schoormann made a lay in and free throw. ““Len had a small low in the last games. He had to be more active with the ball. His three finally fell again and I hope it is here to stay”, warned Frankfurt head coach Miran Cumurija. It seemed like Frankfurt was going to pull away again, but basketball proved again that it will always be a game of runs as Orange Academy struck back with a 6-0 run to cut Frankfurt´s lead to 77-74. In the guests run, it was the seemingly one man wrecking crew of Nicholas Bretzel who made an offensive rebound and put back and then sunk another trey. However Frankfurt didn´t lay down, but continued to execute on offense getting a clutch Hadenfeldt three and Kamdem lay in for the 83-77 advantage with one minute to go. Orange Academy did make it exciting one last time getting a vital trey from Grbovic again and a Sochan lay in to cut the Frankfurt lead to 83-82. Hadenfeldt then contributed two free throws to ice the win at 85-82. “The first eight minutes were strong for us. We were able to kick out the ball more which allowed us to make the three´s”, added Len Schoormann. “Schoormann made tough shots. We didn´t think he was capable of that. That changed the game for them”, said Igor Milicic. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors were led by Len Schoormann with 29 points. Noah Kamdem added 14 points while Philipp Hadenfeldt had 10 points while Orange Academy was led by Nicholas Bretzel with 23 points while Jeremy Sochan and Igor Milicic chipped in with 10 points  apiece. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 56% from the field and 48% from outside and had 35 rebounds and 20 turnovers while Orange Academy shot 44% from the field and 33% from outside and had 36 rebounds and 11 turnovers.

It seems like it was yesterday when Trae Bell-Haynes was playing for the Fraport Skyliners, but at closer glance it has been 2 years. He lasted only 4 and half months in Frankfurt before finishing the season in the G-League, but he also missed a month in Frankfurt with an injury. He was playing his first time overseas and at times it was difficult trying to convince Gordon Herbert that he could play an abundance of minutes on a team that had many good players. But the Canadian showed his basketball class rue colors in many games including a game against Braunschweig in late November 2018. Frankfurt was having their problems with Braunschweig until mid way through the second quarter when they exploded on a 19-3 run. Key in the run was rookie Trae Bell-Haynes who carried the team with 10 points. He scored four buckets in the paint with his unstoppable drives that has put him in the category with ex Skyliner greats Dashaun Wood and Jordan Theodore as guys that scored the most effective using this method. “My penetration is my all. I have worked and used it all my life. I am a small guard and always have to find ways to score. My game is made a lot easier when you have to respect guys like Eric Murphy with the pick and pop and Brady Heslip with the catch and shoot”, warned Trae Bell-Haynes after the  82-77 victory. I wasn´t the only one who noticed the incredible and dominating penetration of the Canadian, but so did his head coach Gordon Herbert. I talked to the x Fraport Skyliners head coach recently who is coaching in Russia this season and he agreed with me. “Trae can get to the rim as fast as Jordan Theodore can. Theodore and Bell Haynes are the two best penetrators that I have seen”, stressed Gordon Herbert. His penetration has continued to be the bread and butter of the Canadian who is tearing up the easyCredit BBL at the moment third in the league in scoring and first in assists. He continues to not only be in attack mode at all times when going to the basket, but also in improving his biggest strength. “I feel that I will continue to become a better penetrator as soon as I continue to become a better three point shooter. When teams respect my penetration, it will also allow me to pass the ball more. And as I become a better shooter, then teams will also respect me there more and let me to do more with my game”, warned Trae Bell Haynes. The Canadian is in his third professional season and with some grooming in Frankfurt and Helsinki has taken off in the easyCredit BBL.

         Bell-Haynes was born on September 5^th, 1995 in Toronto, Canada and began his basketball career at Bill Crothers secondary school and as a senior was captain and led his team to a 36-6 record and led the team in scoring and assists averaging 18,7ppg and 7,6apg and was named MVP of the Ontario Prep Championships tournament. He then played at the University of Vermont from 2014-2018 playing a total of 140 NCAA games. In his freshman season he averaged 8.4ppg, 2.6rpg, 3.5apg, FGP: 47.7%, 3PT: 60.0%, FT: 78.9% and was named to the AEC all rookie team. He scored in double figures in 10 games including a 21 point effort in a win over New Hampshire. In his second season, he took on a larger role and led the team in scoring averaging 12.2ppg, 2.7rpg, 3.5apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 49.5%, 3PT: 39.4%, FT: 79.9%. He earned All-American East Third Team honors, and also reached the All-Tournament Team . He scored in double figures in 21 games and had some massive games against Niagara pouring in 28 points in the 85-67 win and scored 27 points in the 90-72 victory over Maine. In his junior season, he averaged 11.2ppg, 2.7rpg, 3.9apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 51.5%, 3PT: 34.5%, FT: 72.7%. In his junior year he helped lead his team to a  29-6 overall record and perfect 16-0 record in conference play and had a fascinating 21 game winning streak. He was named America East player of the year and was named to the all conference team and he topped off the season winning the AEC tournament. He scored in double figures in 16 games including scoring 23 and 22 points against Vermont and had 20 points in a loss against UMBC. He remembers one strange game beating Lyndon State 79-20. “We always had that 1 game each season where we played against a lower team. It was a weird game. As a competitor, you always want to win, but really winning like that is no fun. The game was good for our younger players getting more minutes. This was definitely one of the more forgettable games”, said Trae Bell-Haynes.

 As a senior he averaged 14.6ppg, 4.2rpg, 4.0apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 54.1%, 3PT: 34.9%, FT: 73.7% and was named American East player of the year for a second straight year. Only 2 other Vermont players had achieved that with Taylor Coppenrath and Marqus Blakely who both also have played overseas. He scored in double figures in 26 games and had  unforgettable personal games against Dartmouth and Umass-Lowell scoring 27 points in each game. He also scored 21 points a piece in wins over Maine, Albany and Binghamton. He had a lot of good memories at Vermont, but one was most special. “Playing at March Madness was my fondest moment. We lost in the first round against Purdue by 8 points. It is every guys dream to play there. Just seeing the atmosphere there is great. We were the underdog and I remember the fans of Iowa State cheering for us who played after us. That was an amazing thing to see”, stated Trae Bell-Haynes. Another game that he won´t forget was the first of his senior year as he and Vermont took power house Kentucky to the brink, but lost 73-69. In that game, he battled against future NBA players like Kevin Knox, PJ Washington Hamidou Diallo and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The American held his own dropping 16 points. “I´ll never forget the atmosphere at Kentucky. It was one of the nicest arena´s that I ever played in. I remember going into the game not expecting much. But as the game kept going, I slowly really believed that I and my team belonged on the court with them. I feel the same today when Crailsheim is on the court with an Alba Berlin or Munich, I know that I belong. Ever since that Kentucky game, I always feel like I belong and deserve to be on the court with any team I play against”, warned Trae Bell-Haynes. He also won´t forget dueling against future NBA player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who was teammates with German national player Dennis Schroeder in Oklahoma City. “I remember him being the least talented of their recruits. He was a tough and solid player and a few months later when he was playing well, I wasn´t surprised at all. I am proud that I gave him a hard time on the court and he couldn´t have his way with us”, remembered Trae Bell-Haynes. The Canadian who remembers beating his old high school and college buddy Steffan Smith a lot in 1-1 games is very thankful for having been able to fine tune his game for the pro´s under head coach John Becker. “He was all about discipline and hard work. He always pushed us and really had his head on defense. He made sure we defended well. He is a big reason for my success as a professional player”, expressed Trae Bell-Haynes.

Before turning professional with the Fraport Skyliners, he was able to get a taste of the NBA Summer League with the Milwaukee Bucks playing 5 games averaging  5.6ppg, 2.0rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 61.5%. “It was nice to be able to work out with guys who had NBA experience. A couple of times the bucks head coach came to our practices and was able to give us advice and talk to us”, remembered Trae Bell-Haynes.  He then joined the Fraport Skyliners. There he was able to play in 2 competitions with the: Eurocup averaging 8.1ppg, 1.8rpg, 2.7apg, 2FGP: 49.1%, 3FGP: 43.8%, FT: 69.6%, and in the easyCredit BBL he averaged 6.1ppg, 2.6rpg, 2.6apg, 2FGP: 49.1%, 3FGP: 20.0%, FT: 90.3%, It isn´t always simple for a rookie coming over to make the adjustment from college to the easyCredit BBL and the Canadian had some early growing pains. “My wake up call was that the college success I had wasn´t just going to roll over into my professional career. I learned that in order to be successful, I had to work twice as hard. I had to build myself up and I realized that whatever I had done in the past wouldn´t help me in Frankfurt”, warned Trae Bell-Haynes. In the EasyCredit BBL, he scored in double figures in 5 games and in Eurocup he also scored in double figures 5 times including 22 points in a loss against Unicaja. In the BBL, his best games occurred against Braunschweig with 17 points and he had 16 points in a brutal 91-90 loss against Giessen. His best play came in a 5 week period in November and December when he was a starter. “My confidence rose in those 5 weeks. Being able to work together with high level guys like Quantez Robertson and Shawn Huff and seeing their work ethic really helped my game. Ever since I played in Frankfurt, I always focus on being a hard worker the way Tez Robertson was”, stressed Trae Bell-Haynes. Coaches have always played a huge role in the career of the Canadian and it wasn´t any different with ex Fraport Skyliner head coach Gordon Herbert. It helped his stay in Frankfurt that he already came in with a very high basketball IQ. “I couldn´t have come to a better situation in Frankfurt. He always kept a very high standard. He set the bar very high and it never dropped. I hadn´t been used to that kind of coaching. I had to catch up with everything very quickly, but once I did, everything worked out for the best for me”, stated Trae Bell-Haynes. After his Frankfurt gig, he then found a new challenge in the G-League with the Wisconsin Herd averaging 6.7ppg, 1.9rpg, 3.3apg, FGP: 69.2%, 3PT: 25.0%, FT: 71.4%. “That was pretty tough. I used this time more for my rehab. I came to a team that had no chance for the playoffs. Guys were waiting for the season to end. I am grateful that I could get back on the court and get minutes, but at the same time the atmosphere was different to what I was used to”, said Trae Bell-Haynes. He scored in double figures twice scoring 12 points in loses against Long Island and Iowa. He was fortunate to have ex NBA player Xavier Munford who he calls a close friend today as one who showed him the ropes. “We were roommates. I always try to soak up as much as possible from high level players like him. We went to the gym a few times to play 1-1. I´ll never forget how competitive he was. He was always challenging guys to 1-1 games. He was very serious and was a high level competitor”, expressed Trae Bell-Haynes. He finished out the season that summer playing with the Niagara River Lions (CEBL) averaging 12.4ppg, 4.1rpg, 3.7apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 58.1%, 3PT: 29.0%, FT: 78.4%. he scored in double figures in 12 games and had a 21 point and 20 point games in wins over Saskatchewan R.

