In December 2010, the BBL season of Phoenix Hagen was becoming a disaster and it wasn´t even Christmas yet as every true Phoenix fan was hoping for some Santa Claus miracle, but that didn´t happen. Instead a famous name flashed over the Hagen airwaves and was plastered all over Hagen papers and for any non basketball fan they may have thought that THE Michael Jordan, the famous ex Chicago Bull was coming out of retirement. However instead it was ex Pennslyvania (NCAA) standout and veteran professional basketball player Michael Hakim Jordan that arrived in Hagen as the predicted season savior. At first it seemed like the Philadelphia native who had the widest and most appealing smile that one ever could witness from a player that boasted the perfect tooth paste commercial white teeth was that good luck charm as he helped the club rebound from their 3-10 record reeling off three wins in a row against TBB Trier, Braunschweig and Giessen who he disposed of himself with a buzzer beater. However then the real drudgery of winter arrived where the dark and grey Hagen made days seem extra longer and seem for some like their own private hell which made the next huge losing streak seem unbearable as the club lost 8 games in a row and suddenly there were new rifts within the club concerning Jordan and Chase Griffin and the season became more and more in jeopardy. Then came one of the first season climaxes in Frankfurt which would forever be remembered in German basketball you tube history. It was a rather warm March day in Frankfurt as the recent snow had melted and first flowers were blooming and Phoenix Hagen were guests against the Deutsche Bank Skyliners. Phoenix Hagen was playing for their lives while the Frankfurt club was on their way to reaching the BBL final and losing a hard fought 5 game final series against Bamberg. Phoenix Hagen was without Jordan who was injured and had to watch the game from the sidelines. At halftime Phoenix Hagen was down 44-27 and before it was time for the halftime analysis from head coach Ingo Fryer, it was Jordan that entered the dressing room with a sneer and growl about to let loose and preceded to give his own movie like tirade that was Oscar worthy and could have been his entrance to the acting world had the right Hollywood producer only gotten hold of the video. That season the documentary Phoenix In Der Asche was being made which portrayed the Phoenix Hagen season and cameras were always around. Not only did Jordan chew out his teammates in fine fashion, but knowing the undeniable passion and drive to always want to win that teammate Quinto Pryor had, one was just waiting for him to follow Jordan and give his two cents. Instead Pryor just listened and soaked in the truth that Jordan was saying. There were enough times in Pryor´s career where he showed his presence on the bench with discreet tantrums, but how could he ever forget this Jordan moment? “That was a tough year but we expected it to be tough. It was just so much more going on and having the cameras document everything made it much more difficult. That tirade was the truth and a defining moment in the documentary. It felt like teams didn’t respect us once the ball tipped. I just remember every guy in the locker room being down. We were all tired of being in that situation. I think it needed to be said”, stressed Quentin Pryor (193-G/F-1983, college: Morehead St.). The club was whipped by Frankfurt which was their ninth loss in a row at that time, but somehow found a sweet spot with the basketball God finishing the season 3-5 and squeaking out a win In Duesseldorf and winning against Ludwigsburg and Paderborn that saved their season and let them remain in the BBL. This was just one exciting experience that Pryor had in his interesting seven year professional career in which he was a true warrior that played the game the way it should be played.

But before Pryor could embark on a professional basketball career, he had to pay his dues at the collegiate level and like many he didn´t start at the top, but at the bottom having to prove himself in order to eventually reach the NCAA level. The American was born on September 26th 1983 in Europa, Mississippi, but grew up in Memphis, Tennessee, but after high school returned back to the south and played at Holmes Community College in Goodman, Mississippi. After getting his college type experience with the Bull Dogs, he returned back to Memphis and played at Jackson State Community College. It was hear that Pryor developed his early like warrior like mentality where nothing was served to him on a silver platter, but he had to fight for everything which helped him finally reach the NCAA level in 2005 with Morehead State. “Going to Jackson State CC was the best decision basketball wise that I made. My coach (Deron Hines) was the first coach that was brutally honest with me. He helped me see that I had another level. We were a national top 10 JUCO program that just played the right way. We didn’t care about scoring just winning. I’ve always had that mentality. For me, it was my way out. My mom was in a car wreck when I was younger and was unable to work ever since that moment. I wanted to make sure that my family would be taken care of. So every game I went out and played with every ounce of energy I had in me. Coaches shouldn’t have to coach you to play hard if ball is life”, stressed Quentin Pryor. The American played his last two years of college ball at Morehead State playing in the Ohio Valley conference, but the team literally stunk, but he proved he could be a versatile and consistent performer at the NCAA level. As a junior he played 25 games averaging 10.6ppg, 3.7rpg, 2.7apg, 1.5spg, 2FGP: 46.6%, 3FGP: 40.3%, FT: 68.7% and as a senior played 30 games averaging 11.4ppg, 4.6rpg, 2.1apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 46.3%, 3Pts: 36.8%, FT: 71.7%. These two years were vital in him being able to jump from the NCAA level to the professional ranks. “I grew tremendously in this time. I tried to live in the gym especially when I sat out my first year due to my wrist injury. Being tabbed as the captain and leader of the team that last season was a great experience. My fondest memory was just being a part the team that helped turn around the fortunes of the program. My first year playing, we were 4-23. My senior year we finished 12 -16. We had a losing record but we were vastly improved and for a month we were first in our conference”, added Quentin Pryor. He lists Rudy Gay as his toughest foe at the NCAA level and also knows that without head coach Donnie Tyndall, his road to becoming a professional could have been more difficult. “Coach Tyndall challenged me to give my best every day. He wanted and demanded perfection. He put a lot of pressure on me to lead the team. He basically taught me how to focus on tendencies of players. The things that he taught me on the defensive end, I carried overseas with me”, warned Quentin Pryor.

