The book retraces the successful season 2010/2011 of the Huskies that saw the Germans Niels Giffey and Enosch Wolf win a NCAA Championship. The author of this blog is also featured in the book that you can buy here. You will find a lot more information on this book on the official website: www.uconnbook.com

See below for an excerpt talking about Giffey and his background.

But while Olander had to only move a mere few miles to begin his UConn career, the person he would be sharing a dorm room with had come halfway across the world to play college basketball: Niels Giffey from Germany.

Giffey grew up in Berlin and from a young age had been identified as one of the top players in his age group in the country. He starred as a local club player for a youth program named Marzahn Basket Baeren before moving on Alba Berlin, the junior team of one of the top clubs in all of Europe.

Once there, Giffey flashed a lot of the skills that he would later show at UConn.

“He did everything,” said Christophe Ney who runs the popular European basketball website EuropeanProspects.com and is considered one of the foremost experts on European youth basketball. “He was never a big scorer, but he was so dominant everywhere else. In passing. On defense. He was the best player on the court.” Alba would go on to win two age group titles during Giffey’s time with the team.

For three summers, Giffey played for the German National Team as well. He participated with the Under-16 team in 2006 and 2007 and played with the Under-18 team at the 2008 European Championships.

And it was after the 2008 championships, Giffey had a decision to make. Alba was interested in signing him to a pro contract and was ready to move him up to their senior team. But with his parents more interested in his education, Giffey—with the help of his coach and former North Carolina Tar Heel Henrik Rödl—decided to come to the United States to play college ball. Schools like UConn, Louisville, and Gonzaga showed interest, with Giffey ultimately choosing the Huskies in June of 2010. He would join Olander and Smith as freshmen in the frontcourt, all battling for playing time. But despite being the least known commodity of the three entering his freshman year, Giffey made the biggest early splash.

Starting from the opening game in at the small forward spot that was assumed to be Smith’s, Giffey thrived, showing the smart, sound, and fundamental game that many Europeans are known for. Giffey did nothing flashy but did all the little things needed to stay on the court early in the season: he played solid defense, didn’t commit dumb fouls, and occasionally was an effective offensive player, just like he had been in his time playing for Alba. In particular, his fourteen points against Kentucky in Maui stood out in the early season. Understand that while the Maui Invitational will always be remembered as “Kemba Walker’s coming out party,” the All-American guard couldn’t do everything by himself. And against Kentucky, Giffey was as responsible as anyone for providing an unexpected spark.

The Unlikeliest Champion: a book on UConn 10/11 is a post from: European Prospects
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Why did you decide to play College Basketball?

I always wanted to move abroad and be at a College in the United States to combine Basketball and the studies. This was not possible in the same way in Germany, so I decided to go to the US.

Why did you chose UConn and not of the other Colleges that were recruiting you?

The whole package was right. UConn has with Coach Calhoun a Hall of Fame coach which speaks for itself, additionally there is the success history of the College and the long story with all the good forward that came out of UConn. Another point was that UConn has a large Freshman Class this season which made the integration a lot easier for me.

How do you see your personal development at UConn? Do you have personal goals concerning your development in the United States?

I have a very good practice situation with an extremely good Coaching staff who takes care of me and pushes me every day. I want to use my time here at best and give all my best every day, practice hard and get better.

What will you be majoring in? And how do you see your future after the 4 years in College?

I am not decided yet about my diploma, but I think I will probably decide in the direction of Business.

Are you surprised by the large impact you had right from the start with such a strong team?

Yes, I was really happy to get lots of minutes early in the season. But as a Freshman, you also have to be ready to deal with situations where you are not playing that much and remain focused.

Compared to the NBBL, next to the more athletic style of play, what are the main differences that you have seen so far in College Basketball?

The speed and the aggressiveness are really on a different level. In the NBBL, you could sometimes score easy baskets or grab rebounds like that. If you want to score here, you need to be a lot hungrier and more aggressive when you attack the ball and play more aggressively overall.

So far, Niels Giffey plays 14.4 minutes per game and averages 3.9ppg, 1.6rpg and 0.9apg for UConn. We wish him good luck for his future.

Living in America: Niels Giffey (UConn) is a post from: European Prospects
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Kevin Bright – 1m98 – SG/SF – 1992 – ALBA Urspring

Despite finishing the two days without the biggest numbers around, Kevin Bright was the true MVP of the Top4 in my eyes. After a season plagued by a multitude of minor injuries, the forward from ALBA Urspring reached his full strength last weekend in Bamberg and did not want to use this event to showcase his offensive skill set but put all his effort into a tremendous defensive performance over the two days. He showed that he can both guard smaller and taller players than himself as he nearly shut down the shorter Lars Wendt in the second half of the semi-finals but did the same with the taller Niels Giffey in the Final. Both are very different type of players but Bright managed to defend them very well and was the main factor for the Urspring win.