Last season the Canadian who calls Caleb Swanigan of the Portland Trailblazers as his toughest opponent in the NCAA played in Finland with the Helsinki Seagulls (Korisliiga) playing 36 games averaging 12.8ppg, 3.9rpg, 4.8apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 59.1%, 3PT: 34.1%, FT: 86.8%. He won his first professional title winning the 2020 cup. Being able to win that first professional chip is one that he will never forget. “I made the right decision going to Finland. I was lucky to be teammates with Shawn Huff again. I remember that cup final as being very intense. The game went to overtime and I played against my current Crailsheim teammates . Jamuni Mcnease and Tim Coleman. I still trash talk with them to this day. I keep telling them that my team was the best. We won the only title, because the playoffs were cancelled because of COVID-19”, said Trae Bell-Haynes. He also was very fortunate to have a very experienced veteran in Richard Williams who played in many leagues in Germany including the BBL. He was able to take something very important from Williams game and add to his. “His poise stood out the most. I was able to play more composed. He never got rattled and was always under control and played at his pace”, remembered Trae Bell-Haynes. In Finland he scored in double figures in 25 games including a 26 point game in a win over Kobrat, 23 points in a victory over Kauhajoki, and 22 points in a victory over KTP Basket. He finished the season in Canada during COVID-19 for Niagara River Lions (CEBL) playing 6 games: averaging 16.2ppg), 3.3rpg,4.2apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 60.5%, 3PT: 31.3%, FT: 88.2%. “Plaiyng in the CEBL helped me a lot to expand my game. I helped my team win and was able to develop further”, said Trae Bell-Haynes. He scored 23 points against Edmonton and Hamilton. He also has had the pleasure of playing for the Canadian national team back in 2018 scoring 5 points in 11 minutes in a loss against Chile and in 2020 played against the Dominican Republic registering 9 points and 6 points in 2 wins. “Playing with the national team has been a very cool experience. “Being around veterans and learning from them has been very important for my development. I was lucky to be around a guy like Phil Scrubb and try to steal as much as I can from his game. Another guy I looked up to has been Melvin Ejim who took me under his wing”, stated Trae Bell-Haynes.

2020 has been a difficult time for everyone and like so many other players, Trae Bell-Haynes who last watched the movie Troy experienced a lot during COVID-19 on and off the court. Like so many other players he was able to spend extra time with the family something that he wouldn´t have been able had corona not struck. He didn´t touch a ball in the first month and a half. It was the first time in a very long time that he didn´t play, but he used that time wisely. “I used the time to decompose from basketball. I watched a lot of film. Two months later I found a facility where I could play and my friend Kassius Robertson and I worked out there every day. I then played in the CEBL league. It was tough ending the season early in Finland, but overall it gave me time to get better as a player”, stressed Trae Bell-Haynes. He didn´t only get better on the court, but also got better as a man off the court. “I learned that with COVID-19 I had to roll with the punches and become more flexible. That helped me deal with the circumstances that I didn´t want to be in, but I used them to better myself”, said Trae Bell-Haynes. The Canadian who lists Jordan, Lebron, Kobe and Shaq on his personal NBA Mount Rushmore signed with the HAKRO Merlins for the 2020-2021 season. After a year away from the easyCredit BBL, he is overjoyed to be back and doesn´t see a big adjustment from the big city Frankfurt to the small city Crailsheim. Unfortunately he got hurt early with Frankfurt and had to go. It is different living in the big city and now in a smaller one, but at the end of the day it is the same just going to the gym and doing your job and then going home. “In Frankfurt I was focused on the job and didn´t let any of the outside distractions get in the way. Tuomas is similar to Gordie with the intensity and experience. Both wanted 100% all the time. So really there isn´t much change for me”, stressed Trae Bell Haynes. Crailsheim has started off very well in the easyCredit BBL currently at 11-2 and is a team that many teams will have to watch out for. “I think that as the year goes on, we will be known as a team that outworks other teams. We don´t have the biggest budget, but will always play hard for 40 minutes. We make up for what we lack with how hard we play”, warned Trae Bell-Haynes. Head coach Tuomas Iisalo is a coach that has made a name for himself in Germany and gets the full respect from his players. “He knows how to get the best out of each player. When I arrived, he knew exactly on what skills of mine we had to focus on. He took 2-3 of my skills and it has made me more effective on offense. He makes sure we always work hard and he motivates us to always give 100%, added Trae Bell-Haynes. He has a very good bond to his teammates and expects ex NBA player Haywood Highsmith to become an impact player and has been very impressed with American Jeremy Jones. “I appreciate Haywood´s versatility. We have had some injuries and he has been able to slip into multiple roles and be effective. He didn´t score so much in the first games, but he did a very good job against Bamberg´s scorer Devon Hall. He is the type of player that will do whatever job the team needs. I had seen Coleman and McNeace last season in Finland, but never had seen Jeremy Jones. He has never played in Germany. I remember how hard the adjustment was for me in the BBL as a rookie. Jeremy came in and has done exactly what coach has said. He has stood out the most for me”, said Trae Bell-Haynes.

The Canadian who lists his 5 best teammates of all-time as Shawn Huff, Brady Heslip, Fabian Bleck, Kurt Steigel and Elijah Stewart is a pass first 188cm point guard that is currently third ins coring at 19,2ppg and first in assists with 8.2apg, but also knows when to score has tried to play like the legendary French player Tony Parker. “The way I get into the paint and use ball screens resembles Tony Parker. I would like to say I play like a Damian Lillard, but that is going a bit far. I just try to be myself. People know how I play and the hard work that I put in. I really don´t like people putting expectations on me”, stressed Trae Bell-Haynes. He has torn up the easyCredit BBL like no other player in many years and credits his current success to his Finish coach Tuomas Iisalo. “Coach has been a big reason for success. He has put me in the right situation and put a lot of confidence in me. He has given me freedom and responsibility. He has let me be myself and given me the green light. His confidence in me gives me more confidence”, warned Trae Bell-Haynes. Of course having a similar system in Finland last season and just having that extra season to grow as a player has also been vital for his current success in Germany. “Having the same system has helped me. I was able to step into the offense here and already knew the reads and looks which gave me a leg up on the league and I didn´t have to learn anything new. My season in Finland helped me build added confidence. In Frankfurt I had more of a limited role and in Finland, I had a bigger role. The smaller league in Finland helped me grow to where I am now. I had a lot of confidence coming back to Germany”, warned Trae Bell-Haynes. Another big strength is his ability to draw fouls. Getting to the free throw line above 10 times isn´t anything uncommon for him these days. “I think that it has to do with experience. I know better where my spots are and I´m always in attack mode. I also think that the more minutes I have and the more I have the ball will increase my trips to the foul line”, added Trae Bell-Haynes. If the HAKRO Merlins want to continue to be successful, then the leadership qualities of the Canadian will also play a giant role which he credits as being his second biggest strength after his penetration. “I feel my leadership has taken huge steps since Frankfurt. I know when my team is playing bad that I have to keep the club calm and steady the ship and just be an extension of the coach”, warned Trae Bell-Haynes. He is still very young and still has a very long career ahead of him. His ex coach Gordon Herbert stressed recently that the Canadian could reach a very high level in Europe, if he continues to improve his defense, strength and three pointer. “I feel that I have taken steps on defense. I´m more locked in and am not taking plays off which is the key. I´m getting more in the gym taking shots, but I still have a ton of work to do. I´m also more in the weight room getting stronger. I spent a lot of time in the weight room during COVID-19. I feel like I have taken steps forward, but I´m never content. I still have a long way to go”, warned Trae Bell-Haynes. He has come a long way in 2 years and is a lot better now than when he was with the Fraport Skyliners. “I´m better now because of the confidence I got in Frankfurt. There wasn´t much expected of me in Frankfurt, but now with Crailsheim, the expectations on myself are high. I hold a high standard and the confidence I have built over the last few years has made me better”, stressed Trae Bell-Haynes. The sky continues to be the limit for Trae Bell-Haynes and it will be interesting to see how his second season continues to develop as his high self confidence will be key for him being the possible 2021 MVP of the easyCredit BBL.

DJ Woodmore is a 28 year old 190cm point guard that is playing his first season with the EPG Baskets Koblenz. Last season with Morgenstern BIS Basket Speyer (Germany-ProB) he played 21 games averaging 15.1ppg, 4.4rpg, 2.3apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 60.0%, 3PT-2 (50.0%), FT: 87.3%. In 2018-2019 13.8ppg, 4.5rpg, 2.8apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 60.2%, 3PT: 36.5%, FT: 71.6% in the Regionalliga. In his first two seasons with Speyer he averaged 14.5ppg, 5.2rpg, 2.3apg, FGP: 44.6%, 3PT: 40.1%, FT: 72.1% and 17.5ppg, 7.0rpg, 3.4apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 47.5%, 3PT: 33.0%, FT: 76.4%. he played at Virginia Wesleyan College (NCAA3): from 2010-2014 and as a senior played 31 games averaging 20.1ppg, 5.9rpg, 2.4apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 50.3% (219/435), 3Pts: 46.0% (91/198), FT: 76.9% (93/121). Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and DJ Woodmore team up each week to talk basketball.

TheEPG Baskets Koblenz suffered a tough 90-82 loss against TSV Oberaching Tropics. The guests had the overwhelming 49-43 lead at the break. 49 was way too much to have given up. What was giving the team the biggest problems on the defensive end in the first 20 minutes?

I thought we didn’t defend well at all in the first half and the third quarter as well. They were doing a good job of penetrating and getting into the paint, and when we collapsed, they kicked it out and made the right plays. 

You had to play catch up basketball the whole night. How tough was it doing this conserving energy and what lessons do you think did the team learn from this catch up game you were playing? 

I think we learned that we can’t dig ourselves in a hole at all. Yeah I think we’re talented enough and experienced enough to make a comeback, but once we give a team confidence, it’s hard to take that away. 

The EPG Baskets Koblenz were in the game at the end with a few minutes to go down 85-82. But then sharp shooter Janosch Koegler hit a brutal three pointer deciding the game. Was there serious fatigue with the team at that point?

I think we had a few guys that were tired, some guys had to play a lot of minutes because of the injuries, but we have to find a way to get that much needed stop, regardless of the situation. It was a big shot off of a broken play, so you have to give them credit. But they beat us on 50/50 balls the entire game. and it finally came back to hurt us. 

How tough was sitting out and watching? What kind of discoveries did you make watching your team something you wouldn’t necessarily have seen had you been in uniform? 

Extremely tough to watch and know that you can’t do anything to help except be as vocal as possible. I thought we showed a lot of fight in the final quarter but it was just too little too late. I always think there are some areas we can improve on, but sometimes you don’t see it as clearly from the court as you do from the bench. We’ll talk about them this week, and get ready to try again next weekend. 

Zaire Thompson had a huge game with 14/8/6 stats. What strides did he make in this game? 

Z has always been capable of this kind of performance. He’s also had to sacrifice a lot of his offensive game because of the depth of our roster, but we knew he would step up when it was needed. He’s shown it all season. 

On what area’s will the team be working on most this week?. It lost the rebound battle and allowed 90 points

Defense forsake. I think Oberhaching did a lot of really good things this weekend. But at the end of the day, I feel like we shouldn’t be giving up 90+ points to any team. And they were able to do it twice. 

Next weekend Orange Academy arrive in Koblenz. You lost the first game by 23 on the road. What will be key in splitting the season series?

I think we just have to go out there and play with pride. I think our team should take the first loss personaly and want to do everything possible to get even with them. We need to hit them first and keep hitting for 40 minutes. 

When do you expect to be back in action and what are you doing to get back?

I’m hoping to be back this weekend for the Orange Academy game, but I’m not sure. Physio treatments and rehab have been going well so far so we’ll see. I’ll try to ease my way into practice this week and go from there.

James Harden, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant on a team. Will this work?

I think they have a chance to win a lot of games, butIi think their lack of depth and size at the big position will hurt them in the playoffs. We’ll see how they stack up against some the top teams in the Western conference.

Thanks DJ for the chat.

