Author: Miles Schmidt-Scheuber

Basketball journalist and play by play commentator

The Fraport Skyliners Will Trust In Real Canadian Shooting Fire Power Again For Success

Not only has Fraport Skyliners head coach Gordon Herbert trusted in Canadians in the last five years like an alert mother eagle on it´s young, but he also has relied on those Canadian sharp shooters to help assist the offense really take off in every game. It all started in the 2013-2014 season when ex NBA player Andrew Rautins was hauled in and his bombs away attitude and consistency with his shooting not only fascinated fans, but also helped the club win games on a regular basis. It was only too bad that injuries cut his season short a few days after Christmas. In two of the last four years, Herbert did it again trusting immensely in real Canadian sniper attacking in reeling in Philip Scrubb who for many critics is considered the best Canadian college player of all-time. In two seasons, the Carleton legend was a very vital role player helping the 2000 BBL cup winner win their third club title with the Fiba Europe Cup in 2016 and last season was an instrumental part of the team being successful and taking the future 2018 BBL champion FC Bayern Munich to an exciting and hard fought five game series before running out of gas. His beautiful shooting touch, almost perfect step back mid distance jumper and his unbelievable feel of where the rim is with his shot is something that will always be remembered as he attempts the next step in his career with Zenit of Russia. Herbert´s keen success rate of bringing in feared shooting snipers has continued this season as he has reeled in ex Baylor standout Brady Heslip who owns the G-League record with most three´s dropped in a game with 13. One has already seen the precise accuracy of the talented Canadian in pre-season as he dropped three after three at the Gezeiten Cup. He is an interesting player that has those chiseled good features coupled with a deadly shot that will give all fans something to swoon about at games. In a way the Herbert trust in real Canadian snipers is like the famous saying in God We Trust that every American has read on the one dollar Bill and wondered what does it mean? This phrase was scrawled on the famous Mayflower Compact as the first European settlers arrived in the new world which is now the United States. Back then the saying was supposed to reassure people that they had to trust in God as they would need his trust when they encountered many of the problems like malnutrition. Critics on the other hand have opposed this saying that this saying is an insult to the roots of the country. The reason is the people born and raised in the States never had to face that kind of turmoil and want the words done away with. All in all, it is never negative to have faith in God, at least those that believe in it or to believe in the success rate of very very good shooters that Herbert has. If the basketball God will always be on the side of the Fraport Skyliners is more than unlikely, but the Fraport Skyliners could use that term simply because they will trust in real Canadian shooting fire power again for success.

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Post game interview with Fraport Skyliner Brady Heslip who dropped 18 points in the 99-36 win against the Dragons Rhondorf at the 2018 Gezeiten Cup

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Jordan Brangers (Eisbaeren Bremerhaven) I Feel Like I’m One Of The Greatest JUCO Players To Never Play NCAA D1

Jordan Brangers is a 188cm guard that was born in Radcliff, Kentucky and attended North Hardin High School. He is playing his professional rookie season in Germany with the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven. He began his basketball career with South Plains JC (JUCO) and in his second year played 30 games averaging 16.0ppg, 2.9rpg, 2.3apg, FGP: 44.2%, 3PT: 39.9%, FT: 74.4%. He left school after only two years and could be the first player ever to come out of JUCO and reach the easyCredit BBL. He spoke to germanhoops.com about basketball before he made the journey to Germany.

Jordan thanks for talking to germanhoops.com. Where are you at the moment and how has your summer been?

I’m currently in Daytona, Florida working out and getting ready for the upcoming season. My summer has been very good. A lot of workouts and playing a lot of basketball.

You recently played in the Miami Pro League and scored 43 points. You were dropping shots from all over. Was this as much as you have ever been in the zone and was the hole like the ocean on this day?

Wouldn’t say it’s the biggest zone I’ve been in. The biggest was pretty big, but I’ve gotta credit my teammates for getting my good looks and making the right passes to me in my spots.

Congrats on signing your first professional contract with German team Eisbaeren Bremerhaven. Would it be fair to say you are one of the greatest JUCO players that never played in The NCAA but could have with Colorado State or Texas Tech?

Yeah, I would definitely say I feel like I’m one of the greatest JUCO players to never play NCAA D1 and I say that as humble as possible. I’ve put in a lot of work up to this point to be as good as I am and I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.

