It has been a season to forget so far for the Dragons Rohndorf as they had a horrible start to the season losing their first four games and the loss of Kameron Taylor and just how vital he was for last season´s success is still on the mind of many fans in Bad Honnef. The club has had difficulty scoring points averaging only 69 per game and had problems playing consistently on defense for 40 minutes allowing 80 points per contest.  Unfortunately Kameron Taylor´s don´t grow on trees and the club just haven´t been able to compensate his overall loss and what he brought at both ends of the court or have they? The club may have started poorly, but finally saw a small light at the end of the tunnel last weekend as they got a rewarding win on the road in Erfurt and a big plus for them this season has been Lithuanian big man Zygimantas Riauka who is averaging double stats wit 18,0ppg and 12,0rpg and brings back some memories of the dominance that American Aaron Nelson possessed two season´s ago. The Dragons Rhondorf didn´t have any easy opponent with the ScanPlus Baskets who came to town as they were sandwiched between two tops teams the last weeks with the Bayer Giants Leverkusen and now the reigning 2018 Pro B champs from Elchingen. They didn´t start off hot, but 3-2 and have had to see 5-0 teams Frankfurt and Leverkusen steal the show form them. They did have a big victory last weekend defeating ambitious team Schwenningen costing them their first loss in more than a year. They had problems with the RheinStars, but pulled out a victory and won easily against the Lowen. They could also be 5-0 had they been able to buckle down and win crunch time games against FC Bayern Munich and Coburg. Rhondorf had had to say good bye to American Raekwon Miller and EU player Joe Mvuezolo, but had picked up experienced American Kwan Waller and are hoping that he can help turn around the losing season. The Dragons Rhondorf played a solid first half and fought hard for most parts of the game, but just couldn´t match the ScanPlus Baskets Intensity and their three point accuracy and easy baskets in the second half losing 95-74. After the club´s fourth win of the season ex Flordia International(NCAA) guard Dennis Mavin was content with the win and how consistent they stayed for 40 minutes. “We stayed consistent and stuck to our principles staying aggressive on defense and it paid off in the second half. The three Alispavic three pointer´s got us going in the third and built momentum to the end”, stressed ScanPlus Baskets guard Dennis Mavin. After the blowout loss Dragons Rhondorf guard Kwam Waller had a smile on his face despite the loss, but saw the experience as positive. “We fought well, but just not consistently for 40 minutes. We didn´t do a good job getting out on the shooters. We need to work on the little things being able to make good decisions under pressure and make everything difficult for the opponent. We weren´t always able to keep the focus, but I love this team. We will get better. As long as we keep defending well we will be ok”, added guard Kwam Waller.

The Dragons Rhondorf were without German Yannick Kneesch who was sick and other German Julian Jasinski was playing at the same time with BBL team Telekom Baskets Bonn against Science city Jena. Both teams got on the board quickly as the two point guards Kwam Waller and Dennis Mavin traded buckets. Croatian Marco Jurica who balled in Austria last season hit a trey as the ScanPlus Baskets had the 5-2 lead. This quick start by the guests didn´t bother the Dragons Rhondorf as they were ready and had a high intensity and self confidence which helped them produce a 7-0 run and gain the 9-5 advantage. The home team got three baskets inside with two from Lithuanian Zygimantas Riauka and one from German Alex Moeller. Rhondorf made three consecutive stops as the ScanPlus Baskets were hurrying their sets and taking low percentage shots. Rhondorf kept the lead at 11-8 as Joe Koschade made a lay in. The Dragons Rhondorf were getting their work horse Riauka involved and many touches while Waller brought a lot of energy at both ends of the court. Then came an offensive spurt for both teams as Croatian Karlo Rozic dropped two trey´s while ex Telekom Baskets 2 player Philipp Gruber made a pretty spin move and lay in and three as the game was dead locked at 15-15. The ScanPlus Baskets would take the 20-19 lead with a Jere Vucica and Brian Butler lay in´s, but Dragons captain Joe Koschade kept the best for last nailing a buzzer beater three giving the Dragons Rhondorf a narrow 22-20 lead. “We played good defense, but they did a better job with the offensive rebounds”, stressed Kwam Waller. The Dragons Rhondorf shot 43% from the field and 14% from outside and had eight rebounds and one turnover while the ScanPlus Baskets shot 39% form the field and 27% from outside and had 14 rebounds and four turnovers.

The second quarter stayed tight for the first few minutes, but then the ScanPlus Baskets slowly started to get away as they were more consistent on offense and would get their lead to double digits. Hungarian point guard Stefan Fekete got the ScanPlus Baskets going early with a lay in, but ex Bremerhaven forward Bo Meister drilled home a trey for the 24-22 Rhondorf advantage. However the ScanPlus Baskets then demonstrated what their offense is capable of when it´s finally really on as they cruised out on a 15-5 run to extend their lead to 37-29. The 2018 Pro B champion spread the ball around and played stable inside out ball. 38 year old German Marin Petric had the hot hand as he drilled home a three as did Vucica who also scored on a put back. Fekete scored on a steal and coast to coast sprint and ex Leverkusen forward CJ Oldham scored in the paint. Rohndorf was bolstered by two David Falkenstein buckets on transition and on the penetration. Vucica was a real force in the run as he sparked his team with his intensity and buckets as well as defense as he served up a block and his club did a good job closing down Riauka. The ScanPlus Baskets kept the momentum and would go into half-time with the comfortable 46-38 lead. Along the way they got added input from Petric who dropped another trey and ex MBC center Kristian Kuhn used his typical aggressiveness in the paint and finished with authority twice while Oldham scored on the lay in. Waller remained aggressive and showed his leadership qualities hitting two big buckets and Moeller also scored. “They did a good job slowing down Riauka. They are a smart veteran team that stick to their principles and don´t sway from it”, warned Kwam Waller. The ScanPlus Baskets shot 42% from the field and 33% from the three point line and had 27 rebounds and 7 turnovers while the Dragons Rhondorf shot 39% from the field and 8% from the three point line and had 19 rebounds and 5 turnovers.

In the third quarter the Dragons Rhondorf fought back and cut the guests lead down to one point, but after three quarters trailed by five points. The Dragons Rhondorf came out of the locker room reborn and right away stuck it to the ScanPlus Baskets heightening their intensity on the defensive end getting five stops and eight points to trail only 47-46. In the run the Dragons got a bucket form Moeller and Waller free throws while Riauka was back from his second quarter drought getting two baskets. It looked like the Dragons Rhondorf had ripped back the momentum, but then out of no where it was 208cm 108 kilo giant Edin Alispahic who drilled a dagger into the heart of the Dragons connecting on three consecutive trey´s. That the big man can shoot the three is no surprise as he came into the game shooting 35% on 7/20 shooting and when is open will take it. The ScanPlus Baskets led 58-51 and would extend their lead to 60-51 after Vucica made an alley-op tap in off the Fekete feed. Moeller and Butler then traded buckets as Rhondorf still trailed 63-53. The Dragons Rhondorf then finished the third quarter strong on a 5-0 run as Bo Meister connected on a catch and pop jumper and little used 18 year ex kronberg(Regionalliga) forward Noah Litzbach hit a trey as the ScanPlus Baskets led only 63-58. “We didn´t come out well in the third and they quickly took advantage of it”, stressed Dennis Mavin. “We didn´t want to come out flat and let them set the tone. We had more intensity, but just couldn´t maintain it. When we start to strive for it the better we will get at handling it”, warned Kwam Waller. The ScanPlus Baskets Shot 40% from the field and 33% from the parking lot and had 37 rebounds and 10 turnovers while the Dragons Rhondorf shot 36% from the field and 15% from the parking lot and had 37 rebounds and six turnovers.

In the fourth quarter the ScanPlus Baskets served up a quick 15-0 run deciding the game in the first few minutes. In the massive run the guests received six buckets in the paint from Butler(two baskets), Alispahic, Mavin, Petric and sweet Vucica alley op as the Dragons Rhondorf trailed 78-58. The Dragons Rhondorf seemed to have lost concentration and weren´t as fresh anymore as they had no resistance in their one on one defense. Petric remained on fire nailing two more trey´s extending the ScanPlus Baskets advantage to 84-62. “It is a blessing to have him on the team. He is a great player”, added Dennis Mavin. With the game decided and a few minutes to, both teams closed out the game executing well. Mavin drilled another trey and finished with 11 points, five rebounds and seven assists. In comparison to his explosive scoring last season where he averaged 18,0ppg in the Pro B with Giessen, he came into the game in Rhondorf averaging only 9,4ppg. His scoring isn´t a concern for him this season. “We have a great team and it´s not about me. For me it´s more important to do more for the team so that we can get better as a team and defend the title”, warned Dennis Mavin. In the last few minutes both teams emptied their benches as Rhondorf got support and points from NBBL player Marc Klesper and 34 year old little used Lotola Otshumbe and the ScanPkus Baskets gave 19 year old Jonas Sauer 6,55 minutes and he produced a bucket. “They are a young team and a bit tired at the end and we capitalized on it. We pushed the ball and got our momentum going again”, stressed Dennis Mavin. “They are a smart team and didn´t let the animal out of the cage. They kept the same focus and never panicked. That is what good teams do. They played the same way for 40 minutes and never allowed the close game to bother them”, stressed Kwam Waller. The ScanPlus Baskets were led by Marin Petric with 14 points. Edin Alispahic and Brian Butler added 12 points a piece and Dennis Mavin and Jere Vucica added 11 points apiece. The Dragons Rhondorf were led by Zygimantas Riauka with 15 ppoints and 22 rebounds. Kwan Waller produced 13 points and Alex Moeller 11 points. The ScanPlus Baskets shot 44% from the field and 35% from outside and had 52 rebounds and 15 turnovers while the Dragons Rhondorf shot 34% from the field and 19% from outside and got 43 rebounds and had 13 turnovers.

Since arriving in the BBL in 2001 the EWE Baskets Oldenburg have stood for excellence as they have only missed the playoffs three times and in the last 16 years only once in 2012 where they most likely had the most talented point guard in their history with Bobby Brown, but even with all that ability, it doesn´t always translate into the positive leadership that will bring the club success. Over the years the team has had many good point guards like Doron Perkins, Jason Gardner, Bobby Brown, Julius Jenkins, Dru Joyce, Chris Kramer, Caspar Ware, Chris Kramer and Mickey Mcconnell. The club has won two titles in their 18 years with the 2009 BBL title where ex Arizona(NCAA) standout Jason Gardner had the reigns and the 2015 BBL cup title where Chris Kramer was calling the shots from the back court. Of course in the last 11 years one of the big reasons why the EWE Baskets have been so competitive and successful has been because of the presence and leader ship of EWE Baskets lifer and Mr Oldenburg Rickey Paulding who has been with the club since 2007 and helped keep the club on the map since then. With Mcconnell having departed, the club had to keep up the good point guard tradition and made a real coup with American Will Cummings. One has to give EWE Baskets manager Herman Schuller a lot of credit for being ab le to convince the American to come to Oldenburg to a team that wasn´t going to play in a serious international cup. In a way going to the EWE Baskets Oldenburg was a step backwards for Cummings because two seasons ago he played Basketball Champions League and last season won the Euro Cup with Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul (Turkey-BSL). It would only have been logical to play for a top Euro Cup team or even better make the next step to the Euroleague. After being ousted early in cup action, the EWE Baskets Oldenburg only have one more chance to win a title wiht the BBL league and with top teams Munich and Berlin battling for the glory, it will be very tough for them again this season to win a title even with a Will Cummings. But then again the American is hungry to do more than just upkeep the EWE Baskets Oldenburg long tradition of good point guards.