                After a tough start to the season where the Fraport Skyliners had to play a number of the top BBL teams, they have slowly come into their own and are beating the teams that they have to. In the last weeks they beat teams like Chemnitz, Bayreuth, Braunschweig, MBC and BG Goettingen all teams that they had to beat to keep competitive in a very exciting league this season. They could of even had one more win more, but threw away a victory in Giessen. The Fraport Skyliners met s.Oliver Wurzburg sporting a 5-6 record while their Bavarian opponent had a unsatisfying 3-7 record, but last weekend had beat the Telekom Baskets Bonn 89-77 and had a spec of self-confidence as did the Fraport Skyliners. It was one of those games where one of the best players Matt Mobley took a step back and watched two ex Pro B players Cameron Hunt and Rasheed Moore steal the show as they exploded and combined for 46 points, but Hunt had the last laugh as he helped carry s.Oliver Wurzburg to a much deserved 80-72 victory. “Moore is very powerful inside., His big strength is his outside shot. He is tough, versatile and a tough cover”, stated Cameron Hunt. “Hunt is a quick guard that hit tough shots. When he gets going and attacks the rim, he is hard to stop. It is nice seeing guys from low levels succeed. I always root for the low level guys”, stated Rasheed Moore  It was a game that was even in the first half and a game in the second half that gave both teams runs, but it was Wurzburg that had the last run that decided the game. S.Oliver Wurzburg head coach Denis Wucherer had the same stern expression on his face despite having a big win, but one could see that he was very proud of his boys. “The team showed today that when you have the right heart, chemistry, attitude and energy, that you can come away with a win. Today we gave a very good answer”, stressed Denis Wucherer. The Fraport Skyliners played a solid game, but when it mattered most in crunch-time were unable to execute on offense or get the needed stops. “We didn´t play with the necessary physical energy in the second half. We had problems on the offensive glass and it hurt that we didn´t have Kessens. It was one of those days where not everyone was clicking and we didn´t have guys step up when we needed it”, stressed Fraport Skyliner forward Rasheed Moore.  “We played together despite missing some guys. One of our goals was to win the rebound battle and we did. Our German guys and bench really stepped it up”, stressed Wurzburg guard Cameron Hunt.

                The first quarter was a tight battle that saw both clubs share the lead, but no team led by more than 4 points. S.Oliver Wurzburg got the rapid 5-2 lead as German Felix Hoffmann connected on a trey and ex Weber State(NCAA) center Brekkot Chapman scored on a lay in after getting the perfect feed from American Tyson Ward. Ward who balled at North Dakota State University (NCAA) came back and hit a trey from the corner extending the guests lead to 8-4. Frankfurt got some key baskets from ex Vechta center Michael Kessens and ex Davidson)NCAA) guard Jon Axel Gundmundsson to dead lock the game at 8-8. Frankfurt continued to work for good shots and gained the 14-10 advantage as Gundmundsson nailed a trey and ex Miami(NCAA) center Kamari Murphy hauled in a bullet pass from Quantez Robertson for the easy lay in. At the 2,15 minute mark, American second year man Cameron Hunt was inserted. He quickly took over the reigns of the Wurzburg offense and led it on a 7-3 run to end the first quarter tied at 17-17. The American who tore up the NAIA averaging 31,5ppg as a senior at Southwestern College, KS (NAIA) was involved in the last three Wurzburg scores. He hit free throws, then made the extra pass for a Koch trey and then hit a tough turn around shot to end the first quarter. “The first quarter was a feeling out process. After a while both teams found each other out”, stressed Cameron Hunt.

            The second quarter continued to be a very tight affair as no teams could get away from each other as no team led by more than 3 points. In the first minutes, it was Gundmundsson and Hunt that carried their teams. The Iceland national player connected for 5 points as he made a coast to coast lay in and dropped a trey from the wing while Hunt connected on a three pointer and then displayed his amazing first step scoring with his left hand and giving Wurzburg the 26-22 advantage. There had been no real runs in the contest until now where the Fraport Skyliners found some offensive daylight and went on a 7-0 run to capture the lead back at 29-26. In the run the 2004 BBL champion got important support from guard Joe Rahon and Quantez Robertson who scored in the paint and Gundmundsson nailed another trey as his calmness behind the parking lot was mesmerizing. Despite Frankfurt having an offensive rhythm, they continued to have little break downs on defense that allowed Wurzburg to still be able to peak their heads through the back door. A Chapman 20 footer and another Hunt trey tied the game at 31-31. Wurzburg was able to go into the break with the narrow 38-35 advantage, Wurzburg did a fine job spreading the ball around as Ward made a lay in in traffic, Koch showed that his quickness is underrated scoring with his left hand on a lay in and Chapman hit free throws. Hunt was a big help for Wurzburg as his key offense continued to carry the team. “I just took what the defense gave me. When I had open looks, I took them. I knew that we needed a spark”, said Cameron Hunt.

            In the third quarter the Fraport Skyliners broke free and led by as much as 11 points, but allowed s.Oliver Wurzburg to hang around as they came back and trailed only 59-58 after 30 minutes. The Fraport Skyliners didn´t waste anytime to make a change in the tight game by cruising on a lethal 16-2 run to take the 51-40 lead. In the run, it was the domination of Rasheed Moore who got on fire as he scored 11 points. He hit two three pointers,scored in inside and got to the free throw line. Mobley also added a three pointer as the Fraport Skyliners moved the ball better and forced the guests to tough shots. “This was a good career day for me. I didn´t play that well in the first half and wanted to be more aggressive in the second half. My teammates told me to shoot the ball more which helped me get into a rhythm”, stated Rasheed Moore. But just as quickly as Frankfurt got a double digit lead, they also lost it again as s.Oliver Wurzburg took their run out scoring Frankfurt 18-8 to trail only 59 -58. In the run the guests did a good job taking advantage of Michael Kessens having had to leave the game because of injury getting the ball more to Chapman who scored. But Wurzburg also showcased their offensive versatility as they let it rain getting three pointers from Koch and Hunt. Hunt was also on fire in this run scoring 7 points including a floater. “We also had been down in Bonn and were able to come back. So we knew that it was all about sticking together. We knew that it was still a long game and it was a game of runs and we would come back”, said Cameron Hunt.

            The first five minutes of the fourth quarter remained a dog fight, but as crunch-time approached s.Oliver Wurzburg made the last punch of the game and decided the game with a game ending 13-6 run to win their second game in a row. S.Oliver Wurzburg kept their offensive pressure on keeping the lead as they got a bank shot trey from Julius Albus and Cameron Hunt showed twice how well he can pick between finishing and finding his teammates as he fed young German center Jonas Weitzel for two easy lay ins. Rasheed Moore continued to execute and keep Frankfurt close with another three pointer and lay in to trail only 67-66. S.Oliver Wurzburg then went on their run as German Florian Koch was huge making a lay in and 15 footer while the Wurzburg defense forced a turnover and Gundmundsson shot an air ball as Frankfurt trailed 71-66. Wurzburg continued to defend hard and got two more stops which led to a Chapman lay in taking advantage of Frankfurt´s small ball and young German Joshua Obiesie hit a trey for the 76-66 Wurzburg lead with little time remaining. It didn´t help Frankfurt´s cuase that they couldn´t get to the free throw line on a consistent basis. Wurzburg did a great job not letting Frankfurt top scorer Matt Mobley get shots. “We really needed to get him the ball more. He didn´t have a great game, but all a scorer like that needs is to see the ball go in once. That can help him get on a roll. Once he gets going, it opens up everything for us”, stated Rasheed Moore. After Mobley hit a free throw, Wurzburg then slammed the door shut on Frankfurt with a Ward lay in and Chapman free throws for the 80-67 lead. Gundmundsson closed out the game with five consecutive points, but it was too late too little. “We saw Frankfurt go small so we gave Chapman the ball more. On defense we did all the little things and everyone was talking”, stated Cameron Hunt. “They hit big shots and their offensive rebounds killed us”, said Rasheed Moore. S.Oliver Wurzburg was led by Cameron Hunt with 23 points and 7 dimes, Brekkot Chapman had 18 points and 10 rebounds and Florian Koch added 14 points while the Fraport Skyliners were led by Rasheed Moore with 23 points and Jon Axel Gundmundsson had 21 points. S.Oliver Wurzburg shot 46% from the field and 36% from outside and had 37 rebounds and 11 turnovers while the Fraport Skyliners shot 45% from the field and 39% from outside and had 27 rebounds and 13 turnovers.

In the last 10 days the Fraport Skyliners Juniors have had an abundance of meeting Bavarian clubs. Last week the Frankfurt club had to battle the TSV Oberaching Tropics twice within 72 hours. They displayed their best performance of the season winning 99-76 where they had five guys score in double figures and they cleaned up on the boards easily and coughed up the ball only 10 times. However in the return showdown in Bavaria, the TSV Oberaching Tropics were able to get revenge winning 84-68 as the Fraport Skyliners Juniors were unable to take advantage of the 21 Oberaching turnovers. A new Bavarian team came to Frankfurt with FC Bayern Munich 2 who had a slow start this season, but have been playing inspired basketball in the last weeks having won four of their last six games. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors sought revenge after losing the first contest in Munich 87-51 where the Bavarian club shot very well from the parking lot and forced Frankfurt to 25 turnovers, but this time the contest wasn´t so one sided as Frankfurt was in the game from start to end, but made some little mistakes at the end and had to suffer four free throws from Jason George who iced the 78-73 victory for FC Bayern Munich 2. After the win FC Bayern Munich 2 head coach Andreas Wagner had that relieved look on his face as his team had finally won a crunch time game after losing a few too many this season. “We were streaky in the first half and didn´t play transition defense. In the second half we played better transition defense and took away their easy baskets. Key at the end was our defensive intensity and better ball movement that helped us secure the win”, stressed FC Bayern Munich 2 head coach Andreas Wagner. Frankfurt played a well rounded and spirited game, but just couldn´t make the right plays at the end.” I felt that we played a good first half. We started well and had good energy. I also felt that we had a good start to the second half, but we then lost our flow in the last five minutes. At the end we made easy mistakes that cost us the win”, stated Fraport Skyliners Juniors guard Mathew Meredith.

                Both teams had their offenses rolling right out of the gate as the Fraport Skyliners Juniors got two baskets from undersized but powerful Noah Kamdem who scored twice while FC Bayern Munich 2 was carried by 17 year old German 199cm forward Michael Rataj who was active in the paint scoring twice tying the game at 4-4. Frankfurt would keep the slight 7-6 lead as German Maxi Begue who has played 4 BBL games and Jason George who has 3 played 3 BBL games traded baskets. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors then cranked out a 9-2 run to get the overwhelming 16-8 advantage. In the run Frankfurt got vital baskets from Begue, German Jordan Samare who has played one BBL game and a trey from ex Wurzburg guard Philipp Hadenfeldt. Frankfurt did a good job getting transition baskets and on defense contained Munich top scorer Jason George. However not only Frankfurt had run on their mind as FC Bayern Munich 2 escaped out of their funk reeling in a 8-0 run to deadlock the game at 16-16. In the run the Bavarian team did a good job being aggressive and scoring in the paint getting baskets from 18 year old 204cm center Mohamed Sillah from Sierra Leone, 16 year old German Christian Skladanowski and Rataj. Frankfurt did keep the lead in the last minute getting baskets from Meredith and 2017 JBBL finalist Calvin Schaum. Jason George hit a buzzer beater ending the first quarter, but FC Bayern Munich trailed Frankfurt 21-18. “I thought that we defended well and did a good job on Jason George. We let up a bit at the end allowing them to come back”, stressed Matthew Meredith. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 46% from the field and 25% from outside and had 9 rebounds and 5 turnovers while FC Bayern Munich 2 shot 39% from the field and 0% from outside and had 7 rebounds and 5 turnovers.

