Pic Credit: FIBA

When you think of the current best top 3 German players of all-time, it has to be Dirk Nowitzki, Detlef Schrempf and Dennis Schroeder and with coaches there is no doubt the number #1 position goes to Dirk Bauermann. There have been other ground breaking coaches with Sveitslav Pesic who coached Germany to the break out Euro title in 1993 and won many titles with Alba Berlin while Gordon Herbert coached Germany to the monumental 2023 World Cup title, but the latter two weren´t German. Bauermann won 9 BBL titles and 4 BBL cups and helped Germany secure the silver at the 2005 Euro. He also coached countries Poland, Iran and Tunis. His track record and experience speaks for it´s self. Not to mention his love for his own country coming back to help as Coordinator for the youth area in 2023 for 3 years. He closed out his run helping Germany to a potent fifth place at the 2026 U-16 Euro only the third time a U-16 team has reached fifth place. I had the pleasure of covering Bauermann since the Bamberg loss in the 2004 BBL final in Frankfurt and interviewed him many times in the last 20 years which began in 2006 in a game in Bamberg against Frankfurt. I also had the pleasure of calling the last 3 JBBL (U-16) final games in Berlin. It was always a pleasure being able to work with him as his expertise always stood out. I remember calling the shoot out semi-final between Hamburg-ratiopharm Ulm and we were discussing the dilemma of top Hamburg big man Johan “Fiete” Meinberg not getting enough touches and shots. The same problem occurred in the first 3 games of Germany at the 2026 U-16 Euro were he only got 10 shots total. “Not getting as many shots can be tough and frustrating. But we played as a team and most important is that we make shots fall. If I´m not getting shots then other guys will make shots. If we win at the end of the day then I´m happy and can live with it”, stressed Johan Meinberg (204-C-2010). Team Germany had some good shooters and was the German game simply too guard orientated? “We always have many options to score. If our guards find guys open in the corner then that’s ok. We did a good job hitting three´s. I got the ball more later in the tournament. It´s all fine as long as we win”, said Johan Meinberg. Those first three games surely weren´t easy for him to digest, but he never got upset, but just played as best as he could and was the best teammate he could be. His time would still come. Germany may not have won a medal, but reaching 5th was still a great achievement. “We can all be really proud of having reached the fifth place. It was really very notable. I feel like we could of gone further, but all in all we were very happy with our result”, stated Johan Meinberg.

Miles Schmidt-Scheuber and Dirk Bauermann calling the 2026 JBBL (U-16) final in Berlin

Germany came into the 2026 U-16 Euro being in a group with France, Slovenia and Belgium. Germany began with Belgium and then played against Slovenia and France. Is it in general better to have an easier opponent to start a tournament or better to have a tougher opponent where a win could shock everyone? “I think this draw was really good for us. I think that starting with an easier opponent like Belgium was best, because the win gave us energy and got us more excited for the next two tougher opponents”, remembered Johan Meinberg. Marko Volf had a strong game with 20 points. Volf continues to develop nicely as his leadership qualities were on top display. “Marko already had strong leadership qualities coming into the tournament. He led our team as captain really well. I feel like he also improved with his finishing as well as with his passing on the pick and roll”, commented Johan Meinberg. Germany then lost 93-70 against Slovenia. Slovenia overpowered Germany in many areas and looked like they were a good candidate for a medal. However it would all come a lot different for the basketball nation as they not only didn´t win a medal, but even moved down. ”Slovenia not getting a medal and moving down also surprised me a lot. But the Euro modus can be unfavorable for some, but also favorable for others. We were lucky with the draw that we didn´t have to play against France until in the semi-finals. But you can also not have luck with the draw and then get a do or die game after two loses in a row”, expressed Johan Meinberg. It didn´t get any easier for Germany as their third opponent in the group phase were the always powerfrul France where their crazy athleticism really stood out. “France is always very strong. 9 of 12 of the roster play together year round and play really well together on the court. They are very physical, athletic and have good players. It was a very tough game for us”, remembered Johan Meinberg. Germany then won an exciting 78-75 game against Israel. Germany showed often that they were really mentally strong in crunch-time. Meinberg had his break out game at the Euro with a 14/12 game. He was perfect from the field at 7/7. What changed in his game? Did he demand more touches? “I think key in that game was that my teammates put me into great positions to score consistently. Our point guards did a good job finding me. I think that I also rebounded better. I got more offensive rebounds which helped me get easy baskets. My game grew from that point on until the end”, stressed Johan Meinberg.