Pryor decided to embark on a professional career in 2007 and his route wasn´t the NBA or D-League, but Europe. In the fall of 2007 the American landed in Germany with FC Schalke 04 that is better known for it´s football and inability to win titles than their basketball program. He didn´t win any titles in his rookie season overseas, but he quickly found a groove and found respect from his peers on account of his stellar game and was able to make the adjustment on the court even if is his first memory of Germany at the airport almost had him turning around. “That was a fun year because I played with two guys (Matt Witt and Alonzo Hird) that were my rivals in college. It made the adjustment a little bit easy. When I got off the plane. It was not what I expected and I wasn’t prepared for it. I honestly wanted to get a ticket back home once I walked through airport”, expressed Quentin Pryor. In his rookie season he played 29 games averaging 15.1ppg, 4.3rpg, 2.2apg, Steals-1 (2.5spg), FGP: 55.8%, 3PT: 37.4%, FT: 75.2%. He showed that he could be an offensive weapon, but at the same a guy that could help in all areas of the court. He wasn´t one dimensional either in that he went to work on the offensive end and didn´t take a back seat on the defensive end, but actually belonged to the best defenders in the German second Bundesliga and defense would become a huge part of his arsenal that allowed him to shine later in the BBL. He also saw that he had the game for a successful long career if he continued to work hard and brought the effort. He also saw how quickly a career could end as certain circumstances whatever they may can affect a career to continue for a while or end as it did with his teammate Torris Bright. “Playing with Torris Bright was great. I remember watching him at LSU. He was a killer. Some people’s careers don’t pan out as planned and he was one. I was lucky to get my first year completed. I was on the cusp of being sent home until the first game of the season due my lack of adjustment. I came out the very first game and had 28. That let me know that I had what it took to be a professional”, warned Quentin Pryor.

His enthusiastic and all around game got the attention of Phoenix Hagen head coach Ingo Freyer and Pryor was signed in 2008 and he would spend three enjoyable years helping the team move up to the BBL in 2009 and then playing two seasons in an up and coming rising league called the BBL. “Growing wise as a person, yes, these were the nicest years. For me Hagen became my home away from home. My son basically grew up there and my daughter was conceived there. I made significant strides in my game at Hagen. I had some great times on and off the court in Hagen. By far the best fans ever. I also learned the business side of basketball in Hagen as well”, warned Quentin Pryor. In his first season 2008-2009, he joined a talented team that didn´t have any real stars or so many imports, but talented guys like Chase Griffin, Zach Freeman and Aaron Fleetwood and the BBL veteran German Bernd Kruel as well as many German players that understood their roles. The club just functioned well together and were a team that understood how to get the job done. As did Pryor who had another strong German Pro A season being able to improve his scoring average over his rookie season and continued to shoot near 40% from outside and continued to belong to the best defenders that the Pro A had to offer. The American played 30 games averaging 14.7ppg, 3.8rpg, 3.0apg, 1.7spg, FGP: 60.5%, 3PT: 30.3%, FT: 75.2%. “That first season was very magical. Every guy on that team played for each other. We had one goal and that was get to the BBL. It was quite a few memories that year. If I could go back in time, it would be to that season. The wins against Bayreuth, Karlsruhe on the road, and the last game of the season against Bremen. I’ve only played in one game that could match the atmosphere in Hagen in the game against Bremen. That place was electric”, stressed Quentin Pryor. Pryor may not have been a rookie anymore, but Fraport Skyliner lifer Quantez Robertson was and over the years would quickly develop into one of the BBL´s best defenders. It was always a battle when they were both on the court. “He has Kawhi Leonard’s personality. The dude doesn’t say much but he locks in on the defensive end. Every time you see him, you have to be on your A game. At that time he was rising. I think everyone was still saying McElroy but Robertson was coming for the number #1 spot”, warned Quentin Pryor.

