Jared Reiner: Zach Randolph Was The Hardest To Guard In The NCAA

Jared Reiner is a 29 year old 211cm center from South Dakota. He played for Iowa from 2000-2004. As a rookie, he made the Chicago Bulls roster playing games 19 games averaging 1.1ppg, 2.0rpg; Play-Offs: 3 games: 0pts. In the 2005-2006 season, he was injured and did not play. In 2006-2007, he played for San Antonio Spurs (NBA), only pre-season, in Nov.’06 moved to Sioux Falls Skyforce (D-League, starting five): 28 games: 13.8ppg, 8.6rpg, 1.5apg, FGP: 48%, FT: 69.4%; 28 games: 13.9 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 1.5 apg, in Feb.’07 signed at Milwaukee Bucks (NBA): 27 games: 1.2ppg, 2.6rpg. In 2007-2008, he played for Polaris World Murcia (Spain-ACB, starting five): 17 games: 5.5ppg, 4.4rpg, 2FGP: 53.0%, FT: 44.0%, in Feb.’08 moved to Brose Baskets Bamberg (Germany-1.Bundesliga, starting five): 20 games: 9.4ppg, Reb-5(6.8rpg), 2FGP: 52.1%, FT: 53.9%. In 2008-2009, he played for the 76ers (NBA), only pre-season, in Dec.’08 moved to Eisbaeren Bremerhaven (Germany-1.Bundesliga, starting five): 12 games: 13.0ppg, 7.7rpg, 1.5apg, FGP: 53.9%, FT: 72.7%. In 2009-2010, he played for the Minnesota Timberwolves (NBA), only pre-season, in Dec.’09 moved to Fort Wayne Mad Ants (D-League): 17 games: 13.1ppg, 9.7rpg, 1.2apg, 1.2bpg, FGP: 45.7%, FT: 72.2%,and then moved to Gallitos de Isabela (Puerto Rico-BSN): 8 games: 12.4ppg, 10.9rpg, 1.4apg, FGP: 45.7%, 3PT: 25.0%. Last season, he played for BBC Bayreuth playing 33 games: 12.6ppg, Reb-3(7.8rpg), 1.2apg, FGP: 49.7%, FT: 63.8%. Jared took some time to talk German Hoops about basketball.

When was the last time that you spent Thanksgiving at home?

Well I played four years in the NCAA and seven professional basketball seasons so 11 years ago.

Does a normal Jared Reiner Thanksgiving involve a big turkey and NFL football?

Yes it does. I get up early, prepare the food, eat the turkey and then watch football all day long.

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Can The Fraport Skyliners Ruin The Pre Christmas Feast For The New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig December 18?

With Christmas only a week away, folks of all ages will be having the holiday season on their mind, like thinking if there will be a white Christmas in New York city, what one can give Miss have it all Paris Hilton for Christmas, can the Miami Dolphins upend Tom terrific Brady and the New England Patriots on Christmas eve, or who would be the perfect substitute for the white bearded Santa Claus, Mickey Rooney, Leslie Nielsen or Tim Allen? However on December 18th, The Fraport Skyliners will have clash with 2011 beko BBL cup finalist New Yorker Phantoms Braunschweig and for at least two hours, stockings, eggnog, presents, Christmas caroling, and Rudolph the Reindeer will be secondary. Young fans in the Volkswagon arena in Braunschweig wont be dreaming of presents an dif Santa Claus can really fit through the chimney with his chubby stomach, but will be hoping of athletic and stimulating take offs to the hoop by Quantez Robertson, no look passes from Immanuel Mcelroy who could ask Jermareo Davidson some advice of how to cover your body correctly with additional tattoos, Robert Kulawick three point bombs from the corner, and making bets when Johannes Herber will cut or trim his overwhelming long beard. Fans come into the arena´s to enjoy basketball anytime and might forget that players this season wont be in their real home for Christmas dinner, but in their home from home in Germany trying to tell their little children that Santa Claus has to use the balcony to distribute presents. “The Beko BBL continues to make it very difficult for the players to find any kind of Christmas spirit. We play in Oldenburg on December 27th and have to practice on the 24th, 25th and 26th. One of my favorite things at Christmas is having home made goose. My mom cooks it and is the best cook in the world”, stressed Walter Tigers Tuebingen forward Ruben Spoden. “Sure it is tough being away from home during the holiday season but it is part of your job and even if you want to be back at home, you have to still perform and make the best out the situations that you are put in”, added TBB Trier guard John Bynum.

