Joe Asberry and Dami Ade-Eri in Quackenbruck

pic credit: Angel King Media

In general people in Germany may not know it, but Joe Asberry is a guy that has been extra instrumental in the paths of many young players find their way early when odds may have been against them. He is an ex pro player that really has seen it all from crime to drugs, but also played against legends like David Robinson (215-C-65, college: Navy), Gary Payton, Jason Kidd and Brian Shaw and was teammates with German legendary player Christian Welp. He had a 11 year professional career that saw him toil around in the minor leagues of Germany, but he belonged to the best in his day at that level. He has done so much since his playing days like being that vital spokesperson for young kids and drug prevention, being a guest speaker, a master of ceremonies at UBC Hannover, worked with Alba Berlin and currently in his second year with the Artland Dragons organization coaching girls U-14 and U-16 and boys U-18. And not to forget been a mentor for young Americans coming overseas trying to live the dream of being a professional basketball. There aren´t many Americans overseas that don´t know him. 2 players that he helped find their way were Kevin Yebo and Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri (193-SF-2002) simply known as Dami to his friends. Kevin Yebo has had a Cinderella story having began in the Regionalliga and really climbed the ranks in the Pro A and easyCredit BBL before finally reaching the Euroleague with FC Bayern Munich years later. “I discovered Kevin Yebo in Tannenbusch the roughest hood in Bonn. A big shout out to coach Danny Stallbohm in Limburg who gave him his first chance. I don´t need the credit. Kevin did all the work”, stated Joe Asberry. He met Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri and has guided him as well the last years. After moving up with Koblenz from the Pro B to Pro A, he mostly sat in the Pro A, but this season has found a new home in Speyer in the Pro B having taken a step back to recharge his career again. “I told Dami that coach Joe is going to let you play free and wild for 40 minutes. Your going to average 30,0ppg and 15,0rpg and we will win like I did back in the day. He listened and that´s exactly what he did at Tura Braunschweig”, stressed Joe Asberry. “My mentor definitely was and still is to this day Coach Joe Asberry. I’ve known him for years now and he was actually the one bringing me to Braunschweig. He really mentored me in good and bad days. It was an awesome feeling averaging 30,0ppg. Coach Joe really is great at making players play confident and comfortable. He made me play freely as long as I grab every board and dunk on people. Ade-Eri is a player that likes to do the dirty work on the court and credits Joe Asberry for being his mentor.

Joe Asberry with Kevin Yebo in Berlin

Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri who names German world champion Dennis Schroeder as being his toughest opponent ever on the court was born on August 18th, 2002 in Berlin Schoeneberg and grew up there. He played youth basketball with the Junior Loewen Braunschweig (NBBL) during Covid. This was such a tough time for players with missed seasons and less training opportunites, but he actually found positives out of it. “In my opinion, Covid was actually good for my career. Covid was a time of me grinding daily in the gym and working on weaknesses with Coach Liviu Calin and Nico Dilukila, stated Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. At the same time, he always got his feet wet playing with and against men with SG Braunschweig in the Regionalliga but only averaged 7,8 minutes. “It was actually a good experience. It was actually my first glimpse of more organized Basketball and made me hungry for more”, remembered Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. In this time, he also was able to practice with another young with Sananda Fru who reached the easyCredit BBL. I had some battles with Sananda Fru. We actually spend every summer together with some other friends and train together. I´m really happy for where he has gotten”, commented Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri.

