Frankfurt Skyliners

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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Ali Traore And Lok Kuban Wear Down The Fraport Skyliners Slamming The Door 69-58 In Eurocup Play

After 40 minutes in the thunderbird cage in the Enervie arena last weekend, the expression of relief on the sweaty face of Skyliner captain Marius Nolte spoke volumes as if he had finally got that long awaited guitar lesson from Guns and Roses Slash, defeated good friend Steven Esterkamp in a three point shooting contest despite the Ulm player being blindfolded or knowing that he doesn´t have a Santa Claus job at the Frankfurt Christmas market as a second job, but all that happened was that the Fraport Skyliners had finally won again after 52 days of being winless in the Beko BBL. 72 hours later, The Fraport Skyliners wanted to win their first game in Eurocup play and were as focused as German national player Heiko Schaffartzik was taking three pointers at Wetten Das, NBA legend Dirk Nowitzki watching his teammate taking shots at Wetten das or how Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow has been playing this season, but their opponent Lok Kuban were too strong in the second half wearing down Frankfurt 69-58 and moving to 3-1 in Eurocup play as the Skyliners get elimated. “We were as focused as we were in Hagen. We did come out sluggish, but we played them toe to toe until the end. We were very focused”, stressed 2011 NBA Draft pick Jon Leuer. “Frankfurt is a god team. When they are able to play their pace, then they can beat anyone. We are 3-1 now in Eurocup play and just take it one game at a time. We know what it takes to get to the next round. We will continue to dig down, execute and win games”, warned ex NBA player Lionel Chalmers. The Fraport Skyliners lost their fourth game in a row in Eurocup play, but gave a spirited effort. “We got off to a slow start and did a good job battling back, but were unable to bounce back”, said Skyliner guard Michael Thompson. Just like in Russia a week earlier, Lok Kuban took control in the second half. “We tightened up our defense in the second half and didn´t look back anymore. We kept up our intensity until the end”, added Lok Kuban guard Roderick Blakney.

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Jon Leuer Displays Ferris Bueller Mischieveness Leading The Fraport Skyliners Past Phoenix Hagen 83-65

With the current Fraport Skyliner losing streak at 10 games and 52 days since the Justin Gray buzzer beater win against Wurzburg and growing rapidly and at a seemingly uncontrollable rate like beautiful morning glories that start to vine quicker than Kobe Bryant can fall asleep after a five hour workout, the beard of Skyliner Johannes Herber that has taken considerable form in the last months, the losing streaks in the past of 26 games of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cleveland Cavaliers or the sunglasses collection of society girl Paris Hilton, the club continued to be in desperate need of getting that monkey of their back and finally getting back on the win column again and finally showing a team effort for 40 minutes and wining 83-65. With so much pain during this losing streak suffered, The Fraport Skyliners would have welcomed any kind of help even if indirect like just the presence of ex Skyliner Bernd Kruel who won the 2004 Beko BBL title and played 13 Euroleague games for the Skyliners giving his ex team some aura of past success and let it rub off the team. Even after the loss, Kruel was his usual friendly self, but didn´t even have his ex team in his thoughts as much anymore. “I really don´t have any special feeling for my old team. It has been a while since I played for them. There is no one left on the team from when I played there. Maybe some of my past Skyliner success rubbed of them tonight”, commented Bernd Kruel.

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The Fraport Skyliners Look To Snap Their 10 Game Losing Streak Against Scoring, Scoring And Scoring And A Possible Positive Jinx Growing Against Alba Berlin For Phoenix Hagen

