pic credit: Florian Ulbrich

If a player has the extreme privilege to play for the great Alba Berlin organization that has belonged to the top easyCredit BBL teams for 30 years, then there is a good chance you will win a chip. It isn´t any different for the Alba Berlin NBBL (U-19) and JBBL (U-16) teams as combined they won 10 titles with 5 for each. The JBBL team won last year and the NBBL won back to back titles in 2022 and 2023 that featured top German guard Jack Kayil and a buzzer beater by Nils Machowski in 2023 for the title. However for German Richard Schmitt (203-F-2007), the last few years didn´t go as planned as Alba Berlin lost twice in the semi-finals. The club and Schmitt hope that this coming weekend, 3 will be a charm. I mean how long can the dry spell continue for Alba Berlin. Head coach Vladi Bogojevic recently found luck and money as a candidate on Germany´s Who wants To Be A Millionare. Now it´s time for Alba Berlin to combine some luck and talent and find the winners circle again. 2 years ago, Schmitt was one of the youngest during the NBBL season and last season lost to Ulm by 10 points and steered home 8 points. There is a good chance that he could meet ratiopharm Ulm in the final again so the motivation factor will be as big for them as Berlin´s Tv tower. “Of course the hunger is huge. After the last two years, we really want to win it this time. Playing at home gives us extra motivation. We know what it takes and we are ready to let everything on the floor”, warned Richard Schmitt. He knows that Ulm is the team to beat, but the focus will be on Frankfurt first in the semi-final. “Ulm is definitely a very strong team this year, but at the top4, anything can happen especially with our home crowd. Right now we are focused on our own game on reaching the final first”, warned Richard Schmitt.

Alba Berlin and the Skyliners have had great battles in the easyCredit BBL playoffs over the years especially in 2005 and 2010, but also at the youth level like in 2023. 3 years ago, both met in the JBBL final as Alba Berlin came away with the title as top player Mattieu Grujicic of Alba Berlin and Ivan Crnjac of Frankfurt displayed an intense battle as Grujicic exploded for 53 points and Crnjac for 41, but in the end Alba Berlin had a few more weapons winning. This time Crnjac will be extra motivated to finally beat Alba Berlin at the NBBL level. “Frankfurt is a well coached team that has a lot of good players. They play fast and aggressive but also with a lot of energy, so we have to match that intensity from the beginning”, stated Richard Schmitt. Alba Berlin will go into the game as the mega favorite which was heightened a bit more as Frankfurt top player Jamie Edoka was injured last week in Chemnitz. Schmitt was really excited to play him when asked before of the injury “Unfortunately I never played against him so it´s going to be my first time. He is a very talented player with a lot of potential. I respect his game especially because of his athleticism and versatility”, commented Richard Schmitt. He knows that the last thing Alba Berlin can do now is take Frankfurt too lightly. He knows exactly what they have to do to be successful and reach the final. “Team basketball, defense and rebounding will be very important. We have to stay consistent and avoid bad stretches during the game. Just stay disciplined and focused on how we want to play and then we have a great chance to reach the final”, warned Richard Schmitt.

Alba Berlin had a very potent regular season only losing to the Young Rasta Dragons and in the playoffs swept Bremerhaven and then were severely tested by Paderborn and won a do or die game 3 at home 91-80 displaying their strong nerves. Alba Berlin has a strong and deep roster as usual. They are led by the winning experience of Anton Kemmer and Finn Borczanowski who won the AST recently. “Their experience is extremely valuable. They bring calmness to the team and know how to perform in important moments. Both bring a lot of athleticism and versatility to the game. Kemmer does a pretty good job on the glass getting rebounds and Fin gets always into the paint and shoots the three very well which helps us a lot”, warned Richard Schmitt. 2 other really potent players for Alba Berlin are Matteo Hermann who acts as a type of defensive force and young German Jona Drucke who helped Alba Berlin win the JBBL title last season. “Matteo´s defense is very important for us. He brings a lot of energy and can guard multiple positions. Jona has developed a lot, especially with his confidence and consistency this season as one of the youngest on the team”, expressed Richard Schmitt. One area where Alba Berlin could really dominate over Frankfurt will be the paint area as Frankfurt is very small there. 215cm center Lukas Klein could be a major factor in the game. “ With his size he can be a huge factor, especially in rebounding and protecting the paint. I really enjoy his dominance in the paint. He doesn’t necessarily have to score every time, but he can pass the ball out and feed our shooters”, warned Richard Schmitt.

The 198cm forward who believes he would beat teammate Anton Kemmer in a 1-1 match on the court in practice hasn´t played as much NBBL this season as his focus was more in the Pro B with Lok Bernau where he averaged 4/1 in 16 minutes per game. Was it a big adjustment not playing more games in the NBBL this season? “It was an adjustment for sure, but I take it as part of my development. I just try to make the most out of every minute and continue improving”, stressed Richard Schmitt. He averaged 21 minutes in the NBBL this season averaging 11,6ppg, 3,6rpg, 1,4apg and 1,1spg. He is a player that is in no way one dimensional. “I see my role as being versatile, bringing energy to the team and helping in different areas like scoring, rebounding and defense”, added Richard Schmitt. He is very blessed to have been able to play under Vladi Bogojevic who has been vital in his basketball development the last years. “He has helped me a lot with understanding the game better and becoming more consistent. Mentally I have learned a lot from him as well”, commented Richard Schmitt. He has picked Ratiopharm Ulm to reach the final and knows in order to achieve 3 a charm, Alba Berlin will have to get by them. If Alba Berlin and Ulm reach the final, then then final could become a classic game. Who knows maybe one will see the Wagner brothers in the stands there again. Last season the Wagners support helped Alba Berlin win the JBBL title. Now the home team fans want to celebrate the NBBL title.