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Raekwon Miller (Dragons Rhondorf) I See The Game Very Well It’s Almost Like I´m Two Steps Ahead

Raekwon Miller is a 22 year old 191cm guard from Marion, North Carolina embarking on his professional career in Germany with the Dragons Rhondorf. He played his NCAA career at NC-Asheville from 2014-2018 playing a total of 91 NCAA games. In his senior year he played 33 games averaging 11.2ppg, 4.6rpg, 3.3apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 48.9%, 3PT: 47.9%, FT: 76.2%. He spoke to Germanhoops.com earlier in the summer about basketball.

Raekwon thanks for talking to Germanhoops.com Where are you at the moment and how has your summer been coming along fresh out of school?

Right now I am currently back home enjoying my summer but also staying in the gym and working on my craft as I know its more important now than ever.


Before we get into the meat of the interview, I have to ask you about your unusual name. Does it have a special meaning and how did your parents come up with it?

My name was actually given to me by my brother, he listened to Raekwon the Chef apart of Wu tang Clan back in their day when it was really popular. My parents liked the name so they went with it.

Congrats on signing with German Pro B team Dragons Rhondorf. This was your first summer experiencing the professional transfer market. How was it for you and did you have a fair amount of offers or was it a tough go around?

The experience had me very anxious I mean I was basically putting all trust into my agent who is wonderful enough to get me the opportunity to play at the professional league. The waiting around for offers to come in got to me a little bit but it was all worth it in the end.

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The Fraport Skyliners Grind out Tough Pre-Season 76-73 Victory Against The Telekom Baskets Bonn

Recently a special old friend of the Fraport Skyliners was training at the BCM facilities and it didn´t take long for the secret to be reveled as it was ex Seton Hall(NCAA) standout Jordan Theodore who has had a whirlwind of a summer as months ago it was leaked he would go to Turkey, but then in September he was officially still part of the Milano team, but having the desire to play elsewhere as he and Milan weren´t the best fit, but they weren´t letting him out of his contract just yet. It would have been the announcement of the year and the best news since their 2016 Fiba Europe Cup title had they been able to sign Jordan Theodore, but the money demands must have been so high that Skyliner head coach Gordon Herbert most likely didn´t want to think about it, because so severe head aches would have needed extra extra strong pain relieving pills to digest the sum. For the Fraport Skyliners the pre-season has been less of a whirlwind, because for the first time in many years the club had picked up all their pieces early something that hadn´t been the norm as guys like Jordan Theodore and Andrew Rautins had been picked up very late in recent years. The Fraport Skyliners also didn´t have the most optimal pre-season conditions as numerous players were away for a time playing with their national teams for World Cup qualifying, but as always the club made the best out of the conditions. Less than a week before the begin of the 2018-2019 season, the Fraport Skyliners had their last test of the pre-season inviting their BBL neighbors Telekom Baskets Bonn over into their living room for a friendly battle and the full packed BCM crowd wasn´t disappointed as it was a dog fight in the second half which Frankfurt grinded out for the 76-73 win. The first half was a tale of two stories as the Fraport Skyliners dominated the first quarter while the Telekom Baskets Bonn fought back in the second quarter to get back into the game while the second half remained as tight as a full blown up NFL football as Bonn had the last two shots to send the game into OT, but were denied. After the last second win ex NBA player Erik Murphy reflected on the win and the pre-season. “We started slow the last games and this time wanted to come out with more energy. We played well on defense and executed on offense. They are a good team and we knew that it would be a battle. Our fast start helped us. We had foul trouble, but we locked in at the end and got the win. We are still learning how to deal with end of game situations, but we showed good things tonight”, stressed Fraport Skyliner forward Erik Murphy. The Telekom Baskets Bonn played a solid game that had it´s highs and lows, but just were unable to execute properly in the last two minutes. “The first 5-6 minutes of the game put us in a big hole. We showed resilience fighting back, but it´s hard to win in the BBL when your down by 15 points. Important was that we were able to stick together”, stressed ex Giessen 46er TJ DiLeo.

