At first glance when watching a Jordan Theodore on the court, one most likely marvels first with his powerful, masterful, and unstoppable penetration that he can do at any moment in a game and gain instant points and is as automatic as it is for turning on a light switch. If the room is dark and you want to see better turn on the light. If the Fraport Skyliners are struggling and need a burst of energy and points, hand the ball to the ex Seton Hall guard because he will get you that bucket right away. However another big strength of his game is his defense and if you think about the best Frankfurt Skyliner defenders one most likely mentions Quantez Robertson and John Little first, but it is probably Jordan Theodore that is the most potent defender even if he doesn´t get the credit. Theodore leads the team in steals in the Beko BBL and Fiba Europe Cup and has notched steals in 25 of 37 games and is always a pest getting in passing lanes and just having unbelievable hands ready at all times. It is often the defense of Theodore that sparks the team offense and gets them in transition to get easy buckets. It is the play of Theodore and every other Skyliner on defense that has been the secret to the success of the team this season as everything that happens on the court revolves first with their defense. With their push defense and always help mentality that has gained them the #1 spot in the Beko BBL and Fiba Europe cup in team defense as they have allowed 69 and 63 points per game in the respective competitions. Frankfurt has played their best defense in the Fiba Europe Cup in their last three games against AEK and Maccabi Rischon as they have given up an average of only 53 points per game. With one win away from gaining the ticket to the Fiba Europe Cup top 4, the Fraport Skyliners had to travel to Israel and put up with a boisterous crowd of Maccabi Rischon fans and met a never dying Israeli team that trailed by as much as 14 points in the first half, but stepped it up in the second half winning the game 88-84 in OT. Everyone was awaiting another defensive masterpiece, but instead the 88 points were the most points that the Fraport Skyliners had given up in Fiba Europe Cup play and the second most this season after the loss to Alba Berlin. A 8-0 run to start the OT period got Maccabi Rishon in flow as they survived the mini Frankfurt comeback at the end. Maccabi Rishon was powered by ex George Mason center Darryl Monroe who was known in school as being the funny police as he controlled any joke that was told and if he laughed then it was clear that it was a good joke. There was no funny police or joking on his mind in this game, but he was all business and head of the mad police and he was on a mission and angry to force a game three and had an amazing game with 28 points, 14 boards and nine assists leading his team to a do or die game in Frankfurt. If Frankfurt had converted at a higher percentage at the free throw line, they most likely would be in the Fiba Europe Cup final 4 now. Maccabi Rishon showed a sense of urgency and were rewarded with a do or die ticket in Frankfurt. This game was very important because we felt we didn’t cone to play the first game, so this game we wanted to prove we are a better team than we showed. Coach did a great job making adjustments throughout the game. Him and the other coach really had us prepared”, stressed ex Xavier guard Mark Lyons. “We didn’t play well enough to win tonight. They were a better team for 45 mins. We made some crucial mistakes that cost us the game”, added Fraport Skyliner Jordan Theodore.
FIBA Europe Cup
Mark Lyons (Maccabi Rishon) I Have The Type Of Mentality That Can Rub Off On Other Players To Give It Their All
Mark Lyons is a 26 year old 185cm guard from Schenectady, New York playing his second season in Israel and first with Maccabi Rischon Le-Zion (Israel-Winner League). He started his basketball career at Xavier (NCAA) in 2009 playing three seasons there playing a total of 68 NCAA games. As a senior he moved to Arizona (NCAA) playing 36 games: 15.8ppg, 2.0rpg, 2.8apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 53.7%, 3PT: 33.7%, FT: 85.4%. In the 2013-2014 he started his professional basketball career with Chorale de Roanne Basket (France-ProA): 14 games: 10.1ppg, 1.2rpg, 1.6apg, 2FGP: 50.0%, 3FGP: 40.0%, FT: 61.1%, in Feb.’14 moved to KK Zadar (Croatia-A1) Adriatic League: 7 games: 13.7ppg, 2.0rpg, 3.4apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 41.7%, 3PT: 27.9%, FT: 66.7%; Croatian League: 14 games: Score-4(17.1ppg), 2.6rpg, 2.9apg, FGP: 44.6%, 3PT: 49.4%, FT: 75.5%. Last season he played for Ironi Nahariya (Israel-Winner League) playing 33 games: Score-2(18.4ppg), 2.8rpg, 4.7apg, Steals-5(1.9spg), FGP: 47.4%, 3PT: 32.0%, FT: 81.2%. He spoke to German Hoops before game two against the Fraport Skyliners in Fiba Europe Cup play.