Will Cummings is a 26 year old 188cm guard  from Jacksonville Florida that is playing in his fifth professional season and first in Germany with the EWE Baskets Oldenburg. After learning his early basketball steps at the Providence Christian School, the American headed north to Philadelphia and played at Temple(NCAA). As a freshman he averaged only 6,3 minutes per game averaging 1,4ppg per game and had top guards Khalif Wyatt and Ramone Moore in front of him. In his sophomore season he started 32 games and played 34 games averaging 5.8ppg, 2.2rpg, 1.9apg, 1.4spg, FGP: 43.2%, 3PT: 28.3%, FT: 68.5%. He scored in double figures six times including a 15 point effort against Rhode Island. His career really took off as a junior as he played 28 games averaging 16.9ppg, 3.5rpg, 4.6apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 50.8%, 3PT: 30.7%, FT: 77.8%. He was a Second Team Philadelphia Big 5 selection and exploded against UCF for 31 points. He saved his best for last as in his senior season he helped the team reach the NIT Final 4 playing 36 games averaging 14.8ppg, 4.1rpg, 4.2apg, 1.9spg, FGP: 46.4%, 3PT: 22.9%, FT: 80.8%. He finished his career scoring in double figures in 28 of 36 games and had amazing streak in his last 19 games doing it 18 times. His best scoring game was 30 in a 73-67 win against Bucknell. He also scored 23 and 21 points back to back in victories against Uconn and Memphis. He more than held his own against future NBA player Ryan Boatright and Rodney Purvis. “Those back to back wins get thought about a lot. They are high on my list because I thought those two wins secured us into the NCAA tournament but we were robbed. Also, beating UCONN was on senior night. Having my whole family there was memorable”, stressed Will Cummings. As a result of his strong senior season he was selected to the AAC All-Tournament Team. A guy who was always there for him on and off the court was Temple(NCAA) head coach Fran Dunphy. “Fran Dunphy was the best thing that happened to my basketball career. He groomed me into a man and the tough player that I am today. I thank him for that”, stressed Will Cummings.

Before turning professional in 2015 he played at the well known Portsmouth Invitational Tournament (Pre-NBA Draft) playing 3 games averaging  6.3ppg, 2.7rpg, 4.3apg, 2.3spg and then in July played NBA Pro Summer League in Las Vegas  with the Houston Rockets playing 4 games averaging 10.0ppg, 1.3rpg, 3.3apg, 1.8spg. After his promising showing at the NBA Summer League he was signed by the Houston Rockets only to be waived shortly before the start of the season after appearing in 6 pre-season games. “NBA training camp was definitely and eye opener and showed me this basketball is business so it made me a lot stronger and mentally tougher to deal with my new lifestyle”, added Will Cummings. He joined the Rio Grande Valley Vipers (D-League) playing 52 games averaging 20.5ppg, 3.6rpg, 4.7apg, 2.0spg, 2FGP: 53.7%, 3FGP: 37.7%, FT: 78.5%. He quickly showed that he had the ability to not only shine in the G-League, but to show his talent in the NBA, but never got the opportunity. “I definitely believe I deserved an NBA call up”, warned Will Cummings. With Rio Grande he scored in double figures in all 52 games showing an amazing consistency. He scored 20 points or more 31 times including a 32 point explosion against Austin, a 29 point explosion against Bakersfield and 28 points apiece against Los Angeles and Reno. After that first season in the G-league, he got his first taste of Europe playing briefly with Dolomiti Energia Trento (Italy-Serie A) playing 4 games averaging  9.5ppg, 2.3rpg, 1.3apg, 1.0spg. He was swept in the playoffs by top team Milan scoring 13, 6 and 7 points and remembers this experience as one that gave him his introduction to European basketball. “My wake up call was playing against Milan in the first round of the Italian playoffs. Jumping right into an important and high level situation for your first experience forces you to learn quickly”, stressed Will Cummings.

He came to Europe in the late summer of 2016, but before he did that he wanted another go at the NBA dream and played NBA Pro Summer League in Utah with the San Antonio Spurs playing 3 games averaging 6.0ppg, 3.7rpg, 2.0apg, 1.7spg and NBA Pro Summer League in Las Vegas with the San Antonio Spurs playing 4 games averaging  4.8ppg, 1.8rpg, 1.3spg. After giving the NBA clubs another dose of his talent, he decided to further his career with top Greek team  Aris Thessaloniki (Greece-A1) where he played 31 games leading the Greek league in scoring with 14.5ppg, 3.6rpg, 3.1apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 50.0%, 3PT: 36.2%, FT: 77.6%, and he also played very well in the BCL playing 18 games averaging 15.2ppg, 3.8rpg, 3.4apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 47.3%, 3PT: 30.4%, FT: 77.5%. One had to wonder how the American came to terms with the tough Greek names at the start, but he quickly came up with a way to communicate with ease. “The names weren´t that difficult to pronounce but I developed nicknames for all of them to eliminate me having to pronounce them”, added Will Cummings. He needed no adjustment period to the tough Greek league learning the european style rapidly. “As a point guard I believe the biggest adjustment is learning the defenses that are being played in Europe. I played in the D league for a full season so you get accustomed to the amount of space on the court. In Europe everything is more compact so you have to find ways to still be affective with less space”, commented Will Cummings. His secret to playing so smoothly and consistently in his first full year in Europe had to do with his mentality. “ I just try to be affective and make plays in each game to help my team win”, warned Will Cummings. He scored in double figures in 26 of 31 Greek league games including a 27 point game against Koroivos and 25 points against Lavrio. He played five times against top Euroleague team Olympiakos and got swept in the playoffs, but held his own in each game giving his valuable two cents scoring in double figures in each game. Ex BBL player and European vet Michael Jenkins who was close to making the NBA a few years ago took Cummings under his wing helping him with the adjustment time. “Mike helped me a lot getting adjusted to life in Europe. Showing me the in and outs of just living on your own for a long period of time out of America”, added Will Cummings. In the BCL he scored in double figures in 17 of 18 games including 21 point games against Strassburg, Asvel and Nymburk.

Last season the American who lists Allen Iverson and Chris Paul as his biggest role models growing up and has mixes of both player´s games in his, but stresses he has his own identity made the next jump in his career to Eurocup team Darussafaka Dogus Istanbul (Turkey-BSL) playing 30 BSL games averaging 8.7ppg, 1.5rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 39.1%, 3PT: 33.8%, FT: 75.3%, and played 22 Eurocup games averaging 9.0ppg, 1.8rpg, 2.1apg, FGP: 54.0%, 3PT: 17.8%, FT: 83.7%. He credits ex Greek national team teammate Vasilis Xanthopoulos for helping him making the next step to Turkey. “Going against Xanthopolous in practice helped me because he has such a great feel for the game. He makes you figure out ways to try and out smart him”, warned Will Cummings. Last season wasn´t an easy one as he had dominant scorer ex Florida(NCAA) stand out Scottie Wilbekin parked in front of him as his minutes were shaved down drastically from the season before. In Greece he averaged 25 minutes in the Greek League and 26 minutes in the BCL while in the Turkish BSL and Eurocup it was only 17 minutes. But despite having less minutes, the season brought him the second biggest international title in Europe with the Eurocup. He saved his best for last scoring 19 and 10 points in the final against Lokomotiv Kuban. Eurocup MVP Scottie Wilbekin remembers his time with Cummings last season fondly. “In practice we have made each other better. I already knew Will when he came. We had been teammates back when we were kids in AAU. It was fun to be able to play with him again”, added Scottie Wilbekin.

This season Cummings has that more main role again that he had two seasons ago in Greece with the EWE Baskets Oldenburg. Even though he is on a team that is filled with scoring power with the likes of Mr Oldenburg Rickey Paulding, Austrian national player Rasid Mahalbasic, Franz Massennat and Nathan Boothe, the American has set himself a part from them and been that scoring leader averaging 23,5ppg. This season the club opted not to play in a lower international cup competition with the Fiba Europe Cup and so he has at most one game per week and can focus extra well on his game and on his team. The EWE Baskets Oldenburg had an amazing playoff run two seasons ago beating Bayreuth and upsetting ratiopharm Ulm before succumbing to the last Bamberg title in the Trinchieri era. So why couldn´t another run happen this season with legend Paulding not getting any younger?  The American is still young at age 26 and still not in his prime and one can be sure that he will not only focus extra hard this season to help lead his team to wins as he showed  in the first two games with the blow out against Braunschweig and then the slugfest against ratiopharm Ulm, but also be very concerned about continuing to develop his game for another chance over the pond. “I don’t believe anything is really missing from my game to be in the NBA. I would like to be a more consistent pull up shooter but opportunity just has to be given”, warned Will Cummings. The EWE Baskets fans will have a lot of joy with the American as he will belong to the top five point guards this season in the BBL and be looking to hook on to his offensive consistency of two years ago in Greece along with upholding that fine EWE Baskets point guard tradition with success. Jacksonville Florida where he comes from has bred mostly NFL talent, but the 880,000 city did bred some NBA legends like Otis Smith and Dee Brown and when asked what he would like to know from Brown if he had dinner, the American knew exactly what he would ask him. “I would want to know most about his workout habits and what he did to take himself to another level”, added Will Cummings. He may not find any NBA players in Oldenburg, but with easyCredit BBL identity figure Rickey Paulding he could have the perfect dinner partner this season. After a dinner or two with Paulding and soaking up extra knowledge about basketball and life, he may not even have to go home to Jacksonville and need the Brown advice anymore.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I´m probably one of the only basketball journalists in Europe and for that matter anywhere on earth that doesn´t really know what a post game press conference room looks like. Going to a place where you have to glare at two totally drained 50 plus head coaches who looked like they have just been forced to run a marathon without getting water in between has never been my cup of tea. Plus what you later read in the papers or online is usually the same post game quotes that are scattered in all articles. Instead I prefer to meet high class players from the opponent´s team that I have only watched play and read about and continue to nurse my special relationships that I have with the home team players. After the big 95-78 Eurocup win against Montenegran team KK Mornar Bar which put the Fraport Skyliners to 3-1 in Eurocup action, I as usual hounded the players on and off the court for interesting post game quotes, but this was a night where I would have liked to have been at the post game press conference. In the 90´s and even only 10 years ago, this press conference would have been one that one could only have heard about via chatter and the press articles, but in 2018 thank God for You Tube. I heard about the heated press conference a few hours after I had returned home and was able to view it again. OK so the post game press conference with coaches Gordon Herbert and Mihailo Pavicevic didn´t have the glitz and comical passages that Allen Iverson did when he gave the word practice a special new meaning, but it showed a side of head coach Gordon Herbert that one only sees when he is really mad. One could of suspected something was brewing in the mind of Pavicevic who is a five time Finish league champion and coached Herbert´s ex team Honka Playboys  when he congratulated the Fraport Skyliners a few times instead of the usual one time. Pavicevic then went on to criticize the Fraport Skyliners organization for not being good hosts explaining his disappointment in not having been able to practice in the Fraport arena and having been put in a hotel 31 kilometers away from the arena. Without knowing the real details of why they were put in a hotel half way to German Siberia, Gordon Herbert was quickly to shoot back that his team hadn´t been able to practice in the Fraport arena for almost three weeks on account of activities being held there that didn´t allow court time. In a way both teams were handicapped in not having had had a feel of the court, but Pavicevic´s rude attack on the Skyliners organization was uncalled for.  “I heard that our manager had told them before that they couldn´t use our gym to practice. We weren´t able to use it either. Both teams used it for the first time in shoot around right before the game. I know that the Skyliners didn´t intentionally have this done. I also know they wouldn´t treat the opponent bad. I hope that this whole thing will be resolved. Whatever happens when we return there to play them, we will act in a professional way and work hard to get the win”, warned Fraport Skyliner Jason Clark. Mihailovic threatened the Fraport Skyliners in the press conference that they will get the same service in Bar when they arrive for the return game. It will be interesting to see if the Fraport Skyliners suddenly find out after their bus ride to their hotel is actually in Shkodra Albania when they are asked for their passports at the boarder because it is about a 48 kilometer drive from Bar. “If something like that does happen and we found ourselves in Albania that would just be a bigger motivation to go out and win on their home court”, joked ex Georgetown guard Jason Clark. After the latest experience with KK Mornar Bar, the Fraport Skyliners will surely make their own hotel reservasions in Bar so they don´t end up somehwere else where they don´t necessarily want to be.