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Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and Josh Mayo of the Telekom Baskets Bonn in the BCM training facility of the Fraport Skyliners in Frankfurt

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The Clarance And Roach Show Spark The Fraport Skyliners Juniors Past The Dragons Rhondorf 75-68

It had been a very long off season for Dragons Rhondorf fans coupled with an extremely shaky pre-season that left some uneasy question marks as big as an overgrown pumpkin in the minds of many, but as the season opener against the Fraport Skyliners Juniors was finally here, some of that tension building up was simply relieved by the fact that the team was 0-0 and it was a home clash in a place where in the last season often good things had happened. The opponent Fraport Skyliners Juniors also rang a sweet bell in that last season the Dragons Rhondorf had supplied the home court fans with one of the most exciting games of the season with the unforgettable and magical Kameron Taylor buzzer beater where he sank a beautiful step back jumper over the out stretched hand of Jules Akodo and this master piece of a shot and ending couldn´t have been produced any better if the hero then would have been a Jordan, Lebron or Durant. It was one of those incredible endings that at that time really sparked the club and gave them the needed self confidence that they could win really nail bitters at any time. This season  there was no Kameron Taylor who had fled to Hungary to continue his career, but still a lot of hope that something magical could happen this season simply because that is how most feel at the start of a season where the cards are newly stacked and extra confidence brewing in that opening game. As always the Fraport Skyliners Juniors arrived in Rhondorf with their young German bucks as their youth program continues to build and develop guys further and this season seem like a real dangerous squad on paper. Many of the usual suspects were on board like Garai Zeeb, Konstantin Schubert and Armin Trotovac who combined boast more than 40 BBL games, but also had three new exciting faces on board from three different countries. The most interesting Swede Elijah Clarance who was top scorer at the 2018 European U-20 championships, young German big man Aaron Kayser who could be the next Johannes Voigtmann or Danilo Barthel and American JT Roach who is a rookie from Concordia-Irvine(NCAA2) and as usual one of those guys that Frankfurt reels in every season that has a lethal shot and will help the young kids. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors came into the game as huge favorites on paper, but after 40 minutes there wasn´t such a big difference between the two teams as Frankfurt squeezed out a hard fought 75-68 victory as the Clarance and Roach show combined for 41 points. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors showed inconsistency which isn´t surprising in the first game of the season while the Dragons Rhondorf were also rusty, but showed superb fighting qualities and had the heart of a lion. After the win Fraport Skyliners Juniors Swedish sensation Elijah Clarance was happy the club could escape wit a win. “I thought it was ok since it was the first time we played together as a team. We were shaky on offense, but great on defense. We played hard, stuck together and had good chemistry”, stated 2018 U-20 European champions top scorer Elijah Clarance. The Dragons Rhondorf played a spirited game, but there were two area´s where the club had huge deficits. “We had problems on the pick and roll defense and ball screens. We also had too many turnovers and I take blame. I had too many for a point guard”, stressed ex North Carolina Ashville guard Raekwon Miller.

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Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing Swedish shooting star Elijah Clarance who led the Fraport Skyliners with 21 points in the win

The first quarter was an ugly affair as one could see the opening day jitters that were rampant with both teams. Many misses on offense and turnovers were more prevalent in the first minutes than the beautiful sound of swishes. The Fraport Skyliners Juniors raced out to a quick 6-2 lead as Armin Trtovac gave his presence in the zone and Clarance dropped a trey. However the Dragons Rhondorf didn´t put their heads in the sand, but fought back and took the 7-6 lead getting a Julian Jasinski lay in who has played 21 BBL games with Hagen and Bonn and a trey by Miller who shot 47% in his senior year in the NCAA. The game was very even then as there were seven lead changes with ex St Johns forward Richard Freudenberg scored a runner, Lithuanian Zygimantas Riauka scored in the paint, Freudenberg made a two handed stuff, Miller made a finger tip roll in like Tiny Archibald back in the day, Brit Jules Akodo sunk free throws, 17 year old German Marc Klepser snuck inside back door as Riauka served up the sweet dime and ex Hanau center Tobias Jahn made a lay in as fans were offered some minor mouth dropping plays in the first few minutes.

