ProB

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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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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Leslee Smith (Iserlohn Kangaroos) My Sleight Of Hand And My Nimbleness Helps Me Get Deflections And Create Turnovers For The Opposing Team

Leslee Smith is a 28 year old 203cm forward from Humble, Texas that is going into his fourth professional season and first with the Iserlohn Kangaroos (Germany-ProB). He played the last two seasons with the Bristol Academy Flyers (United Kingdom-BBL) and two seasons ago played 34 games averaging 12.0ppg, 7.6rpg, 1.1apg, 1.3spg, FGP: 49.5%, 3PT: 23.8%, FT: 81.5% and last season played 30 games averaging 10.9ppg, 7.4rpg, 1.8apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 42.4%, 3PT: 31.6%, FT: 69.6%. He began his professional career in 2015 with Entretanto Meta La Salle Tarija (Bolivia-Libobasquet) and ten played with Olimpi Tbilisi (Georgia-Superleague) playing14 games: Score-4(17.4ppg), Reb-2(12.0rpg), 1.9apg, Steals-2(2.4spg), Blocks-3(1.6bpg), FGP: 46.8%, 3PT: 24.0%, FT: 63.5%. He played college ball at SMU (NCAA) playing 25 games averaging 3.8ppg, 3.4rpg, 1.2apg. He then played a season at Seward County CC (JUCO) before finishing at Nebraska (NCAA) playing 30 games averaging 5.6ppg, 4.9rpg, FGP: 52.8%, FT: 62.7% and in his senior year played 17 games averaging 3.1ppg, 3.1rpg. He spoke to germanhoops.com about basketball earlier in the summer.

Leslee thanks for talking to germanhoops.com. Where are you at the moment and how have you been enjoying your summer?

I am currently in Dallas Texas and my summer has been going well so far thanks

Welcome to Germany. What do you know about the country and it´s basketball? Did you get some tips from your ex teammates at Nebraska(NCAA) Shavon Shields and Tai Webster?

I have not really done much research yet on Germany, but I do know Germany is one of the few countries that has a very high reputation in basketball. I have not spoken to either about their experiences in Germany yet.

After two solid seasons with the Bristol Academy Flyers (United Kingdom-BBL) you decided to move to Iserlohn that play in the German Pro B. You stated you have always wanted to play in Germany. What has fascinated you so much about playing in Germany?

Just the respect that Germany has in the basketball world somewhat draws me towards it along with history of pros produced there, and the level of competition.

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Hayden Lescault Knows A lot Of Guys Come Overseas Chasing Individual Glory But That Has Never Been His Game

Hayden Lescault is a 26 year old 196cm guard from Folsam, California that recently completed his third professional season and first with the ScanPlus Baskets Elchingen (Germany-ProB) averaging 14,0ppg, 4,7rpg and 3,8apg.. Last season he played with the Glasgow Rocks (United Kingdom-BBL) playing 35 games averaging 12.9ppg, 4.2rpg, 3.5apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 57.1%, 3PT: 31.4%, FT: 75.3%. As a rookie he played with BG Karlsruhe (Germany-ProB) playing 25 games averaging 13.8ppg, 3.4rpg, 2.6apg, FGP: 55.1%, 3PT: 36.2%, FT: 71.8%. He played at Point Loma (NCAA2) from 2011-2015 and as a senior played 21 games averaging 11.5ppg, 4.1rpg, 3.7apg, 2.1spg, FGP: 52.9%, 3PT: 29.7%, FT: 78.7%. In his junior season he won the NCAA 2 title and played 30 games averaging 16.6ppg, 3.5rpg, 3.8apg, 1.7spg, FGP: 52.4%, 3PT: 38.8%, FT: 72.5%. He spoke to German Hoops after helping the ScanPlus Baskets win the pro B title.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing Hayden Lescault after dropping 31 points and a buzzer beater in the 87-84 win against the Fraport Skyliners Juniors in Frankfurt

Hayden thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and how have you been enjoying your early off season best?

I’m back in Sacramento right now and I’ve just been enjoying being around my family and friends. Working out and golfing.

Did you go rewarding yourself after the great season with some sightseeing in Europe or did you go home right away? If so what was the first eatery that you went to on your return home?

I was actually on a plane home only 3 days after the final and I went straight to Chipotle.

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Dennis Mavin Feels Like He Isn´t Far Away From Being Able To Match Up Against The Best In The easyCredit BBL

Dennis Mavin is a 26 year old 190cm guard form Gainsville, Florida that recently completed his third professional season with the Giessen 46ers where he played two BBL games and also 9 games for their farm team in the Pro B averaging 18,4ppg,3,6rpg and 2,6apg while shooting 36% from outside. He played his first two professional seasons in Morocco winning 2 titles. He played a total of 123 NCAA games for two schools with Florida Atlantic (NCAA) and FIU (NCAA). In his senior year at FIU (NCAA) he played 33 games averaging 17.2ppg, 5.3rpg, 3.1apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 47.2%, 3PT: 31.3%, FT: 64.3%. He spoke to German Hoops at the end of his third professional season in Germany.