pic credit: Angel King Media

The ex Braunschweig player who lists Raphael Ejimophor, Sananda Fru, Olivier Borgol, Dominique Johnson and Moses Pölking as his 5 best teammates of all-time then made the next step in his basketball career and went to the EPG Baskets Koblenz. In his first season he helped the club win the Pro B title and move up to the Pro A. He played a total of 53 games in 3 seasons and it may not seem like he played much, but his minutes rose every year. Did he get a fair chance there? “I played more every year. We really had a strong roster every year. I just used every chance I got and battled every minute. But I don’t think I could really put my abilities to prove, so that’s what I’m trying to do right now”, warned Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. His minutes rose from 3,9 to 5,8 to 12,4 each season. “I’d say my Basketball IQ grew the most in those three years. I’ve learned to understand Basketball at a high pace and make the right play at the right time”, stressed Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. He had some good scoring games last season against Munster and Crailsheim. “I remember those games, because they proved I was able to play on that level. My fondest moment was the pass from Moses Pölking in the post to me cutting through the middle and going up for the dunk. Beautiful feeling, the whole arena was hyped”, remembered Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. He was more than blessed having great teammates each season who all impacted him in his years of development there. “I’m really grateful for having many experienced teammates on the team. I’d say Dominique Johnson aka DJ really was the one impacting me the most. He really shared all of his knowledge with me, inspired me to play with confidence and believed in me. Don’t get it twisted, he really showed me tough love at times but was a great teammate for real”, said Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri.

pic credit: Angel King Media

This season the ex Koblenz German who lists Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Magic Johnson,Dirk Nowitzki, Dennis Schröder, Franz Wagner, and Detlef Schrempf on his personal NBA and German Mount Rushmore has a new challenge in the Pro B with the Ahorn Camp Baskets Speyer. “I actually like it here. It’s a small city and a quite familiar club. Good Organization and friendly people all around”, smiled Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. Last weekend he played the most minutes in his pro career with 36 in Frankfurt. Was this the best basketball decision in his life going to Speyer? “Winning the Pro B title in Koblenz was definitely a wonderful experience. And playing pro A has definitely helped me gain a lot of insight and experience in high level professional Basketball. Coming to Speyer I was expecting it to be an opportunity for me to have an important role with more responsibility for a club. The aim is to achieve the best possible outcome. It’s very nice playing more minutes, I’m really enjoying playing ball free and finally being able to use what if learned and trained for the past years So far, I don’t regret the decision”, stressed Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. He is more than blessed to have a great coach like Carl Mbassa who has noticed his qualities and given him minutes. “My relationship with Coach Carl is close. He always expects me to be aggressive and always inspires me to play as physical as possible”, added Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. He also has been very fortunate having another type of mentor figure with Speyer legend DJ Woodmore and battling against top pro B defender Dennis Diala on a daily basis. “DJ and I grew quite close over the season, we have dinner every other evening or just chill. It’s more like a friendship in which he’s just the older experienced friend that just motivates you and shares his knowledge. Dennis and I are actually good friends, but on the floor its straight business. We go at it daily in practice and exchange buckets. It’s good to have some kind of 1 to 1 rivalry, it just keeps you challenged at all times. No bad blood beside the court at all though”, stressed Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri

picc redit: Angel King Media

So what kind of a player is Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri in 2026 who names Michael Jordan as his GOAT? If one inspects his game, you would see a little Jonathan Kuminga in his game. “He is a little taller than me but I’d say I got a similar playing style,I run the transition and know how to finish well around the rim with dunks or athletic finishes. He goes for boards and is a good defender”, said Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. With Speyer he has that special role that will definitely help his entire game. “My Role in Speyer is definitely to be an allrounder and bring energy. Going for every board, defending the best man, being aggressive to the rim and hyping up the team and fans with some dunks of course”, smiled Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. Especially those guys that battle in the trenches are the most respected. “My strength really is running in transition and doing all the dirty work, putting my body on the line and going for every board. I attack close outs and play good off ball, for example with backdoor cuts”, stated Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. But there is one area with his game where he knows if he can improve that, then some more doors may be opened in his future. “I constantly work on my shot, taking extra reps and staying consistent in the gym. Right now, I try to find ways to still create the best shot for the team but working on my shot is daily work at the moment. I’ve been hitting more shots the last games but I still have a lot to work on my shot”, added Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. What goals does the young German still have with his game? “I think the sky is the limit. I really think I can reach high levels, I just need to keep hustling and believing. I know Jesus got me”, commented Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. It will be interesting to see where the journey will go in the next years for Oluwadamilola Ade-Eri. One thing is for sure Joe Asberry will always give him advice and the words “sky is the limit” will always come from his mouth.