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Justin Bibbs (Boston Celtics) Lives From His Artistic Precision

After a hard day of work outs at the Red Auerbach center in Boston, Boston Celtic rookie and Ohio native Justin Bibbs slouches back to his hotel like a tattered famished dog looking to shut off the basketball radar for a little time, but doesn´t do the typical free time activities that many guys might perform like breaking out the play station or walking the one block down the street to the sports bar to get the daily dose of sports, but sits down at a table with a piece pf paper and drawing utensils. The rookie looks like and plays like a very good basketball player, but he doesn´t only have precision artistic shooting on his resume, but also has artistic precision as he is a very talented drawer and has been doing it since he was a kid. When you ask the ex Virginia Tech guard about his zeal for drawing, his big eyes light up like the John Hancock building does when the Boston Red Sox and New England Patriots win a world championship. “When I was growing up, I was always watching cartoons and after watching the matrix movie, I started to draw trial and error. It was self-taught and I still do it today. I did a Dwayne Wade drawing when I was in high school. It is weird when I was a kid, I drew a Lebron James, but now that I am of age and have the possibility to play against him, I would never draw him now. Now I like to draw entertainers and musicians. I like to take random pictures and draw away”, stressed Justin Bibbs. Every day the American could have serious aches and pains just from turning his head back and forth seeing the amazing basketball excellence of guys like Kyrie Irving, Gordon Hayward, Al Horford, Jaylen Brown or a Jaysun Tatum and just get total inspiration for new drawings, but instead would rather draw Celtic legends instead of his current teammates. “I wouldn´t want to draw a current teammate, but rather Paul Pierce. I always looked up to him growing up. He wasn´t just a shooter, but an all-around great scorer”, smiled Justin Bibbs. His favorite own drawing is a Kobe Bryant when he had the afro. He gave it to his grad assistant at Virginia Tech who was a big Kobe Bryant fan. Not only did his artistic precision begin at a young age, but so did his basketball precision.

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Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing Justin Bibbs in Boston after a Boston Celtiics practice

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Can The Dragons Rhondorf Master A Positive Rebuilding Season?

A few weeks ago, Dragons Rhondorf fans had the first opportunity to witness Pro B basketball again during the Gezeiten Cup where they battled against easyCredit BBL teams and one could sense with many of the excited faces that the six month basketball vacation had been like a nasty eternity and thye were just happy to have the usual basketball experience again even if the lopsided scorers didn´t bother anyone because they weren´t supposed to annoy any of the first division teams. One saw many of the known faces off the court and even some shy new ones who were trying to get a feel for the atmosphere and the game. However there was very much different and one could sense on many of the hardcore Dragons fans that they were already playing mind games with themselves and playing out how the new season will run it´s course on September first. Off the court much was the same, but on the court the change of Dragon faces was as noticeable as it is for everyone that Jogi Low has his hands full with developing a new German national team. Obviously the two main scoring threats from last season Kameron Taylor and Viktor Frankl-Maus who almost combined for half of the team scoring had fled to greener pastures. Taylor went to Hungary where he should be a top player and team identity figure Frankl-Maus who wore the Dragons jersey for six seasons escaped to FC Bayern Munich 2, but who can blame him from going from the Rhein and beautiful family Dragons atmosphere to the Isar and high society of FC Bayern Munich where he can bump into a Uli Honess or Thomas Mueller as easily as he would in Rhondorf into a Dragons fan in their very small downtown area. Even if these two losses are serious blows, the club couldn´t even hold their role players as guys like Thomas Michel, Valentin Blass and Anton Geretzky also left leaving head coach Thomas Adelt with a totally new challenge of withstanding a massive team face lift and building a new team that will be competitive in the Pro B. Can the Dragons Rhondorf master a rebuilding season? One thing is for sure, many of the hardcore fans will have two dates crossed off in their home schedule with FC Bayern Munich and the RheinStars where they will be reunited with Frankl-Maus, Michel and Blass again.

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Kevin Franceschi (BBC Coburg) I’m Playing With A Big Chip On My Shoulder And I’m Just Going To Bring Maximum Intensity

Kevin Franceschi is a 24 year old 190cm guard from Argenteuil, France playing his second professional basketball season and first in Germany with Pro B team BBC Coburg. Last season as a rookie he played with BEHAPPY2 – CB Myrtia (Spain-LEB Silver) playing 30 games averaging 9.8ppg, 2.8rpg, 1.2apg, FGP: 49.2%, 3PT: 31.1%, FT: 62.2%. In the states he played with three schools with Weatherford JC (JUCO) playing 9 games averaging 5.6ppg, 1.7rpg, 2.0apg, FGP: 37.5%, 3PT: 10.5%, FT: 22.2%, UMKC (NCAA) playing 25 games averaging 2.6ppg and with Oklah.Baptist (NCAA2) playing 22 games averaging 13.9ppg, 4.9rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 38.9%, 3PT: 21.5%, FT: 82.7%. He spoke to eurobasket about basketball.