Dennis thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and what was the first eatery that you scoped out when you returned home?

At the moment I’m in the Bahamas on vacation enjoying myself before the summer grind. The first restaurant I went to was “Yamato” a Japanese restaurant.

After playing two seasons in Morocco, how did you experience playing your first season in Europe? Is this a territory where you want too remain for good in the next years?

My first season in Germany was amazing. I was blessed to be a part of such a great organization with so much history like the 46ers. I couldn’t have asked for a better situation. Europe is definitely a spot I want to remain at.

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Byron Sanford Demonstrated As A Rookie That He Can Overcome Adversity Quickly And Be Efficient And Effective

Byron Sanford is a 25 year old 183cm guard from Louisville, Kentucky that completed his rookie professional basketball season in Germany with BBC Coburg averaging 11,6ppg, 4,6rpg and 2,5apg.. He played at Trevecca Naz. (NCAA2) and really excelled in his last two seasons as a junior he played 17 games averaging17.2ppg, 6.5rpg, 4.2apg, Steals-3(2.9spg), FGP: 55.5%, 3PT: 27.3%, FT: 72.0%. In his senior year at Trevecca Naz. (NCAA2) he played 32 games averaging 18.4ppg, 7.6rpg, 4.2apg, 1.8spg, FGP: 49.4%, 3PT: 39.1%, FT: 69.5%. He was the G-MAC Player of the Year in 2016. He spoke to German Hoops after completing his rookie season in Germany.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing Byron Sanford of BBC Coburg after hitting Frankfurt for 16 points in a bitter 76-73 loss on the road

Byron thanks for talking to German Hoops. You just compelted your rookie season in Germany with BBC Coburg. If someone had told you in September that the team would move back down to the Regionaliga would you have believed it?

No problem always a pleasure to talk with you. Never would have thought the season would have went the way it did. It was definitely a learning experience and something we can look back and all grow from.

After such a great first season where BBC Coburg moved from the Regionaliga to the Pro B, how disappointing is the fact that the club was unable to stay in the Pro B?

It is very disappointing given that I felt we had the right pieces to be very successful in the league. If you look at our season it very well could have been the opposite because we have so many single digit losses that could have very well went in our favor. If a few more things went right we would have been a playoff contender for sure! Even with our ups and downs as a team our fan support was by far the best in the league and that meant a lot to have ride or die support!

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Michael Holton Jr Will Take The Importance Of Resiliency And Consistency Into His Third Professional Season

Holton Michael Holton Jr is a 27 year old 185cm guard from Portland, Oregon that is playing his second professional season and first in Germany with RSV Eintracht Stahnsdorf (Germany-ProB).Currently he is averaging 18,7ppg, 4,2rpg and 3,6apg and shooting 40% from outside As a rookie two years ago he played with ECE Bulls Kapfenberg (Austria-A Bundesliga) playing 38 games averaging 8.4ppg, 2.5rpg, 1.8apg, FGP: 42.3%, 3PT: 34.1%, FT: 75.7%; He also played 6 FIBA Europe Cup games averaging 10.7ppg, 2.7rpg, 1.7apg, FGP: 46.4%, 3PT: 27.6%, FT: 87.5%. He started his basketball career in 2010 at St.Michael’s (NCAA2) and as a senior played 17 games averaging 14.9ppg, 4,5rpg, 3,8apg, FGP: 55.0%, 3PT: 34.7%, FT: 79.6%. He spoke to German Hoops after the 2017-2018 season.

Michael thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and how have you been experiencing your second professional off season?

I’m living in Berlin at the moment and for this first part of the offseason. So far I’ve spent some time unwinding to analyze and decompress from the season, and now I’m looking to rev things back up and get ready for next year.

We didn´t speak all too long ago. You told me then that “I’m very proud of our group of guys for all the work we’ve continued to put in over the course of the season. It’s hard to take a lot of losses, but we’ve been continuously learning from them and have steadily improved up to this point in the season. We’ve been playing good basketball lately and winning our last 3 out of 4 games is a testament to that resiliency. We like how we’re playing and we like our chances heading into playdowns”. The team was unable to stay in the Pro B. How disappointing was accepting this?

This was a really hard thing to realize and accept at the end of the year. Like I had said before, everybody fought and kept putting in the work throughout the season and gave what they had.