Phoenix Hagen may not be a team that has a superstar player like Dashaun Wood, will reach the beko BBL playoffs with ease this season, have Bernd Kruel play point guard for a quarter, have Paris Hilton as a cheerleader, or German actor Til Schweiger sitting in the front row at each home game, but one thing that they have and can never be taken away from them is the very sweet distinction of having Alba Berlins number in the Enervie arena the last two seasons winning 92-86 last season despite 37 points from mr ballerina Derrick Allen and 98-91 this season. Who needs a Dashaun Wood when you have a Marc Carter who can lead you to the win with 33 points. Even if the season isn’t a total success, one will at least have the memory of having beaten Alba Berlin in your own living room. One player that will cherish the win last season forever is Quentin pryor who found some time to reflect on the upset win last season in Austria where he is currently earning his bread for his family. “The win over Alba Berlin was my second biggest win after the win we got getting to the Beko BBL in 2009. I remember that we didn´t give Alba Berlin a chance in this game. Once the fourth quarter rolled along, we felt that we were going to win the game. We held the Alba Berlin shooters in check and got them out of their comfort zone. I thought that it was great that we were able to prove all those doubters wrong by coming on the floor and competiting”, stressed Quentin Pryor. Other teams in the Beko BBL are noticing how difficult it is to play in Hagen like the Walter Tigers Tuebingen who won a 111-104 shoot out recently. Josh young remembers the win in Hagen and beating underdogs in college as ifapples were growing on trees. “That they beat Alba Berlin doesn´t surprise me at all. Once Hagen gets going offensively, they can be very dangerous and play with anyone. It is tough to play there since they have nice fans and use their home court advantage well. When I was at Drake, we beat Iowa and Iowa State each year until my senior year when we finally lost. For underdog teams, there is always an extra motivation playing higher ranked teams, because nobody expects them to win. And after you beat them so many times, you expect to always win”, warned Josh Young. It took the Frankfurt Skyliners some six years to win in Bamberg again, is a Phoenix Hagne jinx already cast upon Alba Berlin? “It seems like an Alba Berlin jinx has started, but if Phoenix Hagen wins again next season, then there is definitely a jinx”, smiled Quentin Pryor.

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Ilian Evtimov: There Are Always Difficult Moments In Sports, But It Is Never Too Late To Turn It Around For The Fraport Skyliners

Ilian Evtimov is a 28 year old 201 cm forward playing his second season in France for Chalon. He has the French-Bulgarian citzenships and played at North Carolina State from 2001-2006. In his senior year, he played 31 games averaging 10.4ppg, 3.7rpg, 2.5apg, 1.2spg, FG: 45.3%, 3PT: 40.8%, FT. After a short stint with Estudiantes Madrid in 2006, he played at VidiVici Bologna in the 2006-2007 season. He played FIBA EuroCup playing 15 games averaging 6.3ppg, 2.4rpg, 2FGP: 65.4%, 3FGP: 47.1%, FT: 72.2%; and playing15 games in the Italian league averaging 3.1ppg, 2.1rpg. In 2007-2008, he moved to The Deutsche Bank Skyliners playing 10 ULEB Cup games averaging 14.5ppg, 3.4rpg, 1.7apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 48.3%, 3PT: 40.7%, FT: 85%; and in the German League playing 44 games averaging 13.1ppg, 5.1rpg, 2.1apg, 1.3spg, 2FGP: 41.4%, 3PT: 33.9%, FT: 86.2%. In 2008-2009, he continued playing in Frankfurt playing 10 EuroChallenge: games averaging 8.3ppg, 3.5rpg, 1.7apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 45.2%, 3PT: 28.6%, FT: 70.0%; and in the German League playing 34 games averaging 8.5ppg, 2.5rpg, 1.5apg, FGP: 43.6%, 3PT: 38.3%, FT: 74.6%. In 2009-2010, he played for BC Levski Sophia (Bulgaria-NBL): 1 game: 6pts, 5reb, 2ast, 3steals; Balkan League: 1 game: 3pts, 1reb, 1ast, 2steals; in Oct.’09 moved to Proteas EKA AEL Limassol (Cyprus-Division EuroChallenge: 13 games: 10.9ppg, 3.3rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 46.8%, 3PT: 45.6%, FT: 83.3%: FT-2(90.9%). Last season, he played for Chalon playing 33 games: 11.6ppg, 4.2rpg, 1.9apg, 1.4spg, FGP: 50.5%, 3PT: 39.8%, FT: 84.2%. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball.

What was your impression recently of ex Skyliner Eric Chadfield who is leading the French PRO A in scoring?

He is a good player that can shoot and really knows basketball. You notice that he is a real player and has been around for a while.

How did you experience the NBA lockout in France?

The NBA lockout was a good thing French basketball. So many guys came back to play here from the NBA like Tony Parker and Nicolas Batum. This really helped bring media interest for basketball to a new level as it was more in the news.

