Interviews

Austin Steed (Artland Dragons) The Offense Is Great And We Are All Clicking Now As A Team

Austin Steed is a 27 year old 203cm forward from Hephzibah, Georgia playing his third professional season and second in Germany and first with Pro B team Artland Dragons. He started his basketball career in 2007 with S.Carolina (NCAA) where he played until 2010 playing a total of 67 NCAA games. He played his senior year at E.Carolina (NCAA) playing  15 games: 4.1ppg, 4.3rpg. He started his professional basketball career in 2012 with City Basket Recklinghausen (Germany-ProB) playing  24 games averaging 8.0ppg, 4.0rpg, 1.1bpg, FGP: 55.3%, FT: 73.5%. Last season he played for Baerum Basket (Norway-BLNO) playing 21 games averaging 14.2ppg, Reb-5(8.9rpg), 1.3apg, 1.6spg, Blocks-1(2.9bpg), FGP: 50.6%, 3PT: 28.6%, FT: 63.2%. He started this season with Olimpi Tbilisi (Georgia-Superleague) playing  13 games averaging 7.5ppg, 6.8rpg, 1.2apg, 1.3bpg, 2FGP: 41.2%, FT: 70.8%. He spoke to German Hoops before the playoff series against the Fraport Skyliners Juniors.

Austin thanks for talking to eurobasket.com. How glad are you to be playing professional again after not being able to play last season?

Very excited about being able to play again this season! Worked hard to get myself back to playing!

After spending your first two professional seasons in Germany and Norway, you have split this season in Georgia and Germany. What was the toughest thing about playing for two teams this season?

After adjusting to each team and the style of play it was pretty easy. At the end of the day it’s all basketball and what I love doing!

(more…)

Ken Horton (medi Bayreuth) We Just Need To Play Like How We Know We Can And Have Fun Out There

Ken Horton is a 25 year old 199cm forward from Ossining, New York that is playing his fourth professional season and first in Germany with medi Bayreuth which is his sixth team. Last season he tore up the league in Finland playing for Joensuun Kataja Basket (Finland-Korisliiga) winning the league title and playing 55 games: 16.2ppg, 8.6rpg, 1.5apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 58.8%, 3PT: 37.1%, FT: 86.8%; EuroChallenge: 6 games: 17.3ppg, 5.3rpg, 2.0apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 76.3%, 3PT: 43.3%, FT: 87.5%. He started his basketball career with Cent.Conn.St. (NCAA) in 2007 and as a senior played 28 games averaging 19.0ppg, 8.9rpg, 1.7apg, 2.1spg, 1.4bpg, FGP: 59.8%, 3PT: 31.3%, FT: 80.2%. He started his professional basketball career in 2012 with SO Maritime Boulogne (France-ProB): 16 games: 12.5ppg, 5.4rpg, 1.3spg, 2FGP: 62.5%, 3FGP: 25.8%, FT: 75.9%, in Mar.’13 moved to Forex Time Apollon (Cyprus-Division A): 2 games: 12.0ppg, 9.5rpg, 1.0apg, 1.5spg. IN the 2013-2014 season he played for teams Huracanes de Tampico (Mexico-LNBP)playing 16 games: and averaging 17.1ppg, 7.6rpg, 2.1apg, 1.4spg, 2FGP: 59.1%, 3FGP: 24.1%, FT: 87.0% and Ballarat Miners (Australia-SEABL) playingb 18 games averaging 19.6ppg, 11.3rpg, 1.7apg, 1.8spg, Blocks-2(9.7bpg), FGP: 47.2%, 3PT: 27.3%, FT: 39.9%. He spoke to German Hoops after the big 80-77 win in Ulm.

Ken thanks for talking to German Hoops. Congrats on the big 80-77 win in Ulm. Medi Bayreuth obviously didn´t want to lose in crunch time again. What lessons did the team learn after the bitter loss against the Giessen 46ers?

It was definitely a huge win for us. After that last second loss last week against Giessen we had to come out and work even harder. Also we remember how the game against Ulm was last time we were in the game the whole time then folded at the end we didn’t want to let that happen again.

This was a very tight game throughout where one would never have noticed that there was any difference in skill or standings position between both clubs. Does this continue to be one of the allurements to be playing in this league for you where generally most clubs can play with everyone?

Yeah and that’s one of the things that I like the most about this league, all the teams can play with everyone and in some cases even beat everyone, that makes it more fun knowing on any given night anybody can and no game is a for sure win.