In his second season was where he experienced growing pains as it was the time where the club struggled all season long and saved themselves at the end while everything was being documented with the Phoenix In Der Asche Documentary. It was just one of those seasons where nothing really fell in place for Phoenix Hagen, but that is part of the game as not everything you touch turns to gold. However their successful experience was staying in the league and enabling their fans to enjoy BBL basketball for another season. In that season he played 33 games averaging 8.8ppg, 3.1rpg, 1.4apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 40.9%, 3PT: 39.3%, FT: 72.9%. In his last season with Phoenix Hagen in 2010-2011 he would help the club to a very respectable 12th position. This club also had more talent than in the past with the likes of Jacob Burtschi, Mark Dorris, David Bell and Zygimantas Jonusas. The American upped his play as well from his sophomore slump playing 33 games averaging 11.3ppg, 3.5rpg, 2.2apg, Steals-5 (1.5spg), FGP: 48.9%, 3PT: 27.5%, FT: 75.3%. He scored in double figures in 19 games including 20 points or more in four games and had five steals a piece in three games. He also had his biggest wins in the German BBL against Bamberg and Alba Berlin showing that the league was becoming more competitive than ever as only a year earlier one would never have seen a team of a Phoenix Hagen being able to upset a major powerhouse. “They were great wins but definitely not close to the biggest. Those wins showed how much we had matured and learned from the season before”, added Quentin Pryor. After three years with a team is often the time when a player leaves or becomes a lifer. In 2011, Robertson had completed his second season in Frankfurt and would stay until retiring in 2023. However the basketball leaf turned differently for Pryor as he wouldn´t become a Phoenix Hagen lifer. “I would have loved to stay in Hagen but that just wasn’t the plan. I was a little hurt because I played a big part in helping them get to the BBL and staying in the BBL. I understood that at the end of the day basketball is still a business. They made a business decision for the organization and I can’t complain about that”, stressed Quentin Pryor. His three years were a great time and he played with many great players, but even from a pool of these teammates with Chase Griffin, David Bell, Jacob Burtschi, John Turek, Mark Dorris or Michael Jordan, he couldn´t name a favorite. “All those guys were great. I enjoyed playing with every single one of them. Everyone brought something different to the table. I learned a lot from each of those guys”, commented Quentin Pryor. He may of last played with Phoenix Hagen 13 years ago, but the memories of then were always fresh in his mind and when he heard of some shocking news, those memories of yesterday surfaced again as if he was back in Hagen again. In the matter of a few months two members of the beloved Phoenix Hagen family passed away with Matthias Grothe and Marco Schmitz. “R.I.P to Matthias and Marco. They are Hagen legends. I was probably Matthias’ least favorite American my first year. I liked to talk a lot on the floor and we had a few words. When I got to Hagen everything changed. He was a true professional. He gave everything he had for that organization. He was a great leader. I learned so much about the European game from him during practice especially the pick n roll. Him and Bernd always had jokes. That’s all they did on trips. Marco would travel to every game that we had. No matter if we won or lost, he was always very positive about everything. He really loved Phoenix Hagen. Marco was the first person that I saw with a jersey with my name on it. Even after I left Hagen, Marco still followed my career and would message me from time to time about certain games. I was really shocked when I saw that he had passed”, stressed Quentin Pryor.

Marco Schmitz and Miles Schmidt-Scheuber calling a Frankfurt-Hagen game in the 2010-2011 season in Frankfurt