The Fraport Skyliners Juniors picked up their offense in the second quarter and led by as much as 11 points, but let up a bit at the end and led only 40-35 at half-time. Joshua Bonga who turned 16 four days ago got Frankfurt on the board first sneaking inside and fishing an offensive rebound and making the put back for the 23-18 Frankfurt advantage. Frankfurt kept the lead getting a big basket from 17 year German center Alexander Richardson and a tap in From Meredith who had gotten the offensive rebound for the 28-22 Frankfurt lead. But FC Bayern Munich 2 stayed in the game by Austrian guard Erol Ersek who always had an answer making a jumper and trey to shave the Frankfurt lead down to 28-25. Ersek finished the game with 24 points and carried the guests all night long. “I have known him for years. He is a good shooter and hits big shots. He has made good steps with FC Bayern Munich, but it is hard to establish one´s self on a team like that”, stressed Matthew Meredith. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors then went on a huge 12-4 run to take their biggest lead of the game at 40-29. In the run it was Meredith who had the hot hand contributing 7 points. Defensive specialist Maxi Begue who has had some offensive off nights this season was spot on hitting a trey testing his 23% three point percentage and also displayed his crazy athleticism making a beautiful acrobatic lay in. FC Bayern Munich 2 had defensive lapses and continued to have difficulty getting back on transition defense while on offense bad shot selection cursed their offensive production. But Frankfurt lost some intensity in the last minutes and couldn´t keep the big lead letting up a costly 6-0 run. In the run, Munich began with a three pointer form Jason George which was strengthened by solid ball movement and Skladanowski scored inside getting the perfect back door pass from 2019 NBBL champion Luis Wolf. “Munich is a good team and fought back well. I was in the flow and sometimes everything goes in”, said Matthew Meredith. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 42% from the field and 30% from the three point line and had 20 rebounds and 9 turnovers while FC Bayern Munich 2 shot 41% from the field and 28% from the three point line and had 18 rebounds and 11 turnovers.

In the third quarter the Fraport Skyliners Juniors once again were able to lead by as much as 10 points quickly, but once again allowed FC Bayern Munich 2 to sneak back into the game and get the lead 59-58 after 30 minutes. Frankfurt began well stopping the Bavarian team on their first three possessions and forced two turnovers while on offense were rewarded by a transition basket by Jordan Samare and a trey from Calvin Schaum. But Frankfurt experienced another down phase not being able to mange their lead, but instead relinquished a brutal 12-0 run to FC Bayern Munich giving the guests the 47-45 lead. In the run FC Bayern Munich got big baskets from Jason George, 20 year old German Lukas Zerner, five points from Michael Rataj and another clutch trey from Erol Ersek. The guests heightened their aggressiveness on defense as Frankfurt totally lost their rhythm on offense. FC Bayern Munich shared the ball better and improved their shot selection. Frankfurt recovered from the big Munich run and got some added vital baskets from Noah Kamdem and Maxi Begue who made a thunderous dunk after being helped by the ref´s back as the loose ball bounced to him having a break away to the hoop with no Munich defenders in sight giving Frankfurt the 53-47 advantage. FC Bayern Munich fought back getting baskets from Ersek and Rataj to cut Frankfurt´s lead to 53-51. Both teams would trade baskets in the last minutes as Frankfurt was aided by a Hadenfeldt trey and Kamdem lay in while the guests got three´s from their top two players George and Ersek. Ersek then made a lay in at the buzzer for the Munich lead. “It was a back and forth game. Nobody could get away from the other. I felt that we felt good defense, but they hit tough shots. We took good shots”, said Matthew Meredith. FC Bayern Munich 2 shot 51% from the field and 43% from the parking lot and had 22 rebounds and 17 turnovers while the Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 46% from the field and 33% from the parking lot and had 23 rebounds and 13 turnovers.

                The fourth quarter was a dog fight where FC Bayern Munich had the better nerves and in the crucial crunch-time got to the free throw line while the Fraport Skyliners Juniors couldn´t execute on the offensive end. Frankfurt got on the board first as ex TV Langen forward Leon Pullen made a terrific pass out of the double team finding Hadenfeldt for the easy bucket and 60-59 lead. As usual the dangerous and always aggressive Erol Ersek sunk another three pointer, but Kamdem struck back using his physicality inside and dead locking the contest at 62-62. Munich would take the lead three times in a row only for Frankfurt to tie the game each time. Mohamed Sillah had been contained well in the first half as he only made one basket, but in this phase he was the focus of the Munich offense scoring four consecutive baskets. He scored each time inside as Noah Kamdem wasn´t able to contain him. On Sillah´s fourth basket, FC Bayern Munich led 70-66 and they would never look back. “We did a good job on him in the first half, but we just couldn´t stop him in the second half”, stated Matthew Meredith.  Begue continued to have the hot hand drilling home a three pointer to cut Munich´s lead to 70-69, but as usual it was Ersek again who once again came up with a massive three pointer for the 72-69 lead. 16 year German Sebastian Hartman who made his Pro B debut made a huge basket for the 74-69 lead. Frankfurt then got a stop and got four free throws from Hadenfeldt to cut Munich´s lead to 74-73 with 53 seconds to play. But Frankfurt was unable to get the lead back as Jason George sealed the win with four free throws while Alvin Oniya made a turnover. “We were a bit more clever at the end. I also have to give a huge compliment on our young players today with Rataj, Skladanowski and Hartmann who helped us very much”, stated Andreas Wagner. “Turnovers cost us at the end and we didn´t play as a team. We also didn´t play our plays to the end playing pick and roll and seeing what will happen”, stated Matthew Meredith. FC Bayern Munich were led by Erol Ersek with 24 points. Jason George added 21 points while Michael Rataj added 11 points and Mohamed Sillah had 10 points and 7 rebounds while the Fraport Skyliners Juniors were led by Maxi Begue with 17 points. Matthew Meredith and Philipp Hadenfeldt added 12 points a piece. FC Bayern Munich 2 shot 48% from the field and 39% from outside and had 28 rebounds and 20 turnovers while the Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 47% from the field and 30% from outside and had 30 rebounds and 20 turnovers.

A little more than a year ago Cameron Hunt from Duncansville, Texas who never disliked a basket during his amazing and decorated NAIA career at Southwestern College, KS  averaging 27,0ppg in his last two seasons and 31,0ppg as a senior played a game against the Fraport Skyliners Juniors in Frankfurt in his rookie season and played in front of about 70 people. After a slow start his team TG s.Oliver Wurzburg stormed back in the third quarter deciding the contest with a ruthless 33 point onslaught winning after 40 minutes 99-67. It was another normal day at the office for Hunt who scored 28 points and dished out 7 dimes. There were two stretches in the game where the American showed how anyone could call him Mr scoring in bunches as he scored three buckets in a row. In the first quarter he started with a with a pull up jumper, then whipped out a left handed lay in and finished with a step back jumper showing exactly how much he had in his offensive arsenal. He then proceeded to do it again in the third quarter showing Frankfurt that he could score in so many different ways. He finished his rookie season leading the Pro B in scoring with 21.7ppg, 4.9rpg, 4.4apg, 1.7spg, Blocks-3 (1.2bpg), FGP: 60.4%, 3PT: 41.2%, FT: 88.2%. He picked up so many awards, he could easily have decorated his grandmother´s living room mantle with Eurobasket.com All-German 2.Bundesliga Pro B Player of the Year -20, Eurobasket.com All-German 2.Bundesliga Pro B Guard of the Year -20, Eurobasket.com All-German 2.Bundesliga Pro B Defensive Player of the Year -20, Eurobasket.com All-German 2.Bundesliga Pro B 1st Team -20, and Eurobasket.com German 2.Bundesliga Pro B All-Imports Team -20 awards. Last season Hunt had had the luxury of being able to practice with the easyCredit BBL team s.Oliver Wurzburg. Manager Kresimir Loncar knew all too well how good the American was lauding his versatility and basketball IQ not to mention his sniper qualities. Last summer the team signed him to an unbelievable three year contract something you seldom see in the BBL and even less for an unproven BBL player who had only dominated at the Pro B level. The decision to sign him has paid off as he has had absolutely no sophomore blues. A little more than a year later Hunt returns to Frankfurt, but not to play in the Skyliners practice gym like last season, but to play in the Fraport arena that can house 5,000 patrons. The arena is bigger, the players more skilled now, and the play more physical, but he has held his own averaging 10,9ppg, 2,0rpg and 2,3apg. Basketball life surely has changed, but despite these hard times, he is staying focused and concentrating on basketball. “Not much is going on as all I really do is practice and go home. Which I’m thankful for during these crazy times”. Stressed Cameron Hunt.

                It hasn´t been an easy season for s.Oliver Wurzburg as they have a 4-7 record coming into the game against the Fraport Skyliners. They lost five of their first 7 games, but have been playing more spirited ball as of late having a 2-2 record. “This year has been full of ups and downs. We have dropped many close games as our record could be the complete opposite right now. There is a long season ahead of us so we are pretty optimistic”, stressed Cameron Hunt. The club has been solid on the offensive end averaging 78 points per game, but have had their woes on the defensive end allowing 84 points per game. They have had a few good defensive games where there were signs of an indentity, but overall they are giving up way too many points allowing 80 points or more in nine games. “I think it all starts in practice. Making it a habit to make every possession count so when it comes to the game we are locked in”, warned Cameron Hunt. Last season the club had the luxury of having the amazing American guard trio of Cameron Wells, Jordan Hulls and Skyler Bowlin who produced consistently on offense, but also gave the defensive end that extra energy for 40 minutes. This season the club has a number of guys averaging in double figures, but no one is averaging more than 11,0ppg. One has to wonder if the club sometimes is lacking that true genuine scorer that can decide a game at any moment. “I feel with this team it is best if we all chip in how we can. I do feel everyone can add in a little more and I believe we can. We are down a couple guys so many guys will have to step up for the next few games”, added Cameron Hunt. They will have their hands full with the very much improved Fraport Skyliners who have rebounded fantastically after starting slow 1-4, have come back and won five of the last 7 games. But despite playing on the road and not being the favorite on paper, Wurzburg aren´t lacking confidence after winning against the Telekom Baskets Bonn. “With us down a few import players and losing both of our big men to injuries I think the most important thing to us will be playing physical. What we lack in size right now has to be made up in other areas. We did it against Bonn so now we have to do it against Frankfurt”, warned Cameron Hunt.

                Last season Cameron Hunt had some special teammates in the Pro B having the versatile Lithuanian Rytis Pipris and many many young Germans who he still has this season as they have double licenses to play Pro B and BBL like guards Nils Hassfuerter and Joshua Obiese. But this season he has teammates that are simply a lot more skilled then the guys he called teammates last season. He knows what it is like being a rookie and can relate to what American Tyson ward is going through. The two time Summit League tournament winner with North Dakota State University (NCAA) is putting up solid stats in the BBL as he is getting a grip on the style averaging 9,4ppg, 3,5rpg and 2,4apg. “I feel for this to be his rookie year I feel he is adjusting well to European play. He has a lot to learn but I feel he can have a long successful career”, said Cameron Hunt. Sometimes cruel things happen on the court that absolutely no one is ever expecting, but brutal injuries are a part of the game. In the last game against the Telekom Baskets Bonn ex Yale Ivy league champion Justin Sears suffered a tough ACL injury and being a witness of something like that will sit in a guy´s head for a long time. “The Justin injury was hard to watch and it’s still hard to think about right now. He was probably the most valuable player at the moment so his presence will be missed. I also have never witnessed anything like that live”, warned Cameron Hunt. Every once in a while, a club is blessed having that true veteran on the squad where not only the young bucks can profit from, but even older guys. In the last years, s.Oliver Wurzburg had the services of Croatian Kresimir Loncar who made a huge impact on the players. It isn´t any different with German 34 year old Alex King who helped the Opel Skyliners win the 2004 BBL title at age 19. “Alex has been a great addition for the team and also a great mentor for me. He is a very positive guy which I feel I can take from him. With him being a true veteran I always ask him questions since he has been around the league for so long”, expressed Cameron Hunt.

