BBL

Wayne Bernard (Science City Jena) Sometimes A Simple One Second Look With A Head-Nod And Jenkins And Mcelroy Immediately Know What I’m Trying To Say

Wayne Bernard is a 35 year old 190cm guard from Poway, California playing his 14th professional season and ninth in Germany and third with Science City Jena. He started his basketball career at Davidson(NCAA) in 1999 where he played until 2003 playing a total of 99 NCAA games and as a senior played  27 games averaging 15.1ppg, 3.3rpg, 5.4apg, 1.7spg, FGP: 41.7%, 3PT: 38.1%, FT: 83.3%. He turned professional in 2003 and in his first five seasons played in Israel, Greece, Sweden, France and Finland. In 2008 he moved to Germany and has continued to play here playing three seasons with the Mitteldeutscher BC helping them move to the BBL in 2009, and then also gained further experience with Giessen, Ludwigsburg and Nurnberg. He spoke to German Hoops during the Christmas holidays before playing his 150th BBL game against the Fraport Skyliners.

Wayne thanks for talking to German Hoops. This is your ninth season in Germany. Could one say that Germany has become your second home?

Yes it definitely is. I have really grown to love the country. Definitely a lot different from the States, and “home” will always be “home”, but Germany has treated me so well these past nine seasons and I’ve appreciated my time being here.

This is also your ninth Christmas in Germany. What have you come to appreciate most about the holiday season in Germany and if you had to choose between Weissenfels, Giessen, Ludwigsburg, Nurnberg and Jena which city have you enjoyed most in this time?

CHRISTMAS MARKETS! By far. We don’t have many of these in the US, and the ones that are there, do not compare to the how big they are in Germany. I know everybody loves the Glühwein at the Christmas markets, but my favorite thing to buy when I’m there are the “Gebackene Mandeln” (baked  almonds), especially when they are warm. The city I’ve enjoyed the most during this time? Very difficult to say. But if I had to pick one, I would say Weissenfels in the year 2010. I say this because that was the first year my mother had ever been to Europe and she came to visit me. Watching her having a new experience in a new culture was like watching a child open their favorite Christmas present. It was great to see someone her age “become a happy child” again.

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Jack Cooley(MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg) The Attention To Detail In The NBA Is Always Over looked But It Had The Biggest Impact On Me

Jack Cooley is a 25 year old 206cm forward7center from Evanston, Illinois playing his fourth professional season and first with MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg (Germany-BBL). Last season he played with the  Utah Jazz (NBA), released in Oct.’15, later that month signed at Cleveland Cavaliers (NBA), released later that month, in Nov.’15 signed at Idaho Stampede (D-League): 6 games: 14.5ppg, 11.8rpg, 1.3apg, 1.8spg, 2FGP: 58.3%, FT: 63.0%, in Dec.’15 moved to Unicaja Malaga (Spain-Liga Endesa): 27 games: 5.5ppg, 3.7rpg, FGP: 57.0%, FT: 62.3%; Euroleague: 14 games: 6.3ppg,059, 4.3rpg, FGP: 60.0%, FT: 63.6%. He started his basketball career in 2009 with  Notre Dame (NCAA) where he played until 2013 playing a total of 123 NCAA games and as a senior played 35 games averaging 13.1ppg, 10.1rpg, 1.2bpg, FGP: 58.1%, 3PT: 50.0%, FT: 70.3%. He started his professional career in 2013 with Trabzonspor Basketbol (Turkey-TBL): 29 games: 12.5ppg, 6.8rpg, FGP: 61.5%, 3PT-1(66.7%), FT: 68.8%. In the 2014-2015 season he played with the Utah Jazz (NBA): 16 games: 1.7ppg, 1.6rpg, in Mar.’15 agreed terms with Idaho Stampede (D-League): 20 games: 16.8ppg, Reb-1(12.5rpg), 1.1apg, 1.3bpg, FGP: 60.5%, 3PT: 21.1%, FT: 69.0%. He spoke to German Hoops recently about his basketball career.