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Danilo Barthel(Fraport Skyliners): People Underestimate My Ability To Pass The Ball

Danilo Barthel is a 20 year old 206cm forward from Heidelberg Germany and is playing his first season for the Fraport Skyliners. He also has a license to play for the team PRO B team. He started his basketball career with USC Heidelberg in 2008 and played there until 2011. Last season, he played 14 games: 4.8ppg, 3.6rpg, 1.0apg. Awards/Achievements in his basketball career have been German U18 National Team -09, European Championships U18 in Metz (France) -09: 8 games: 10.4ppg, 3.8rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 41.5%, 3PT: 43.8%, FT: 71.8%, German NBBL All-Star Game -10, German U20 National Team -10-11, European Championships U20 in Croatia -10: 7 games: 0.3ppg, and European Championships U20 in Bilbao (Spain) -11: 9 games: 4.9ppg, 4.1rpg, 1.0spg. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball.

A tough 79-71 loss against BBC Bayreuth. The team has lost 12 of the last 13 games. How tough is it losing for you?

It has been a tough time. Every athlete hates losing. We can´t hang our heads and have to stay positive.

Muli Katzurin said the team is good enough to come back, but not win. Why can´t the team close the door on opponents?

Often we do a good job hitting our shots at the starts, but at the end are unable t o make our shots or draw fouls.

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Keith Simmons Has An Extra Portion Of Baklava Leading Banvit Past The Fraport Skyliners 62-56

With Christmas rolling along as quickly as the Green Bay Packers are mowing down NFL competition towards a perfect regular season as if they are finding four leaf clovers each weekend, the Eurocup competition is also slowly coming to an end for the Fraport Skyliners. In the last Eurocup home game of the Fraport Skyliners, the team welcomed home Keith Simmons who played in the Main city from 2008-2009. The last time the New York native and ex teammate of bBC Bayreuth guard Kevin Hamilton at Holy Cross played in the Fraport arena, Ilian Evtimov was still shousing bombs from the parking lot, Lorenzo Gordon was still melting little girls hearts with his warm smile, and no day went by in the BCM where one didn´t hear old coach Murat Didin say the word Bubba at least 40 times. Since then Simmons has found a new home in Turkey with Banvit where he has played since 2009 and entered the Fraport arena with an extra portion of Baklava helping his team slip past the Fraport Skyliners 62-56. Simmons might not have led his team in scoring, but did in rebounds and assists and helped spark the defense in the victory. “Simmons is an all around great player. He doesn´t always have to score, but when they need anything like rebounds, assists or defending then he is there and does his job”, stressed Skyliner guard Michael Thompson. After the game, Mckinney and Simmons were joking around as if they were still teammates. Mckinney noticed that the game of Simmons has grown since his Frankfurt days. “Keith has always been a great defender and makes it so tough on offense. He just does his job. He has improved his shooting. He was already a good shooter with Frankfurt, but now he is a great shooter”, stressed Jimmy Mckinney. Simmons was glad to see his old friend again. “It was cool being back in Frankfurt. It was good seeing the Skybembels and Jimmy of course. The blue light outside in the front of the arena looked nice. Fraport seems to have done  a good job. Jimmy played a strong game against us in Banvit, so it was key today to slow him down a bit even though he did get loose a bit. We trashed talked a bit, but it was all in good fun”, added Keith Simmons.

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Kejuan Johnson: I Was Acting As A Determined Basketball Player)

Kejuan Johnson is a 26 year old 193cm guard from Long Beach, California. He played together with Jibril Hodges at Long Beach State. The two guys are reunited now in Hungry playing for Jaszberenyi. He started his professional basketball career in 2007 for Hapoel Galil Elyon (Israel-Premier League, starting five): released in Dec.’07: ULEB Cup: 2 games: 4.0ppg, 1.5rpg, 1.5apg, 1.5spg. In 2009-2010, he played for CRE Eagles Itzehoe (Germany-Regionalliga): 19 games: 29.2ppg, 6.5rpg, 4.9apg, 3.3spg, 2FGP: 56.5%, 3Pts: 36.3%, FT: 79.8%. Last season, he tore up the German PRO A for Paderborn Baskets (Germany-ProA, starting five): 29 games: Score-1(21.0ppg), 6.0rpg, Assists-5(5.1apg), Steals-1(3.0spg), FGP: 50.6%, 3PT: 34.2%, FT: 81.3%. He started this season with BG Illertal Weissenhorn averaging 9,0ppg, 2,0rpg and 1,5apg. He recently left the team and he and the club had their differences and the American wanted to tell his side of the story to German Hoops.

Kejuan, thanks for taking some time to talk toGerman Hoops You had a very short stay at BG Illertal Weiseenhorn for 10 days. Are you disappointed that this team didn´t work out for you?