Whenever Fraport Skyliner teams under Gordon Herbert have had poor games, they mostly return and give a positive answer and did whipping the butts of KK Mornar Bar 95-78. Head coach Gordon Herbert was very disappointed after the bad loss against BG Goettingen last weekend saying it was one of those games where you want to give up coaching. Despite the bad loss the Fraport Skyliners found a good answer and struck the Montenegran team hard with 63 points in the first half. “We didn´t necessarily feel pressure going into this game. We knew that we hadn´t played well and needed a good reaction. We knew that if we showed effort and played hard that that would take care of itself and we would be successful. The biggest thing for us is just coming out and playing hard”, warned Jason Clark. That first half was a scoring fest not seen so often at any level in Europe where defense is still something that is played unlike over the pond. KK Mornar Bar forget what defense was on this night and one could see quickly that as Frankfurt poured in the points more and more in that first quarter the more they knew that it would be a long long night and the more they wanted to have the game end as soon as possible. “Scoring 63 points was a whole lot. I don´t know if I had ever experienced that many points before in one half. I just hope that we have many more games like that on offense and defense”, smiled Jason Clark. One thing that really stood out in the game was the refreshing way the club played offense and how nicely the ball was being moved around. There were some instances where the ball movement reminded one a bit of the stellar 2015-2016 season where the club won the Fiba Europe Cup. Back then guys like Jordan Theodore, Aaron Doornekamp, the German twin towers of Johannes Voigtmann and Danilo Barthel now both Euroleague players and Philip Scrubb practiced the beautiful ball movement with a passion and might even have got a brief smile from Spurs coach Gregg Popovic had he been in the arena who has attempted to bring the European flair to the NBA in recent years. “I wouldn´t know what to call our brand, but I think that we showed our identity against Mornar Bar something that we have showed only in spurts this season. Our indentity is too play basketball that is tough, relentless and where we show togetherness. We want to bring this on a more consistent basis. We continue to work on that”, said Jason Clark.

The Fraport Skyliners let up a bit in the second half on the offensive end scoring only 35 points, but can you call it a let up, because scoring 63 points in one half doesn´t happen every day unless you’re the Golden State Warriors. Scoring 35 points is ok, but not great, but will still get you wins when your defense is working well. Even if the offense wasn´t totally consistent for 40 minutes, it wasn´t in any means weak. “When looking back at the second half, I don´t feel like we needed to correct anything. We were still getting good looks and shots off, but they just weren´t falling as regularly like in the first half. They changed their defense and switched up a lot between zone and man. Important is when you are struggling on offense, you need to continue to play together. Playing together and trying to stay consistent is key”, added Jason Clark. What really functioned well for 40 minutes was their defense. They played aggressive from the get go with a lot of intensity and hounded their guards well early in their sets totally disrupting their plays. The communication and switching was spot on again something that was totally lacking against BG Goettingen. Even if their Americans Carrington and Waller combined for 22 points, 70% of those shots at least were contested and one could only tip your cap to their individual effort. “It was a big challenge to stay consistent on defense. You will always have ups and downs in games. The important thing is that you remain consistent on defense. Even if you have an off night shooting, you should never let your offense dictate your defense”, warned Jason Clark. After the big win, Clark lauded the games of Brady Heslip and Richard Freudenberg and the day after lauded the games of Trae Bell-Haynes and Jonas Wolfarth-Botterman. Bell Haynes continues to play solid at the point guard position finding his spots well and even displaying a knack for making the trey. He finished with 11 points on 6/9 shooting including a three and dished out three dimes.  Of course he sill makes rookie mistakes, but what really has stood out is his efficiency at executing at the rim. “He does a great job getting into the lane. He does a great job for a rookie being patient in the lane and not rushing. Once there he knows how to finish or get the ball to a teammate. I feel his finishing skills are really overlooked”, warned Jason Clark. Jonas Wolfarth Bottermann had another great game finishing with 16 points and six boards and three blocks. He continues to be a beast at both ends of the court. He had already struck hard in the first few minutes of the game making Frankfurt´s first three baskets. His teammate Clark doesn´t doubt that the German big man can be a consistent player in the BBL. “He is very good on the offensive and defensive rebound. He has nice size and a nice hook shot. I think that he could be a dominant big man in the BBL”, warned Jason Clark.

Jason Clark has been up and down this season on the offensive end, but currently is shooting at 44% from outside in the BBL while averaging 9,7ppg, 2,7rpg and 1,3apg. In the Eurocup he is shooting only 37% from the parking lot, but averaging 11,8ppg, 3,5rpg and 4,3apg. He had another solid game in the Eurocup against Mornar Bar finishing with 13 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals and was perfect from downtown at 2/2. His teammate German Richard Freudenberg has also found his offensive game again and stressed he has let his energy, defense and rebounding spark his offense. Clark shares some of Freudenberg´s recipes for success. “I will continue to get into the game with my defensive intensity. Some guys like to get into the game with their offense which takes a bit longer for some guys. For me at the moment is too do it through my defense which allows my offense to flow better”, warned Jason Clark. The American can do it again this weekend when Frankfurt faces the 3-0 EWE Baskets Oldenburg. They have had interesting games so far in the BBL destroying Braunschweig, winning a shoot out against ratiopharm ulm and then surprisingly whipping struggling MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg. They are currently second in points made with 96 and sixth at 82 points allowed. They boast a stellar roster with BBL legend Rickey Paulding, top point guard Will Cummings, versatile big man Rashid Mahalbasic and a core of nice role players with Nate Booth, Franz Massenat and Philip Schwethelm. Clark knows what will be the key to leaving Oldenburg with a happy bus ride home. “Defense will get us the win. If we can bring the defense we had in the first half against Mornar Bar then we will be in good shape. We need to play good defense and play together for 40 minutes”, stressed Jason Clark. The American is looking forward to battling Oldenburg lifer Rickey Paulding. “I know his game and have seen him play. He is similar to Tez in being a big figure in the BBL. It is always fun to go against guys like that”, added Jason Clark. The Oldenburg game will also be an added good opportunity for the American to improve his ranking with the coaching staff in that he can contain top point guard Will Cummings who is currently tearing up the BBL averaging 21,0ppf,2,7rpg and 5,7apg. But Clark has his game face on and won´t let any player in any league get in his head. “I look forward to every battle with every team and every player. I approach each game and each player I battle the same way. I want to come in with defensive intensity and let my offense flow naturally”, warned Jason Clark. One thing is for sure, Clark has the right mind set and has it down. Now all he needs to do is bring his game on a consistent basis which as the point guard will help the Fraport Skyliners to be that consistent team that they want to be at both ends of the court.

Mitchell Wilbekin is a 23 year old 188cm point guard form Gainesville Florida playing his rookie season with Sakarya Buyuksehir Basketbol (Turkey-BSL). He reached Europe after a stellar four year career at Wake Forest from 2014-2018 where he played 119 NCAA games. In his senior season he played 27 games averaging 8.6ppg, 2.3rpg, 1.4apg, FGP: 33.8%, 3PT: 42.5%, FT: 81.0%. Seven months ago germanhoops.com  had the pleasure of talking to Scottie Wilbekin after he dropped 41 points on FC Bayern Munich in a Eurocup game and now it was time for a chat with his brother Mitchell. He spoke to germanhoops.com before the Fiba Europe Cup game against s.Oliver Wurzburg

Mitchell thanks for talking to germanhoops.com. Welcome to Germany. Is this your first time in Germany? What has been your impression of it?

This is my first time in Germany. It’s a cool country. It’s always nice to see different parts of the country.

What do you know about the country Germany and it’s basketball?

Well the first thought is Dirk Nowitzki. He has been a big part of German basketball in the last 20 years. Also I have heard that Germany has good teams and talent

7 months ago your brother Scottie set a Euro Cup record scoring 41 points in a win in Munich. Do you remember hearing your brother’s version of the feat last summer?

Yeh I did talk to him a bit about that game. He felt like he was in the zone that night and that he couldn’t miss anything.

Your playing your rookie season with Sakarya Buyuksehir Basketbol (Turkey-BSL). What has been your early experiences with the Turkish culture and the basketball?

It’s been great and a real learning experience. It’s my first year and I’m just trying to soak in as much as possible. I have a great coach. My goal is work as hard as possible each day and learn as much as possible each day to get better. Unfortunally I haven’t played as much as I would have liked. You can tell that the fans really love basketball in Turkey. 

How beneficial has it been having ex NBA player Toney Douglas on board. Has he been like a mentor for you in the early going?

It has been very beneficial being his teammate. He is a veteran that played in the NBA. He has helped me slow down the game, be patient and not rush anything. He has helped me see the game in a different way.

There two other rookies on the team with Alan Herndon and Junior Etou. Has their existence made the adjustment period a little easier for you knowing there are other guys around in the same boat as you?

Yes the adjustment period has been easier with them around. They have been great teammates. We go through the same things as rookies and help each other adjust. We hang out a lot. The experience has been cool.

You have gotten sparse minutes so far. How tough have the first few months been for you?

 

For sure it has been tough for me. Like I said before I just try to learn as much as possible and just try to do as much as possible in the minutes I get to help my team win.

How confident are you that you will begin to see more minutes in the future?

I’m confident I will get more minute, but it is not me to decide. I just will continue to work hard in practice and do the best I can in games. I have to be always ready when my name is called.

Let’s talk about your game. You’re a 188cm shooting guard that is an exceptional shooter. If you had to compare your game to an NBA player who would best fit the description.

 

Lebron James. No just kidding. I never have thought about it and can’t answer the question. I’m a guard that can shoot, get my team involved and run my team.

At Wake Forest you were known for the long ball, taking good care of the ball and just being efficient. What other strengths does your game encompass?

I’m a player that can get my team involved, can penetrate off the ball screen, shoot and make the right plays.

You’re a player that can do a lot on the court well, but what do you feel is a hidden strength in your game that doesn’t always get noticed right away?

I think that I’m a solid defender with bigger guards. But I want to get better when they switch and a bigger guard is on me. I want to get bigger so playing against bigger guards will be easier. 

You also have been known as being a very good teammate. After starting every game as a freshman and sophomore, you had to come from the bench as a junior. Was there anybody besides your parents that helped shape your character development growing UP

It was mostly my parents. They did a good job with me and my brothers. They were a bit strict with me, but they molded me into the man that I am today. I am very thankful for all my parents have done for me. My brother Scottie also has been great. I can always talk with him and can always ask him questions about basketball or life

Has it been difficult growing up in the shadow of your brother Scottie Wilbekin? How is your relationship as is he the perfect big brother that you always wanted to have?

To be honest it hasn’t been difficult. It hasn’t been difficult being the brother of my younger brother, being the son of my dad or mother. We love each other and he has helped me so much in my life.

What do you appreciate most from your brother’s game and has his guidance over the years helped your game get better?

I appreciate the most having been able to play with him while growing up. At the beginning he was always stronger and older. I had to work extra hard and he always gave me pointers along the way helping my game. We don’t always talk about basketball, but talk about life in general. He has always been there for me as my big brother and it is a lot of the little things that he helps me with. He been through so much. So anything that I can bounce off of him is a big help for me. 

You played at Wake Forest from 2014-2018. Was reaching the NCAA tournament in 2017 your fondest memory and playing Kansas State?

Yes it was. Getting to the NCAA is what we all play for. I was fortunate to get there my junior year. I would like to have gotten farther and won a few more games, but It was a great experience that many players don’t get.

You were a very consistent player in your Wake Forest career averaging around 7,0ppg through the four years .Didn’t ever bother you that stats didn’t rise each year like it does for other guys?

No it didn’t bother me.

Was the 88-81 win against Louisville where you netted 11 points and hit a late three to secure the NCAA tournament one of your favorite personal moments?

Yes that was a great memory. That was a big game that we needed to win. Also playing in the NCAA tournament and getting a third place at the Maui invitational in Hawaii were nice memories. 

How did head coach Danny Manning groom and prepare you best for a professional basketball career?

All coaches helped me. Most of them played professional so they ran the program in a professional way. There was constant preparation for life after. They demanded a lot and made us ready. 

Who wins a one on one on one in practice you or your brother Scottie Willbekin?

What do you want me to say? I will always take myself and I hope my brother would do the same. 

Who was the toughest player that you battled in the NCAA that is in the NBA now?

Grayson Allen was always tough, but the toughest would be Dennis Smith Jr. He was so athletic and the guy at North Carolina State. He was the main part of their offense. 

If you had to construct your very own NBA Rushmore which 4 heads would you pick?

Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Magic Johnson, Bill Russell

What is your personal opinion of the never-ending debate of who is the greatest of all-time Jordan or Lebron?