Jack thanks for talking to German Hoops Your playing your first season in Germany and first with the MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg. You are having a great season stat wise in both BBL and Champions League. Did you feel any pressure coming in to fill the shoes of ex NBA player Jon Brockman?

I did not feel any pressure coming in to fill Brockman’s shoes. He is a great player, who’s game I respect greatly, but I have not felt pressure to fill take his place. I came to this team because it is a great opportunity for my career going forward.

Early in  the easyCredit BBL season the team could have two more wins after narrow loses to BG Goettingen and the Fraport Skyliners. Recently you lost big to Bamberg and Ulm. Why do you feel is the team still so up and down on paper. One game the defense shines giving up 60 points to Bamberg, but then gives up 87 points to Bremerhaven?

We have had some close losses in the BBL, which has been frustrating, but it highlights how our team always fights out on the court. The defensive fluctuations are just typical of a season, different match ups can lead to different results. 

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It´s Another Normal Day At The Office For Bryce Taylor And FC Bayern Munich Toppling The Fraport Skyliners 77-57

He still has that bushy beard that started as a routine playoff beard a few years ago, but with time Danilo Barthel has seemed to have developed a fascination with the facial hair something that his mother may still be coming to terms with. But what is different, the Hedielberg native isn´t sitting on the bench next to the X block in the Fraport arena, but on the right side and the colors of the blue and white have turned into the bright red and even if the beginning letter to his team does begin with an F, many Fraport Skyliner fans have had  a hard time adjusting to the FC instead of the Fraport. After 167 games in the jersey of the Fraport Skyliners from 2011-2016, Barthel made the logical step last summer and joined Germany´s most famous sports brand FC Bayern Munich where he got two things he couldn´t get with Frankfurt with more dough and BBL title aspirations. In his time with the Fraport Skyliners, fans will never forget his poster dunk over Patrick Ewing jr in 2012 or his neverending hustle under the boards where he received more elbows, bruises and bloody noses than any other Skyliner in the last years. This season with FC Bayern Munich, Barthel has seen less action than with the Fraport Skyliners, but done the best out of his minutes as he was averaging 8,1ppg, 2,9rpg and 1,4apg in 11 minutes and 16 minutes per game coming into the Frankfurt game. The German has received stiff competition from other German national player and power forward Maxi Kleber and so far has had to be second fiddle as the ex Wurzburg player has the starting job position. The 25 year old 211cm power forward who had his taste of the NBA in the summer of 2014 where he played NBA Summer League with the Miami Heat returned back to his old stomping ground and living room of the Fraport arena and helped his team round out another normal day at the office by toppling the Fraport Skyliners 77-57 as they rebounded nicely from their embarrassing loss in Bonn where they relinquished 95 points.

After the huge victory, most of FC Bayern Munich was already on the bus, but Barthel was still making the rounds of greeting old friends and well wishers and finally reached the locker room 35 minutes after the game had ended and was elated about his return back to Frankfurt. (more…)

Danilo Barthel(FC Bayern Munich) Continues To Progress From Frankfurt To Munich Moving Up The Basketball Ladder

There was an instance in Danilo Barthel´s third season with the Fraport Skyliners where a rumor was leaked that the big man who had found a liking to facial hair in his tenure with Frankfurt was not remotely amused by having any kind of confrontation with the insect that has eight legs and at times franticly moves about as nervously as a Paris Hilton does at home in her walk through closet when she doesn´t find the matching outfit for her nightly engagement at some kind of fundraiser. Even if one would have to be very unlucky to meet a tarantula in the Nord west centrum mall where Barthel lived during his 5 year tenure, the little creature surely could of found bondage to the German´s hairy beard. Sometime in the 2013-2014 season, the 207cm forward who has made dunking a normal daily occurrence as much as it is for an Anthony Davis to get a double double found a spider in his mail box, but it soon was revealed that it was a fake rubber spider and the secret of his dislike for the quick runners was slowly lifted. Who the prankster was that placed the spider in the mail box of Barthel was never revealed, but I would have bet my special George Gervin autograph on prankster Jacob Burtschi or the silent and innocent looking Johannes Voigtmann. One thing that Barthel was not scared to present was his sharp and improving basketball skills on the court as he continued to develop since coming to Frankfurt in 2011. Barthel may be the first guy that will be half way to Siberia by the sight of a spider before a Quantez Roberton can be on the break from Frankfurt to Auburn, but if Beko BBL teams came upon the idea to place a spider on a rim to keep Barthel away, they better think twice, because despite his fear of the little creature, the rim is the best friend of the German on the court. That is probably the only place where Barthel will forget how disgusting a spider really is because nothing in safe around the rim when the 25 year old German is on flight. Barthel has made some crashing dunks over his years as he continues his career with FC Bayern Munich this season, but before he could sign on the dotted line and be able to meet Uli Hoeness on a more regular basis and pick his brain about FC Bayern Munich basketball, one has to remember that there was a reason why he was able to move to the charming city of Munich and woo fans there with his skills and that was his development with the Fraport Skyliners from 2011-2016.