Kevin thanks for talking to eurobasket.com. Where are you at the moment and how has your summer been? 

Thanks for interviewing me. I’m in Texas at the moment and my summer has been great, happy to see the people I’m close with here and work on my game. 

Congrats on signing with German Pro B team BBC Coburg. You come from France, but lived abroad the last 5 years. What do you know in general about the country Germany and it’s basketball?

Thank you. I know that the Bundesliga is one of the best and most respected leagues in Europe, and that Germany has developed their basketball a lot over the last few years. I’m excited about this coming season. 

After having a solid rookie season in the Spanish Leb silver league, with what expectations are you coming to Germany? What are your personal goals in your second professional season besides the obvious winning?

I expect a lot about myself this season, I’m playing with a big chip on my shoulder, I worked really hard this summer. I am not thinking about any personal awards now, I’m just going to bring maximum intensity and give my team the best chances to compete in the playoffs. 

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Demetris Morant (Artland Dragons) I Wouldn’t Call Myself An Intimidator But I Could Be A Force When I’m So Close To The Basket

Demetris Morant is a 26 year old 203cm forward from Las Vegas playing his second professional season and first with the Artland Dragons. Last season as a rookie he played with Aris Thessaloniki (Greece-A1) playing 6 games averaging 2.7ppg, 2.3rpg; and in the BCL 3 games averaging 0.7ppg, 1.3rpg. He played a season at UNLV playing 13 NCAA games and then three seasons at FGCU (NCAA) playing 89 NCAA games and as a senior played 34 games averaging 10.5ppg, 7.9rpg, 1.4bpg, FGP: 75.6%, FT: 62.1%. He spoke to germanhoops.com  earlier in the summer about basketball.

 

 

 

 

Meech thanks for talking to germanhoops.com. Where are you at the moment and how has your summer been?

Hello Miles it’s nice to meet you. I’m currently in Hong Kong working out.

Before we get to the meat of the interview how did you obtain the nickname Meech?

Lol it’s funny because I actually got my nickname in high school from some random guy walking down the hallway and it just stuck ever since.

After a tough rookie season in Greece where you gained good experiences with the game and talented players, how did you enter your second professional season transfer market? What were you seeking as a player for your next move?

Coming into my second season I was just looking for a team that was willing to help develop me as a player and also a team that I could fit in their play style.

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Growing Up In Compton Made Iziahiah Sweeney Used To Facing And Overcoming Adversity And Didn´t Fear Anything But God

Iziahiah Sweeney is a 22 year old 193cm guard from Compton, California that recently played with the HowardHoops tour in the Dominican Republic. He began his basketball career at Compton High School and in 2014-2015 played at Portland St. (NCAA) playing 23 games averaging 3.0ppg. He then played a season at E.Los Angeles JC (JUCO) playing 29 games averaging 15.3ppg, 4.6rpg, 1.4apg, FGP: 53.2%, 3PT: 36.4%, FT: 63.6%. He reached the NCAA in 2016 an dplayed 56 games for Northwestern State (NCAA). In his junior year he played 29 games avergaing 8.4ppg, 3.8rpg, 1.1apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 41.7%, 3PT: 30.4%, FT: 68.8%. In his senior year at Northwestern St. (NCAA) he played 27 games averaging  11.1ppg, 3.6rpg, 1.4apg, FGP: 46.3%, 3PT: 25.0%, FT: 68.6%. He got his first pro experience with Team Miami (Eurobasket Summer League in Las Vegas) last summer. He spoke to germanhoops.com about basketball.

Iziahiah thanks for talking to germanhoops.com. Where are you at the moment and how is basketball life treating you?

I’m in Los Angeles, California working out and staying in shape just getting back from the Dominican Republic where I was playing on a tour team.

You recently finished at Northwestern St. (NCAA) and had a very solid two year career. It is mid September and you were recently in the Dominican Republic playing on a tour instead of already getting ready for your rookie season overseas. How did it come to this? I mean did you not find the right representation this summer?

Yes, I basically did not find the right representation and was misled by many people.

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