Lebron James period. 

What was the last movie that you saw?

Venom.

Thanks Mitchell for the chat.

is a 203cm forward from Voorhees, New Jersey starting his professional basketball career in Germany with the Uni Baskets Paderborn. He began his basketball career at Eastern High School and then played at Lafayette (NCAA) from 2014-2018 playing a total of 121 NCAA games and as a freshman played 32 games averaging 3.1ppg, 1.8rpg. In his second season at Lafayette (NCAA) he played 29 games averaging 13.3ppg, 4.6rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 49.7%, 3PT: 50.0%, FT: 77.3%. In his junior season at Lafayette (NCAA) he played 29 games averaging 15.4ppg, 5.8rpg, 1.2apg, FGP: 50.3%, FT: 78.6%. In his senior season at Lafayette (NCAA) he played 31 games averaging 16.5ppg, 5.8rpg, 1.5apg, FGP: 54.3%, 3PT: 42.9%, FT: 81.4%. Currently this season he is averaging 13,6ppg, 3,6rpg and 1,0apg. He spoke to germanhoops.com  about basketball earlier in the summer.

Matt thanks for talking to germanhoops.com. Where are you at the moment and how was your summer?

I am currently in Paderborn Germany getting aquainted with the city before practice starts. My summer was very good. I worked out a lot, as well as volunteered at a hospital near my home in New Jersey.

Congrats on signing with the Uni Baskets. Have you already made a mark on the calendar to meet your ex teammate Seth Hinrichs who plays with Vechta that is only 164 kilometers from city to city.

I have talked with Seth and he was happy to hear that I had signed with a German team. Unfortunatly Vechta moved up to the BBL so I do not think we play them? But we have discussed meeting up at some point.

How did you experience your first summer transfer period as an ongoing professional player? You had quite a number of offers from teams. Was there anything that surprised you about the whole process?

The experience of becoming a Professional basketball player over the 1st summer was exciting not knowing what to expect. I trusted my agent and did my job by continuing to perfect my game.

What were the main reasons for signing with the Uni Baskets Paderborn? What kind of impression did you get of head coach Uli Naechster in your talks?

The connection I made with Coach Uli was important for me and they provided me with everything I wanted. Coach Uli knows the game of basketball and wants what is best for you. I am excited to learn from him

After being a main scoring threat at Lafayette (NCAA) you now embark on your professional career where you will have other talented Americans as well as Germans. What kind of goals do you have for your game this season?

I want to continue to get better and to become a dominant player in this league. I want to help my team win games most importantly.

Let’s talk about your game. You have a nice inside/out game, but after taking 119 three’s as a senior compared to only 4 three’s in your first three season’s would you consider yourself a modern forward?

 

I believe I am a modern forward. My Three point shot demonstrates my will to work on my game and I want to continue to do that. I think the game today has a lot more 3 point shooters and I have adjusted to it. I can’t be as physical as I want to be so I am shooting more 3s.

You have a great midrange shot, an impressive array of moves inside and developed a three as a senior. If you had to compare your game to an NBA player who would best fit your style on the court?

I would compare my game to The Gasol brothers.

You have a diverse array of many moves and are excellent at converting in traffic. What are you aiming to adding to your inside game that will continue to make you successful at the pro level?

I just worked at the shot getting as many reps as possible. Fenerty gave me the confidence in my shot. He told me I had the midrange shot down. It was only 1-2 steps back to shoot the 3.

You’re a guy that can fill the stat sheet at ease, but what do you feel is a hidden strength in your game that doesn’t always get noticed right away on the court?

I think that I am a good weak side defender able to take charges and block shots or cause the offender to change their shot

You played at Lafayette from 2014-2018 and have stated that winning the Patriot League title as a freshman was your biggest feat. What memories do you have of the run?

I remember playing in the championship game and learning a lot from the players in front of me like Seth and Dan Trist. I also remember playing in the NCAA tournament against Villanova

What memories do you have of Seth Hinrichs from your freshman year. When looking back at your last three years, what tips from him do you feel rubbed off on you and helped your game mature?

I learned a lot from Seth. He showed me how to be a good leader and how to create a winning team culture. He also showed me how hard you need to work to be successful at the college level. I definitely tried to compare my game senior year to his game as a stretch player.

You had many great games at Lafayette, but where do you rank your 30 point game in the exciting 74-72 win against St Francis?

I remember that game pretty clearly as it was my 1st break out game of my career. I remember how much of a team win it was for Lafayette.

How did head coach Fran O’Hanlon groom and prepare you best for a professional career at Lafayette (NCAA)

Coach O has helped me greatly. He helped me develop my game and pushed me to be the best player I could be. He also mentored me through my decision this past summer and I owe him a lot of credit for giving me a shot to play Division 1 basketball.

Who won a one on one in practice you or Paulius Zalys?

We both won games. He is a very good player and one that is very unique. I believe he will have a great senior year at Lafayette

You played against so many great players at the NCAA level, but which player was your toughest opponent that is in the NBA now?

The best player I have played against I would say was Jalen Brunson

How did your 2018 summer work out plan look like? On what things will you be working on most so you will be fully prepared for your rookie season?

Getting stronger and being in better condition will be key for me along with being able to handle the ball. I also have been working on my jump shot to extend my range

If you had to construct your very own NBA Rushmore which 4 heads would you pick old or new?

 

Lebron, MJ, Magic, Bill Russell

What is your personal opinion of the never ending debate about who is better Lebron or Jordan?

Lebron is better. Period

Tracy Mcgrady said that the Boston Celtics will be the Golden State Warriors of the future. Do you see that happening?

No I don’t see that happening.

Deandre Ayton was the #1 NBA draft pick in 2018. Do you feel that from sheer talent and experience that Luca Doncic should have been the real #1 draft pick?

I havent really followed doncic closey enough to tell. I think he will be a great player though.

Lebron James makes amazing passes in every game, but really showcased it in a game this season against the Los Angeles Lakers. He already is like a point guard, but if he played just point guard and concentrated only on playmaking how many assists do you feel would he average per game?

13 a game

What was the last movie that you saw?

The last movie I saw was Uncle Drew.

Thanks Matt for the chat.

Seeing basketball legends in the Fraport arena isn´t something too rare as every now and then one will find it´s way into the arena like in the past having a Henrik Rodl who won the 1993 NCAA title with North Carolina and is coach of the current German national team and was in the arena again, but at the moment it seems like legends and future legends are on the influx as only a few weeks ago it was ex NBA coach Larry Brown who experienced a narrow Euro Cup loss to Frankfurt and in a few weeks fans will see Telekom Baskets Bonn high flying guard Rashad James who is a good bet to winning the 2019 easyCredit BBL slam Dunk contest as his dunks could propel him to early legendary BBL status and yesterday it was Michael Stockton who played once again in the Fraport arena as he has done in the past with Ludwigsburg and BG Goettingen. He isn´t a legend yet, but his name is as his dad was one of the best NBA point guards in the 90´s and gave up sacks full of dimes to the mail man Karl Malone. “My dad was recently here and saw me play in Goettingen and saw my brother David play in Bayreuth in a BCL game. He is back in the states now”, smiled Michael Stockton.  Putting legends aside there was a basketball game to be played as fans saw two hot teams with the Fraport Skyliners who entered the game with a two game winning streak having won an ugly contest in Vechta last weekend and a few days ago got by Euro Cup team Rytas Vilnius as the point guard duo of Jason Clark and Trae Bell-Haynes combined for 25 points in the win. BG Goettingen entered the game with a 2-1 record and two game winning streak having blown out MBC by 42 points and won a nail bitter over Wurzburg 91-87. After 40 minutes one came to the conclusion quickly that Frankfurt had been unable to let their big victory in Lithuania spark them in the BBL as they stunk up the house losing 72-64. Gordon Herbert wasn´t kidding after the bitter loss that this game had been one of worst he had ever been in and it was one of those games where you stop coaching. The stats said it all. The 2004 BBL champion shot 19/65 for 29%, had 14 more shot attempts than the opponent and grabbed 17 offensive rebounds which resulted in a measly 64 points only. Despite the terrible loss, the small kids will always love their basketball hero´s and after Canadian rookie Trae Bell-Haynes had writtenenough  autographs and posed for photos, he tried to dissect the mess on the court especially the unbelievable misfortune of not executing on second chances. “We didn´t guard the three point line well giving up 8 in the first half which is way too much. We had a good start and played well at the end of the third and most of the fourth, but they hit three three´s at the end which deflated us. It was very demoralizing getting so many offensive rebounds and open looks and hot having any go in. We worked hard, but missed so many shots. It was just one of those days where nothing went in”, stressed Fraport Skyliner rookie Trae Bell-Haynes. After the big win, Michael Stockton was beaming all over and talked history. “This was a huge win for the team and program. I don´t think that we have won here in a long time. I won only one other time with Ludwigsburg in OT a long time ago. Frankfurt is a very tough team to play that always play hard. When their streak ended with holding us to three points in the fourth quarter, we made big three´s and they didn´t. We had more luck”, stated BG Goettingen guard Michael Stockton.

 

4,120 fans came on a beautiful autumn afternoon to observe good basketball and saw the Fraport Skyliners jump out all over 2010 Eurochallenge winner BG Goettingen 11-4. In the first two possessions, Frankfurt showed so problems capitalizing on offensive rebounds as they scored a three from ex Alba Berlin guard Akeem Vargas after Shawn Huff secured the rebound and Bell-Haynes scored in the paint after Skyliner lifer Quantez Robertson had grabbed the rebound. Frankfurt did a good job getting to the free throw line as ex Berlin player Jonas Wolfarth-Bottermann and Vargas hit free throws and Huff scored on transition. Frankfurt played very good defense holding BG Goettingen too to much isolation plays. BG Goettingen then went on a lightening 10-0 run as suddenly they got their three point game going as ex Oldenburg forward Dennis Kramer dropped a trey as did ex BC Partizan NiS Beograd forward Mihajlo Andric. BG Goettingen also got easy buckets inside from Stockton and ex Gonzaga(NCAA) guard Mathis Monninghof who sneaked inside back door getting the perfect pass from Kramer. Frankfurt did a good job keeping BG Goettingen top scorer Penvaris Williams under wraps, but suddenly couldn´t hit the ocean. Canadian Brady Heslip came from the bench and drilled home an open trey, but that was quickly answered by Monninghof with a trey and ex Oldenburg guard Dominic Lockhart also scored as the guests led 19-14 after 10 minutes. “Frankfurt started off very well, but then suddenly lost rhythm. As soon as Goettingen played more closer to the man they became problems. Not being able to score after the offensive rebounds hurt them mentally. They tried to regroup, but couldn´t”, stressed ex Lich guard Jermale Jones. BG Goettingen shot 53% from the field and 60% from outside and had 10 rebounds and four turnovers while the Fraport Skyliners shot 24% from the field and 20% from outside and had 10 rebounds and two turnovers.

After both teams couldn´t hit the ocean in the first four minutes, BG Goettingen then settled down and took command of the game to lead by 10 points at the break. Frankfurt had done a fine job in the first quarter getting transition buckets and continued in the second as Huff scored to cut the BG Goettingen advantage to 19-16. Then bricks started to fall left and right until Williams and ex Chicago Bull Erik Murphy hit back to back trey´s putting the fans out of their misery. BG Goettingen then started to connect on their three´s as Haukohl, Williams and Andrich connected while Heslip was left open again and penalized the guests with a trey as you really can´t leave him alone, but BG Goettingen led 31-23. In that 9-3 run of BG Goettingen, fans saw a beautiful play by 208cm big man Jonas Wolfarth-Bottermann who sprinted back on transition defense like a guard and made the spectacular steal. “These guys will do anything to win and they will go the extra mile and do the dirty work. He made a great play, ran then floor and made the nice steal”, added Jermale Jones. Williams hit another trey the third in the second quarter and he showed such calmness and such a good eye for the game. Ex  Wichita State (NCAA) forward Darius Carter made a nice offensive rebound and put back and did exactly that which Frankfurt couldn´t do all day long and he made it look so easy. After a Kramer lay in, Bell Haynes made a buzzer beater lay in as BG Goettingen led comfortably 38-28. “In the first minutes both teams were giving their all and being scrappy but just couldn´t score. Goettingen made many three´s mainly because Frankfurt help so much that there was always someone open and they took advantage of it”, stressed Jermale Jones. BG Goettingen shot 54% from the field and 62% from the three point line and had 20 rebounds and 10 turnovers while the Fraport Skyliners shot 25% from the field and 24% from the three point line and had 17 rebounds and five turnovers.

