Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and Braydon Hobbs during their first encounter in Giessen in 2015

Getting that first impression of someone can last a life time. I have covered thousands of professional ball players during the last 3 decades and some guys just stick in my mind forever especially that first time I met them. I definitely will never forget where I met Pau Gasol for the first time or even a Kevin McHale or a Malcolm Delaney, but there are also other less known players that I will never forget where I saw them for the first time. That special player is Braydon Hobbs (196-PG-1989, college: Bellarmine). A guy that never reached the NBA like the previous 3, but still made the Euroleague which many can´t say they ever did. The thing that makes Hobbs´s story so charming is that he had to pay his dues for many years already starting at division 2 school Bellarmine before making the big show overseas. I will never forget that first meeting in Giessen in 2015 when he was playing for Nurnberg and I interviewed him after a game I had done play by play for during the pro A playoffs. His smile and warm and comfortable way by which he presented himself was so positive. It felt like I had known him for years. Having that inviting and positive character surely helped him in his career and his chances with landing at top teams. “ Having a positive attitude was always a part of me. Even when I was younger, I would always try to stay positive. It was not always easy but that was just who I tried to be. I think that definitely played a part of why I was able to play so long. I wanted to have a positive effect on everyone I played with”, said Braydon Hobbs. He has decided to call it quits after a stellar 11 year career that saw him win titles with FC Bayern Munich and also reach the Euroleague and ACB, the best league overseas. For the first time in 11 years, he didn´t return back to overseas as the retired life has set in. “ It’s definitely been a bit strange being home this long. It’s the longest I have been home, in 12 years, so it’s a bit foreign in that regard. Playing for more than a decade sounds crazy. It goes fast. The main reason for stepping away from basketball was my family. I have three awesome kids and they are getting a bit older now. They are starting school so it felt right to hang it up and keep them in school stateside. I definitely could have played a couple more years. The shoulder surgery I had in March did not help my situation though. Contracts were hard to come by after that surgery. I am fully recovered from the surgery and my body feels great”, stressed Braydon Hobbs. One could politely say that after reaching the Euroleague and ACB, not bad for a guy coming from the NCCA 2 ? Even if he had a great NCAA 2 career, he would have had difficulty believing someone telling him in 2012 that he would play until 2023. “I would have never thought that I would have survived in Europe for 11 years. I was a homebody and never imagined living abroad for that long. I’m glad I did it but this was not my intentions. I just wanted to give it a shot and I ended up loving it. I accomplished several goals in my 11 year career. A goal was to win a championship overseas and to play in the best competitions that Europe has to offer. The best two leagues, to play in, are Euroleague and the ACB. It was a great experience and I wouldn’t change it for anything”, said Braydon Hobbs.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and Pau Gasol in Boston in 2019

Braydon Hobbs was born on May 17 th , 1989 in New Albany, Indiana where he attended New Albany high school. He was coached by Jim Shannon and left the school as the all-time assists leader and also became the first player in school history to record a triple double. He then played at Bellarmine University from 2008-2012 playing every game with a total of 133 and winning 2 GLVC titles and the NCAA 2 title in 2011. He showed rapidly that you could of given him the middle name Mr consistency as he averaged 12,0ppg, 4,0rpg and 5,0apg in his 4 year career and shot over 40% from outside twice. Head coach Scott Davenport helped him get prepared for the pro grind. “Playing for Coach Davenport was a blessing. He showed me so much on the court but even more off the court. I grew up a bit in college and he was one of the main reasons. He showed me that hard work and preparation will have you ready for anything”, said Braydon Hobbs. He got his first professional experience with the Mackay Meteors (Australia-ABA) averaging 13.9ppg , 6.2rpg , 5.1apg , 1.9spg , 2FGP: 52.3%, 3PT: 44.0%, FT: 84.2% and winning the league title. He played his rookie season with Caceres Basket (Spain-LEB Gold) averaging 7.1ppg , 2.8rpg , 1.9apg , 1.6spg , FGP: 41.9%, 3PT: 34.7%, FT: 87.9% and in his second season played with Alba Fehervar (Hungary-division) averaging 11.9ppg , 3.1rpg , 3.6apg , 1.7spg , FGP: 40.4%, 3PT: 52.3% in the Eurocup and ; 9.1ppg , 4.2rpg , 3.4apg , Steals-2 ( 2.3spg ), FGP: 52.8%, 3PT: 32.7%, FT: 72.7% in the Hungarian league. The beginning is never easy for Americans and some make it and some don´t. He just stuck with it. ““ I had to grind out some seasons in the early stages of my career. It wasn’t easy but my wife and I made the most of it. I don’t remember a specific situation as a wake up call but I do remember struggling like crazy that first year in Spain. I had a couple chats with my agent about the situation we were in. They were great conversations and I never looked back from there”, remembered Braydon Hobbs. Perhaps his season in Hungary was one of his most important as it showed him that he could stick with top players in the Eurocup. “The season in Hungary was extremely valuable. It was so valuable because I got European competition exposure and I had a huge role on that team. I was comfortable there because I had the same coach as the year before in Spain. I think it was a huge confidence booster for me because I knew I could play at a high level in Europe after that”, stressed Braydon Hobbs. He was teammates with ex NCAA champion with Florida Lee Humphrey who also shot out the lights in Germany with ratiopharm Ulm and will never forget his shooting. “Having Lee Humphrey as a teammate was pretty cool. I loved following him in the NCAA tourney as well. Having him on my team, after that, made it that much better. He was one of the best shooters I have ever played with. We had some battles in practice but I know I beat him, at least once, at some stage”, smiled Braydon Hobbs.