Mark thanks for talking to German Hoops.You are playing Europe Cup play against the Fraport Skyliners in quarterfinal play. Was this your first time in Germany?
Yes it was my first time, thanks for having me.
What do you know in general about the country of Germany and it´s basketball? Your ex Xavier teammate Kenny Frease is in Germany at the moment playing ball.
I know it’s a good league, a few of my old teammates played in that league and they told me it was a great experience for them.
Phillip Scrubb Unleashes A Double Energy Pack Fueling The Fraport Skyliners Over Maccabi Rishon 92-57 For 1-0 Europe Cup Series Lead
Last weekend, Englewood New Jersey native Jordan Theodore was the happiest American in Munich as he was able to watch his alma mater Seton Hall win the 2016 Big East tournament in a tight 69-67 victory and rival Villanova as future NBA player in only his second year of school Isaiah Whitehead led his team with 26 points while all the excitement probably gave the Fraport Skyliner guard some flashbacks to his time in school. However 15 hours later, the win by his ex school wasn´t able to rub off on him and his German team Fraport Skyliners as they lost a very bitter game to FC Bayern Munich 78-76 as freak athlete Quantez Robertson was unable to hit a last second desperation shot. Even if the Fraport Skyliners have had misfortune in the last weeks against the big clubs in the Beko BBL losing to Alba Berlin and FC Bayern Munich on the last possession and in Bamberg, Jordan Theodore was able to hold his own against the top point guards. Even if ex Wisconsin guard Jordan Taylor of Alba Berlin had the last laugh in the cup semi-final winning the game on his last shot, statistically, Theodore outshone Taylor, Brad Wanamaker and Justin Cobbs in this time. This may be an unimportant consolation for Theodore, but what comes first is winning and in the Europe Cup, he has been perfect helping the Fraport Skyliners to a current perfect 14-0 record. With the focus being on team and winning, Theodore still continues to face top point guard competition every week and had his first meeting as a professional with upstate New York native Mark Lyons from Schenectady. Lyons played at Xavier reaching two NCAA Sweet 16 tournaments and played a season at Arizona(NCAA) where he hit Stanford for 25 points and Arizona State for 24 points. He has been a scorer all his life and never averaged more than three assists in his career until last season in Israel with Ironi Nahariya and this season is averaging five assists in the Israeli league and 4.8 in Europe Cup action. It was the duel between the penetrator Theodore and dangerous three point shooter Lyons as both guys were looking to help lead their respective teams to a 1-0 quarterfinal lead, but as usual it was the Fraport Skyliners who kept their amazing unbeaten streak in international competition alive at 15-0 with a big 92-57 win. The two point guards Theodore and Lyons were kept in the back-round which hurt the Israeli team more than Frankfurt since the German team has so many more weapons and a stronger bench and won with their potent presence of team basketball as everyone contributed in the offensive and defensive showcase. The Fraport Skyliners only need three more wins to win their third ever club title, while the alma mater of Theodore Seton Hall start their quest for an NCAA title today and have a chunk of work ahead needing seven wins. Just how much of Whitehead was on the mind of Theodore during the game is unknown, but after the win, the New Jersey native was in a talkative mood about his old school, Isaiah Whitehead and his current team Fraport Skyliners. “I think about my school Seton Hall a lot and they are doing a lot better than we ever did. I also think about Isaiah Whitehead, but I don´t know him too well, but know his coaches since they coached me. The coaching staff is doing a great job there. I will watch the Gonzaga game since we have no practice. Every player contributed tonight in our game. We didn´t always play well, but never gave up the lead. We can be a very dangerous team when all step up. I know that I have been getting a lot of hype recently, but it isn´t a one man show here. Anybody can step up at any-time”, stressed ex Seton Hall guard Jordan Theodore. S.Oliver Baskets Wurzburg guard Cameron Long was a neutral spectator watching his two ex teammates from George Mason Mike Morrison and Darryl Monroe and was impressed how Frankfurt wore down Maccabi Rischon. “It came down to the bench. Frankfurt outscored the opponents bench 44-17 and completely destroyed their bench. Everyone contributed and nobody for Frankfurt forces shots. Frankfurt has many good weapons. They are a hard team to guard when a different guy is scoring at will in each quarter”, added Cameron Long. The Israeli team had no answer how to stop the potent Frankfurt offense as they let up 92 points way above their average of 75 points per game, but also couldn´t do anything on the offensive end either. “One team came to play and we didn´t. We know that we are a lot better than this. It wasn´t about Frankfurt, but more about us. We didn´t play defense or execute on offense. I have to give credit to Frankfurt, because they played great”, said Maccabi Rischon Israeli Shawn Dawson.