BG Goettingen continued to keep the comfortable lead in the third quarter while the Fraport Skyliners continued to be inconsistent on offense and defense disallowing them to get over the hump. Frankfurt did play better offense, but their defense execution was poor. Bell Haynes remained aggressive and used his biggest strength getting to the hole and scoring which he did twice to cut the BG Goettingen lead to 40-33. The Bell-Haynes pressure didn´t faze BG Goettingen as they went on a 8-2 run to extend their lead to 48-35. In the run they got good support again from Serb Andric with a lay in and trey while Stockton used his quickness to score with ease. Frankfurt continued to have no execution luck after diving for loose balls and muscling down offensive rebounds while BG Goettingen preferred to live and die by the three. Robertson and Murphy drilled home two tough trey´s as did Haukohl, but BG Goettingen had the comfortable lead 51-41. After his solid game in Lithuania four days earlier in Eurocup action, American Jason Clark had a tough game against BG Goettingen, but at the end of the third found some daylight scoring five points on a lay up and trey heightening his self confidence, but BG Goettingen still led 57-46. “We did a better job rebounding and got a few more stops and made big three´s”, stated Michael Stockton. “Our missed shots set a toll on us and we didn´t see much light at the end of the tunnel”, stressed Trae Bell-Haynes. BG Goettingen shot 51% from the field and 59% from the parking lot and got 26 rebounds and had 13 turnovers while the Fraport Skyliners shot 28% from the field and 27% from the parking lot and got 28 rebounds and had 8 turnovers.

The Fraport Skyliners found back to their game in the first 8 minutes of the fourth quarter allowing BG Goettingen to only three points, but couldn´t get over the hump after cutting the guests lead to only two points. The Fraport Skyliners came in the fourth quarter motivated and upped their intensity and got to work quickly as Vargas went coast to coast with a tough lay in cutting the BG Goettingen lead to 57-48. Frankfurt got their offense into rhythm as Huff and Robertson blasted home two trey´s cutting the BG Goettingen lead to only to 58-54. BG Goettingen´s offense at this point wasn´t as fluid and felt Frankfurt huffing down their backs. BG Goettingen got a rare field goal as Williams scored displaying a great knack for picking his spot and dropping a pretty 15 footer to extend BG Goettingen´s lead to 60-54. Frankfurt kept scrapping away getting Huff free throw´s and then the Finish national player then executed on a thunderous two handed dunk on the break after getting dished a shovel pass from Vargas as Frankfurt suddenly trailed only 60-58. “Frankfurt defended well getting us out of rhythm and forcing us to isolation plays”, added Michael Stockton. “This was the best part of the game where we executed our game plan. We defended the three point line and forced them to isolation. We rebounded better and got big shots from Huff and Tez”, stressed Trae Bell-Haynes. Now it was only fitting for the happy end for the Fraport Skyliners, but instead BG Goettingen stepped it up big time playing the spoiler. Basketball can be so simple at times and BG Goettingen made it look easy nailing three big times trey´s from Monninghof, Stockton and Haukohl extending the BG Goettingen lead to 69-62 and they would never look back again. Bell Haynes hit a lay in late, but Andric made a free throw sealing the win. “We got good looks at the end and finally played Gottingen basketball which is moving the ball well and whoever is open shoots. We were able to play our brand of basketball finding the open man”, stressed Michael Stockton. “That is how the game goes sometimes. They hit tough shots at the end. We have to tip our hats to them”, stressed Trae Bell-Haynes. BG Goettingen was led by Mihajlo Andric with 16 points. Pendarvis Williams added 13 points and Michael Stockton had 12 points and nine assists. The Fraport Skyliners were led by Shawn Huff with 14 points. Akeem Vargas and Trae Bell-Haynes added 10 points a piece. BG Goettingen shot 47% from the field and 54% from outside and had 38 rebounds and coughed up the ball 18 times while the Fraport Skyliners shot 29% from the field and 28% from outside and got 37 rebounds and coughed up the ball 9 times.

 

When looking at the current Pro B standings this weekend one saw four teams that had a record of 4-0. Teams that have got out of the gate early with perfect records are north team Iserlohn and in the south it was three teams with the Bayer Giants Leverkusen, Schwenningen and the Fraport Skyliners Juniors. The biggest surprise in that group was the Fraport Skyliners Juniors because since 2009 when they were born they had never began with a better record than 1-1 until this season. A big handicap each season is having all their players available because many are BBL double license players and often the schedules of the BBL and Pro B conflict. Plus Frankfurt belong to the teams with the youngest players and there is no change this season as they average 20 years of age as a team and a team like Schwenningen who have four guys 30 years or older average 27 years of age. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors are still finding their offensive rhythm and with their arsenal will get better with time, but it has been their defensive work which has shone brightest in the early going as they are second best in the league with only 67 points allowed. Frankfurt met another ambitious team that have had a good start at 3-1 with FC Bayern Munich that are even younger boasting a roster that averages 19 years of age. They have been impressive currently riding a three game winning streak being seventh best in the league in scoring points at 80 and securing rebounds with 34 per game and beat 2018 Pro B champ ScanPlus Baskets 74-70. This would be a tough test for the Fraport Skyliners Juniors as they had to be ready on the defensive end and were especially in the crucial last minutes as they grinded out a tough 83-78 victory against FC Bayern Munich to move to 5-0. After the win Frankfurt head coach Sebastian Gleim was content how his team rebounded from the win in Erfurt. “Last weekend we didn´t play with much self confidence and saved the win. Today we played three quarters of very good defense. We played better offensively and had good ball movement. It was our best offensive game this season”, stressed head coach Sebastian Gleim. FC Bayern Munich gave it a good fight, but just weren´t consistent enough to give Frankfurt enough problems. After the game a disappointed Viktor Frankl-Maus who had a black eye reflected on the loss. “We had ups and downs today. We didn´t start well and came back in the second quarter. That is the way how we should always play. But in the third quarter in a matter of 2-3 minutes it was tied up again as we gave them the momentum. We came back, but just didn´t have enough at the end and the technical fouls hurt. We are a young team and went into the game with a three game winning streak. We may have been too sure of ourselves. We wanted to show them that we were the better team, but in the end gave them the game”, stressed FC Bayern Munich guard Viktor Frankl-Maus.

The Fraport Skyliners Juniors showed that they have a special luxury in that they started the game with five players with BBL experience with Freudenberg, Akodo, Zeeb, Schubert and Trtovac. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors got going early as ex St Johns forward Richard Freudenberg dropped two trey´s and Brit Jules Akodo who was inserted in the starting lineup for Elijah Clarance who had dislocated a finger scored a lay in as Frankfurt led 8-4. Frankfurt had the hot hand from outside while the guests did all the damage in the paint area as they quickly tied the score 8-8 as 25 year old 206cm Nemanja Markovic made a bank shot and 17 year old 197cm shooting guard Bruno Vrcic hit an off balance shot. Frankfurt continued to keep Freudenberg involved and firing away as he hit his third trey for the 11-8 advantage. Garai Zeeb was supplying the needed leadership and controlling the tempo very well and keeping the offense going with good looks while on defense heightened the clogging in the paint area. Zeeb who got his first BBL minutes in the 2014-2015 season with Bremerhaven continued to do a great job getting his teammates involved finding ex Chemnitz big man Aaron Kayser for an easy bucket and then executing himself on a runner and American rookie JT Roach hit a step back as Frankfurt had quietly completed a 10-2 run to lead 18-10. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors continued to defend very physical and stayed aggressive on offense. The club got added buckets from Akodo and Roach while 2017 NBBL champion Nelson Weidemann made 4 free throws to keep FC Bayern Munich in the game trailing 25-16. “Frankfurt was doing a good job moving the ball and finding the open spots. Zeeb was doing a good job finding guys and Freudenberg hit big three´s”, stressed Fraport Skyliner Quantez Robertson.

In the second quarter FC Bayern Munich heightened their play and stormed back going on a big 17-4 run to retake the lead that they had at 2-0 to lead 33-29. Ex Dragons Rhondorf guard Victor Frankl-Maus started it off with a three and he finished the game with 12 points and 7 assists. It isn´t even November yet and the oldest on the team hasn´t regretted making the decision to move to Munich. “I am happy I made this decision. I am glad that I tried something new. This is a great team and I have great teammates. I have more confidence and know how to help my team and know what I can do to be successful. I feel more relaxed on the court. I have learned new tactics especially on defense. You can´t play for a better defensive coach than Demond Greene”, warned Viktor Frankl-Maus. After the Frankl-Maus trey, three more would follow from ex Alba Berlin 210cm forward Jacob Knauf and from Vrcic and 20 year old 197cm forward Jannick Jebens. Frankfurt allowed the guests too much room on the perimeter and on offense weren´t calm enough rushing things too much. Jebens would score again with a lay in and Knauf nailed his second three in the run as FC Bayern Munich led 33-29. FC Bayern Munich got a big steal and coast to coast lay in from 16 year old 198cm Italian Sascha Grant for the 37-31 advantage, but Frankfurt fought back getting a jumper from ex Ehingen forward Tobias Jahn and Roach free throws to cut the Munich lead to only to 37-35. However Frankfurt lost a little focus at the end allowing 19 year old German Nelson Weideman to hit back to back three´s including a buzzer beater at the break as Frankfurt trailed 46-35. “Frankfurt wasn´t patient on offense and the ball was sticking too much and they didn´t play aggressive on defense and weren´t getting back on defense. Munich set good screens to get open three´s. Frankfurt didn´t help on that last buzzer beater”, added ex Auburn(NCAA) stand out Quantez Robertson. FC Bayern Munich shot 53% from the field and 57% from outside and grabbed 18 rebounds and had 6 turnovers while the Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 42% from the field and 18% from outside and grabbed 16 rebounds and had 7 turnovers.

In the third quarter the Fraport Skyliners Juniors made a run battling back and there would be a few lead changes down the stretch, but they would lead by 5 points after 30 minutes. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors came out on fire and rattled off an explosive 17-5 run to grab back the lead at 53-51. It hasn´t been an easy season for Jules Akodo as he has had Elijah Clarance parked in front of him and his minutes have dipped. But he took advantage with the injury to Clarance and the abundance of minutes and really took control in the run. He began quickly and got by Weidemann easily for an easy lay in. At the other end one could hear the screaming Munich coach Greene with the words “one on one defense”. He made a free throw and soon after hit a trey and free throw which translated into seven big points cutting the Munich lead to 48-43. The only negative thing about Akodo´s stat line on this night was his 5/11 free throw shooting, but other than that he had a good evening with 17 points, 5 assists and 5 steals. “With Clarance out we all had to come together and play as a team. I came out more aggressive on the defensive end and let that spark my offense”, stated Jules Akodo. “His defensive aggressiveness was so important for us tonight”, added head coach Sebastian Gleim. The Frankfurt aggressive defense forced FC Bayern Munich to numerous turnovers and they took advantage on offense getting the lead back as Freudenberg continued his stellar offense dropping a trey and then making a massive two handed dunk from the baseline after leaving his man in the dust. Freudenberg finished with 23 points the most so far in his professional career and explained after the win how his mentality had changed from the first two home game wins against Wurzburg and Giessen. “This game was very important for my self confidence. My shooting percentage wasn´t good in my first two homes games. I went more with the flow of the offense in those games. Tonight I concentrated on getting into the game with my defense and rebounding to get my offense going”, smiled Richard Freudenberg. “He was very present on defense on the pick and roll defense and help defense”, added Sebastian Gleim. Roach added a trey and Frankfurt led again 53-51. Frankl-Maus nailed another three to give FC Bayern Munich the 56-53 advantage. However this didn´t faze Frankfurt as they closed out the third quarter with a brutal 8-0 run to lead 61-56 after three quarters. In the run Frankfurt was fortified by a Zeeb lay in and an Akodo three pointer. “We had a very bad second quarter and knew we had to come back with more energy and did. We also played better on offense and had better ball movement”, added Richard Freudenberg. “Frankfurt defended aggressively all game and the refs let it go. We had to try to match it, but that gave us big problems. We learned a big lesson today. We need to be more aggressive. I got a black eye today, but Frankfurt wasn´t called for a foul”, stressed Viktor Frankl-Maus.