                The last movie that he watched was “This Is Not The End” began the season slow averaging 6,0ppg and 13 minutes per game, but has picked it up in the last six games scoring in double figures in five games. In the last six games he is averaging 15,0ppg in 22 minutes time. Even if he is always thinking about how he can get better with his game and how he needs to translate it over into games, the number one focus is always getting that next win. “I´m still not where I want to be as a player in this league but as of late. I am seeing improvements in myself. I have a long way to go. I feel I’m slowly figuring things out but I’m still not where I want to be individually. All that matters to me right now is figuring out how to beat Frankfurt”, stressed Cameron Hunt. He doesn´t only shine on the offensive end, but is also a very capable defender. He likes how NBA player D´Angello Russell is always looking to make the right play. It isn´t any different with the Texas native and has improved his lock in mentality from his rookie season. “I feel now that I’m aware what I’m capable of doing on the defensive end I can be even more locked in on defense. I still have some mess ups here and there but that’s basketball”, stated Cameron Hunt.. At the end of last season he made better reads and this season he has done a fine job getting adjusted to the easyCredit BBL physicality. “I’m slowly adapting to the physicality. Once I do that I feel I will be a great player in this league”, warned Cameron Hunt. He has the same kind of self-confidence that ex Wurzburg player Kameron Taylor did. Kameron Taylor like Hunt came from the Pro B to the BBL with Wurzburg three years ago and since has made himself into a very good BBL player. Perhaps Hunt can follow in the footsteps of Taylor and become an established easyCredit BBL player. It´s the same first name, but only a different first letter. Perhaps this is all good enough for a good future omen? “He is definitely motivation for sure. Seeing where he came from let me know there is light at the end of the tunnel. I also know he is a great guy. Hopefully I can follow in his path and even do a little more”, said Cameron Hunt. Hunt does know that he still has a lot of ground to cover with his game. “As of right now it’s knowing when to be aggressive and when not to be aggressive. I feel I’m slowly understanding that game by game”, stressed Cameron Hunt. He also knows that it isn´t only about working and grinding his butt of until it falls off, but that having that head coach who stands behind him and guides him the way German Denis Wucherer does is vital. “Dennis has a great understanding of my capabilities and strengths but he is also teaching me how to use them to make others better as well. Which I’m grateful for so in return I want to help him win some ball games”, warned Cameron Hunt. The season already has felt like an eternity with all the COVID-19 drama around each day, so at times he just has to get away. But he isn´t necessarily tuning into the NBA now. “I personally don’t like the NBA right now without a packed house of fans but this is how it is. Sports are for the fans as well”, added Cameron Hunt. One team to watch closely are the Brooklyn Nets, because that whole atmosphere there is like a basketball soap opera ready to explode with Kevin Durant and Kyre Irving who already has been asked by Stephen Smith to retire. Some people like Hunt are optimistic about the Nets being successful even if his answer was a day before James Harden arrived. “I feel they can. I think it’s all about kyrie Irving locking in on the season”, stressed Cameron Hunt. Even if the James Harden signing won´t wet his NBA interest, all isn´t lost yet. He could still go to Alex King and ask for some special exclusive stories about Dirk Nowitzki. He definately won´t be disappointed.

Ricky Easterling and Rickey Paulding have the same name and share a common talent of scoring, but play in two completely different basketball worlds. Paulding who played at Missouri(NCAA) and was drafted by the Detroit Pistons in 2004 is a 38 year old 196cm swing man that is in his 17th professional season, but what is most amazing about his career is that he has been a EWE Baskets lifer having played 14 seasons for them For an American playing for a very long time for one club is about as uncommon as Larry Bird not being named on the Boston Celtics all-time Mount Rushmore. In his 14 seasons in the BBL; the 6 time BBL allstar has belonged to the best small forwards each season, averaged double figures in scoring each season in the BBL and helped the club to their only 2 club titles. On top of that he is a role model for all having a good character and being a good family man. But Paulding isn´t the only identity figure for his team in Germany, but there a few other guys that have proclaimed their love for one organization as in Frankfurt you have Quantez Robertson who is in his 12th season with the Fraport Skyliners and in Saarlouis, you have Ricky Easterling who is a 37year old 189cm guard that has been 13 seasons with them. The only massive difference between Paulding and Easterling is that Paulding plays in the first division in Germany and Easterling in the 4^th division called Regionalliga. He played at Bridgewater College (NCAA3) and came to Germany in 2007 and never played in any other country. He played 9 seasons in the Regionalliga, one season in the Regionalliga 2 and two seasons in the Pro B. He has belonged to the best of the best that the Regionalliga has ever seen averaging 26,0ppg in the 9 seasons. He had incredible seasons in the Regionalliga of averaging 34,0, 32,0, 29,0 and 28,0ppg. He helped the club move to the 3^rd league Pro B and in both seasons showed that he was one of the best players in a higher league winning the scoring title both seasons. Showing that kind of incredible scoring consistency and love for a club certainly would deserve some kind of recognition. In Oldenburg, after 10 seasons with the EWE Baskets, Rickey Paulding was honored with a special wall graffiti called Pauldingburg. The question now is when will Ricky Easterling get a type of Easterlinglouis recognition in the city? That’s a great honor! I’m sure Ricky Paulding is thankful for that type of love for sure! He played in the first league so I guess things like that are accepted by the city but I can’t see Saarlouis doing something like that for me. Not meaning that they don’t appreciate me here but that might be a little overboard in the cities eyes. But if something like that were to happen, I would be very thankful and honored. I would like to think Saarlouis would show some type of appreciation and honor me in some kind of way. I can see them doing something like retiring the number 8 and making it a number that no one else can wear in the future. That would be pretty cool and manageable in a small city like Saarlouis. But I guess we have to wait and see! Still might play another year so something like this might have to wait a little while. This city gives me so much love! Maybe even more then I deserve. I love this place and I am very thankful for the opportunities they have given me over the years. I can’t thank the people of Saarlouis enough for that! And because of that Saarlouis will always own a place in my heart.”, warned Ricky Easterling. In November 2020 he was given the German citizenship with the help of the city of Saarlouis. A start to getting further love from the city with a statue?

Last season the American from Baltimore helped Saarlouis finish in 8^th place in the Regionalliga South West division. The division was as competitive as ever as between 3^rd and 11^th place there was only a difference of 2 wins. When the season abruptly ended because of COVID-19 there were 5 teams from 7-11 with identical records of 10-13 including Saarlouis. The Regionalliga has 4 divisions, but only the West were going to finish the season with playoffs, but than COVID-19 hit and abruptly ended the season. With such an exciting and very competitive south east division, playoffs would have been a great way to end the South West season. “Not to talk negative about the German basketball federation but I don’t really understand how they operate. They are always changing rules and doing things that don’t make sense to me. I mean they have their reason for doing things but I can’t sit here and say I understand. I think it was weird that they have playoffs for some divisions and not in others. It was very disappointing that one division had playoffs and others didn’t because our division was so up in the air and I think playoffs would be very interesting in the Southwest. Besides Karlsruhe anybody could have beaten anybody on any given day. But Corona came and no one in any division got to play it out unfortunately”, stressed Ricky Easterling.  The club had a positive stretch at the beginning winning 3 games in a row, but overall age and a lack of experience was a big problem for the team finding consistency. “It definitely was a rough season for us. We had a short roster and many young players were thrown in the fire and forced to play big minutes. That made things difficult. But on the flip side it helped our younger players grow and gain a lot of experience and I think that will help us in the future”, warned Ricky Easterling. Some positives was the team´s ability to win some tight games against Ulm 75-74, 72-70 against Mannheim and 78-77 against Tuebingen. It was tough for the American to pick just one most memorable moment. “These close games gave us a good learning experience. Most of our games throughout the season were this way. So when we were approached with this challenge it did not scare us at all. We had been there and done that many times before and it help us grow. A lot of teams that are used to winning comfortably might freeze up in these moments. But for us it was nothing new and I think that helped us win games that we probably did not deserve or thought we could not win. All these games were equally memorable because each game had their own lesson and we will use this in the future to be a better team in these moments”, expressed Ricky Easterling.

                Easterling may be the star with the club, but he can´t do everything by himself and has very capable teammates. One of those is 204cm Bosnian Muharem Mujkanovic. Some may not know it, but he would also be worthy of a special recognition because he just completed his 14^th season with the club and also has had some great seasons. It is only obvious that Easterling and him are very close on and off the court. “That is my brother from another mother! Haha! I love that dude! We built a very strong bond over the years! He’s a great friend, person and family man! I can’t imagine my time here without him. I wish we could have found a way for him to play with us more than he was able to do because with him we are a totally different team. He brings us to a different level. That was evident in the win against Koblenz this past season. No one thought we would go in there and win and with him, but we did! Without him we wouldn’t have had a chance. That just shows you how important he is for us. I don’t even think he had a good game. His presence alone was key and in the clutch moments of the game he stepped up and helped us get the win. That’s my brother for life on and off the court. We are the P&R brothers and the best duo in all of Germany! I don’t care what league or what division you look at there is no duo better than us. I don’t care how arrogant that sounds that is straight facts and if anyone has anything to say about it lace them up and let’s go”, warned Ricky Easterling.  Another player that Easterling had a lot of praise for was second year man Filip Kamenov from Bulgaria. He is a player that should make the next step in his career this upcoming season. “Filip is a great talent and it was a pleasure playing along side him. He has an amazing work ethic and was playing in a league lower than his potential. I feel he has a great future ahead of him and if he keeps working the sky is the limit! I see him in the future playing at a higher level in any country. Of course there is room for improvement but what player doesn’t. I wish him the best in his career going forward and I hope to see him successful where ever he lands. He is also like a brother to me and will always be a guy I keep in contact with no matter what”, stressed Ricky Easterling. One of the great things about German Regionalliga is that you can see the older experienced Germans who aren´t good enough for higher leagues, but have game or the young German kids who are also fighting to move up to higher levels. Each season Easterling has young German teammates and is like a mentor for them. This last season he had Paul Fuchs and Nils Bergmann in the back court? “I’m a leader and mentor to all my teammates. I’m by far the oldest on the team so that is my duty as a captain and leader to be there for them all. Like I said before we were young with a small roster. I think they did an amazing job stepping up and playing big minutes for us! Even though the season was hard for us they were able to learn on the fly and I feel that is the best way to learn. And they handled that great. We had hard times and good times but at the end of the day this season allowed them to learn and grow as a player at a rapid pace. This season helped our young team develop and in the future the league better watch out and fear these young guys because they are on their way”, expressed Ricky Easterling.

                When every Regionalliga season ends, you expect Ricky Easterling to be at the top as best scorer. He has been doing it since 2007 and this past season he actually had a better season than the season before. It seems like the American is getting better with age. “This is something I have been doing and I don’t expect nothing less from myself. I’m my biggest critic and I am never satisfied. So that drives me to continue to work hard no matter what my numbers look like. 2 years ago I had surgery on my spine but not too many people know about that. I think that is one of the reasons my numbers were able to rise a little bit this season. The season before I had to rehab all summer long, so I was not able to but in the amount of time training like I normally do. I’m just glad I was able to come back strong and continue to be the same player I was before. With age comes knowledge and I think that also plays a factor in why I can continue to play at a high level in this league”, stated Ricky Easterling. This past season he put up great numbers averaging 24.9pp, 6.3rpg, 5.0apg, 2.0spg, FGP: 56.8%, 3PT: 38.3%, FT: 83.2%. What is even more amazing is that at the age of 36 he averaged an astounding 38 minutes per game. The older a player gets, the more he has to watch diet as well having that efficient and healthy off season training plan. Easterling has all of this, but one also has to consider him having incredible genes. “I´m blessed to have genes that keep me slim. But if I don’t put the work in then these slim genes would probably affect me in the opposite way that people normally think is out of shape. Out of shape for most people means to be overweight with no conditioning. But out of shape can also go the other way, which is my case. If I don’t put the work in I would be a weak skinny little man that would probably easily get injured. I’m a slasher and like to be aggressive going to the basket. Without putting in the work I think I would be more prone to injury and wouldn’t be able to play the minutes I play because I would be easily worn out because of the beating a slasher takes attacking the basket. So I understand where your coming from but I don’t feel my genes are the reason I’m able to stay in shape like I do! I’m just on the other side of the spectrum when it comes to out of shape. So with out putting the work in I don’t think genes alone would have allowed me to stay healthy and be as effective on the court as I have been able to do throughout my career. I put in a lot of work! More than a lot of others do and that’s why I lasted so long. No just my genes”, warned Ricky Easterling.