Jordan Theodore Switches On Scoring Button Powering The Fraport Skyliners Into The Europe Cup Quarterfinals Past AEK Larnaca 56-44
The Fraport Skyliners went into the last weekend Beko BBL Top 4 in Munich with such high hopes of returning home with a third team title, but instead were home when it was still light out something that can be traced back to unneeded and unwanted water entering the Audi Dome court cancelling the game for third place. The Fraport Skyliners had a long bus ride to digest the bitter 79-76 loss against Alba Berlin in the semi-finals which puts their season record against head coach Sasa Obradovic and his boys at 0-2. The Fraport Skyliners were so close as the Jordan´s battled to the end, but Theodore made one shot too little as Taylor made the last one to make the victory stick. Maybe not being able to play the game for third place was a blessing in disguise as the club had many not so healthy players like Johannes Voigtmann, John Little, Aaron Dornekamp and Mike Morrison. One thing that has been beneficial to the Fraport Skyliners this season has been that whenever that they have suffered a loss in the beko BBL, they have been able to escape to the Europe Cup where they were always unbeaten and in the zone and something they could go into holding their chest high. The Fraport Skyliners dismantled of Cypriot team AEK Larnaca without difficulty at home 83-60 and now headed back to the warmth and palm trees of Cyprus to slam the door on AEK Larnaca and earn a ticket to the Europe Cup quarter finals. The Fraport Skyliners arrived Tuesday in sunny Larnaca with 21c and unending sunshine something that was more than appealing to Engelwood, New Jersey native Jordan Theodore who is used to the cold of home, but if any of his friends or family told him that on game day it wasn´t that much difference in temperature as it was unseasonally warm at 14c is unknown, but Theodore was in Cyprus not to go strolling down the beach, but to forcefully control the paint area with his quick steps and playmaking and win the game for the quarterfinals. The Fraport Skyliners had to go into a foreign arena again for the seventh time this season in Europe Cup play and once again left victorious as they gave a real battle in the trenches with AEK Larnaca winning 56-44 remaining undefeated at 14-0 and heading into the quarterfinals. “Tonight was a very ugly game for us. We came out not ready to play and it showed. We did miss a lot of open shots also. We were able to get stops when we needed them. We knew that this team was very good at home and they have two guys who can really shoot the three. They came out tough and matched our intensity in the beginning but our defense got us the win in the end. We were able to close out possessions with rebounds and get out and run”, stressed Fraport Skyliners guard Jordan Theodore. “Shots we usually make in our sleep didn’t fall tonight, I say for both teams, both teams played good defense but still I felt like we got the shots we wanted and they got the shots they wanted. They just made more plays at the end, the game could of went either way”, stressed AEK Larnaca guard Thaddeus Mcfadden.
Brandon Bowman (AEK Larnaca) I Still Wonder If My Career Would Have Gone Differently If I Had Won The Title With Bonn Over Oldenburg
Brandon Bowman is a 31 year old forward that was born in Beverly Hills, California and is playing his tenth professional season and his first with AEK Larnaca (Cyprus-Division A,) He played at Georgetown(NCAA) from 2002-2006 playing a total of 125 games reaching the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2006 and played with future NBA players like Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert. In 2006 he turned professional and played in the D-League and in countries like Italy, Serbia, Israel, Bulgaria, Korea and New Zealand. He reached the 2009 beko BBL final with the Telekom Baskets Bonn and was New Zealand NBL Champion with the Pacific Jewellers Saints (New Zealand-NBL) in 2014. Last season he played with medi Bayreuth (Germany-BBL) playing 33 games: averaging 13.4ppg, 5.2rpg, 1.7apg, 1.1spg, 2FGP: 55.1%, 3FGP: 31.4%, FT: 72.8% and also played with Atenienses de Manati (Puerto Rico-BSN, starting five): 5 games: 13.6ppg, 5.4rpg, FGP: 62.2%, 3PT: 25.0%, FT: 58.8%. He spoke to German Hoops before the Eurocup game against the Fraport Skyliners
Brandon thanks for talking to German Hoops. Welcome back to Germany. After stops in Bonn, Vechta and Bayreuth, you moved to Cyprus this season. Would you have liked to have returned last season to Germany. Did you have offers?