Pic Credit: FIBA

Germany then lost a tough game to Lithuania 82-75. It was the little things in crunch-time that cost Germany the win. Despite the loss, Germany were there to win at the end. You just can´t win them all. “We didn´t start well and then were down like 17 points. We learned from this game that we have to be awake from the start and begin better into games. We have to start with more energy. We then had a big run, but then I had some misfortune and got my fifth foul. I wasn´t clever enough in that phase and have to keep my hands up. We showed in that game that we were good enough to beat them. We were down only 1 point”, remembered Johan Meinberg. Germany was out of the medal race and then crushed Romania 79-52. Danny Egbe carried Germany to the win. He was a big factor for Germany winning the last two games as his three pointer took off as his trust in his shot grew and he finished shooting 37% at the Euro. “Danny is a super player. He can really score on a high level. He really helped us a lot in the last two games. It was really beneficial for us that he was able to break out with 20 and 22 points. I feel like that trust is always there for him. He also took more shots in the last two games. Shots tend to fall more when you take more shots”, stated Johan Meinberg. Germany then defeated Greece for fifth place 85-77. Germany in a way saved their best for last showing that they could really step up in a massive game. “I think that we wanted it more than Greece. We showed that we can play very well for 40 minutes. We really wanted to win that last game and finish in fifth place. That was our goal. It was perfect to end the Euro with a win”, added Johan Meinberg. It was a total team play as there were so many important players for Germany. Guards Oliver Papez (9/2/1) and Justus Reintjes (7/1/1) ran the show at the guard position while big man Lino Schenk was the big surprise as he had only been playing basketball for two years and made an impact on the court. “Oliver and Justus are both great players and really nice guys. It is nice to be teammates after having to play against them during the NBBL season. They are great teammates. Lino played great. He played the 5 a lot despite being a 4 player. He found his way into his new role well. He didn´t get upset with this role, but just played it. He did a good job on the rim and on the pick and roll”, stressed Johan Meinberg.

Danny Egbe and Johan “Fiete” Meinberg

The big man who lists Dirk Nowitzki, Franz Wagner, Dennis Schroeder and Detlef Schrempf on his German Mount Rushmore while his NBA Mount Rushmore is Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Lebron James and Kobe Bryant. Meinberg averaged 9.3ppg, Reb-5 (8.4rpg), 1.4spg, Blocks-2 (2.4bpg), FGP: 75.7%, FT: 52.9%. “I wasn´t pleased how I played in the group phase. I only took 10 shots which wasn´t good. I didn´t rebound and finish well in those games. But I played better after that getting more shots and hitting them as well as rebounding better”, said Johan Meinberg. The coaching staff of team Germany worked all summer with Meinberg on basics. How did his game improve during the last weeks? “I improved with finishing better under the rim. I did a good job getting the offensive rebound and finishing better with power”, warned Johan Meinberg. His journey will continue with the Hamburg Towers NBBL (U-19) team where he will play his first season as well as belonging to Pro B team SC Rist Wedel´s roster. “I want to get minutes in the Pro B and NBBL and play a lot to gain experience as well as to get stronger as a player”, stressed Johan Meinberg. There will be so many great memories that the German big man will always have and some of those will be having Dirk Bauermann as that special mentor. Gaining that mental toughness and improving as a defender from Bauermann is something that he will always remember. “ “Dirk Bauermann has a crazy charisma. He has so much experience and has seen so much in his life and that helped us throughout the Euro. He has such mental toughness and that helped us a lot. The way he transported that mental toughness to us was a big reason for us being successful. On defense I have the mentality to always play strong defense and give all I can. I learned from him that giving 70% isn´t enough, but that you have to always give 100%. I took that mindset from him”, said Johan Meinberg. Dirk Bauermann is someone that Meinberg will never forget and surely still have stories to tell in 20 years.

pic credit: Armin Cicic

Omari Knox (185-SG-1986, college: Bloomfield) is a former American/German guard that enjoyed a 14 year professional season in Germany. He played most of his career for Mario Matic in Oberaching, but also played with the TSV Dachau Spurs, RheinStars Cologne, TuS Bad Aibling Fireballs (Germany-Regionalliga) and with the Ebbecke White Wings Hanau. He began his basketball career with New Utrecht High School and then played at Bloomfield College (NCAA2). He recently helped Germany win the Fiba Masters Open and spoke to germanhoops.com about the experience.

Thanks Omari for talking to germanhoops.com. You recently took part at the Fiba Masters Open. How did that come about?

Thank you, Miles for the interview. A few of the guys Steffen and Mo had asked me the last years to play for the ü35 Team but I was still active as a player. Now having freshly retired, I felt it was time to join the guys. I’m happy I was able to take part.

Wasn´t it for guys 40 and older? Technically you don’t turn 40 until November?

Yes they actually take the birth year 1986 and older.. I was the rookie in the team.

The tournament was in Greece. Did it feel like a little vacation at the time?

It absolutely felt like a vacation. Our apartment was literally up the street from the beach. We were in the water every day that we were there.

You had retired in 2025. Did you stay in shape the last year in any way?

