Chris Frazier (182-SG-1990, college: Dubuque) is a 31 year old 182cm shooting guard that hails from Heidelberg, Germany, but also has the American citizenship and finished his eighth professional season and second with Pro A team wiha Panthers Schwenningen averaging 10.0ppg, 1.8rpg, 2.4apg, FGP: 52.2%, 3PT: 37.0%, FT: 88.5%. In 20-21 with Schwenningen he averaged 8,4ppg, 1,3rpg and 1,1apg while shooting 45% from outside. In the 2019-2020 season he played with Pro B team Iserlohn playing 21 games averaging 14.7ppg, 1.9rpg, 3.4apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 56.9%, 3PT: 45.1%, FT: 92.1%. In 2018-2019 he played his second season with the Rostock SeaWolves averaging 2,5ppg, in 6,8 minutes per game. In 2017-2018 he helped Rostock reach the Pro A averaging 9,9ppg,1,2rpg and 1,6apg. He started his basketball career at TV Schwetzingen (Germany-2.Regionalliga) before moving to the States to play at Dubuque (NCAA3) from 2010-2014 playing a total of 107 games and as a senior played 26 games averaging 13.7ppg, 2.5rpg, 1.7apg, FGP: 43.8%, 3PT: 42.0%, FT: 88.0%. He came back to Germany in 2014 and played with the Otto Baskets Magdeburg (Germany-ProB) playing 20 games averaging 16.1ppg, 4.5rpg, 1.7apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 45.0%, 3PT: 37.1%, FT: 80.6%. In the 2015-2016 season he made the jump to the BBL playing for the Crailsheim Merlins (Germany-BBL) playing 13 games averaging 2.3ppg. In the 2016-2017 season he played for the Artland Dragons (Germany-ProB) playing 25 games averaging 13.0ppg, 2.3rpg, 1.4apg, FGP: 54.9%, 3PT: 39.7%, FT: 79.4%. He spoke to germanhoops.com about his memories of Rickey Paulding.

Thanks Chris for talking to germanhoops.com. Where are you at the moment and how is basketball life treating you at the moment.

Hey Miles appreciate doing another interview with you. At the moment I am at home in Velburg, Bavaria. Since the season doesn’t start until Oktober I’ve taken a little longer time off than usual.

You played the last few years for the Wiha Panthers. How do you summarize the last season? There were a lot of ups and downs. How vital was the team chemistry that seemed to never gel for the results of the season.

The season was very difficult. Umm it really was a season of ups and downs. We would beat some of the best teams and lose to the teams that we should have beat. The team chemistry off the court was perfect. We all got along with each other, but we sadly couldn’t translate that to the court, but at the end of the day we helped the Panthers stay in the Pro A and that’s what counted at the end.

In the last week came bad news that the club might lose the license for the ProA. How devastating would it be for the organization to get set back like this.

It would really suck because I had promised Coach Alen that we would give everything we had to keep this club in that Pro A. The pPnthers gives guys like me another chance to showcase what we can do and they do a good job at picking players back up after they got knocked down. I’d hate to see Schwenningen not get the license.

When you hear the name Rickey Paulding what is the thing that comes to mind.

Legend, leader, loyalty. You don’t usually see those words to often in this game. To me he seemed to be the ultimate leader!

This season the easyCredit BBL lost some legends with Paulding, Guenther and King. Soon Quentez Robertson also will belong to this group someday. Does the BBL have to worry about finding new identity figures.

I believe so, but that’s not the leagues fault. We are in an era where we as players look for clubs that have the most money. We can’t play this game forever so we have to make the most of what we can get. That being said we also don’t have committed guys lol like that anymore. I’m pretty sure every single one of those guys could have left their teams and made more money, but they stuck with their teams and are all legends and their names will always be remembered.

You only played twice against him in the BBL. How did you observe him as a player before 2015 and after as a second Bundesliga player.

Well oddly enough I knew nothing about him. I used to only pay attention to the NBA, but after I saw his picture in front of the arena I knew he was big time. It’s always crazy to see how humble he was and how everyone in that arena loved him. After I saw that I knew he was a big deal in this league.

Rickey Paulding played until nearly 40. He probably could of played 2-3 more years. How much of a role model is he for any player in terms of work ethic?
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You don’t get to play that long without taking care of your body. I’m sure 99% of players in the world would love to play for that long and still perform at the highest level.

You played against Rickey Paulding twice in the 2015-2016 season with Crailsheim. What do you remember most with your 2 battles against him besides the blowouts.

Ouch Miles haha that hurt a little. I’ll remember how calm and collective he played.

Many players said his athleticism really stood out, but what did you appreciate most about his game?

How calm he played and how well he always led his teams.

How will Ricky Paulding’s legacy be forever be remembered in the BBL? Will we ever see a guy like him again that will show his consistency on the court and dedication to one organization?

He will be remembered as top 5 of all time probably. Will we see a player like that again? With the same dedication? no I don’t believe so.

Please leave some closing words for Rickey Paulding.

Rickey, thank you for everything you’ve done for the game. I’ve followed you ever since we played against you and you definitely played a role in how I like to treat my coaches and my Teammates. The BBL will definitely miss you and it will most definitely be weird not seeing the #23 come out the tunnel. Enjoy retirement man. It’s well deserved.