The Indiana native who lists Sam Bartolo (Australia) Karsten Tadda (Germany) Dan Oppland (Germany) Nathan Boothe (Germany) and Rickey Paulding (Germany) as his 5 best teammates of all-time then made the trek to Germany in the season of 2014-2015 and would call Nurnberg his new home. Once again he had to pay his dues as he played in the second league called Pro A, but didn´t disappoint averaging 11.9ppg , 4.1rpg , Assists-4 ( 5.9apg ), Steals-2 ( 1.9spg ), FGP: 55.8%, 3PT: 40.8%, FT: 82.4%. “ The season in Nurnberg was great. I knew we were going to have a good team with the roster they had together. I was hungry to open up a new market in Europe, so that is what was motivating me to new heights. I played well there and it helped me land a spot in the BBL”, remembered Braydon Hobbs. In the summer of 2015, he won his second title down under with the Mackay Meteors (Australia-QBL, averaging 14.7ppg , 5.8rpg , 4.8apg , 1.2spg , FGP: 51.4%, 3PT: 36.0%, FT: 87.5% . This league was a good place to get in extra competition while staying in shape for the upcoming season. After 3 seasons as a pro, he finally made the next jump moving to first division team Giessen. Once again he took on the challenge and had a solid first season in the easyCredit BBL averaging 10.5ppg , 5.2rpg , 4.8apg , Steals-3 ( 1.7spg ), FGP: 49.1%, 3PT: 42.2%, FT: 86.8%. There he was able to showcase his talent under young head coach Denis Wucherer. “ That jump to the BBL was huge for me. Denis gave me that opportunity and I can’t thank him enough. He helped me a lot during that season. My best memory with him is probably when we came back against Hagen. I made a couple solid plays and I would keep looking over at him and he would give me a fist pump. We had similar demeanors. We were never too high or too low”, stated Braydon Hobbs. That was Wucherer´s first season in the BBL with Giessen after helping them move back from the Pro A. After 24 years in the BBL, Wucherer wants to lead his new team Fraport Skyliners back to the BBL this season. “I think they definitely have a chance to make it back to the BBL. It is hard to play in Frankfurt so I think they will be just fine”, warned Braydon Hobbs. He had potent games against all the top teams like Alba Berlin, FC Bayern Munich and ratiopharm and the BBL was slowly getting to know him.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and Braydon Hobbs in Frankfurt in 2015

The ex Bellarmine guard then made another jump in his career signing with ratiopharm Ulm that was always a tough playoff foe to play, but still was 7 seasons away from that first chip. He once again showed he can play well with top players averaging 7.1ppg , 3.0rpg , Assists-4 ( 5.4apg ), 1.3spg , FGP: 46.3%, 3PT: 41.4%, FT: 87.2%; and in the Eurocup averaged 7.3ppg , 2.8rpg , 4.7apg , 1.0spg , FGP: 39.3%, 3PT: 43.4%, FT: 91.7%. Even if he played with top team Munich after this season, there is a reason why he won´t forget his Ulm season. “ The Ulm season was my favorite season of my career. We won 27 straight games. Winning cures everything so there were a lot of laughs that year. We had a blast. My teammates were awesome and I knew we were going to be solid when I signed there. I wish we would have finished the season better but injuries played a huge role. That is how things unfold sometimes though”, remembered Braydon Hobbs. He was lucky to have played with some real BBL legends in his time and it wasn´t any different with Per Guenther. “Per was great to be around. His knowledge and experience helped me more than he would ever know. He took me under his wing and showed me how to play at the top level. When I think of Per, golfing will always come to mind. We went out several times to play and it was awesome every time”, expressed Braydon Hobbs. Then came surely his 2 most memorable seasons with FC Bayern Munich where he racked up 3 titles. In two seasons he played a total of 113 games including 74 BBL games and 18 Euroleague games. He also shot the ball as good as he ever did in his career shooting over 40% from outside in the BBL and Eurocup in his first season and in his second season shot a crazy 53% in the BBL. “Winning 3 championships was great in Munich. That was a goal of mine when I started playing there. Another memory I will always have is, my second child was born 3 days after we won the first championship. I got to take the trophies into the delivery room with me and take pictures with my son. I will never forget those memories”, said Braydon Hobbs. It was also no surprise that in his 2 years, he would meet many types of celebrities, but his favorite encounter didn´t involve a football player like Manuel Neuer or Thomas Muller. “The soccer stars were at a lot of our games. A couple times they would come into our locker room for pictures as well. I have some cool memories with that but the most famous athlete I saw was Usain Bolt. I met him one time at my doctor´s office in downtown Munich”, remembered Braydon Hobbs.