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Janek Schmidkunz Took On The Challenge Of Being More Of A Playmaker With Dresden And Succeeded

Janek Schmidkunz is a 28 year old 183cm point guard that finished his fourth professional season with the Dresden Titans averaging 14,9ppg, 4,0rpg and 5,3apg. He started his basketball career with Central Hoops Berlin (Regionalliga) in 2008. He then also got further experience at ALBA Berlin II (Regionalliga). He then went to the states and played at Amer.Internat. (NCAA2) from 2010-2014 playing a total of 86 NCAA games and as a senior played 26 games: 10.9ppg, 2.1rpg, FGP: 38.5%, 3PT: 38.9%, FT: 61.5%. He returned back to Germany in 2014 joiningthe MLP Academics Heidelberg (ProA): playing 21 games averaging 1.4ppg. In the 2015-2016 season he joined the Giants TSV 1861 Noerdlingen (ProB) playing 29 games averaging 17.0ppg, 2.7rpg, 2.7apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 50.0%, 3PT: 36.8%, FT: 76.1%. In the 2016-2017 season he played with BiG Oettinger Rockets Gotha (ProA) playing 30 games averaging 5.9ppg, 1.2apg, FGP: 48.5%, 3PT: 35.2%, FT: 56.3%. He spoke to German Hoops after the 2017-2018 season.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber interviewing Janek Schmidkunz after the 79-68 loss in Frankfurt where he steered 12 points, five dimes and two rebounds

Janek thanks for talking to German Hoops. It´s been 2 years since the last interview we did when your season ended with Nordlingen. Has time flown by since then for you as you had stops in Gotha and Dresden?

I wouldn’t say time has flown by, but a lot of new experiences and different situations have filled the past two years. I am enjoying this journey as long as I can and think that I can reflect on what has happened over the past two years with a lot of positive memories.

Let´s look back at the last season. After having a solid, but not spectacular Pro A season with Gotha, you took a step back to the Pro B. When you look back at the last season with Dresden, was this the right step?

I am very happy with moving to Dresden. After the success we had with Gotha as a team and overcoming the broken hand that sidelined me for three months, I wanted more security and a bigger role. Dresden wanted me to take over as playmaker and captain and I welcomed that kind of trust they put in me. It was a new challenge and therefore definitely the right decision. Finding new challenges is what makes you better as a player and as a person.

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Kaimyn Pruitt Is Motivated To Play In The BBL Before He Stops Playing So He Must Prepare Like He Is Already There

Pruitt-Smoot Kaimyn Pruitt is a 28 year old 203cm forward from Los Angeles, California that recently finished his fourth professional season with the Itzehoe Eagles (Germany-ProB) averaging 14,3ppg, 10,2rpg and 4,5apg. Last season with the Itzehoe Eagles (Germany-ProB) playing 22 games averaging 13.5ppg, Reb-2(11.5rpg), 2.7apg, Steals-3(2.8spg), 1.0bpg, FGP: 50.8%, 3PT: 29.2%, FT: 78.6%. He played his first two professional seasons with Neunkirchen (Germany-Oberliga). He started his basketball career at University High School and then played at Mt.San Antonio JC. He played at Adams St. (NCAA2) from 2011-2013 and as a senior played 26 games averaging 15.5ppg, 10.0rpg, 2.1apg, 1.9spg, 1.4bpg, FGP: 55.0%, 3PT: 30.8%, FT: 76.6%. He spoke to German Hoops after the 2017-2018 season.

Kaimyn thanks for talking to German Hoops. Where are you at the moment and how have you been enjoying your off season so far?

First I will like to thank you for this and been waiting on my opportunity to have an interview on the website. Currently in back home in Los Angeles,CA getting ready for the season whereever I may go.

After completing your fourth professional season and fourth in Germany have you found time the last years to do some traveling at season end? If yes what place has stayed in your heart the most that you have experienced in Europe?

People asked me this all the but no I’m not really a big traveler so I haven’t seen that much of Europe.

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Nick Hornsby Is Close To Being A 40% shooter From Outside

Hornsby Nick Hornsby is a 22 year old 201cm forward that was born in Irvine, California and just completed his rookie season with theGiessen 46ers II (Germany-ProB) averaging 13,9ppg, 7,6rpg and 2,9apg. He also played 2 BBL games for Giessen.. He won two high school titles with Tustin and then played at Sacramento State form 2013-2017 playing a total of 123 NCAA games and was able to improve his scoring and rebounding each season. As a senior he played 31 games averaging 11.3ppg, 8.0rpg, 1.5apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 53.4%, 3PT: 38.0%, FT: 71.2%. He spoke to German Hoops following his rookie season.

Nick thanks for talking to German Hoops. Your rookie season is in the books. Did your rookie season in Germany exceed all expectations or do you feel something was missing?

Yeah I think my rookie season was pretty good. I believe that I learned a lot and continued to grow over the weeks. I also think as a team we did great and exceeded a lot of expectations.

Your season ended with a do or die game against Rostock. Each game was more thrilling than the next. Was these three games the most exciting three games in a row in your young career?

I would say the last three games are definitely up there with my most exiting games especially in a row.

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