No, I am not disappointed. I believe everything happens for a reason, and those10 days served my purpose there.

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Keith Simmons(Banvit, Turkey): We Won´t Underestimate Frankfurt. Even Without Gray and Leuer, They Gave Us A Tough Game

Keith Simmons is a 26 year old 196cm guard from Kingston, New York that is playing his fifth professional basketball season and fourth in Turkey. He played at Holy Cross (NCAA) from 2003-2007. In his senior year, he played 34 games: 16.9ppg, 5.8rpg, 1.9apg, 2.3spg, FGP: 49.7%, 3Pts: 34.9%, FT: 76.7%. In 2007-2008, he played for Kepez Bld Antalya (Turkey-TBL, starting five): 30 games: 16.2ppg, 5.7rpg, 2.1apg, 1.2spg, 2FGP: 56.8%, 3PT: 35.7%, FT: 73.5%. In 2008-2009, he played for the Deutsche Bank Skyliners Frankfurt (Germany-1.Bundesliga, starting five), injured in Oct.’08 and was off for 1 month: EuroChallenge: 8 games: 8.6ppg, 3.5rpg, 1.5apg; German League: 33 games: 11.3ppg, 4.4rpg, 1.4apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 59.6%, 3PT: 35.5%, FT: 74.1%. He has played for Banvit Basketbol Kulubu (Turkey-TBL) since 2009. Last season, he played EuroCup: 5 games: 10.0ppg, 3.4rpg, 1.6spg, FGP: 58.6%, 3PT: 30.0%, FT: 87.5%; Turkish League: 38 games: 10.4ppg, 5.1rpg, 1.8apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 54.4%, 3PT: 37.7%, FT: 76.4%. He spoke to German Hoops before the Eurocup game against the Fraport Skyliners December 13th.

Congrats on the 86-67 win against Besiktas Istanbul. How noticeable was the absence of the NBA players?

Their big man was already hurt and was also missing. Any time that you lose a guy like Deron Williams, it will effect their game. I think that they will be ok in the long run though.

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Ekene Ibekwe Slithers Like An Angry Snake Dunking BBC Bayreuth Past The Fraport Skyliners 79-71

A few weeks ago, BBC Bayreuth basketball freaks may have been dreaming of Kevin Durant matching the 50 points of Deron Williams in a beko BBL game, meeting the NBA superstar in the city and holding a you tube moment forever, or examining his athletic moves and then making a fool of themselves trying to copy him, but since Durant never arrived, the basketball life in the Bavarian city that gave the world the musical composer has returned back to normal. However the team has showed that they don’t really need an NBA superstar as the team continues to play super basketball ever since Danny Gibson returned and new coach Marc Van Den Berg took the helm as the team has cut down their points allowed from 83 to 66. The team has sparkled like classic red wine on the court with solid team basketball with versatility at every position and came into the Fraport arena resting at position 11 and Kevin Durant 5007 miles away in Oklahoma leaving his play in a tiny part of their brain as they won their fifth game in their last six games stifling the Fraport Skyliners in their own living room 79-71. After the big win in Hagen last weekend, The Fraport Skyliners had to play catch up basketball in the second half never being able to retake the lead. “We played soft defense and didn´t make the necessary stops when we should of. We have to learn from these mistakes. BBC Bayreuth played very physical and we didn´t. Even when we got close there was something missing. We are good enough to get close, but not good enough to win”, stated Skyliner head coach Muli Katzurin. BBC Bayreuth played a very solid second half always going on small runs and just out playing the Skyliners in every phase of the game. “The key to the win tonight was our aggressiveness on defense. We were able to execute well on offense always finding the open man. We took the game on and not let the game come to us”, stressed BBC Bayreuth player Ekene Ibekwe. What was really impressive was even when Frankfurt came back, BBC Bayreuth was able to stay consistent as a team and play through pressure. “Our coach has preached staying together since he came. We keep fighting no matter what even in times when the opponent is pressuring us”, added BBC Bayreuth point guard Danny Gibson.

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Michael Thompson(Fraport Skyliners): I Take 25-30 Floaters A Day

Michael Thompson is a 22 year old 177cm point guard from Chicago, Illinois that is playing his first season with the Fraport Skyliners. He played at Northwestern from 2007-2011. In his senior year, he played : 34 games: 16.3ppg, 2.2rpg, 4.3apg, 1.4spg, FGP: 45.2%, 3PT: 39.3%, FT: 82.5%. Awards/Achievements in his career have been HS: Chicago Public League All-Academic Team -07, All-Big Ten Honorable Mention -10, All-Big Ten 3rd Team -11, Big Ten All-Tournament Team -11, and NIT Elite Eight -11. He took some time to talk to German Hoops about his rookie season with the Fraport Skyliners.