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Carlos Medlock (Basketball Lowen Braunschweig) Looks To Stick In The BBL Like Stickum Did To Lester Hays

It really doesn´t matter what basketball player you ask in Germany that isn´t playing in the easyCredit BBL, they will answer that their ultimate goal of reaching it one day and the chance of that happening isn´t so off the rocker. What is funny the lower you go league wise, the more confident the player will get of their abilities while players in the Pro A are just as confident of their abilities, but seem to know that they are so close and will keep a more controlled mouth work as they know just having that one strong Pro A season plus having the right contact might be enough to be able to wear the jersey of that BBL club. The list of players that move up from league to league in Germany is as large as the beast magnitude that a guy like Demarcus Cousins displays each night and one of those guys that has experienced this move has been American Carlos Medlock of the Basketball Lowen Braunschweig. The 29 year old 183cm point guard needed some grooming in the Pro A, but so far this season the ex Eastern Michigan(NCAA) player has displayed that he can compete in one of the best leagues in Europe as in 11 games he is averaging 11,0ppg, 1,5rpg and 4,2apg while shooting 32% from downtown for the Basketball Lowen Braunschweig as he finally reached his goal even if it took a bit longer to reach.

After coming out of college, he had to start at the bottom and prove himself in the always improving English BBL league where he led the Guildford Heat to the British trophy while playing 17 games averaging 14.9ppg, 3.8rpg, Assists-4(4.6apg), 1.7spg, FGP: 48.0%, 3PT: 36.9%, FT: 64.1%. He already showed as a rookie, that he could recover in a grand way from a set back as he came over the pond after making his first experience in the D-League with the Utah Flash. There he noticed quickly that the D-league wasn´t his route as he played three games averaging 4.3ppg, 1.3rpg and instead of wasting a whole season there, he reacted quickly and came over to Europe to try his luck and in hindsight, it turned out to be the correct decision. After sitting out the season in 2011, he came back strong in 2012 and the next destination on his basketball map was Iceland a place that always turns into an adventure with the beautiful scenery, daylight issues and weather, but at least the road trips are short and it isn´t worth it to switch on the lab top as you will have reached your next destination before the opening credits of Suicide Squad have even ended. In Iceland he wore the jersey of U.M.F. Skallagrimur Borganes (Iceland-Dominos League) and one could be cautious, but still say with pride that the rest is history. Like many players before him, he tore up a weak league, but for some reason many players that have achieved success here have moved on to bigger and better things. Just ask a Derrick Allen who balled with Medlock last season in Vechta as he won the cup in Iceland in 2004 and after moved to the German BBL and is currently playing his 12th season in that league and for a time belonged to the top three power forwards. In Iceland Medlock played 24 games and was second in scoring averaging 27.2ppg), 4.4rpg, 4.8apg, Steals-5(2.3spg), FGP: 58.1%, 3PT: 36.9%, FT: 78.9%.