In the fourth quarter The Fraport Skyliners Juniors jumped all over FC Bayern Munich again only to allow them right back into the game, but couldn´t totally get over the hump. It started out well for the guests as Weidemann nailed a trey cutting the Frankfurt lead to 61-59. However Frankfurt then jumped out on a 11-0 run to lead 72-59. Roach scored 5 points with a trey and Akodo extra pass for the dime and lay in and Freudenberg remained active in the paint with an offensive rebound and put back and lay in. Roach was big in the run getting two steals as was ex Freiburg forward Cosmo Gruehn with a block. FC Bayern Munich didn´t come to terms with the Frankfurt continued aggressive defense. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors now allowed FC Bayern Munich back in the game on a 10-2 run to cut the lead to 74-69 as they chipped away and the lousy home team free throw shooting which was 21-37 for the night also helped in their come back. FC Bayern Munich got to the free throw line and made their shots while Frankfurt had their problems. Weidemann continued to be his aggressive self making free throws and a lay in and suddenly with 1.10 minutes to play FC Bayern Munich was breathing down Frankfurt´s back trailing only 77-75. After a miss from Frankl-Maus, it was Garai Zeeb that made the play of the game that sealed the win. He used his whole experience in his fourth season with Frankfurt picking the rights spot and finding Cosmo Gruehn back door for the easy lay up. The German than made the free throw for the comfortable 80-75 lead with 22 seconds to play. “Zeeb has been in these situations so much. He stays calm and composed. That is why he is on the court in that situation because he will make the play”, warned Jules Akodo. Frankl-Maus hit a huge three with 12 seconds to go to cut Frankfurt´s lead to 82-78, but it was too little too late as Frankfurt won their fifth game of the season. “We stuck together as a team at the end and didn´t fall apart. We know each other very well and continue to be very motivated to show we are the best team. We all want to promote ourselves for that chance with the BBL team”, added Richard Freudenberg. “We were missing some luck at the end. We gave up too many offensive rebounds and easy lay ups. Our communication on defense hurt us. Defensive execution killed us”, stressed Viktor Frankl-Maus. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors were led by Richard Freudenberg with 23 points. Jules Akodo added 17 points and JT Roach 16 points. FC Bayern Munich was led by Nelson Weidemann with 19 points. Viktor Frankl-Maus and Jacob Knauf added 12 points a piece. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors shot 50% from the field and 30% from the three point line and got 32 rebounds and coughed up the ball 16 times while FC Bayern Munich shot 43% from the field and 38% from the three point line and got 35 rebounds and coughed up the ball 21 times.

When Pendarvis Williams got to Goettingen, it probably didn´t take long for him to hear about most likely the two most cherished club anecdotes with them winning the Eurochallenge cup in 2010 which was only the third German international club title in the history of German basketball at that time and that magical evening in Braunschweig where they defeated Turkish club Besiktas Istanbul and Mr practice NBA legend Allen Iverson. But there was possibly a name that didn´t right away ring the alarm bells for the American when hearing Stockton since that is a rather common name, but it probably didn´t take long either for him to learn who the father of his new teammate Michael Stockton is. It isn´t uncommon in the easyCredit BBL to have players with very famous dads as in Frankfurt the Fraport Skyliners have the name Voeller and for anyone that hasn´t been  locked in a closet for a lifetime or been helplessly lost in Berlin city for a while will know young or old that Rudi Voeller is a football legend and in Goettingen Michael Stockton can rarely go a day or two without having to answer something about his dad. So it is likely that Williams has heard something pertaining to Stockton´s dad John or even got an ear full of when the mail man Karl Malone dunked on seven kids including his teammate Michael when he was a kid. Or even more dramatic telling the story of how Charles Barkley declared himself better as a role model than his own dad when he was a mere six years old.  Williams didn´t come to Goettingen empty handed either as he could tell some exciting stories about his ex teammate Kyle O´Quinn who was his teammate at Norfolk State for two seasons before the double double monster with the frightening beard went on the NBA train. In Bayreuth it probably isn´t any different with teammates asking David Stockton the low down on his legendary dad. In Goettingen the Williams O´Quinn stories won´t be able to keep up with the Stockton stories, but the American doesn´t care, because he is the process of making his own special stories that will be told down the road and will be taken with joy by the Goettingen fans.

Williams is a 26 year old 198cm shooting guard from the city of brotherly love Philadelphia that will turn 27 on November 13^th and is currently in his fifth professional season with BG Goettingen. He might not have totally come from the lowest leagues, but his basketball path hasn´t been one that has allowed him the best opportunities to present himself, but that hasn´t hindered him to keep grinding and putting up very solid stats in the NCAA for a lesser known school with Norfolk State and shinning in the Italian Serie A-2 while always looking for that opportunity to really showcase his game at a top level. He has arrived in the easyCredit BBL and after a few games has proven that he can perform at a high level and is looking to make his own unforgettable sweet stories that will always be remembered. The American began his career at Bodine High School and then went to school in Virginia at Norfolk State(NCAA) from 2010-2014. He had a stellar career there winning the 2012 MEAC tournament and was MEAC player of the year in 2013. One of his most memorable times was reaching the NCAA tournament in 2012 and upsetting second seeded Missouri 86-84 outlasting future NBA players like Phil Pressey and Kim English while holding his own with 20 points. He probably will never forget his teammate Kyle O´Quinn yelling like a madman after the amazing win “we messed up some brackets”. However the March Madness high quickly became a low as Florida brought them back down to earth with a crushing 84-50 win.

The American was able to improve his scoring and rebounding averages every season and averaged double figures in his last three seasons. He also demonstrated his precision shooting never shooting below 38% in his first htree seasons. He played a total of 132 NCAA games. In his last three years he played 100 NCAA games and scored in double figures in 75 games. Some of his best individual scoring games were against Newberry where he exploded with 38 points, scorched Stillman for 32 points, got Boston University for 27 points and hit Howard and Coppin State with 25 points each. He ended his Norfolk State career as a senior playing 34 games averaging 15.6ppg, 4.9rpg, 2.6apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 60.6%, 3PT: 35.5%, FT: 83.3%. Ex Norfolk State guard Kevin Worseley who played a few years before Williams did there and  briefly in Germany as a professional remembers Williams being recruited out of high school. “He surpassed everyone’s expectations of what he could do for the program. I am glad to see him playing in the BBL and proud of his career”, stressed Kevin Worsley.

The American began his professional career in 2014 and before he even thought about a European career, he was already knocking heads with future NBA teams in the summer league. He played with the Houston Rockets that reached the NBA Summer League final, but he hardly got playing time as he got into three games averaging 0,7ppg and 1,0rpg. It is always tougher coming from a lesser known conference and lesser known school in reaching the NBA, but Williams definitely had NBA range with his shot, but so did hundreds of other guards and many more that played at bigger and better known schools. “I don’t feel like he was in the shadows of Kyle O’Quinn because NBA Teams noticed him and the Houston Rockets picked him up on their Summer League team. The NBA is about being the right fit and I don´t know what he was missing as far as making it to the NBA but he might be able to get into a workout if he keeps doing good in Europe and especially the BBL”, stressed Kevin Worsley. His professional career took him overseas taking him to Italy. In his first season he played with Moncada Solar Agrigento (Italy-A2 Gold) playing 45 games averaging 14.5ppg, 4.6rpg, 1.9apg, 1.4spg, FGP: 53.8%, 3PT: 37.1%, FT: 80.7%. Even if he played in the second Italian division, it had been gaining in reputation and was a league that had very nice budgets which was always a target for Americans. He was able to come out and play good minutes right away as there were only two Americans with him and David Dudzinski. He gained some early attention as a professional as he hit Biella with 26 points and Torino with 24 points back to back. After a very solid rookie season, he made the next step up signing with Virtus Obiettivo Lavoro Bologna (Italy-Serie A) and played 11 games averaging 7.5ppg, 3.2rpg, 1.5spg, FGP: 50.0%, 3PT: 27.6%, FT: 86.7%. His season was cut short and he then gave it a go in the G-league with the Maine Red Claws, but played only 10 games averaging 0.6ppg, 1.1rpg. Here his season was cut short again in December 2016 and for the second year in a row he was at home during winter. He returned back to Europe in 2017 with a huge chip on his shoulder and wanting to prove all doubters wrong and returned to an old stomping ground in Italy with the A-2 Serie A returning to his old club where he had had success with as a rookie and didn´t disappoint anyone at  Moncada Solar Agrigento averaging 12.8ppg, 5.9rpg, 3.8apg, 1.4spg, FGP: 52.8%, 3PT: 31.1%, FT: 82.2%.

Now after a season of finding his game again, he doesn´t want to falter again the way he did in the Serie A with Bologna, but have success with BG Goettingen and keep rolling with his game in the BBL. So far he hasn´t disappointed anyone in Goettingen yet as he is leading the team in scoring and helped contribute to a cup upset over the MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg. He shot 15-20 from the field in the first two BBL games and has shown that he can be a leader on offense. His third BBL game against Wurzburg resulted in a tight 91-87 victory where he didn´t shoot as consistent as in his first two games, but was still good with 22 points on 8/18 shooting. He is an athletic shooting guard who can spend time at the 3 position too if needed. He can defend on all perimeter opponents, reads the game situations well and has a good shot selection. “He is a really good player and reminds me of another Philadelphia player that I played with who has had a pro good career with Akeem Wright. They are both 6’6 and can play a various of different positions”, added Kevin Worsley. Other´s have compared him to a Michael Carter Williams on account of his physicality and ball handling expertise. But he actually received the biggest compliment that a player could ever become. Ok so it wasn´t Lebron or Kobe, but who wouldn´t take being compared to Penny Hardaway? There also has to be a reason that a guy like Williams was called Penny at Norfolk State. “He reminds of Penny Hardaway hence the nickname. He’s a great guy and has always been himself since the first day he stepped on campus. Everybody loves Penny so I could see him being a fan favorite for any team that he plays on”, warned Kevin Worsley. It has only been two BBL games and he only mustered 7 points in the big cup upset against the MHP Riesen, but the season is long and there will always be ups and downs for players. But with the experience and skill set that Williams has, he could very well turn many heads and surprise others with his stellar play this season. “I am confident Penny will make himself a household name in the BBL. He’s a hard worker and very versatile so he will be able to adjust and play in any system. He has a high basketball IQ and doesn’t shy away from work”, stressed Kevin Worsley. Williams and O´Quinn brought certain Dream Team comparisons at Norfolk State and this season BG Goettingen fans will be happy with their own little version of Dream team magic to a degree however one wants to look at it. “Pendarvis and Kyle was like Penny and Shaq, but now the BBL is bringing back history of the 1996 USA Dream Team with Stockton and Penny in the backcourt once again. No matter if the coin lands on heads or tails you will always have good luck with that Penny” Behold the Green and Gold”, stressed ex Norfolk State guard Kevin Worsley. One thing is for sure, Williams may still have the green and gold colors of Norfolk State in his heart, but at the moment he has the purple and white colors of BG Goettingen bolted into his mind as he is creating new memorable stories in Germany this season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was just another normal late winter evening in early March 2017 as the Fraport Skyliners Juniors had to beat the Giants Nordlingen in a do or die game to secure their ticket for the Pro B playoffs which they did in fine fashion 83-59 and in a way stole the show from young 17 year old German phenom Isaac Bonga who had produced his second rare feat of the season. His first incredible accomplishment was at the start of the season where he became the fifth youngest player ever to get inserted into a BBL game at age 16 and the second happened on this night against Nordlingen. At the 1.29 minute mark of the fourth quarter in a game already decided, ex Bremerhaven point guard Garai Zeeb used the ball reversal zipping a quick pass from one side of the court to the other finding Isaac Bonga on the wing hanging out all alone as he squared his feet didn´t even hesitate for a blink of a second and fired away finding nothing but net at the 1.27 minute mark and thus registering his first triple double as a young professional with a 10 point, 15 rebound and 10 assist game. One could cautiously say after posting stats like this it wouldn´t have been strange if he would have gotten a standing ovation in the Skyliners office Monday morning or at least somebody coming up with the magical phrase and preaching “It´s not a bird, it´s not a plane, it´s Super Bonga. The phrase may be strong, but Superman and Bonga do have one thing in common with the skyscraper link of Metropolis and Frankfurt. Strange as it may be, it was his more fragile three point shot that sealed the triple double and not his bread and butter penetration that more often than not makes him look like a man among kids when he glides to the hoop unscathed and when it counted most, his outside shot stayed surprisingly faithful as he went 2/3 from the parking lot erasing any doubt about the previous nine contests where he had gone a scary 1/21. After the big win and playoff reward, his triple double remained somewhat of a side note as the slick German used his immaculate and positive character making a huge accomplishment look like any other basketball working night not forgetting his deficits. ““It is a very good feeling getting this triple double. I am happy that I was able to find my teammates and that they found me tonight” I know that I have to improve my shot, but when I let that last one go, it looked good and then I was relieved when it was in”, stressed Isaac Bonga. This was just another story of many in the last 24 months of Isaac Bonga as he was slowly approaching the age of 18 and controlling his own destiny looking to get through the competitive NBA door.