Congrats to the 83-65 win in Hagen. How much of a relief was this win?

It was a major relief. Even though that we have been playing well the last weeks, we had some close games that we were unable to pull out.

You had some experience losing at Northwestern in the NCAA. Were you able to digest the losing streak better than other players since you knew what its like?

I went through some losing my freshman year and I understand how it feels and what happens. I just continue to try to help the team win and continue to work hard.

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A Short Kevin Durant Dream And Now Back To Building A Winning Season For BBC Bayreuth

Not too long ago, if one had mentioned the possibility of a Kobe Bryant Or Lebron James suiting up in a BBC Bayreuth jersey, it would have been as ridiculous as if Lionel Messi would give up his FC Barcelona contract and play in Denmark, Beavis and Butthead sitting on their couch for an episode and philosophizing about Shakespeare or Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Lopez taking a vacation together since rumors say they loathe each other, but a few weeks ago another NBA superstar Kevin Durant who is a step below a Lebron or Kobe actually was rumored to be headed to BBC Bayreuth. Since then there probably hadn´t been as much excitement  in the 72,000 Bavarian city since the yearly fest spiele or when Richard Wagner fans visit his museum. At any rate for a little while, Bayreuth fans were able to dream and go through all the different scenarios of what  a few games with Durant would look like and the publicity put the club on the world basketball map and also helped put the Beko BBL in the spot light to. BBC Bayreuth was on the world basketball map for a short while as were put in the same sentence as possible teams where the American was headed like Macabbi Tel Aviv and Valencia. Realistic German basketball fans never really believed the hype while BBC Bayreuth fans were living their own little dream world with Danny Gibson feeding Kevin Durant with quarterly ally-ops in the Beko BBL. “I viewed the whole affair as speculation. When you are dealing with a player of that caliber, you can never be positive about the hear say. I was just waiting to see what came of it. I think that Durant would have brought great exposure to the league. People not so familiar with the BBL would have taken notice. I also think that it would have solidified the BBL as one of the top leagues in Europe”, stressed Walter Tigers Tuebingen guard Josh Young. Then all of a sudden, the NBA announced that the lockout was ending and the possible arrival of Durant in the pretty Bavarian city was about as impossible as it snowing on the Bahamas, Tom Brady admitting that Wes Welker isn´t his all time favorite target or Kobe Bryant and Shaq ever playing a professional basketball game together again. With basketball normalcy back in Bayreuth, fans now could get excited again about seeing a Brandon Hunter crashing dunk, the continued development of German Stefan Schmidt or the possible point guard duo of Kevin Hamilton and Danny Gibson doing terror on the court. Even if Josh Young plays in the Schwaben land and not in Bavaria, there is always enough time in the day to dream about an encounter with Kevin Durant. “There is not too much that you can do to stop Kevin Durant. You have to deny him the ball and if he don’t get the ball, he can´t score. I also would just pressure up and play aggressive”, warned Josh Young.

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Jacob Burtschi: All I Have To Do Is Throw It Near The Backboard And Tez Would Handle The Rest

Jacob Burtschi is a 27 year old 198cm forward from Chickasha, Oklahoma who will be playing his second professional basketball season in the best basketball league in Europe the ACB in Spain this season for CAI Zaragoza.  He completed his rookie season for Phoenix Hagen averaging 14.2ppg, 6.9rpg, 2.5apg, Steals-3(1.5spg), FGP: 56.0%, 3PT: 44.2%, FT: 82.2%. He played at the Air Force from 2003-2007. In his senior year, he played 35 games averaging 13.5ppg, 6.0rpg, 2.3apg, 1.6spg, FGP: 49.7%, 3Pts: 39.0%, FT: 77.3%. He had offers to play in the NBA, but served in the Air Force the last three years and could only play club ball. Some achievements that he got in the NCAA were  All-MWC Honorable Mention -05, MWC Regular Season Runner-Up -06, All-MWC 2nd Team -06, 07, NABC All-NCAA District 13 2nd Team -07, and NIT Final Four -07. He is still with ACB team Zaragoza waiting patiently for the right opportunity or the team finds a new player and he spoke to German Hoops about his desire to come play in Germany.

What kind of a feeling is it practicing with Zaragosa and playing in games even though you might be gone instantly?
In this business you must be ready to go every day. Whether it is with my team here or knowing I could be on a plane tomorrow to my next team.

What have been the most important things that you learned playing in the ACB against many top players?
My game has a lot of room for growth and improvement.

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