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TBB Trier Give EJ Gallup A Sweet Farewell With A 64-54 Grind Out Win Against The Fraport Skyliners

Whoever said, you can only be a Lebron James or Kevin Durant to have a whirlwind basketball career with so much happening like the James and Rashard Lewis rumors about foul play and a girlfriend last summer or Durant seemingly being headed to every team in Europe even BBC Bayreuth, but even a Beko BBL player like EJ Gallup has had a very exciting 2011 going from the restaurant business to playing in the IBL with the Albany Legends to TBB Trier for a few months after being a away for three years. Recently, the American confirmed that he will be heading back to the States to pursue a coaching career. After TBB Trier was unable to send him on his way with a win at home, the team had one last chance winning in Frankfurt and the club from the Mosel river was as focused as Green Bay Packer quarterback Aaron Rodgers is to follow in the footsteps of New England quarter back Tom Brady for a perfect regular season, Justin Bieber telling David letterman that he can smell a weasel concerning the woman who claims that she is fostering his baby or Chester Frazier is getting back to playing professional basketball with the s. Oliver Baskets Wurzburg after being away from the professional ranks for a season going back to Illinois(NCAA) helping as an assistant coach as Gallup as his teammates grinded out a big 64-54 win. Gallup played only four minutes, but is just happy to leave the floor as a winner and has fond memories of teammate dru Joyce.. “This was my first win here in this arena. With Ulm, I left as a loser here. This win was nice. I understand that since I am leaving, coach doesn´t want to keep building the team after I go. I remember Dru showing me the ropes in UIm and when I came to Trier, he was first guy I met and helped me out. I consider Joyce a good friend”, stressed Dru Joyce. After the tough win Joyce was stretching on the floor and had some time to reflect about EJ Gallup. “I am excited that we got him the win. This was a big win for us and him. I remember my rookie season in Ulm, he helped me out when I came in. I remember him showing me how to drive manual. He really looked out for me”, added Dru Joyce. “We will miss Gallup a lot. He helped us out so much on the court. He is a great guy and I wish him the best of luck”, stressed TBB Trier guard John Bynum.

It had been 46 day and 8 losses since the Fraport Skyliners last won a game and that was only accomplished do to a buzzer beater from Justin Gray which has been simply dubbed the shot and with the overall play of Frankfurt vastly improved over the last games, the team was hoping for a success experience, but were disappointed again as they played a more than solid defensive game, but mustered only 54 points losing their ninth game in a row and entering the deregulation a place they hadn´t seen since the Charles Barton era of 2006. “Big today was that we stayed together as a team from the start until the end, but we had way to many turnovers and didn´t rebound as much or as good than in the past. We have to keep positive, not feel sorry for ourselves and keep fighting”, stressed ex NBA player Jermareo Davidson. For TBB Trier they were riding a three game losing streak and so far in the Henrik Rodel era had never lost more than three games in a row and showed a solid effort for 40 minutes. “We played consistent for 40 minutes, kept our style and didn´t let Frankfurt put us under pressure”, stressed TBB Trier center Maik Zirbes. Lebron James friend Dru Joyce has lost enough games against Frankfurt in his career including two last season as a Dashaun Wood was in control and knows how Frankfurt feels now. “I really feel for Frankfurt. You never want to lose so much. I know many guys in the team and they worked very hard tonight and left it on the floor. I know that when they are healthy, that they have the talent to win many games”, warned Dru Joyce. Jon Leuer friend and teammate Keaton Nankivil was at the game to support him and was in awe of the hard fought game. “I saw two good teams today and they did good things on the court. Frankfurt lost some steam in the second half, but every game is tough and Frankfurt just has to move on to the next game”, stressed ratiopharm Ulm forward Keaton Nankivil.

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Where Will The Journey Of TBB Trier End With An Added Concentration On German Players And Extra Focus On Team Defense?

The biggest successes with TBB Trier are already 13 and 10 years old as they were able to hoist the Beko BBL cup twice in 1998 and 2001, but since then the club has been as far away from consistency and the Beko BBL playoffs as Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries are of reconcilatation, as any one could ever imagine Leborn James playing a pick up basketball game at a community college in his home state where they lit his jersey on fire last season after he announced going to the Miami Heat or Charlie Sheen ever will have of returning to Two and a half men after his death on the show. The last time that TBB Trier were able to taste some post season air, The Opel Skyliners were still searching for their first BEKO BBL league championship, Skyliner Justin Gray was still practicing with NBA superstar Chris Paul daily at Wake Forest, Lance Armstrong was about to win an unprecedented six consecutive Tour De France, The Montreal Expos organization was still playing in Canada before moving to play in Washington D.C and Lindsay Lohan was still far away from becoming a usual guest in the tabloids as 2004 was the last time the Mosel river club had reached the promised land as they finished at position seven. In the seven seasons since their last playoff appearance the team has averaged a 12^th place finish in those years. “It has been a pity that TBB Trier hasn´t been in the playoffs for a while, but we that budget wise, we don´t belong there. It may sound crazy, but if you look at the budgets of other teams, you can see it like that. We were close last year making the playoffs and it hurt that we didn´t make it. This season we are young so making the playoffs is a big challenge”, stated TBB Trier center Maik Zirbes.