It was nearly impossible to stay in game shape throughout the year because I have been so busy training my youth teams and doing organisational work for the club. At some point in the year, I joined FC Bayern Munich to practice and play a few games with the Bayernliga team to get back into shape. Still, I somehow was only able to practice about 10 times in the span of three months.

With guys over 40 or over, how did Germany prepare for this tournament? How much can one prepare when guys are 40 or over?

Coach Jens and Steffen did a great job of holding practices throughout the year once a week to keep guys in shape. As the German Championships got closer, we managed to practice a bit more and also get in a few test games. Jens also held yoga sessions before every practice which made a world of difference.

The conditions were state of the art. Talk a little about how nice everything was? There was featuring wooden flooring, and air conditioning, Did it compare to first league conditions?

The gyms were very nice inside. Most were very old but air-conditioned, with wooden floors and very comfortable to play in. In comparison to 1st league German team’s facility’s they were much smaller, but still very nice to play in.

Talk a little about the competition. How good were the other countries in general and were there some notable players from back in the day?

There were many good players who took part in the tournament. I could tell that several of them were very good in their prime. Several first and second league players in their own countries (Greece, Italy, Georgia. Before our final game we watched the over 60 Finals between Australia and Serbia. This was amazing to watch both countries still compete at such a high level, and see their sharp basketball I.Q. The most notable player that we faced (in the semi finals) was former NBA lottery pick Nikoloz Tskitishvili.

Talk a little about your teammates. There were some known guys like Steffan Hamann, Dirk Madrich Moritz Wohlers Daniel Dorr and Daniel Lieneke. What was it like playing with them? Weren´t you teammates once with Wohlers?

It was a lot of fun to play with those guys. So many years of experience all on one team. Everyone on the same page wanting to compete and win. Sacrificing their bodies, taking charges and going after rebounds. It was amazing to see. Everyone encouraged me to play my game and be me, whenever I was being too passive on the offensive end. They made it very easy to fit in. Mo and I played together in Oberhaching so the chemistry was already there for sure.

Who was in best basketball and physical shape between Hamann, Madrich and Wohlers?

I think Steffen and Dirk were both in pretty decent shape. Steffen often picked up full court on defense and took a ton of charges throughout the whole tournament. We played through Dirk for a lot of the tournament because most of the teams didn’t have anyone who could stop him. He also ran the floor well, set a lot of screens and had to defend probably the toughest matchup (Tskitishvili) of the tournament, in the semi finals. Mo was also in pretty decent shape and played a ton of minutes.

Had you had dealings with Steffen Hamann? Late in his career he played with FC Bayern Munich from 2010-2014 when you were playing for TSV Dachau. Had you ever been on a court with him back in the day?

I watched Steffen a lot in my early years here in Germany as he was the lead guy. I can’t remember ever being on the court with him.

When looking at your stats you were up and down but saved your best for the semi-final and final scoring 16 and 17 points. How content were you with your game?

In the group stage and also throughout most of the tournament I was being more of a facilitator and creating shots for the rest of the guys. They kept telling me to be more aggressive. I guess the difference in the semi finals and finals were that the competition level raised a bit and my scoring was then needed. I was happy to be able to fit nicely into a team who had previously won a silver medal in the European championship.

Germany won the final against Italy 69-66. How exciting was this game? Was there any doubt that Germany wouldn´t win this game?

The last game was very exciting for everyone I think. The fans in the gym, and everyone who watched on the stream definitely got a show. The game was back and forth the entire time. I honestly never really had the feeling that we would lose, even in the final minutes with it being so close.

Talk a little about the last play. You made the game winning shot. Where does that rank with your best game winners in your career?

The last play of the game definitely stands up there as one of the best in my career. Although it’s a shot I’ve made a ton of times in my career, for me to make it in such an important moment to win a gold medal was truly something special.

What was your personal favorite play on the court during the whole tournament?

My personal favourite play for the tournament would probably have to be the steal and the 3pt shot to tie the game, in the Final. I’ve gotten so many questions about that play, and what was going through my mind. For me, it was a now or never moment and I got clean look at the rim and was able to take advantage of it to tie the game.

What does the Fiba Masters Open Gold Medal and MVP award mean to you? Where do you rank it in your whole career?

This Gold medal and MVP award mean everything to me. It was an opportunity to represent the entire country in international competition. It ranks up there at the top of my career accolades and accomplishments.

When you look back at this experience in 20 years, what will you remember most from it?

I will of course remember the success of winning the gold medal, but mostly the fun we had as group. Beach parties, water aerobics, yoga, and dinners with Greek food and Ouzo.

Do you think like you will take part in more of these kind of tournaments down the road?

I hope that this was only the first. I look forward to playing a few more as long as my schedule and body allow it.

Who wins a 1-1 on the court in 2026, you or Steffen Hamann?

. Hahaha, if you asked me who would win between me and Lebron James I would still pick myself. I’d say I’d beat Steffen one in one.

Thanks Omari for the chat.