                Everyone knows and loves Ricky Easterling´s mid range game. Ok maybe not opponent defenders and coaches, but one reason for the consistency and longevity of Easterling has been his mid range game. He has driven opponents defenses crazy for years as it is unstoppable. Because he was able to score so much this way, he didn´t need to rely so much on his three pointer. But this past season he shot an incredible 38% from downtown a best in his career. “I have been working on my 3pt shot for years. I just recently was able to apply it to my game. It was a long but fun process. This season was a great challenge as we talked about earlier in the interview. I been around for a long time and teams really commit to going under screens or trying to cut off the lanes to prevent me from getting to the basket or to my pull-up mid range shot. Knowing that as a player I knew there would be a point where I needed to be more effective from the 3pt line. This season more than ever I really had to deal with teams concentrating on me because of the limited roster personnel. I had a bigger responsibility to put points on the board. So this season I had to unlock new attributes to my game to counter that. Thankfully I was able to do that for my team this season. It was a process that took years and this new challenge gave me something else to push for and made basketball even more fun knowing I had new goals and challenges to overcome”, stressed Ricky Easterling. He continues to develop his game and this past season he averaged the most rebounds in a season in his career. He knows that opponents will always be out to get him on the court. That is why he continues to set new goals each season to help his game always get better. “•I set forth new challenges for myself like developing an effective 3pt shot. Playing with different types of players from year to year and having to adjust my game to make things work together as teammates. And being a mentor / older brother figure to my teammates drives me to keep developing as a player. At the end of the day I like to lead by example so if I am preaching something to my teammates I want to make sure I am practicing what I preach at the same time. It doesn’t make much sense trying to help someone or telling someone how to do something when I am not doing it myself . So that has help pushed me to continue to improve. I also have personal goals to out play my competition. If I continue to keep playing I want to out play my opponent. That drives me the most I think. Now that I am getting older the first thing people will think if I start to slow down is “Ricky is getting old and he doesn’t have “IT” anymore!” I never want to hear them words come out of anyone’s mouth. So I put the effort in to never let that happen. If I feel like that’s the word on the street then that means it’s time for me to hang up my Kobes (I only wear Kobes shoes when I play) and start doing something else”, warned Ricky Easterling.

                The Baltimore guard can easily be called the greatest Regionalliga player that ever played in Germany, but even a great player like him has very tough battles. But what is even more commendable is that he is able to talk so easily about it and also give opponents credit for their stellar play.  Some guys ego´s would never allow for praise for the opponent. “Karlsruhe was by far the most difficult challenge this season. They were so deep and I used to play with half the players on their team when I was playing for BG Karlsruhe. So they knew my game better than any others in the league. My boy Aaron Schmitt always jumps to the opportunity to guard me When we play against each other because we used to have fun competing against each other in practice every day back in my BGK times. When we played them both times this year their whole team was all over me. There was no game this season where I had such a hard time getting the ball in a position to where I could do something. If I did get the ball they cut of half the court and forced me into double and triple teams. Playing them in Karlsruhe was the hardest challenge of the season and they exposed us to the point where it was embarrassing. I never in my life felt embarrassed after a game like I did against them. They were well prepared and executed their defensive plan to perfection. Even though it was embarrassing there was no hard feelings! It’s part of the game and I still stayed true to my normal routine and stayed after the game to kick it with my Karlsruhe homies and laugh the embarrassment off together with them. Idstein was also a difficult game to play because they kind of used the same defensive plan. They threw multiple players at me and forced me into double and triple teams. Shot out to my fellow Marylander Juilan DeBose for a great season in Idstein. Keep holding it down for MD brother”, warned Ricky Easterling. Continuing to be consistent on the court and being able to curb one´s ego are two good traits that will keep a player playing for a long time, but at some point comes the time when you have to begin thinking about the next step after the playing career. In the Regionalliga and especially in the BBL there have been guys scratching near the 40 age area. Easterling turns 37 on November 8^th and loves the game, but at the moment he isn´t sure how much longer he will stay play. “I could imagine that happening but I am not sure if it will? To be honest the last couple years I have been thinking a lot about hanging it up and starting to coach. My team in Saarlouis would love for me to step up and take over as coach but it is hard to do because I am still playing at a high level. But this option seems to be more appealing than ever at the moment. I have to be honest with myself and just think about my future. There is honestly nothing more left for me to prove in this league. I been dominating this league forever and when I had the chance to play Pro B I did the same. Not to talk highly about myself and sound arrogant, because that is not what type of person I am. I´m just giving facts. Now if we would have moved up or something like that I could see myself trying to prove to myself and others I can still compete at a high level in the Pro B, but that is not the situation I face at the moment. I’m looking at another year of Regionalliga. Is it really worth it? That is a question I really have to think hard about”, stressed Ricky Easterling.

                Last season Ricky Easterling didn´t only have basketball in his life, but also had to deal with COVID-19 something that wasn´t only new for basketball players, but everyone else in the world. It´s been a few months since the Coronavirus hit Germany and the American has been in Germany since then. He is doing well, but has been trying to take everything in a positive way. “After every season I normally stick around in Germany until the beginning of June. Then I go back home to the states, visit my family and then I report to my summer job at Kutshers Sports Academy. I help run the basketball program there and I am also able to workout on a daily basis and prepare for the up coming season. Unfortunately it is still up in the air if the Academy will be running this summer. So this virus has really put a pause on my summer routine. Maybe it is good for the world to sit down and take a break from everything and reflect on what is really important in their lives”, stressed Ricky Easterling. The Americana has seen it all on the basket court, but the whole development of COVID-19 has taken him by surprise. “To be honest I never thought the Corona virus would have such an impact on the world. I thought it would be something like those other viruses from the past. Like the Bird Flu or the Schweine Flu. But unfortunately it is not. It turned out to be the most deadly pandemic of our era. In a way it is still unbelievable to me that we are in this situation now”, expressed Ricky Easterling. His life changed drastically from one day to the next as he suddenly had to totally get used to not doing the things he usually did and live with it and not mope round about it. “There has been a big change in my day to day life here in Saarlouis. As soon as things started to escalate world wide Saarlouis took matters very seriously and immediately went on lock down. I’m a very active person. I enjoy working out. I was basically every day in the fitness studio and the gym working on my game, coaching my teams, or working out others helping them improve their game. All that came to a screeching halt from 1 day to the next. Eventually I figured out a way to work out from home and keep myself busy fitness wise but it definitely was not the same. Had to make big adjustments to my daily routine because of the Covid-19”, added Ricky Easterling. He immediately knew that COVID-19 was very serious and right away handled himself very differently in public. He refrained from hand shakes and practiced social distancing and just had to get used to being only at home. He did see a friend every now and then but took the social distancing very seriously. He had a lot of time to think about how he would be staying in fit now and how he would go about getting ready again for next season. “I have been using some equipment I borrowed from some friends here in Saarlouis. So I have some barbells, dumbbells, pull up bar, and resistant bands and I have been using this equipment to do the NTC program (Nike Training Club). I also have access to basketballs so I been doing some at home ball handling drills with passing. For about a week or 2 I was able to get shoots up at a local outdoor court. But unfortunately the weather doesn’t always allow me to get effective shooting in and then on top of that the city took down the rims at the court. So I just get it in how I can under those circumstances. Of course there will be big adjustments starting to train earlier. Before there were no restrictions in our training. Now we are not allowed to participate in 2v2, 3v3, 4v4, and 5v5 drills/games/tournaments. No summer leagues to play in and training session must be smaller to prevent the spread of the virus. But at the same time there is still many ways to get better under the circumstances we are in. I’m big on the motto “No Excuses”. So for me I’m not going to sit here and cry about what I am not allowed to do. I’m just going to go out there and do what I can do and keep trying to improve as a player and coach. Everybody is in the same boat. It’s not like we can´t do anything. So take the situation for what it is and make the most out of it. That’s how I will approach these extra months of preparation and I advise others to do the same”, warned Ricky Easterling.

                He also has been thinking a lot about basketball and keeps having the what if in his mind had the season not been stopped by COVID-19. On top of that he also knows that playing in front of no fans isn´t his cup of tea something that teams experienced shortly before the Coronavirus hit. “ It was very disappointing to hear that news that our season ended but I totally understand why it happened. So because of that it was somewhat easier to handle. But on the other side basketball is life and I sure do miss the game. Can’t wait for this to be over so we all can get back on the court and continue to play the game we love! It sucks because the fans create an amazing atmosphere in the arenas. It is also a big motivation factor. At least in my opinion. It motivates me to play at the top of my game. I always have this thought in the back of my head that there is someone here that never seen me play before so I need to show them how I get down! Haha! Every player enjoys to play in front of big crowds. I’m sure that was a weird feeling going into a big arena and having no one there cheering for you. It’s an unfortunate situation but sometime you got to do what you got to do to keep people safe”, stressed Ricky Easterling. He also knows that world basketball won´t be the same again, but also knows that every other professional basketball player on earth is in the same boat. “I’m old enough to realize this and once again I’m going to take it for what it is. It is a very unfortunate situation. I hope things are not affected too much but I am preparing myself for the worst. I’m just going to try to stay in shape as much as possible and wait and see what happens. I think a lot of imports will suffer because teams will not be able to afford to buy players. I don’t even want to think about it to be honest. It’s like a real life nightmare. But it is what it is and it is always good to have a plan B if things end up for the worse. So at the end of the day I am preparing myself for the worse case scenario. Which is not being able to be paid to play the game I love but at the same time staying ready for the possibility of being fortunate enough to continue my career here in Germany”, warned Ricky Easterling. He also hasn´t only thought about himself of trying to stay as best fit during these hard times with COVID-19, but also has come up with a new You Tube project called “No Excuse”. He wants to give back to the youth and help them with the game of basketball. “It all Started with a recommendation from my Boss Michael Gilberg from Kutshers Sports Academy. Come to find out our Club here in Saarlouis requested the same type of videos to send out to our players on how to continue to improve during the quarantine time. It had also been something that both Florian Kirsch and I being thinking about doing ourselves. So because of these requests and both having the same thoughts of making training videos we decided to come together and form a channel on YouTube. So we started with these two videos that are already posted and there will be many more coming soon! So expect to see more videos from F&R Basketball Workouts on YouTube. Hopefully people like our videos and support the channel. It would be great to build something out of this! If not it is also ok! The main point is to just spread our knowledge of the game to the youth coming up after us! Just like the older generations did for us as we come up as young players! So for those of you out there reading this interview. Go to YouTube and Support us and LIKE and SUBSCRIBE to the Channel! “F&R BASKETBALL WORKOUTS”, stressed Ricky Easterling. Not only has the American learned a lot about the game he loves over the course of his long and fruitful professional career, but also tries to learn in so many other phases of life. He also has taken the whole COVID-19 experience to heart and learned new things that will help him further in life. “It just put things in perspective and made me realize to never take anything in life for granted. Before this whole thing no one even thought of not being able to play basketball at your own will. This situation opened our eyes and shows us everything is life is a privilege. Even a simple thing like sport and athletics. Anything can be taken away from us at any moment so we should cherish EVERYTHING we have and are able to do in life. Even if I live in Saarlouis forever basketball will never be taken away”, warned Ricky Easterling. Ricky Easterling is a basketball legend in Saarlouis and I´m sure he will get his due recognition in time. A graffiti wall with him taking that lethal and deadly step back jumper would look good somewhere in downtown Saarlouis. No matter how much longer he plays, his exciting game and presence will always be greatly appreciated in any gym in Germany but no more than in Saarlouis.