No problem Miles. To be honest I had some offers, but nothing serious. I had switched my agent and teams weren´t really looking at me. I would have liked to have come back to Germany, but I would have taken a pay cut.
You have moved to AEK Larnaca (Cyprus-Division A) What kind of experience has it been balling for this team this season?
It has been solid. I am living in a small country and it has good basketball. I know most imports that are playing in Cyprus. It is good to be in Germany playing Frankfurt again.
The Quantez Robertson And Jordan Theodore Shoot And Dish Duo Lead The Fraport Skyliners To 75-58 Win Against Rosa Radom and 12-0 Europe Cup Record
Despite the Fraport Skyliners having had three new strenuous challenges in the last week, the club was able to master each one in a manner as if what they did was the most self evident. It started 10 days ago as they were finally back in the cup format with the chance of advancing to the top 4 for the first time since 2011 in Bamberg, but had a difficult task to get there as they were facing the defending cup champions EWE Baskets Oldenburg in a do or die game, but they were playing in their own living room as they dominated the 2009 Beko BBL champion as ex Seton hall guard Jordan Theodore led the team to victory despite having a thinner rotation without German national player Danilo Barthel and Konstantin Klein. Three days later they played against probably their strongest opponent in the Europe Cup play with Royal Hali Gaziantep, but destroyed them 91-79 as they were once again without the two Germans, but also without Aaron Doornekamp and were led by Canadian rookie Philip Scrubb who poured home 26 points and held the ex NBA trio of Rautins, Williams and Stone combined to 31 points as once again they showed total team basketball and unselfishness something which continues not to be self evident in today´s game. Then four days ago against medi Bayreuth and again without the two key Germans, they showed some serious moral sticking together and when being down 18 points never gave up and this time the hero was the team, but crunch time hero was freak athlete Quantez Robertson who nailed a three pointer, made a steal and two handed dunk within 30 seconds to seal the team´s 10th win in a row. With so much basketball heroics happening in a short span of time, the question was could they do it again short handed in a totally meaningless game on the road for both teams as Frankfurt had qualified for the next round and Rosa Radom was out? The Fraport Skyliners had trounced Rosa Radom in the first game 91-61 as they had had five guys in double figures and were led by Jordan Theodore and Danilo Barthel with 16 points a piece. The Fraport Skyliners arrived in Poland with a 10 game winning streak and amazing 11-0 record in Europe Cup play, but without head coach Gordon Herbert who stayed in Frankfurt citing back problems as well as Canadian national player Aaron Doornekamp who had back problems and Johannes Voigtmann who had the flu. The Fraport Skyliners had a very thin rotation, but very hungry players that were looking to make an impact and did as the Fraport Skyliners remained unbeaten in Europe Cup play and go into the round of 16 with a perfect 12-0 record after disposing of Rosa Radom in Poland 75-58 winning their 11th game in a row. Especially Canadian Philip Scrubb continues to shine as he had the hot hand registering 19 points as his input was vital for the team. “It was a tough game all around. We struggled in the first half to find what we were going to do to beat this team. We have a lot of guys out and we had to adjust to playing with a different lineup. I think the second half was a lot better. We decided to play Skyliner basketball and you saw the results”, stressed ex Seton Hall point guard Jordan Theodore. “They played a better second half than us and hit some big 3s the key was those big 3s and they drew a lot of fouls”, stated Rosa Radom guard Torey Thomas.