Isaac Bonga´s family comes from Conga, Africa, but he was born in Neuwied Germany a Klay Thompson long three pointer away from the beautiful city Koblenz which lies on the majestic Rhein and Mosel rivers and in terms of basketball country is far away from huge basketball communities like Frankfurt, Bamberg or Berlin. Bonga comes from an athletic family as his brother Taris plays soccer for Fortuna Duesseldorf´s second team and Isaac also started to play Germany´s most popular sport at age seven before making the jump to basketball at age 10. He started his basketball career and learned his early basketball trade with the Post SV – Luetzel Baskets Koblenz junior team under the guidance of coach Marcel Kastor. It wasn´t hard to see that Bonga had talent, but just how far he could go depended on how much work he would put in. It was obvious right away that this gifted young man wouldn´t just spend a few hours a day, but put in the extra yards and miles and go all out as his work ethic as a 12 year old was already extraordinary and way beyond his years. He was able to let his talent do the talking on the court as he put up mind boggling stats in the JBBL(under 16 youth league) and was garnering the interest of scouts from top Euroleague teams in Spain that have guys like Messi and Ronaldo in the football department as putting up 40 points or grabbing 15 rebounds in a game was just another day at school for Bonga as one could trade the phrase a man among kids with a kid among babies. It didn´t take long before the German was able to suit up with SG Luetzel-Post Koblenz (2.Regionalliga) in the 2014-2015 season as now all of a sudden he was still a kid, but the babies suddenly turned into men. The ambitious team wanted to move up to the Regionalliga and did which cut into Bonga´s playing time. However in the next season 2015-2016 he played a few games as a 15 year old in the Regionaliga for SG Luetzel-Post Koblenz (2.Regionalliga) before turning 16 years old and finishing the season playing 24 Regionalliga games averaging  5.9ppg, 2.8rpg, 2.0apg, FGP: 58.4%, 3PT: 19.0%, FT: 64.1%. One has to remember, Koblenz was filled with talented experienced players so being able to put up such fine stats in his limited minutes was a reflection on his gifted talent. What many didn´t know, Bonga was already in the Fraport Skyliners organization playing for their NBBL(U-19 youth league) team Eintracht Frankfurt averaging 15.9ppg, 7.9rpg, 3.6apg. I can remember a balmy Halloween night in 2015 as the Fraport Skyliners were in Hagen, their second assistant coach Eric Detlev was sent on the mission to watch the young kid play a Regionalliga game in Limburg 70 kilometers away from Frankfurt. The Fraport Skyliners were like many BBL teams very interested in this phenom as a year later Bonga already had made his debut in the EasyCredit BBL.

Bonga Moved to the Fraport Skyliners in the summer of 2016 as Sebastian Gleim now the Pro B coach paid a big part in him signing a four year contract and in his first season had triple service playing for the Fraport Skyliners in the EasyCredit BBL, Fraport Skyliners Juniors in the Pro B, and Eintracht Frankfurt in the NBBL getting the best conditions so that he could develop further while also going to school. He came to the club as a huge talent, but already displayed his unending abilities in pre season in a game against the RheinStars Cologne on the Wiesbaden airbase where he was unveiling fancy no look passes that coupled with his length brought the first comparisions to Magic Johnson and was wetting the appetites of many for more to come from only a 16 year old. Bonga entered the 2016-2017 season at 203cm and a wing span of 2,14 that grew to 205cm and 2,19 as the season went on. The German has stated early on that his favorite player is ex NBA player Jason Williams and his current role model is Milwaukee Bucks Greek beast Giannis Antetokounmpo and not only he had seen this comparison as that name also has come out of the mouths of many others like ex Lok Bernau guard Pierre Bland. Other comparisons also have been to players like big guards Greek legends Dimitris Diamantidis and Theodoros Papaloukas or other NBA players like Shaun Livingston or Michael Carter-Williams. At first glance, it is his body that exuberates sheer athleticism even before one has seen him take flight to the rim like a hungry hawk looking for it´s next prey. Even if you have never seen him play a second just by looking at his stat lines in the Pro B and NBBL where he saw ample minutes, he gave filling the stat sheet a new meaning the way guards like Chris Paul and Dwayne Wade have been proving for years in the NBA.

Even though Bonga is 205cm and still growing he sees himself as a point guard even though guys with that height are usually a power forward or even a center. For those that have watched him closely one could argue what his biggest strength is on the court as he can do so many things well. Obviously his passing skills are unbelievable for his age and one can only wonder what type of passer he will be in 3-4 years. He also excels with his quick drive to the hoop which has been unstoppable in the lower leagues, but how well will it develop and translate at the G-League and NBA levels as his body continues to grow. To be able to pass the ball so effectively also has to do with his fantastic basketball IQ and court vision that is strengthened with his 205cm that allows him to have a lot better view of the court as his opponents constantly have mismatches to battle with. Another big strength in his arsenal is the mental side as he has a very ambitious self confidence on the court. His work ethic also continues to get lauded. He always wanted to learn and get better and never has had that satisfied feeling that young players often get when the hype gets too big or when they simply over train too much and burn out. Bonga has received a lot of hype as he has graced the cover of German basketball magazine BIG and was a projected 2018 NBA first round pick for the whole 2016-2017 season and was only stuck behind Slovenian basketball sensation Luka Donic who became a NBA lottery pick last summer. Bonga coped well with the press and was able to balance three teams and school. It was a lot of fun telling American players before a Pro B game remember the name Isaac Bonga or asking a question about him in an interview. After 40 minutes, the Americans had a better idea of who Bonga was and for the most part were impressed by the 17 year old. “Bonga has a lot of potential. He is very big for a guard and has a good eye for the pick and role. He is something very special”, warned ex Nordlingen Giants American Terence Smith who led all scorers with 26 points, but witnessed Bonga´s triple double lead Frankfurt to the win in the 2016-2017 season. However there were some who have put on the safety brake concerning Bonga´s NBA future as he is only a kid and rushing things too much might be more disadvantageous than advantageous. Many saw him in the NBA next while others saw him taking more time to get there. “He still has a lot of work ahead of him. I see him in the NBA in 4-5 years. He needs to work on his shot and decision making, but he is an undisputed huge talent. He needs to concentrate fully on Frankfurt. He will have some good BBL games, but won´t be consistent. He has a very good self confidence and he needs to continue to play Pro B to get minutes and he needs to dominate there the way Dennis Schroeder did with Braunschweig and take responsibility”, warned  TSV Oberhaching Deisenhofen (Regionalliga) head coach Mario Matic in the summer of 2017. Two time Pro B scoring leader Ricky Easterling played against Bonga once losing 66-63 in Frankfurt with BG Karlsruhe and caught the talented German on an off day as he netted three points in 24 minutes. Easterling is careful about not adding more unneeded hype for the 17 year old. “”I feel Bonga has a lot of talent and potential to be a very good player. I think he could make a name for himself in the BBL If he works hard and is able to reach his full potential then I think he could possibly get drafted in the NBA”, stressed Ricky Easterling in the 2016-2017 season.

 

In 2016-2017 in the Pro B for the Fraport Skyliners he played  20 games averaging 11.0ppg, 6.5rpg, 4.1apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 47.1%, 3PT: 23.0%, FT: 71.4%. He scored in double figures in eight games and registered four double doubles and hit the Bayer Giants Leverkusen with 26 points. He didn´t play as much in the NBBL for the Fraport Skyliners due to conflicts in his schedule playing 5 games averaging 11.4ppg, 8.0rpg, 4.6apg, 2.0spg, 1.2bpg, 2PT: 56.8%, 3PT: 16.7%, FT: 50.0. He wasn´t the dominating scorer, but he didn´t have to be as his role was to keep the team together at both ends of the court and his stats demonstrated that. Everybody understood that if the club needed instant scoring or were in trouble, that he would come through. In the BBL, he got some minutes here and there to get his feet wet in the top league playing double digit minutes against Ludwigsburg and ratiopharm Ulm and holding his own on the defensive end getting a couple steals against the aggressive style of head coach John Patrick and Ludwigsburg. Bonga also had some highlight during the season with one being taking part at the Ciutat de L’Hospitalet International Junior Tournament at the end of 2016 (Qualifications to ANGT Finals) reaching the(Semifinals + All-Tournament Team where he played 4 games averaging 12.3ppg, 3.0rpg, 2.5apg, 1.8spg, 2PT: 50%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 82.4%. He also took part at the Kaunas Adidas Next Generation Tournament (Qualifications to ANGT Finals) getting nominated to the All-Tournament Team) playing 4 games: Score-5(14.5ppg), Reb-1(9.5rpg), 5.3apg, Steals-1(3.3spg), 1.5bpg, 2FGP: 43.2%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 64.7%. Here he found some more fans especially NBA scouts and his 2018 NBA draft stock continued to rise in the major mock drafts. His toughest foe there was Frenchman Yves Pons who most likely made a note of Bonga in his mental notebook as they will probably battle again sometime down the road. The next highlight came in February as he traveled to New Orleans, Louisiana to not only breathe some NBA air at the 2017 NBA Allstar weekend, but to also participate at the Basketball Without Boarders Global camp where he dueled against big time prospects like Canadian RJ Bennet, Nigerian Charles Bassey or Angolian Silvio deSouza. He also met NBA players like Wayne Ellington, Justin Holiday, Jamaal Murray who like Bonga is still a kid and Meyers Leonard. Here he was able to gather valuable tips from the NBA players on leadership and character development. Back in Germany, he reached the Pro B playoffs losing to Lok Bernau and led his team to the NBBL playoffs, but his dream of playing in the top 4 in Frankfurt in front of family and friends were halted by future Stanford player Oscar Da Silva and the International Basketball Akademie Munich. In the last month of the EasyCredit BBL schedule he was able to play more minutes because the club had missed the playoffs. He showed his potential against Science City Jena scoring eight points and hauling down four rebounds and scoring six points, getting four rebounds and dishing out three assists against ratiopharm Ulm.