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The Fraport Skyliners Practice Conservativeness Instead Of Aggressiveness in Crunch-Time Falling To The EWE Baskets 80-77

Players come and go each season so developing an identity with one player over a longer period of time in the EasyCredit BBL at times can be as difficult as it is for Oklahoma Thunder fans for getting used to the fact that a Kevin Durat isn´t getting fed any longer from Russell Westbrook, but moreover from sniper Steph Curry. Of course there are so many exciting players to watch each weekend as so many bring their own special rare spice to the court, but there are really few players left that have been around in the league for a long time except for guys like Julius Jenkins and Immanuel Mcelroy who are riding out their stellar careers in Jena, but there are also other guys like  Rickey Paudling and Quantez Robertson who battled each other head to head since 2009 and just coming to the arena to watch them duel is worth the price of admission as they have been top players in the league for years. Together they have amassed 19 years and this season Paulding is in his 13th season and Robertson is in his eighth professional season. They have had some very interesting battles over the years as Robertson usually is on the floor having to stop the others team best players as well as supply his freak athleticism as well as his all-around play as he can fill up the stats sheet deep the way Tom Brady can NFL records. Paulding on the other hand is the bona fide leader that has been one of the most consistent offensive performers in the BBL since his arrival in 2007. His overall play and character have made him one of the BBL identity figures for years. Paulding is 34 and Robertson is 31 and it is hard to believe that between them, they only share three professional titles, but knowing the competitiveness of both guys and will to keep performing at a high level, they will probably play some more years.

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Thomas Scrubb (Giessen 46ers) My Summer With The National Team Really Helped Prepare Me For The BBL

Thomas Scrubb is a 25 year old 198cm forward from Vancouver, Canada that will play his second professional season in Germany with the Giessen 46ers and recently completed his rookie season with Joensuun Kataja Basket (Finland-Korisliiga) playing 40 games and averaging 14.1ppg, 7.5rpg, 1.9apg, 1.3spg, FGP-1(62.8%), 3PT-1(44.4%), FT: 79.0%; FIBA Europe Cup: 12 games: 12.3ppg, 8.1rpg, 2.2apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 65.4%, 3PT: 37.5%, FT: 86.4%. He played at Carleton University (CIS) from 2010-2015 with his brother and combined they won 16 titles with 10 CIS titles and 6 OUA titles. As a senior at Carleton he played 24 games averaging 17.5ppg, 8.5rpg, 3.5apg, FGP: 53.9%, 3PT: 49.0%, FT: 76.4%. He spoke to German Hoops after the 69-52 win at home against the Fraport Skyliners

Thomas congrats on the big 69-52 win against the Fraport Skyliners. The last time Giessen beat Frankfurt at home, you were 11years old. How does that make you feel knowing you had a big part in the win with 21 points?

Thanks. It definitely felt good to win. I am not too familiar with the Giessen Frankfurt rivalry but I could tell how much it meant to the fans so I am happy we were able to give them a win.

How disappointed were you that your brother Philip Scrubb couldn´t play. How difficult has it been waiting to finally compete against him as a professional?

Its been tough for Phil. I just want him to be back on the court as soon as possible. It would have been fun to play him since we’ve never had that opportunity but it just wasn’t meant to be.

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Rickey Paulding´s Shooting Ages Better Than Fine Wine

Flashing that big smile and showing those shiny whiteys after a very hard fought 40 minute battle with victory glistening all over their bright faces like John John from Sesame Street after remembering that 16 comes after 15 in his counting challenge with the lovable Herry back in the day is something that many American players have come to have practiced in the BBL over the years. No guys have displayed their pleasure of winning in the form of a excited smile over the years in the Beko BBL better then guys like former Fraport Skyliner Jimmy Mckinney ,ex Rhein Cologne point guard Michael Hakim Jordan who actually should of tried his go at Hollywood after his few masterful scenes in the German documentary Phoenix in Der Asche, but instead is an assistant at Colgate university which name is also the name of a well-known American tooth paste company. Rickey Paulding who is also known as Mr Oldenburg or if the city should ever be renamed then it would be fitting to call it in typical German manner Pauldingburg as he has made the comfortable city in north Germany his home since 2007 and never turned his back. The former NBA Draft Pick of hometown team Detroit Pistons is also a guy who can smile with the best of them. His enjoyment and smiling were at their all-time high in 2009 when the EWE Baskets Oldenburg won their first league title at the expense of the Telekom Baskets Bonn in a tough 5 game series. However between 2009-2015 a span of almost 6 years, the American went without a title, but reached a final against the Brose Baskets Bamberg in 2013.