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Justin Gray(Fraport Skyliners): Konrad Wysocki Was A Great Locker Room Guy

Justin Gray is a 27 year old 188cm guard from Charlotte, North Carolina that is playing his firstseason with the Fraport Skyliners. He is versatile enough to excel at point guard as well as big guard. An enthusiastic, high-energy guard who brings a swagger to the team. Gray is one of the team’s vocal leaders, possesses great quickness, and is an exceptional perimeter shooter. He started his basketball career at Wake Forest where he played with NBA superstar Chris Paul. Gray played at wake Forest from 2002-2006 and in his senior year played 33 games: ScoreACC-4(18.2ppg), 3.6rpg, AssistsACC-5(4.3apg), 1.0spg, FGP: 36.7%, 3PTACC-4(36.1%), FTACC-5(83.4%): Finished career ranked 8th in Wake Forest history in scoring (1,946 points), 1st in three-point attempts (860), 2nd in three-point field goals (319) and 8th in assists (382). His 319 career three-point field goals are 7th best in ACC history. In 2006-2007, he started his professional basketball career for Verviers-Pepinster (Belgium-D1): 32 games: 14.0ppg, 1.8rpg, 2.9apg, 1.0spg, 2FGP: 51.0%, 3PT: 36.0%, FT: 51.0%. In 2007-2008, he played for Dexia Mons-Hainaut (Belgium-D1, starting five): 36 games: 15.1ppg, 1.9rpg, 1.8apg, 1.3spg, 2FGP: 52.0%, 3PT: 46.0%, FT: 89.0%. In 2008-2009, he played for CEZ Basketball Nymburk (Czech Rep.-NBL): Eurocup: 6 games: 15.5ppg, 1.3rpg, 3.8apg; Czech Rep. League: 43 games: 10.9ppg, 1.9rpg, 2.4apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 51.9%, 3PT: 39.7%, FT: 77.2%. In 2009-2010, he played for PGE Turow Zgorzelec (Poland-PLK, starting five): EuroCup: 6 games: 9.7ppg, 2.3rpg, 4.3apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 23.8%, 3PT: 31.1%, FT: 85.7%; Polish League: 30 games: 14.6ppg, 2.7rpg, 3.3apg, 1.0spg, FGP: 53.6%, 3PT: 34.2%, FT: 89.3%. Last season, he played for PAOK Thessaloniki (Greece-A1, starting five): Greek League: 18 games: 11.8ppg, 2.9rpg, 2.8apg, 1.2spg, FGP: 46.1%, 3PT: 31.4%, FT: 81.3%; EuroCup: 6 games: 11.5ppg, 1.8rpg, 1.3apg, FGP: 40.7%, 3PT: 33.3%, FT: 79.3%, left in March’11, in Apr.’11 moved to BC Donetsk (Ukraine-Superleague): 16 games: 6.4ppg, 2.3rpg, 2.4apg, FGP: 37.5%, 3PT: 38.9%, FT: 70.4%2011: Guangzhou Free Man (China-NBL, starting five): 9 games: 24.4ppg, 5.4rpg, 3.0apg, 2.1spg, FGP: 37.8%, 3PT: 41.8%, FT: 85.4%. He reached the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2004, was Czech Rep. League Champion -09, Czech Rep. Cup Winner -09, and played at the Polish League All-Star Game in 2010. He spoke to German Hoops about basketball.

You have played against Chevon Troutman in your career. Does he belong to the top centers in the beko BBL?

When he is at his best yes. He is a big key for the success of FC Bayern Munich. I would put John Bryant at the top with him.

How much of a factor was Muli Katzurin for you coming to the Fraport Skyliners?

He was very key for me coming to Frankfurt. I had played for him at Nymburk and know he coaches. Another important reason was that Frankfurt is a great organization and I heard only good things.

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