(more…)

Lakeem Jackson (RheinStars) We Still Want To Make The Playoffs But We Have To Take These Games One At A Time

Lakeem Jackson is a 24 year old 196cm forward from Charlotte, North Carolina that is playing his professional season and first in Germany with German Pro A team RheinStars. He played his first two professional seasons with BK Iskra Svit (Slovakia-SBL). He started his basketball career in 2009 with South Carolina(NCAA) where he played a total of 120 NCAA games and as a senior played 32 games averaging 7.5ppg, 5.9rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 56.0%, 3PT: 40.0%, FT: 33.9%. He spoke to German Hoops after the 74-69 loss against the Hebeisen White Wings Hanau.

Lakeem thanks for talking to German Hoops A tough 74-69 loss to the Hebeisen Baskets Hanau. After an offensive second and third quarter, where did both teams find the energy to buckle down and give that extra on the defensive end in the fourth quarter?

I think it just came from both teams wanting to win.

The Hebeisen White Wings Hanau had an annoying 8-0 run to start the fourth quarter. Was that the ultimate dagger that cut into the heart of the RhieinStars?

I don’t think that was the case. Down the stretch of the 4th we had some free throws that didn’t fall and also some rebounds we didn’t come up with.

The RheinStars got crushed on the boards 53-28. Do you ever remember getting hit for 22 offensive rebounds in your career?

Yeah that was definitely the part of the game that hurt us the most. But we still had a chance to tie the game with 8 seconds left. Which is really rare.

(more…)

TJ DiLeo (Giessen 46ers) Jordan Theodore Is An MVP Candidate Especially Because Of The Season Frankfurt Is Having

TJ DiLeo is a 25 year old 190cm guard from New Jersey that also has the German citizenship and is playing his third professional season and third for the Giessen 46ers this season. As a rookie with Giessen he played 38 games averaging  10.2ppg, 2.8rpg, 2.5apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 48.8%, 3PT: 34.4%, FT: 74.6%. Last season he played 38 games averaging 9.9ppg, 4.1rpg, 3.9apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 50.3%, 3PT: 36.6%, FT: 82.7% He played at Temple from 2008-2013 playing a total of 126 NCAA games. In 2010, he played for the German U20 National Team in 2010 and played for the European Championships U20 in Croatia  playing 9 games: 10.7ppg, 2.9rpg, 1.8apg, 1.1spg, FGP. He spoke to eurobasket after the 86-61 loss to the Fraport Skyliners.

T.J thanks for talking to German Hoops. A tough 86-61 loss to the hands of the Fraport Skyliners at home snapping a 4 game winning streak In the third quarter, Giessen was trailing by 10 points and in the fourth quarter halfway through Frankfurt closed the door extending the lead by 20 points. Frankfurt wore Giessen down. Did the last weeks of crunch time wins wear the team down a bit mentally?

I don’t think it was our previous games, more Frankfurt’s style of play. They are a great team. We knew this game would be different than the last few. I actually think learning to win close games will help us in the future, because we undoubtedly will have some more this season. Unfortunately we couldn’t keep it close today

Giessen has a deep rotation and played all 12 players, but the Fraport Skyliners still wore you down. How does the style of the Fraport Skyliners wear teams down?

They are very physical and disciplined. They play hard for 40 minutes, they stick to their principles, and they eventually wear you down. Defensively, their guards are almost unscreenable, and they have great rotations from their bigs and weakside players. Offensively they play their systems very well. Their spacing is good and they have great chemistry especially with their bigs.

(more…)

Ricky Kreklow (Bayer Giants Leverkusen) One Thing That We should Have Control Over Is How Hard We Play As A Team On The Defensive End

Ricky Kreklow is a 23 year old 201cm forward from Columbia, Missouri that is playing his professional rookie season in Germany with the Bayer Giants Leverkusen. He comes from a sports family as his Father is head coach of the Missouri women’s volleyball team and also played 25 games for the 1980-81 NBA World Champion Boston Celtics, while mother is former head women’s volleyball coach at Missouri and current Director of Volleyball Operations. He played at three colleges in four years with Missouri as a freshman, California in his second and third seasons and with Creighton as a senior. He played a total og 98 NCAA games at the three schools and despite much movement was able to improve his scoring and rebounding average each season in the NCAA. As a senior at Creighton he played 31 games averaging 7.5ppg, 3.1rpg, 1.5apg, FGP: 50.8%, 3PT: 38.7%, FT: 72.9%. He spoke to German Hoops before the game against Baunach.

Rick thanks for talking to German Hoops. A tough 61-55 loss to the hands of the Finke Baskets Paderborn last weekend. It was the sixth loss this season by six points or less. How sick are you of losing close games this season?