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Braydon Hobbs(ratiopharm Ulm) Guarding Per Guenther Each Day In Practice Has Helped My Defense Big Time

 

Braydon Hobbs is a 27 year old 196cm point guard playing his third season in Germany and first with ratiopharm Ulm. Last season he played for the  Giessen 46ers playing 33 games averaging 10.5ppg, 5.2rpg, 4.8apg, Steals-3(1.7spg), FGP: 49.1%, 3PT: 42.2%, FT: 86.8%. Two seasons ago he played for  rent4office Nuernberg (Germany-ProA) where he averaged 11,9ppg, 4.1rpg, Assists-4(5.9apg), Steals-2(1.9spg), FGP: 55.8%, 3PT: 40.8%, FT: 82.4% . He started his basketball career in 2008 with Bellarmine (NCAA2) playing a total of 133 games. He turned professional in 2012 and played for Caceres Basket (Spain-LEB Gold, starting five): 35 games: 7.1ppg, 2.8rpg, 1.9apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 41.9%, 3PT: 34.7%, FT: 87.9%. In 2013-2014 he played for Alba Fehervar (Hungary-A Division, starting five): Eurocup: 10 games: 11.9ppg, 3.1rpg, 3.6apg, 1.7spg, FGP: 40.4%, 3PT: 52.3%; Hungarian League: 32 games: 9.1ppg, 4.2rpg, 3.4apg, Steals-2(2.3spg), FGP: 52.8%, 3PT: 32.7%, FT: 72.7%. He also played three summers professionally in Australia. He spoke to German Hoops after the 84-74 win against Science City Jena last week.

 

Congrats Braydon on the 84-74 win Jena. Another BBL game and another win putting the team at 9-0. Would this undefeated season feel any better if the Brose Baskets Bamberg weren´t present?

The start to the season has been great for us. I don’t think it would be any different if Bamberg wasn’t in the competition.

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There Will Be No Head To Head Dynamic Scrubb Duo In The Hessen Derby This Season

The basketball Hessen Derby is one of the highlight dates to mark each season along with the Big Three B games with Bamberg, Berlin and Bayern Munich as the rivalry between the Fraport Skyliners and Giessen 46ers is unmatched in the easyCredit BBL as in the last 10 years there have been some unforgettable games like the Desmond Ferguson 30 point game in Giessen or the Rouven Roessler buzzer beater in Frankfurt which left the one or another hardcore fan with the name Rousler forever enshrined in his mind. But there was also a down period from 2013-2015 where the Hessen Derby between the two clubs was absent as the Giessen 46ers moved down to the Pro A and came back to the BBL in 2015 thanks to the hardnosed and precise coaching of ex German national player Denis Wucherer. The Hessen Derby has a special explosive force every season simply because of the intense atmosphere especially in the Giessen arena, but also because of the fan support, but this season this out of the ordinary rivalry was getting a special player spice that it had never seen before, but unfortunately there will be no head to head dynamic Scrubb Duo in the Hessen Derby this season. It is not every day that there are two brothers playing in the easyCredit BBL, but even rarer when two brothers of the amazing magnitude of Philipp Scrubb and Thomas Scrubb who are legends at Carleton university in Canada and would probably be even more known if the country didn´t have ice hockey as their main sport. Philipp Scrubb already wooed the BBL last season with the Fraport Skyliners coming in mid season and being a vital spark plug from the bench and was a key contributor in their success and winning the Fiba Europe cup. He shone with his all-around stellar play and total unselfishness of a player even if his deadly shooting stood in the focus. Even if they would have been foes on the court this weekend, it is refreshing to know how thankful one brother was for having the chance to play together with his brother in college. “It was great playing with my brother during my university career. We never won together in high school so it was great to win so much together at Carleton”, added Thomas Scrubb.

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