Andrew Rautins (Royal Hali Gaziantep) Aaron Doornekamp Is One Of The Most Underrated Players That I Have Played With
Andrew Rautins is a 29 year old 193cm guard from Jamestown, New York that is playing his sixth professional season and first with Royal Hali Gaziantep (Turkey-BSL). He started his basketball career at Syracuse in 2005 playing there until 2010 reaching tow NIT Elite 8 tournaments and the NCAA Sweet 16. In 2010-2011 he started his professional career being drafted by New York Knicks (NBA,2rd(38). He played 5 games for the New York Knicks averaging 1.6ppg.In the 2011-2012 season he went to Europe and played for Lucentum Alicante (Spain-ACB): 17 games: 7.3ppg, 1.8rpg, 1.2apg, FGP: 35.3%, 3PT: 34.8%, FT: 80.0%. In the 2012-2013 season he played for the Oklahoma City Thunder (NBA), released in Oct.”12, in Nov.”12 signed at Tulsa 66ers (D-League): 51 games: 13.3ppg, 2.7rpg, 2.4apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 45.2%, 3PT: 43.8%, FT: 76.6%. In the 2013-2014 season he played for the Fraport Skyliners Frankfurt (Germany-BBL): 15 games: Score-3(17.6ppg), 4.3rpg, 3.6apg, FGP: 46.3%, 3PT: 42.4%, FT: 91.2%. Last season he played for Openjobmetis Varese (Italy-Serie A) playing 28 games averaging 12.0ppg, 4.6rpg, 2.3apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 32.9%, 3PT: 39.5%, FT: 81.4%. He spoke to German Hoops before the Europe Cup game against the Fraport Skyliners.
Andrew welcome back to Germany. It has been 2.5 years since you played your last game in a Fraport Skyliners jersey. Since then you played in Italy and now playing in Turkey with Royal Hali Gaziantep (Turkey-BSL). Has time flown by for you?
Time has really flown by since I played for the Fraport Skyliners. One is always starting some new kind of chapter in Europe and it just goes by faster with the short summers.
How much are you looking forward to playing in the Fraport arena where you had some big games. You had your biggest games on the road in Bremerhaven, Trier and Ulm, but is there a game you remember most fondly from the Fraport arena?
I don´t have one specific game that I can say I remember most in the Fraport arena. I remember that I always had a good feeling in the Fraport arena. It was always fun to play in that gym. The fans were amazing and Frankfurt is a great city. Everyone treated me very well there and the Fraport Skyliners is a great organization.
Terrico White (Enisey Krasnoyarsk) Being Fearless On The Court Came From My Childhood Where I Didn´t Want Anybody To Be Better Than Me
Terrico White is a 24 year old 196cm guard form Memphis Tennessee that is playing his fifth professional season and first for Enisey Krasnoyarsk (Russia-VTB). He played at Mississippi (NCAA)from 2008-2010 and as a senior played 35 games: 15.1ppg, 4.6rpg, 1.5apg, FGP: 43.0%, 3PT: 34.3%, FT: 71.4%. He was drafted by the Detroit Pistons in 2010 at #36 in the second round. As a rookie he fractured his foot and couldn´t play. In the 2011-2012 season he played for Idaho Stampede (D-League, starting five): 18 games: 12.6ppg, 3.3rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 53.2%, 3PT: 35.6%, FT: 62.2%. In the 2012-2013 season he moved to Europe and played for Radnicki Kragujevac (Serbia-A League, starting five): 12 games: 14.8ppg, 4.2rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 61.7%, 3PT: 28.6%, FT: 72.5%; Adriatic League: 27 games: 14.4ppg, 5.0rpg, 1.5apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 53.0%, 3PT: 33.0%, FT: 56.7%. Last season he played for Royal Hali Gaziantep (Turkey-TBL): 12 games: 3.4ppg, 1.8rpg; EuroChallenge: 9 games: 5.6ppg, 2.8rpg, 2FGP: 45.0%, 3FGP: 36.0%, FT: 71.4%, in Feb.’14 moved to Hapoel Eilat (Israel-Winner League, starting five): 15 games: 14.1ppg, 3.9rpg, 1.9apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 53.2%, 3PT: 43.2%, FT: 84.2%. He spoke to German Hoops before game one of the Eurochallenge quarterfinals against the Fraport Skyliners.
You are playing your first season for Enisey Krasnoyarsk (Russia-VTB). How would you compare the style of play between the Turkish and Israel leagues where you balled last season with the VTB league.
This is the first time I have played on a team mainly with Russian players, but in general I feel that the style of basketball is the same. It doesn´t matter in what country you are, basketball is basketball.
Currently Enisey Krasnoyarsk (Russia-VTB) is one of the teams near the end of the standings. Why has the team had difficulty this season not being able to have a better record? Has the injury of Kosta Perovic been a reason?
I don´t think that not having Perovic has been the reason. We have had lulls in the VTB league all season long. There have been 7-10 games that we have lost by 4-5 points. We take a 10-15 point lead in the first half and then fall apart in the second half. We just haven´t been focused the way we should.
German Hoops 