Even if the NBA is usually as far away from the Fraport arena and the Fraport Skyliners as Tom Brady is from a another Superbowl victory with the New England Patriots, a taste of the NBA does enter the arena on occasion. Sometimes it isn´t directly there, but one has to just look at the names of the players and that added 6 degree of separation at times that just flows along nicely. When Aubrey Dawkins of BG Goettingen was signed this season, it didn´t take me long to find out that his dad was the famous Johnny Dawkins who played at Duke reaching the 1986 NCAA final losing to Louisville and then would go on to have a solid 9 year NBA career where he averaged 11,1ppg. He now is a successful coach having coached 8 years at Stanford and currently is at UCF. I obviously watched the game of Aubrey more closely and so did Fraport Sklyiner legend and freak athlete Quantez Robertson. He had the task of guarding the ex Michigan (NCAA) player and was lauded after the game by head coach Sebastian Gleim as well as Dawkins as he was held to 6 points well below his BBL season average of 15,0ppg. ““He is a very good defender. I can only image what kind of pest he was like 10 years ago. He is still going strong. If I could I would definitely pick his brain and ask him what it takes to play so long. He has the quick hands and feet that give him the tools for being a great defender”, said Aubrey Dawkins. When I reached Quantez Robertson on Tuesday afternoon, he was content knowing that his hard work on defense was recognized. “I feel good that he said that. He is one of the team´s best scorers. I just tried to make it tough for him and make him take contested shots, be aggressive and just slow him down. Anytime you can slow a scorer like that down, it´s win for me and my team. When he gets going, his teammates feed off him, but that didn´t happen against us”, stressed Quantez Robertson. Tez who was born in 1984 didn´t know who Johnny Dawkins was and obviously wasn´t able to make the connection when he first heard about Aubrey Dawkins this season. Sometimes one sees just how small the NBA can be and sometimes how crazy it is that little coincidences surface out of nowhere. On the 1986 San Antonio Spurs roster, there was a Johnny Dawkins and a Petur Gundmundsson. Hmmm a Jon Axel Gundmundsson is playing for the Fraport Skyliners this season and could there be a connection? “Were not related, but I know him well. You get your father´s name as your last name so all it means is our fathers had the same name”, added Jon Axel Gundmundsson. Quantez Robertson found it neat hearing some of this NBA nostalgia “At first glance, one might have thought that the two dads of Aubrey and Jon played together and that would have been nice”, stated Quantez Robertson. But the NBA nostalgia and 6 degrees of separation  didn´t end there. Charles Barkley and Johnny Dawkins were teammates with the Philadelphia 76ers and the 1992 Dream team player played at Tez´s school Auburn(NCAA). “These are a bunch of coincidences. It´s interesting to know that two guys of their calibur were on the same team. It shows that Aubrey took after his father and went in his footsteps. He may not have reached the NBA, but was able to become a professional player”, commented Quantez Robertson. The NBA nostalgia and six degrees of separation isn´t present during every Fraport Skyliners game at home, but sometimes all one has to do is to do some inspecting and one can find out the neatest things.

            After starting the 2020-2021 season 1-4 and having the misfortune of playing the top teams early, the 2004 BBL champion Skyliners have been playing good basketball as of late having won four of their last six games. Last weekend they beat 2010 Eurochallenge winner BG Goettingen 81-63. After a pretty even first half, the Fraport Sklyiners pulled away in the second half thanks to the energetic and sniper qualities of American Matt Mobley and much improved defense that only allowed 24 points in the last two quarters. In the first half Frankfurt had problems with the BG Goetingen big men Odiase and Kamp, but that all changed in the second half. “We wanted to make it tougher for them and clogged the paint. We also made them take tougher shots. I think they were expecting more double teams from us, but our better 1-1 defense caught them off guard. We didn´t allow any more easy looks or easy passes out of the post”, stressed Quantez Robertson. It was without a doubt the best defensive performance of the season for the Fraport Skyliners. “I think that our good defensive game began during the week of practice. We communicated very well and helped each other out and that translated over to the game. We were more vocal and were all over the floor. We gave it our best on the defensive end”, said Quantez Robertson.

            A big reason for the Frankfurt win was Matt Mobley once again. In the wins over Chemnitz, Braunschweig, MBC and BG Goettingen he averaged 35 minutes and 29 points per game. In the contest against BG Goettingen he scored a lethal 19 points in the third quarter to totally slam the door in the guests face. Mobley not only belongs to the best scorers in the easyCredit BBL at the moment, but also in the history of the Fraport Skyliners. But Mobley didn´t get the full approval from Quantez Robertson in terms of being the greatest scorer in the history of the team. Robertson has played with many great scorers in the last 12 years. “It has to be between Matt, Wood, Theodore and Lamont Jones. When Matt gets hot, the rim looks like the ocean to him. He doesn´t see a bad shot, because most are going in. His shooting helps spread the floor for me. You can´t give him a lot of room and you can´t foul him, because he makes a lot of free throws”, stated Quantez Robertson. One guy who has made the biggest impact for me is American Rasheed Moore. He finished with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists and shot 5/10 from the field. The way this guy has been able to adjust to a new league each season for the past 3 years and continue to perform well has been incredible. He is without a doubt one of the best players on the club and it´s just a shame that he doesn´t get the credit he should with his game. His biggest quality is that he just makes little errors and his fine play has also been noticed by captain Tez. The American agreed with me about what Skyliner award he would be deserving of. “He is always in the right spot. He always helps and for an undersized four man has held his own against others. He rebounds well and always plays hard no matter what and always gives his all. He would without a doubt deserve our team´s unsung hero award”, warned Quantez Robertson. It´s not always about the starts, but the bench is just as important as German Konstantin Konga has shown. His role isn´t as big as back in 2015-2016, but he comes from the bench plays his aggressive defense and knocks down shots. He finished with 5 points and 2 steals in 13 minutes. “Konsti has always been a heck of a ball on defender and goes the 90 feet. He was always good coming off the screen and taking three´s, but that is one area of his game that improved in the last years when he was gone. He hits his three´s more now off the screen”, expressed Quantez Robertson. Robertson had another tough shooting afternoon shooting 2/10. A few weeks ago he was mad about his lack of aggressiveness, but he wasn´t shy of taking shots last weekend. “I have been more aggressive, but I have to settle down and just start making more shots”, warned Quantez Robertson. But other then his dismal shooting, he did a good job as always on the boards hauling down 11 rebounds and dished out 3 assists and had 1 steal. There is never a knock about his defense. His killer attitude and focus is what always helps him be that ruthless lock down defender. “I just go out there and play my man as if he is taking that winning shot. Having the motivation to stop him is what fuels me on defense. I can´t let my guy make the shot, because that will let his team win”, stressed Quantez Robertson.

            The Fraport Skyliners are currently at 5-6 and next face s.Oliver Wurzburg who have a record of 3-7. The Bavarian club began the season at 2-5, but have been playing better in recent weeks sporting a 2-2 record. They started off 2021 with a tough 86-80 loss against Crailsheim, but rebounded last weekend beating the Telekom Baskets Bonn 89-77. Wurzburg have some talented Americans with Chapman, Hunt and Ward, a true German veteran with Alex King and many skilled young German role players. This will be another battle for the Fraport Skyliners. “We have to come in with a different mindset then what we had against BG Goettingen. They don´t have as many shooters as BG Goettingen. We have to help each other and attack the mis matches. They like to switch a lot. We have to pick our spots better than the way we did in pre-season. We have been rebounding well lately and have to keep doing that. We have to limit their second chances and continue to get offensive rebounds”, stressed Quantez Robertson. Basketball doesn´t get really interesting until mid March when the easyCredit BBL goes into the stretch run, but at the moment the NFL is on fire as 8 clubs are left competing for the Super Bowl. Robertson has no clear favorite to win it all this year. He is keeping an eye on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tom Brady as his ex teammate and friend Mike Morrison suddenly has Super Bowl win aspirations. “It´s tough making a prediction this year. The chiefs are looking good as are the Saints and Packers. You can´t really count anybody out this year. I expected Mike to being a lot more crazy about his Bucs now that they have Tom Brady, but he hasn´t been crazy”, smiled Quantez Robertson. Tez also comforted my fears about the new great Patrick Mahomes breaking Tom Brady´s 6 Super bowl wins one day. “Brady doesn´t have to be sacred. It isn´t easy to get to the Super bowl. It really takes a lot to win it”, warned Quantez Robertson. One thing is for sure, there may not be that NBA nostalgia or six degrees of separation each weekend in the Fraport arena, but Quantez Robertson could tell a crazy and entertaining Mike Morrison story every weekend which could easily compete with NBA nostalgia and six degrees of separation.

DJ Woodmore is a 28 year old 190cm point guard that is playing his first season with the EPG Baskets Koblenz. Last season with Morgenstern BIS Basket Speyer (Germany-ProB) he played 21 games averaging 15.1ppg, 4.4rpg, 2.3apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 60.0%, 3PT-2 (50.0%), FT: 87.3%. In 2018-2019 13.8ppg, 4.5rpg, 2.8apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 60.2%, 3PT: 36.5%, FT: 71.6% in the Regionalliga. In his first two seasons with Speyer he averaged 14.5ppg, 5.2rpg, 2.3apg, FGP: 44.6%, 3PT: 40.1%, FT: 72.1% and 17.5ppg, 7.0rpg, 3.4apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 47.5%, 3PT: 33.0%, FT: 76.4%. he played at Virginia Wesleyan College (NCAA3): from 2010-2014 and as a senior played 31 games averaging 20.1ppg, 5.9rpg, 2.4apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 50.3% (219/435), 3Pts: 46.0% (91/198), FT: 76.9% (93/121). Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and DJ Woodmore team up each week to talk basketball.

Thanks DJ for talking to germanoops.com 2021 is here. What new years resolutions did you make for 2021?

No problem at all, thanks for having me again! I actually didn’t have too many resolutions this year. Usually I’m full of them, but this time I’m just focused on staying healthy, and winning some games. 

The EPG Baskets Koblenz had a extra free weekend leading up to the game in Karlsruhe. How tough was it preparing for the Arvato College Wizards for your first game in 2021?

No I didnt think it was too tough to prepare for them, I thought the most difficult thing was hoping that they didn’t change too much since the last time they played. I think they had over a month without a game and a team usually makes some major adjustments in that span of time. 

The EPG Baskets Koblenz lost a tough 80-71 contest on the road. Usually the second time around teams are able to make adjustments. You won the first game 83-78. Did they make the better adjustment or did this loss have to do more with your team in general? 

Yea definitely a tough loss this time, we wanted to start the new year off with a win. Especially because we have a stretch of pretty tough games coming up. But I thought we beat ourselves a lot this game. We were really poor offensively and couldn’t get anything going in the third quarter at all after starting the game so well again. 

The EPG Baskets Koblenz controlled the first half, but the they came back late in the second quarter. With what areas of the Koblenz game were you content with in the first half and with what parts weren’t you content with? 

