If I really took some time, I could think of a handful of American players that played at lower levels in Germany like the Pro B and Regionalliga that should have played at higher levels like the pro A and the first 2 dudes that come to mind are Ricky Easterling and Montrael Scott. Easterling by the way is still active at age 40. Another guy that has had a stellar career overseas in Germany and is playing his last season is Omari Knox (185-SG-1986, college: Bloomfield). He was a dominant scorer in the Regionalliga and in the Pro B as well. Like with so many Americans, he is a guy that I had the pleasure of interviewing many times through out his career in Germany. But in so many cases, it actually took me some time to see him play for the first time after conducting that first interview with him. My first interview with him was in September 2014 when he was in his 5th season in Germany and first with Regionalliga team RheinStars. I would conduct one more interview with him in 2015 and then the next one in 2021. It took a while for me to finally see him play for the first time in Frankfurt and that was shortly before Covid began in 2020. Some guys I interview more than others and surprisingly I only interviewed Omari Knox 6 times in his career. It is almost a decade since our first interview and time has really flown by. “Hey wassup Miles, first off, thanks for all of the support and coverage over the years. Time has definitely flown by since then”, said Omari Knox. I will always remember Omari Knox as a ruthless scorer that could fill the stat sheet and should of played at a higher level.

Omari Knox and Bernd Kruel

Omari Knox who wishes he could have been teammates with Yasin Kolo was born on November 28th, 1986 and grew up in Brooklyn, New York. He began his basketball career at St Peters College and then played 3 years at Bloomfield College (NCAA) and was able to improve his scoring average each season and as a senior averaged 18.8ppg, 6.7rpg, 1.7apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 40.1%, 3Pts: 40.1%, FT: 71.8%.He picked up various awards at Bloomfield like All-CACC first team and second team as well as being CACC player of the year in 2009. He also was a NCAA 2 allstar and was a NABC NCAA D2 All-America East District Second Team member and was NCAA D2 All-America Honorable Mention (by Division II Bulletin) He then went overseas and played his first 2 seasons with TSV Dachau Spurs (Germany-Regionalliga) and averaged 26,0ppg and 27,oppg in a season. In 2014-2015, he played with the RheinStars Koeln (Germany-Regionalliga) averaging 13.3ppg, 4.4rpg, 2.5apg, 2.1spg, FGP: 41.7%, 3PT: 34.7%, FT: 80.6%. There he played with 2 dinosaurs with Bernd Kruel and Marko Petric, but also with many young players including 16 year Leon Okpara who has really developed well the last years and is a Pro A player today with Rasta Vechta. “Leon has definitely developed into a player. In all of my memories of him, he was always laughing, smiling and friendly. He has that same baby face, so anytime I see him I still see my same 18yr old rookie, but he’s definitely turned himself into a dog now. I think he’s still got plenty left to show, once he gets his confidence back after his last injury”, stressed Omari Knox. In the 2015-2016 season he went home and had some D-League tryouts and then coached high school before returning back to Germany. In the 2016-2017, he played his first season for Mario Matic with TSV Oberhaching Deisenhofen (Germany-Regionalliga) averaging 24.8pp, 7.8rpg, 4.6apg, Steals-5 (3.0spg), FGP: 51.1%, 3PT: 33.5%, FT: 82.1%. He was a top Regionalliga player and then played 2 seasons with OSB Hellenen Muenchen (Germany-Regionalliga) averaging 25.4ppg, 7.3rpg, 4.1apg, 2.1spg, FGP: 50.9%, 3PT: 39.0%, FT: 84.4% and 19.8ppg, 5.8rpg, 3.6apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 46.0%, 3PT: 40.6%, FT: 82.3%. During these years he was a major Regionalliga walking bucket and was scoring 30 plus points on a regular basis and even hit Bad Aibling for 48 points. “The Regionalliga was great. I remember experiencing so many different coaches/coaching styles and playing against so many great players. There were more imports and the talented German players were slowly coming into their own”, stated Omari Knox. He even battled future Euroleague player Oscar da Silva who was a teenager and before he went off to Stanford (NCAA) in 2017. “Oscar had so much talent. He was skilled, great fundamentals and he always worked/played hard. I knew he had a bright future ahead of him”, added Omari Knox. He became a Pro B player in 2019 and except for a season in Hanau where he averaged 9.9ppg, 2.4rpg, 1.9apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 43.3%, 3PT: 39.4%, FT: 89.7%, he has been reunited with head coach Mario Matic. He has proven in the last years under Matic that he belongs to the best Americans in the Pro B. In the last 3 seasons, he improved his scoring average each season with 15.5ppg, 3.6rpg, 2.2apg, FGP: 55.6%, 3PT: 34.6%, FT: 87.5%, 17.1ppg, 5.1rpg, 2.1apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 45.2%, 3PT: 41.0%, FT: 80.0%, and last season 18.6ppg, 5.8rpg, 2.7apg, 2.0spg, FGP: 47.8%, 3PT: 37.4%, FT: 82.9%. In those 3 seasons he played 50 games and scored in double figures in 39 games including 34 points against Ludwigsburg and 31 points against Leitershofen.