Losing games like our loss to Finke Baskets Paderborn is always tough.

It was a grind out win for the Finke Baskets. What was key in the fourth quarter that Leverkusen was unable to get over the hump and go on some sort of a run?

We just made a few too many mistakes down the stretch that hurt our chances of winning that game. It has happened to us multiple times this season. In these close games we cannot afford to take bad shots or make careless turnovers and unfortunately we just haven’t been sharp late in games.

(more…)

Lorne Jackson (ScanPlus Baskets) Seeing Many Talented Players In The D-League Opens Your Eyes To How Hard You Actually Have To Work

Lorne Jackson is a 25 year old 188cm point guard from Simi Valley, California playing his third professional season and first with the ScanPlus Baskets Elchingen (Germany-ProB). He played at Pepperdine (NCAA) from 2008-2013 playing a total of 125 NCAA games and as a senior he played 30 games averaging 13.6ppg, 3.7rpg, 2.8apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 49.7%, 3PT: 29.1%, FT: 78.6%. He started his professional career in 2013 with the Canton Charge (D-League) and last season played in Oman. He spoke to German Hoops before the game against the Fraport Skyliners Juniors.

 

 

Lorne thanks for talking to German Hoops. A tough 99-93 loss last weekend against Weissenhorn. The Scanplus Baskets gave up 13 points in the first quarter, but 86 points in the last three quarters. Why did the defense breakdown in the last 30 minutes?

We played a good game but we had a defensive let down in the second half giving away too many easy shots and too many offensive rebounds. To put it simply they just outworked us in the second half

How much does it annoy you that The Scanplus Baskets shot 55% combined from the field and outside, but you still lose the ball game?

Its tough that we shot well but still lost the game. We just didn’t make some of the plays that we needed to make in order to win the game.

(more…)

Thomas Spagnolo (ScanPlus Baskets) I Think I Have Steadily Improved Over The Course Of The Season, But I Still Have A Lot Of Room To Grow

Thomas Spagnolo is a 24 year old 201cm forward from West Jefferson, North Carolina that is playing his rookie season in Germany with the ScanPlus Baskets Elchingen (Germany-ProB). He started his basketball career in 2009 with Radford (NCAA) where he played until 2011. He then moved to : Appalachian St. (NCAA) playing 70 NCAA games in three years and as a senior played 29 games: 9.7ppg, 7.0rpg, 1.0apg, FGP: 51.9%, 3PT: 35.3%, FT: 73.0%. In his first three games with the the ScanPlus Baskets Elchingen he is averaging 17,3ppg and 9,7rpg. He spoke to German Hoops before the game against the Fraport Skyliners Juniors.

 

 

Thomas thanks for talking to German Hoops. A tough 99-93 loss last weekend against Weissenhorn. The Scanplus Baskets gave up 13 points in the first quarter, but 86 points in the last three quarters. Why did the defense breakdown in the last 30 minutes?

As a team, I think we might’ve given into fatigue, and we allowed Weissenhorn to get open shots and offensive rebounds. It is unfortunate that we lost, but it was a great environment to play in.

How much does it annoy you that The Scanplus Baskets shot 55% combined from the field and outside, but you still lose the ball game?

Anytime you shoot that well, and score 93 points you should win the game; so it just reiterates our need to focus better defensively and sustain our energy levels.

(more…)

Kerron Johnson (MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg) John Patrick Has Been The Best Coach I Have Had Since Being A Pro So Coming Back Was A No Brainer

Kerron Johnson is a 25 year old 185cm point guard from Huntsville, Alabama playing his third professional season and second in Germany with the MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg. Last season with Ludwigsburg, he played 34 games averaging 14.2ppg, 2.7rpg, 3.8apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 50.2%, 3PT: 32.0%, FT: 79.2% As a rookie in the 2013-2014 season, he played with the New Zealand Breakers (Australia-NBL) playing 28 games averaging 12.6ppg, 2.8rpg, Assists-5(4.3apg), Steals-5(1.2spg), FGP: 56.9%, 3PT: 31.1%, FT: 59.8%. He started his basketball career in 2009 with Belmont(NCAA) playing a total of 133 NCAA games and as a senior played 34 games: 14.2ppg, 3.1rpg, 4.7apg, 1.7spg, FGP: 50.0%, 3PT: 29.5%, FT: 77.8%. He started the season with SPO Rouen Basket (France-ProA) playing 15 games: averaging 7.6ppg, 2.1rpg, 3.1apg, 2FGP: 51.9%, 3FGP: 30.6%, FT: 65.8%. He moved back to Ludwigsburg in December 2015 and since his return has helped John Patrick and co to a 6-1 record in the Beko BBL scoring in double figures in six of seven games and was instrumental in the 90-80 win against Alba Berlin pouring in 20 points. He spoke to German Hoops recently talking about returning back to an old stomping ground.