On the offensive end, Bright did not show that much unless his help was really needed and this was mainly in the decisive moments of both games. In the semi-finals, it was him that knocked down the highly important three-point shots from the corner and from 45 degrees to bring Urspring back in the game. This ability to knock down important shots is a trademark of the 17 year old player as we remember him doing the same for Urspring back in 2008 already.  So it was no surprise to see the team running a set play for him to take the shot on the buzzer in the semi-finals which he made from beyond the three point line with a hand in his face.

Offensively, as Bright managed voluntarily his forces for the defensive effort, there is not that much to talk about except that he showed that he can be a true team player and put his individual performance over 40 minutes in the background to serve the team. You could see him going for a lot of extra-passes, kick-outs on his drives or working on the offensive glass where he grabbed one highly important offensive rebound in the closing minutes of the Final to avoid any possible comeback of ALBA Berlin. The goal for Bright is now to go for a 2010/2011 season without any injuries in order to continue his progress before he becomes NCAA eligible in 2011; a way that he will most likely go in one year.

Justin Raffington – 2m06 – PF/C – 1991 – ALBA Urspring

The University of San Francisco recruit played a solid Top4 in Bamberg where he did his job which consisted mainly in rebounding and being an athletic presence in the paint, especially on defense. Raffington looked like he has progressed in his explosiveness and worked in the weighting room over the last moments. Even if he still gets easily out of balance once in the air when being pushed, this looked less important than it was the case for example during the U18 European Championship back in 2009. The absence of any physical specimen of his size in the Top4 was however not giving him a status of dominator in the paint.

Offensively, Raffington remains rather raw when it comes to low post moves. He tries to score by overpowering his opponent when posting them up or goes once or twice for some kind of running hook shot. He has however developed an interesting baseline jump shot out to approximately 3-4 meters which he knocks down regularly. He even took a three point shot at a crucial moment, which was a decision I did not really understand and he missed the shot too. It shows however that he is working on this part of his game to develop a different threat in his offensive arsenal.

Right now, the 2m06 tall scores mainly inside the paint though on offensive rebounds, dishes from his team mates or put backs. He had some quite impressive dunks which he finishes mostly with great power and two hands. He works hard for the good position on the offensive rebound and got a lot of foul calls in his favor against this type of competition that he dominates physically. He makes his free-throws with great accuracy for a big man which confirms his potential as a better jump shooter in the future.

Niels Giffey – 2m00 – SF – 1991 – ALBA Berlin

The Top4 ended with a tragedy in what was the last game for Niels Giffey in the NBBL. The forward of ALBA Berlin, who recovered from a months-long illness and only came back in November 2009, could not overcome the excellent defense of Kevin Bright to raise his playing level and lead ALBA Berlin to a second consecutive title after his MVP performance in 2009. This does not take away from Giffey that he is a rather intriguing prospect as he used his recovery time to improve his already very versatile offensive skill set. He improved his three-point shooting to turn now around 45% from behind the arc.

Combined with his good fundamentals and technique, Giffey shows a great understanding of the game in itself, being able to read what the defense gives him and seeing how to use defensive switches for example at his best. Mainly playing from outside, the 2m00 tall forward can put the ball on the floor with a preference for his right hand and go to finish strong around the basket with very long steps. He can also stop his drive to go to a triple-threat-position for the head fake or the extra pass for one of the cutters.

Defensively, Giffey showed also his versatility as he defended nearly every position. Being used at the top in a 3-2 zone or on the 1-2-2 zone press, he is quick enough laterally to chase the guards to the trap situations in the corners. Additionally, he did an excellent job in the Final in man-man situations against Justin Raffington who he could defend in the low post going for several steals on the entry passes. Giffey added a few highlight-reel type blocks in both games where he came out of nowhere to reject the layup attempts on the fast break. His situation for next season is not clear yet as he has a multitude of offers on the table coming both from NCAA Colleges and Beko Bundesliga teams.

Malte Ziegenhagen – 1m93 – SG – 1991 – ALBA Berlin

Malte Ziegenhagen was an interesting addition for ALBA Berlin this season as the 1m93 tall guard gave the team a perimeter threat that was missing before. Ziegenhagen is what you would call a real shooter, being able to take the shot nearly from everywhere on the court. He seems to have an excellent touch and can also create his own shot of the dribble when going for the mid-range pull-up. But he is also not afraid to go to the hoop strong and finish the drive close to rim, even with the foul and off both hands. Ziegenhagen had an excellent game in the semi-finals where he lead ALBA Berlin during the minutes where Giffey was on the bench because of foul trouble.

In the finals tough, Ziegenhagen was unable to hit his shots and had also some trouble to go for his drives against the more athletic players of Urspring. He remains however a very aggressive scorer on the SG position as he attacks the basket very well when the defense tries to take away his shot. He needs however to become a better passer to be more versatile on his drives as right now, he mainly goes for his own score when attacking the basket. But his main skill remains his outside shot which he can take very well when coming of the screen to go for a catch-and-shoot or when receiving the ball on kick-outs where he can transform the attempt even when getting bad passes.