I feel like one of our biggest weaknesses in the first half of season has been the way we started games. Trying to climb our way out of a big hole early. We’ve fixed that in the last few games, but there always seems to be a quarter where we lose focus and can’t score or defend consistently. We have to find a way to fix that. I thought we started extremely strong but just ran out of gas going into the half. And never could find our stride in the second half. 

The Arvato College Wizards took control of the game and lead in the third quarter. American Alexander Thompson scored 7 unanswered points getting his team going. Is Thompson one of those guys that is too good for the Pro B? 

He’s definitely a talented player. Has a lot of dimensions to his game. I think we did a good job on him in the first half but made some mistakes in the second half that gave him some easy looks. He’s going to do extremely well in this league and probably capable of playing higher. 

The EPG Baskets Koblenz just couldn’t get over the hump in the fourth quarter. Why couldn’t the team buckle down better on defense? 

They were picking us apart with one play. It just seemed like we couldn’t find the answer for it. But their point guards did a good job of creating the advantage on the pick and roll, and they made the right decisions. But it’s much easier to play defense when we are scoring on the other end. And we struggled with that forsake. 

You had 10 points, 2 rebounds, 1 dime and 2 steals in 20 minutes. You played 12 minutes less than usual. Was your performance efficient enough for the minutes you got?

I thought I was beginning to find my rhythm during the second quarter and into the beginning of the third. We were playing through Brian the entire first half and it was working. That started to open things up for myself but unfortunately ended up spraining my ankle pretty bad in the beginning of the third quarter. I had to watch from the sideline for the rest of the game. 

This was one of those games where the team was just missing more consistent scorers which is hard to believe with a team that has so much talent. But some days shots aren’t falling. What will be most vital for the team to correct this week in practice?

I think to just focus on the little details within the offense and defense. I think we make it tough on ourselves at times when it doesn’t need to be. We have a lot of talent and should be able to exploit the mismatches each possession but it seems like were not seeing it all the time. I think breaking down some film will do us good going into next weeks game. 

The next game is against Bavarian team TSV Oberaching Tropics who surprisingly won the first game 90-84. What memories do you have of that game and what will be key to winning this time?

I just remember them killing us on the offensive rebounds. They had some bigs that just took up a lot of space and created problems for us all game long. I think that will be a key for us. Also if we can get out in transition as much as possible, that will play right into our hands as well.

What have been your early observations of the new NBA season? What has stuck out most for you? 

CP3 and how his leadership and skillset has turned another ‘non-playoff’ team, into a serious threat in the West. Last year with the Thunder and this year with the Suns. I think a lot of people were ready to write him off a few years ago, but he’s still one the best PGs the game has ever seen. And I’m glad his making it known again.

Thanks DJ for the chat.

December 2020 was a month that 2010 Eurochallenge winner BG Goettingen wanted to erase as rapidly as possible from their memory bank as they had lost 6 games in a row and were sporting a poor 2-7 record coming into 2021. Their luck changed instantly as they stormed into the new year and won on the road in Giessen which isn´t the same without their boisterous fans, but a win is a win as they gutted out a 92-90 victory. BG Goettingen wanted to continue their winning ways in Frankfurt, but they met a club that also celebrated a win in 2021 on the road in Weissenfels and also were sprouting a lot of self-confidence for more wins. Both teams fought hard in the first half as the game was tight, but the Fraport Skyliners totally broke open the game in the third quarter as Matt Mobley went on a scoring frenzy scoring 19 of his 30 points including whipping out a trace of Kemba Walker with his step back jumper carrying the Fraport Skyliners to the satisfying 81-63 victory. “This was our best game of the season on offense and defense. We did a good job limiting their offense rebounds in the second half and also contained Tai Odiase better in the second half”, stressed Fraport Skyliner rookie Jon Axel Gundmundsson. BG Goettingen did a fine job staying with Frankfurt in the first half, but in the second half couldn´t execute on offense anymore against the more disciplined Frankfurt defense and just couldn´t get consistent stops or get a grip on Matt Mobley. “In the first half we played together and grabbed rebounds, but in the third quarter when they went on their run, they got many loose balls which changed the momentum of the game. We fell apart and couldn´t regroup and go on a run like in the first half. We need to want to have the ball more”, warned BG Goettingen forward Will Rayman. Frankfurt made suitable defensive adjustments in the third quarter which BG Goettingen had no answer to. “Frankfurt did a good job getting us out of our plays and we couldn´t find any solutions. They played very cohiesive and we were a little more disjointed. We need to find back to our winning ways and find an offensive rhythm more early and not let them take us out of our plays”, warned BG Goettingen forward Aubrey Dawkins.

                BG Goettingen got on the score board first as athletic big man Tai Odiase who played with the Greensboro Swarm (NBA G League):last season made a runner as he would become a real sore spot in Frankfurt´s side in the first quarter. The Fraport Skyliners didn´t wait long to get going quickly scoring 5 unanswered points as ex wiha Panthers Schwenningen forward Rasheed Moore made a lay in and ex Davidson(NCAA) guard Jon Axel Gundmundsson dropped a trey for the 5-2 advantage. Both teams than changed leads as Odiase scored again and ex Rasta Vechta center Michael Kessens made a lay in for the 7-6 lead. Both teams were trying to get their big men involved and it worked. Frankfurt regained the lead as ex Auburn(NCAA) great Quantez Robertson nailed a trey in ex NBA player Jorge Gutierrez´s face for the 10-6 lead. But Frankfurt lost some intensity after this big Robertson three as BG Goettingen finished strong going on a 13-3 run to lead 19-13 after 10 minutes. In the run, BG Goettingen was aided by the continued very aggressive play by Odiase who scored twice with a hard dunk and tip off his own miss while Dawkins nailed a tough turn around shot and ex Long Beach State University (NCAA) guard Deishuan Booker hit a trey. BG Goettingen did a good job using the mis matches and played good inside out basketball and just dominated the paint area. BG Goettingen led 19-13 after one quarter. “We had problems containing Tai Odiase who was very aggressive, rebounded well and played the pick and roll well. He also had a nice mid range game”, stressed Jon Axel Gundmundsson.

            In the second quarter the game was tight and a game of runs. The Fraport Skyliners raced out on a quick 6-0 run to dead lock the contest at 19-19. In the run, ex St Bonaventure(NCAA) guard Matt Mobley got going making a lay in and hit free throws while Michael Kessens also scored. Then it was time for BG Goettingen to find some daylight as they recuperated going on a 7-2 run to lead 26-21. In the run, it was ex Gonzaga German Matis Monnighof who hit a trey, Odiase connected on transition with a lay in and Gutierrez was lucky as a loose ball skipped directly into his hands as he was cutting to the rim getting the easy bucket. BG Goettingen kept the lead with another Gutierrez jumper, but Frankfurt remained on the guests heels as Moore and Mobley scored. Frankfurt had a better rhythm on offense and got the lead back through hard work and hustle as German guard Konstantin Konga snuck inside getting an offense rebound and put back tying the game at 29-29 and Mobley struck again scoring a tough shot in traffic for the 31-29 lead. Ex California(NCAA) center Harper Kamp made a nice spin move tying the game at 31-31. Kamp who last played in 2018 with Malvin Montevideo (Uruguay-LUB) still has game at age 32 and finished with 10 points in 17 minutes. Frankfurt then would play the game of runs game again going on a 5-0 run to extend their lead to 36-31 as Konga drilled home an open trey and Kessens caught BG Goettingen napping on transition defense as he scored. But BG Goettingen ended the second quarter of runs quarter with a 7-0 run to trail only 38-36 at the break. In their run, it was all Harper Kamp who scored 7 unanswered points and continued the BG Goettingen dominance of the paint as Frankfurt wasn´t able to contain the big man. “We didn´t play physical enough against them and were too soft”, said Jon Axel Gundmundsson.

            The Fraport Skyliners took charge of the game in the third quarter winning it 25-9 as Matt Mobley scored 19 points being a total offensive scoring wrecking machine. The Fraport Skyliners came out smoking as they reeled off a 17-4 run to totally broke open the game to lead comfortably 54-42. Rasheed Moore began the offensive onslaught with a pretty turn around shot which then was followed by a Gundmundsson bomb form at least 9 meters as Frankfurt led 41-38 and would never trail again. The good Frankfurt start was helped by three defensive stops. BG Goettingen finally got on the board at 7,26 as Gutierrez showed that he has mid range game making a shot as BG Goettingen trailed 41-30. Then came the Matt Mobley show as he scored 12 points in a span of 4 minutes. He scored 4 free throws, connected on two three´s and also made a runner. “He is tough to stop. He can make shots from the easyCredit BBL sign. He has nice range. I was guarding him and tried to go close up to him, but he drove right me”, stated Will Rayman. Rayman then nailed a three pointer and made a tip in, but that didn´t bother Mobley as he continued to be in attack mode as he scored 7 more points. He made 4 free throws and ended the third quarter with a beautiful step back three pointer ala Kemba Walker. “When he gets hot, he can make any shot. That step back was more like Kemba. Kemba likes taking those shot. His quickness makes him so hard to stop”, added Jon Axel Gundmundsson. After 30 minutes of action the Fraport Skyliners had the very satisfying 61-47 advantage. “We kept getting stops and got easy baskets. We got Mobley open shots and he kept attacking. When he gets hot, we know that he will be hard to stop”, added Jon Axel Gundmundsson. “Frankfurt was switching a bit more and were more aggressive in the post. We didn´t move the ball as well and had more 1-1 plays”, stressed Will Rayman.

            The Fraport Skyliners kept their offensive pressure and consistency in the fourth quarter and never allowed BG Goettingen to cut the Frankfurt lead under double digits. Frankfurt got off to another good and quick start getting a lay in from ex Miami(NCAA) center Kamari Murphy and Quantez Robertson executed on a trey as Frankfurt led 66-50. Frankfurt showed some beautiful ball movement as ex Braunschwieg guard Joe Rahon made the extra pass to Tez for the perfect executed play. Robertson finished with 7 points, 11 boards, 4 dimes and a steal and got lauded after the game by head coach Sebastian Gleim for his ruthless defense on Aubrey Dawkins who finished only with 6 points way under his season average of 15,0ppg. “He is a very good defender. I can only image what kind of pest he was like 10 years ago. He is still going strong. If I could I would definitely pick his brain and ask him what it takes to play so long. He has the quick hands and feet that give him the tools for being a great defender”, said Aubrey Dawkins. One guy who is up for the Skyliners unsung hero and most improved in the easyCredit BBL is Rasheed Moore. This guy moved up 3 leagues in 3 seasons and is playing his first BBL season as if he has been here for 5 years. He scored 2 baskets in a row as he picked his spots well upping the Frankfurt lead to 71-52. The American finished the contest with 10 points, 7 boards and 4 assists. BG Goetingen got some garbage points form Germans ex FC Bayern Munich guard Nelsom Weidemann and Andrew Onwuegbuzie to cut the Frankfurt lead to 73-59, but Frankfurt closed out the game with a Gundmundsson trey and Kessens lay in. “It was important that we ended the game strong. We are a young team and that is an important strength for us. That will give us a lot of confidence for the next game”, warned Jon Axel Gundmundsson. “We let our heads down. We have to stay tough and come together. When you don´t get a rhythm on defense then it´s hard to do that on offense. Frankfurt was rewarded for their hard work. They got so many loose balls. They played harder than we did”, stressed Will Rayman. The Fraport Skyliners were led by Matt Mobley with 30 points. Michael Kessens added 12 points and Jon Axel Gundmundsson scored 11 points and Rasheed Moore added 10 points while BG Goettingen was led by Tai Odiase with 14 points and Harper Kamp added 10 points. The Fraport Skyliners shot 43% from the field and 38% from outside and had 43 rebounds and 15 turnovers while BG Goettingen shot 35% from the field and 27% from outside and had 30 rebounds and 16 turnovers.