Kerron welcome back to the Beko BBL and the MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg. When looking back at the success of the team last season as well as your role, why didn´t you just remain this season?

It was just a decision I made at the time that I thought was best for me.

What did you miss most from last season? The great coaching of John Patrick, the yummy Spätzle(curled noodles) or getting nice screens from Jon Brockman?

Hahaha all 3 JP is the best coach I’ve had since becoming a pro and Brock definitely helps you get open. So for me coming back was a no brainier.

(more…)

Lou Campbell (Strasbourg IG) Playing For Strasbourg IG Has Been The Resurrection Of My Career

Louis Campbell is a 36 year old 190cm point guard from Rahway, New Jersey that is playing his 14th professional season and fourth with Strasbourg IG. He played at Buffalo(NCAA) from 1998-2002. IN 2002 he started his professional basketball career with Paderborn where he played until 2004. He then played two seasons with Giessen. He then played for Toyota Alvark (Japan-Superleague) from 2006-2009. IN 2009-2010 he came back to Germany and played for the Eisbaeren Bremerhaven (Germany-1.Bundesliga) playing 43 games: 13.0ppg, 3.6rpg, Assists-2(5.7apg), 1.1spg, FGP: 48.7%, 3PT: 35.2%, FT: 81.6%. In 2010-2011 he played for the EWE Baskets Oldenburg (Germany-1.Bundesliga, starting five): EuroCup: 6 games: 9.0ppg, 2.2rpg, 4.0apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 47.8%, 3PT: 25.9%, FT: 78.6%; German League: 40 games: 9.8ppg, 2.4rpg, 3.4apg, 1.1spg, FGP: 49.6%, 3PT: 27.8%, FT: 82.1%. IN 2011-2012 he played for the Walter Tigers Tuebingen (Germany-1.Bundesliga) playing 34 games: 9.6ppg, 3.6rpg, 4.1apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 49.2%, 3PT: 31.5%, FT: 81.0%. He spoke to German Hoops before the Eurocup game 2 against the EWE Baskets Oldenburg.

Thanks Lou for talking to German Hoops Welcome back to Oldenburg. You played one season in Oldenburg before moving to Tuebingen. When you look back at that one season, would you not have liked to have stayed longer?

I was unhappy with the situation there. That is how it goes sometimes and is part of the job.

What was one thing that you always adored about the city of Oldenburg and something that you can understand kept a guy like Ricky Paulding there since 2007?

To be honest when I played for the EWE Baskets Oldenburg, I didn´t see much of the area. I was totally focused on basketball. It was a rough situation for me that season. Paulding found a good situation for himself and his family. It isn´t always easy to find the perfect place for the player and his family. It was like a perfect storm for him. He is a good player and person. What was most important was that it was a good fit for him, his family and the team.

(more…)

Jordan Riewer (Gotha) We Want To Be Playing Our Best Basketball Going Into The Playoffs

Jordan Riewer is a 24 year old 188cm guard from Staples, Minnesota that is playing his first professional season in Germany for Gotha. He played at MSU Moorhead (NCAA2) from 2010-2015 and as a senior played 25 games averaging 15.9ppg, 4.8rpg, 5.8apg, FGP: 48.3%, 3PT: 49.6%, FT: 94.6%. Currently he is averaging 8,9ppg, 1,3rpg and 1,8apg. He spoke to German Hoops after the huge 93-47 victory against the Dragons Rhondorf.

Jordan thanks for talking to German Hoops. Congrats on the 93-47 victory against Rhondorf. Was getting this win as easy as the result shows?

No win is easy especially in the competitive Pro A. This was another great win for us.

Gotha has let up 48 points to Nurnberg and 53 points to Cologne. Giving up 47 points to Rhondorf was the least amount of points the club has given up this season to one team. Does the point total also equal the best defensive performance of the season?

I think it’s something we are slowly getting better at and doing a better job at following our rules and just playing team defense.

You won every quarter as a team, but had a super balance of great defense and offense for 40minutes. Was this one of those nights where nothing could go wrong for Gotha?

We actually started out a little slow but after about 5 minutes we got going and we got good shots and kept sharing the basketball which made it another fun team win.

(more…)