The seemingly always smiling player who lists Maodo Lo, Per Gunther, and Rickey Paulding as his 3 toughest opponents in the easyCredit BBL then made another jump in his career playing with playoff team EWE Baskets Oldenburg and remained for 2 seasons. In his first season he averaged 7.8ppg , 3.5rpg , 4.0apg , 1.2spg , FGP: 57.8%, 3PT: 34.1%, FT: 92.6% in the BBL and in the Eurocup averaged 8.7ppg , 2.3rpg , 3.5apg , 1.4spg , FGP: 50.0%, 3PT: 45.5% while in his second season averaged 7.7ppg , 2.5rpg , 4.2apg , 1.3spg , FGP: 52.4%, 3PT: 43.4%, FT: 80.0%. In Oldenburg he was teammates with BBL legend Rickey Paulding. Every teammate and even some opponents have their special story with him and one word that never is missing is his humbleness. “ Rickey was a legend for sure but you would never know it. He is extremely humble and that’s what I liked so much about him. I loved going on the road trips with him because he always hooked me up with homemade cookies from his wife Kara. They were a great family and always treated us like we were their family”, stressed Braydon Hobbs. Late in his career, he made the trek to the best country league in Europe in Spain called the ACB with Monbus Obradoiro CAB Santiago de Compostela (Spain ACB) averaging 7.2ppg , 3.1rpg , 4.4apg , 1.0spg , FGP: 57.1%, 3PT: 39.6%. He held his own against some of the best players in the world and scored in double figures 12 times. Even if he lost to Real Madrid in a tight affair 89-88, he scored 17 points and showed he belongs to the best. “ The ACB was an unforgettable experience. Every night was a battle. If we would relax one second, then we would get killed. It’s the most competitive league I have ever played in. The intensity was off the charts as well. The one player I enjoyed matching up with was Sergio Llull. He hit some awesome shots against us. Playing Barcelona and Real Madrid was a cool experience”, remembered Braydon Hobbs. He returned back to Germany to play his last season with the Basketball Loewen Braunschweig (Germany-BBL) averaging 12.2ppg , 3.8rpg , 6.0apg , Steals-3 ( 1.9spg ), FGP: 46.9%, 3PT: 38.0%, FT: 90.3%. Even if injuries played a role for him, he still sparkled when he was fit and was instrumental in the team remaining in the BBL that had a very young team. “Playing in Braunschweig was a great way to end my career. I had a huge leadership role. I tried my best to keep everyone on the same page, and to be an extension of the coach. It didn’t always work but we tried our best. I really enjoyed helping the younger players out and I hope I had at-least some positive influences on them”, expressed Braydon Hobbs. He can look back on a great career that spanned 500 plus professional games in countries like Spain, Australia, Húngary and Germany and he played a total of 236 easyCredit BBL games.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and Braydon Hobbs in 2019 in Frankfurt

The family man who has a house in Indiana and has played a lot of golf since retiring will continue his life working in Louisville, Kentucky and also keep basketball in his life in some form. I like with so many pro players had a professional working relationship with him interviewing him every now and then since he arrived in Germany in 2014. I did most interviews with him when he was with Giessen. I put him to the test when I asked him about how many times I interviewed him. “I would guess that you interviewed me around 7-8 times”, said Braydon Hobbs. It was actually 14 interviews ( https://germanhoops.com/?s=braydon+hobbs . ) and he even got 2 titles for articles concerning ex Bellarmine player Adam Eberhard and for a Munich win. “I had no idea it was 14. Those 11 seasons went super fast. They went so fast some of the years just blur together. Having my whole family with me overseas, has made it go twice as fast as well”, said Braydon Hobbs. One game I remember vividly happened in 2018 when he helped FC Bayern Munich escape on the road in Frankfurt. With the title “ Braydon Hobbs plays game changer saving FC Bayern Munich from 18 points down in defeating the Fraport Skyliners 87-83”. “ I definitely remember the comeback win against Frankfurt. I was upset at halftime because I wasn’t getting to play much or even getting to play at all. All I remember was telling myself, if I get in this game, we will have a chance. I’m the end we had a chance and came out with a win”, stressed Braydon Hobbs. The American played an important role wherever he played in his career and fans everywhere will never forget him. “I hope the fans can remember some of my no look passes that I had along the way. I hope they remember how I always tried to play solid and smart team basketball”, added Braydon Hobbs. I will always remember him as a great team player that did it all at both ends. You were a spontaneous, gregarious guy that always had patience with my interviews and did them when I asked. “ Thanks for the kind words. I will always remember you as one of the first people to interview me in Germany. You were always working hard to cover basketball and you always put out great interviews. I never saw you without a pen and paper writing notes down about players. Continue the great work”, said Braydon Hobbs. All the best in your life for you and your family and perhaps our paths will cross again some day most likely in a gym somewhere.