With his first professional season completed with the Fraport Skyliners, the German didn´t have a few months to sit back and relax, but had the next summer highlights on the basketball horizon. In June 2017  the German took part at the Addidas Eurocamp in Trevisio, Italy and showcased his talent and as usual his passing expertise turned heads right away, but his unending potential and athleticism also remained with the many scouts in attendance. He didn´t put up the massive stats which is what everyone looks at first and this could have been one of the reasons why his 2018 NBA Draft stock continued to fall. He next ventured to Cairo, Egypt to play in the U-19 World championships and he helped his team to a very respectable fifth place finish. The team was stocked with ample talent like Oscar Da Silva, Louis Olinde, Philipp Herkenhoff and Nelson Weidemann and many more, but once again Bonga didn´t play the spoiled child and cried about not being in the spotlight, but played for the team as he always does. He was unable to take over in the tournament playing seven games averaging 6.6ppg, 3.4rpg, 3.3apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 41.5%, 3PT: 8.3%, FT: 69.2%. It is even difficult to say the stats were solid for a guy like Bonga who would rather be in the NBA yesterday than tomorrow and it is usually on stages like this where those future big time players make a name for themselves, but instead the German was one of many on his team that played ok, but didn´t exactly turn heads. Especially his 1/12 shooting from downtown was a sore spot as his shooting continues to be his biggest deficiency in his game that he needs to improve on. However despite the less than spectacular stats Fraport Skyliners head coach Gordon Herbert was happy with Bonga´s development then and felt that stats don´t define the kids game. “One can´t forget that Isaac was a year younger than many at the U-19 tournament. He went through some adversary and had ups and downs, but he fought through it well, At his age now, one can´t measure a players potential by their stats. Many NBA scouts now look at potential more than stats. You can have a 18 or 19 year old talent that put up big stats now, but don´t have the potential. That is just how it works these days. I have been very happy with Isaac´s development in the last five months”, warned Gordon Herbert in late summer 2017. Bonga then decided to withdraw from playing at the 2017 U-18 European championships and return back to Frankfurt and work with the training staff and prepare for the upcoming so vital season in the development of his game.

It was late summer 2017 and the young German talent Bonga was back in Frankfurt for over a month taking in two training sessions a day while having that Gordon Herbert quote ring in his mind every so often with “Isaac is probably the biggest talent Frankfurt has ever seen”. He had a long talk with his family and they came to the decision that it was best for him to drop out of school after the 11^th grade and concentrate 100% only on basketball. Bonga knew that the expectations were high so coupled with his immense work ethic, drive and self confidence he continued to work on his pride and joy basketball to continue to become the best possible. Fraport Skyliners assistant coach Klaus Perwas noticed something in his shooting mechanics which most often than not resulted in him flinging the ball more than shooting it and developing that nice arc. Correcting a shooting problem can take time, but the German made steps forward in getting a more stable shot. Another weakness is his ballhandling that many experts have stated isn´t good enough to be a good point guard at a very high level. Bonga is more than content that the point guard is his position and that is another area that he diligently tweaks while also working on his scrawny body to make it stronger. He wants to be the most complete player he can be and also continues to concentrate on improving his footwork as well as his post game something that he hasn´t had to use as much, but maybe he can look at some old Magic Johnson video´s and incorporate some of that into his game. At times Bonga tries to do too much on the court and working on staying calm is another area as a point guard that he needs to build on. Bonga´s goals have been always high with the NBA being on top and right below is being the starting point guard for the Fraport Skyliners. The club brought in NCAA rookie Tai Webster for the 2017-2018 season. One of Bonga´s goals last season was to become that starting point guard. There were games that he started and exceled. Herbert wasn´t surprised by Bongá´s self confidence. “That is a great goal and vision for him. He will play BBL and Pro B. In the Pro B, he can learn by making mistakes and get minutes. It continues to be a process for him and it is important he gets minutes. He has been working on his shot for the last month and has made strides on the physical and mental side and has a great feel for the game. He is great at observing and learning and is the type of kid that when corrected doesn´t need to be told a second time. He has a great basketball IQ and we have seen great improvement. He has a chance to get quality minutes in the BBL this season”, stressed Gordon Herbert in the summer of 2017. The NBA chatter didn´t go away in the 2017-2018 season and as he was trying to develop into a good BBL role player at age 18 in hopes of his NBA stock will rise again and there were more NBA scouts in the Fraport arena in his second BBL season. It didn´t take him to long to arrive in the EasyCredit BBL as he produced 16 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in the first preseason game of the season against Bonn. Granted he didn´t play 36 minutes per game in the BBL, but that little Bonga introduction had to be appetizing for what was still to come.. Fraport Skyliner guard Philip Scrubb was more than impressed by his development. “The coaching staff have invested in him and see his wide skill set. I am sure that he will be able to contribute this season. He has gotten so much better since the last time I was here in pre season 2016. I think that the best I can do will be to push him hard in practice”, warned Philip Scrubb in 2017.

Bonga didn´t have the type of BBL breakout season in 2017-2018 that Dennis Schroeder had in 2012-2013, but it was good enough to get drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers and possibly be teammates already this season with the best player on the planet Lebron James and ex NBA allstar Rajon Rondo and live in the glitz of L.A something that the German surely would have had a laugh attack or accidently chocked on his food had someone predicted this happening only three years ago when he was playing German Regionalliga for Koblenz at the age of 15. It was August 29^th when I reached Fraport Skyliners head coach Gordon Herbert at 1:30 in the afternoon and he seemed to be his typical self having that relaxed tone in his voice no matter if it was an off day, before a do or die game or pre season as was the case then. It had been a little more than three months since his team´s season ended and more than two months since the German wunder boy Bonga was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers. A lot happened in that time as the guard rotation had changed as Tai Webster and Bonga are gone while Frankfurt will go with experienced Jason Clark this season and Canadian rookie Trae Bell-Haynes. One does feel it in the voice of Herbert that he would have liked to have Bonga around for another 1-2 years in Frankfurt, but as is always the case basketball is a business and one has to accept it. But at the same time one also notices the utmost respect from the Canadian coach for Bonga in that he earned getting drafted and one has to respect that. “Isaac is a great example for all young German players in that he had a vision of where he wanted to go and he put in the work to get there. You can´t do the work and have no vision. I am so proud of what he achieved with us”, stated Gordon Herbert.In his second season with the Fraport Skyliners he concentrated mostly on playing BBL, but did have the one or other moment where he played Pro B and didn´t even play NBBL(U-19) anymore simply because he was too good. In his second full BBL season the German national player played 34 games averaging 6.0ppg, 3.1rpg, 2.2apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 44.4%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 90.0%. It was statistically a rapid rise to the season before, but then again not so much where one could predict that he would be an automatic NBA first round draft pick. But people that watched him closely in his second season with the Fraport Skyliners saw rapid improvement and head coach Gordon Herbert didn´t do it all alone, but shared the credit. “Klaus Perwas did a great job working with him. He made huge steps in the last two months of the season. If he hadn´t broken his ribs and been out 3-4 weeks, he could have been our starting point guard then. He was playing at a very high level then. He has a very good basketball understanding and worked on his weaknesses. If he had stayed another year in Europe, he could have been a top 15 NBA first round pick in 2019. That is what I was told as I´m not knowledgeable to make that judgement. He still has a way to go and we will see if it was a good move”, warned Gordon Herbert.

During the 2017-2018 season there weren´t only international scouts of NBA teams in the Fraport arena each weekend, but at times even NBA Gm´s found the need to check out what all the hoopla was about the German boy. The massive interest from the NBA really picked up in the latter part of the season and hit it´s peak during the playoff series against FC Bayern Munich as there were at times 8 official´s or more of NBA teams watching him strut his basketball magic and even had Danny Ainge´s son Austin at the game as well as Los Angeles Lakers GM Rob Pelinka. At this moment it must of occurred to most basketball experts that there was some serious interest from the Los Angeles Lakers. It´s one thing to see a scout of an NBA team in attendance, but when the GM takes the time to be there in person it is definitely a big deal. During halftime, Pelinka remained reserved and didn´t want to be quoted and instead of giving his two cents about Bonga, but asked my opinion of my thoughts about Bonga. Bonga had some nice plays in the game and showed that his athleticism was at another level. It was difficult to really look through Pelinka and what his thoughts were after that game in Frankfurt, but only a month later when Bonga was drafted in the second round by the Philadephia 76ers and traded to Los Angeles, one came to the conclusion that he must have been impressed. Most basketball experts in Germany had speculated pretty much throughout the whole season that he would remove his name from the NBA draft and play another season in Germany, but when he didn´t do it, some thought that he must have had a firm promise from a team that he would get drafted. “I know that there was interest from two teams and that the Lakers was one of them, but I didn´t know if he had a promise from one of them”, expressed Gordon Herbert.

Bonga had an unspectacular NBA Summer League with the Los Angeles Lakers playing 7 games averaging 2.1ppg, 1.0rpg. He didn´t really get a chance to present himself as he played sparse minutes, but here and there he had some nice plays, but not really enough time to showcase what he can do. It is most probable that he will play his first season in the G-League with the Lakers farm team South Bay and here and there get some minutes in the NBA. A big plus for Bonga is that club president Magic Johnson is extremely high on him seeing a bit of himself in him in that both are tall point guards. Another reason why Bonga will most likely receive extensive grooming in his rookie season with the Lakers is the unending abundance of guards with Rajon Rondo, Lonzo Ball, Josh Hart, Sviatoslav Mykhailuk, Gary Payton, and Alex Caruso. A big plus is that Bonga will not only get minutes in the G-League, but also be able to practice with the Lakers a lot since the G-League home court is also where the Lakers practice. Not too mention having the chance to be on the same court with Lebron James on a daily basis is something where he can only pray to God every night and say thanks for being so blessed. Head coach Gordon Herbert isn´t sure where Bonga can fit into a team that´s goal is to win a title right away and knows that having fellow German Moritz Wagner won´t really have an impact on him because he has a character that is ready for this challenge. “It is tough to say where Isaac fits into a team that has to pressure to win right away. He will have to earn his minutes just like he would any other place. Having Wagner around might help at first, but Isaac is a worldly person that gets along with all. He will have no problems going to a new culture”, added Gordon Herbert. The Fraport Skyliners groomed Bonga into a point guard, but critics always reminded him that he doesn´t have the ball handling to be a point guard as he just didn´t have that consistency in the BBL. But when you have a mentor like Magic Johnson behind you that loves his game and length then it can only be fitting that the Lakers will do all possible  for him to continue to develop into a solid NBA point guard. “It is tough to say where he will play with the Lakers. I see him as a 1 on offense guarding a 3 on defense. But that could change. I also could see him being a point forward. He is still very young and only time will tell”, warned Gordon Herbert. What many people tend to forget that Bonga was the youngest drafted in 2018 at age 18. The sky is the limit for him and being around so much talent and experience will be the best environment for the kid. Ex Middle Tennessee State (NCAA) standout Nick King was Bonga´s teammate with the Lakers in the Summer League and sees a good future for him. “He is a talented kid. He will be a good NBA player in a few years”, stressed Nick King.

After two years with the Fraport Skyliners, Isaac Bonga is gone, but he will never be forgotten. Head coach Gordon Herbert has one very fond memory and that goes back to the first time he shared the floor with him. “When we worked him out for the first time one could see right away that he was a kid that wanted to learn and absorb as much as possible. He was no kid that had an ego or knew everything better, but simply a kid that wanted to get better. That was a reason why it was so good to work with him. My first impression wasn´t good, but great”, warned Gordon Herbert. While Herbert was preparing for the Gezeiten Cup and wondering if Brady Heslip will be the next Phil Scrubb, If Clark and Bell-Haynes will be able to replace Webster and Bonga and if they have a deep enough rotation up front with Wohlfarth-Bottermann and Erik Murphy, the Canadian mastermind who played at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles won´t forget his last conversation with Bonga while he was in Frankfurt in August. “I told him that if you really want something in life, you have to go get it. I told him to be aggressive and that it is a learning process and that he should take everything one day at a time. He has the motivation to get better. If he wants something, he needs to get it. We were tough on him and he earned every minute with us”, warned Gordon Herbert. It is very exciting times in Fraport Skyliners country as the club is in it´s 20^th season and want it to be a memorable one while all eyes will be on Isaac Bonga as he lives his NBA dream with the Los Angeles Lakers. It won´t surprise anyone this season when the club sells out the game of the year against FC Bayern, but who knows with all the amazing moments that Bonga will have this season having Lebron James as a teammate, learning from Mr triple double Rajon Rondo and battling against a Lonzo Ball in a practice, the Koblenz native will surely have unending stories to talk about when he returns back to Frankfurt in the summer of 2018. Having all those unforgettable stories of the NBA could even fill the 5004 seat Fraport arena if he does mention in good time before the date that he will have Lebron James as a side kick by his side helping him recount his rookie season in the NBA. Then again dreaming of something like this is always possible for anyone that loves basketball and was something Bonga did for years about reaching the NBA and now it has come true for the kid who was able to control his destiny in Frankfurt and get into the competitive NBA door with the Los Angeles Lakers.