He played from 2011-2013 in Austria where he would ball with WBC Raiffeisen Wels (Austria-A Bundesliga) playing 31 games averaging 14.2ppg, 4.0rpg, 3.7apg, Steals-4 (1.9spg), FGP: 52.2%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 72.7% and with the ECE Bulls Kapfenberg (Austria-A Bundesliga) playing 38 games averaging 10.9ppg, 3.6rpg, 3.1apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 50.7%, 3PT: 34.0%, FT: 75.4%. He came to Austria without a professional title, but in Austria he would make further experiences about what it´s like playing basketball in May and getting closer to the basketball crest step by step. “Those were my first years competing in the playoffs. By then I was the veteran and I had to set the example for everyone. Whatever needed to be done, I did it. Coming up short in those series made me much more hungry for the next time around”, added Quentin Pryor. In the summer of 2013, he had to make another decision of which new team to join. He would opt for the GasTerra Flames Groningen (Holland-Eredivisie) which when he looks back now on was the correct decision as that would be his last professional season and he would hang up his jersey having won not one, but two titles with the Dutch league and cup titles. It was the perfect story book ending for his professional career even if he didn´t know it at the time in the summer 2014 that he would never play professionally again besides a short pre season stint with Petrolina AEK Larnaca (Cyprus-Division A). “At the time it wasn’t my ending but looking back yes. We set all types of records that season in the Dutch league. Even with all of that we had to comeback in the semis after digging a 0-2 hole and we went 7 games in the finals. By far the best game that I have ever played in. It was so tense that day. We were a group that was full of experienced players that played the game the way it was supposed to be played “, added Quentin Pryor. With Groningen he played 41 games averaging 8.4ppg, 3.2rpg, 3.0apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 45.8%, 3PT: 38.6%, FT: 66.1%; and in the EuroChallenge played 3 games averaging 8.7ppg, 2.7rpg, 1.0spg. The American will also never forget his teammate there Jason Douresseau who played 10 seasons with that organization. “That guy knows that city and organization like no other. Having him on the team just made the transition to Groningen so easy. Jason could defend 4 positions with no problem and it seemed like every time we needed a big play he would come up with it”, warned Quenton Pryor.

It has been almost a decade since Pryor last played a professional game. It isn´t one thing that the American misses the most, but a combination of many things. “I miss everything. Playing, camaraderie with teammates, the fans, travel, and of course the relationships I built with several people in Europe. For a while, it was basically home for my family. We spent more time there than we did here due to the season. One thing I miss outside of the game is the food. Döner macht schooner”, smiled Quentin Pryor. His life is very busy and full at the moment as he is calling Louisville, Kentucky home these days and is a full-time teacher at a residential facility and coaching basketball at the high school ranks and got his Masters degree in 2018. Even if his life is in full swing and everything is going well, the transition period from professional basketball player back to the normal 9-5 life wasn´t easy at first. “I would be a lie if I said it was easy. I was not prepared for the adjustment because it was so abrupt. The worst is the financial issue of course. You get used to living a certain way and seeing a certain amount in your bank account and then it dries up. I had some rough days dealing with this. I was living in a place where I didn’t have the best connections so it was difficult”, stressed Quentin Pryor. He has been coaching at the middle and high school level and currently is coaching at DuPont Manual High School. They are currently 23-4 on the year with 3 games left before post season play begins. This past summer he received his certification to be a personal trainer and currently is pursuing his strength and conditioning certification.It isn´t rare these days that professional basketball players decide to teach the game they have always loved to kids and that is a route that Pryor is happy he has chosen. “Honestly it has been great. I love the aspect of having to learn the opposing coach’s tendencies. My biggest strength right now is just being able to connect with the kids. I want to know how they are off the court and then I have a better chance of teaching them the game because I have established a relationship. I am actually able to show them the proper way of how to actually do certain things and react to different looks on the floor”, added Quentin Pryor. But for the American there is a greater satisfaction from his new profession than just teaching the general x´s and o´s to kids. “It is a positive experience. My biggest satisfaction is actually knowing that I am creating a relationship with them and I will have an impact on them for the rest of their lives”, added Quentin Pryor. It is always interesting to see if coach Pryor not only sees that big talent in his group of kids but is even able to witnesses that kid that has a little bit of him in him. “We have a few kids that definitely remind me of myself coming up. I just try to remind them that you don’t need a number by your name in order to chase your dream”, warned Quentin Pryor. But he also has another big joy besides teaching kids the game, but also has wetted the basketball appetite of his son who is going the basketball route. “I didn’t push basketball on him. I let him make his own decision as to if he wanted to do it. I will say that the light has come on for him. He goes all out on the floor. He is still pretty raw but I am very encouraged by what I see from him as far as growth”, warned Quentin Pryor in 2018. 5 years later, his son has definitely made progress in the game. “He is coming into his own now. Before he was still trying to figure out his position and game. He’s more of a shooting guard with a scorer’s mentality. He’s a sophomore now but is expected to breakout next season”, stressed Quentin Pryor. Back in 2018, he could of coached at a higher level, but instead showed real man qualities taking a step down and allowing his wife to finish her Batchelor and be a dad at home. It would be difficult to find a better example of a role model for any kid interested in making the grade as a player, dad and human being besides Quentin Pryor. Not only was Quentin Pryor a true warrior that played the game the way it should be played, but didn´t care about stats, but only winning. He gave everything he had in between the lines from tip to final buzzer and that won´t be forgotten especially in Hagen.