Omari Knox and Tyseem Lyles

This season Oberaching is having another great season and will play in the playoffs again. A big advantage the last years has been that Matic has been able to keep a core of his players together and generate good team chemistry. “Our team chemistry is a huge plus for us. Trusting each other, knowing tendencies and wanting to win and play hard for one another makes a huge difference”, warned Omari Knox. Two players that have been instrumental in the success has been captain Janosch kogler who is surely a top 5 best teammate of Knox´s and young German Maxwell Dongmo. ” Janosch is absolutely in my Top 5. I always secretly wish he chose to take it more serious because he would be in the BBL for sure, but I’m definitely happy I’ve got to play alongside him all these years. Watching Maxwell from day one of practice this season, I’ve been able to really see his development. Being a role player at Bayern, and now being asked to score and contribute every game is something he’s still adjusting to. That combination of speed and power can be scary. I don’t think anyone in this league can stop him once he realizes it”, commented Omari Knox. Not only has head coach Mario Matic been key for the team success, but also let Knox be himself and shine on the court. “I think he’s very underrated in his knowledge of the game. Most people may only know him to be a player’s coach, which he is because he allows us a lot of freedom to play and make mistakes. But at the same time, he’s always able to make adjustments and game-plan, to give us the best chance to win. He’s also very good at finding ways to motivate our group of guys to play hard every week and keep the energy up in practice. I would say he’s also a true student of the game still. He watches 1 basketball game a day, regardless of which league”, expressed Omari Knox.

Gasbr

This season the American who lists some of his toughest opponents in his career with FC Bayern Munich, Paul Zipser, Eddy Edigin, Karim Jallow, Paul Brotherson, Malcom Boone, Consti Ebert, Max Ugrai, Felix Hoffmann, Filip Stanic, Jan Wimberg, Ferdinand Zylka, Kristian Kullamae, David Taylor, Robert Franklin, Guy Edy is having another great season currently averaging 18,6ppg, 5,8rpg, 2,7apg and 2,0spg while shooting a solid 37% from outside. He seems to be aging like fine wine. “I think with the guys in the league getting younger and younger the experience I have plays a major role. I’m still very much a student of the game and learning every year/season. Mario also does a good job maintaining my minutes and giving rest when I need it. Taking my son to kindergarten on the bike daily plays a huge role”, stressed Omari Knox. He scored in double figures in 21 of 23 games and scored 20 points or more 11 times including having Speyer´s number in wins scoring 31 and 29 points including a 28 point explosion against Fellbach. He will play one more time in Frankfurt tomorrow. The BCM gym was constructed in 2004 and at that time was state of the art and the training facility of BBL team Fraport Skyliners and even today still looks great. So many great players have played in the BCM from guys like Dirk Nowitzki to guys like Alan Anderson, Carlos Arroyo or Marcus Fizer. The only problem is that the atmosphere isn´t as loud as in other Pro B gyms. “I think the BCM is still one of the cooler places to play in the Pro B regardless of the fans being there or not. You got the Pro Baskets and the wood floor which is definitely hard to come by in most cities”, said Omari Knox. He has a positive 4-3 record against Frankfurt going into this game. He had some great games in wins including 28 points in his first game in Frankfurt shortly before Covid in 2020 and a 31 point explosion in another win “It’s always a battle playing against Frankfurt. I think the record shows that entirely. Those two big wins (28 and 31) always stand out for me, because they were both important games. And of course, formally meeting you for the first time and getting my nickname Fort Knox the money is always safe”, laughed Omari Knox. Oberaching lost the first game in their living room and the revenge factor will be massive. “The next game in Frankfurt will be an important one for us. We definitely let the first one slip away. Careless turnovers and too many second chances opportunities cost us that game. Home Court Advantage plays a huge role in most games, let alone the playoffs. It will be an important game for both teams, and it’s definitely something that we want so I expect it to be a dog fight”, warned Omari Knox.

Omari Knox and Miles Schmidt-Scheuber in Frankfurt in 2021

The season is winding down and of course he hopes to top off his professional career with a title as anything is possible in the Pro B, but honestly I wish he would still be playing, because skill wise he is still at a top level. I think he still would have had 3-4 more good years in him. “I feel I can definitely play a few more productive years. I have my days where the body is sore but for the most part I still feel pretty good. I ride my bike every single day a few km’s so that definitely helps”, said Omari Knox. All in all, Omari Knox has had an incredible career in Germany. In total he has played 287 games and will add on a few more before all is said and done and nearly averaged in double figures each season. “I can’t believe it’s been 13 seasons. Anytime someone asks, I forget. I’m very proud of the career that I’ve had. All ups and downs, I’ve learned and benefited from each and every season I’ve played. I did actually consider retiring the summer before returning to Oberhaching”, stated Omari Knox. He has played 13 seasons and knows the time is right now. He will always know that he stepped down when he was truly at the peak of his game. “I feel pretty fit and healthy still for the most part, so those are all good reasons to stop now. Although, I still have the same love for the game, the basketball season consumes a lot of time (games every weekend, late practices, long road trips. At the same time, I’ll still be giving back as much as I can when I retire, whether coaching, individual training, mentoring”, stressed Omari Knox. Just like the title says, I will always remember Omari Knox as a ruthless scorer who could fill up the stat sheet and should have played at a higher level and how will he remember me best? “I haven’t been around German basketball for decades and I’m sure there are other’s who made their mark, but I think you will be remembered as one of the greats when it comes to covering games, and getting background information on players. You do your HOMEWORK“, stressed Omari Knox. It was a pleasure covering your game the last years and always a highlight to see you play the game of basketball. I wish you all the best for the future.