A considerable advantage of Ziegenhagen is his presence on defense. He is not afraid to put a body in the lane to take the charge, something that he is doing extremely well. The guard also knows how to get the call by the typical European exaggeration on the push when defending laterally and can be an interesting possession changer with this asset. He gives a relentless effort on defense but despite being excellent on getting the offensive foul, he may not be a real defensive stopper because of his only average athletic abilities. Ziegenhagen is currently looking for a Division 1 scholarship in the United States. You can find a highlight video of his 2009/2010 season right here.

Lars Wendt – 1m90 – SG – 1992 – Paderborn Baskets

The guard from Paderborn had probably one of the most amazing shows of the weekend with a first half effort in the semi-finals where he nearly created a 14 point all by himself. Wendt mishandled the Urspring guards with his mix of long distance shots and drives where nobody could stop him without a foul. He drew 8 fouls in just 17 minutes on the court and made 10 out of his 14 free-throw attempts in the first half. In the second half though, he could not continue on this level once he got defended by the taller and more athletic Kevin Bright.

However, Lars Wendt showed in the first half that when he plays under control, he is one of the most interesting scorers of the NBBL and with one year left in the German youth league, it would not be a surprise to see him lead his team back together with his twin brother Ole to a third Top4 in a row. The SG features an excellent and quick three-point shot that he can take straight or out of balance. He did not force the shot in the first half and showed that he is doing a great job as well when driving to the basket for the mid-range play with the dish or the jump shot. He looks to be really clever in order to get the foul calls as he likes to go for the little head fake that puts the defender out of balance.

During the semi-final, Wendt did not go for a crazy shot until the last quarter as he gets criticized for often and did also quite a good job on the defensive glass like he did already in the Albert Schweitzer Tournament with the German U18 National Team. The guard from Paderborn needs to get more regular in his shooting accuracy in order to become a constant threat but with his excellent scoring feel, he should be able to get some minutes with the professional team of Paderborn next season in the German ProA League as he is doing his job on defense as well.

Dennis Ogbe – 1m99 – SF/PF – 1991 – Franken Hexer

The athletic forward from Franken Hexer finished a quite nice season with an excellent first half in the semi-finals on Saturday against ALBA Berlin. Ogbe showed his talent combined with a nice understanding of the game and excellent presence on the rebound. Currently, the forward is developing more of a SF game as he was mainly used as a PF so far in his career. He showed that he is ready to take the long distance shot but he could not connect them with high percentages on Saturday. At moments, it looked like he really wanted to hit a three-pointer instead of putting the ball on the floor and attack the basket.

Ogbe can play the drive and even showed a nice pass out of the baseline drive. He reads nicely what the defense gives him, especially when playing off the ball going for backdoor cuts for example. Out of the defensive rebound, he can also go for the coast-to-coast play that he finishes with nice and powerful dunks. But the main work for him remains in his jump shot where he needs to stretch out the arm completely when taking the shot in order to become more regular from outside. He has a nice touch as he showed when being close to the basket but with a better shooting mechanic, he can increase his potential as a future SF prospect.

Defensively, Ogbe is doing a good job in the rebound situations where he uses his above average athletic abilities and good timing to grab a large amount of defensive boards. Franken Hexer used him even also at the top when they played a 3-2 zone over a short stretch. The forward looks to be an interesting prospect down the road when he is able to develop his outside skill-set combined with his athletic abilities. Dennis Ogbe signed a Letter of Intent with Tennessee Tech this weekend and will play for the Golden Eagles in the Ohio Valley Conference next season.

Felix Engel had a great game in the Final where the PG/SG showed excellent shooting from both the mid-range and behind the arc. He had two three pointers in a row against the zone defense to increase the lead and made more shots later on. He likes to drive on his left hand to go for the mid-range jump shot as well despite being right handed. It comes that he ends up a bit out of balance in those situations when going up for the pull. Engel, who is 1m91 tall, is currently looking for a Division 1 scholarship in order to develop his skills. The 1991 born guard from the Urspring Academy is mainly used as a scoring PG with his team right now and can also be a factor on defense as he is rather physical.

Mario Blessing was the second guard from the Urspring academy that I wanted to mention as he did play an interesting final as well where he showed some good scoring talent. The 1992 born member of the U18 National Team can hit the three-pointer when being open or split the defense with his drives. However, the 1m84 tall guard is struggling on the defensive end where his lack of physical presence and rather slow lateral speed put him in some trouble as you could see in the semi-finals against Lars Wendt. However, Blessing is not afraid to go hard and make the big foul when needed and he should progress nicely next season when he is the main PG for the team.

Joey Ney is a player to watch on the ALBA Berlin team as the 1m97 tall guard is born only in December 1992. Ney showed a nice feel for the game and correct shooting from behind the arc. Despite not being the quickest person on earth, the guard manages to create a lot of the dribble where he uses his size and long steps to beat his opponent. He is not afraid to go for the perfect behind the back pass in traffic and it was him who tried to take the lead for ALBA in the Final when both Giffey and Ziegenhagen struggled. Ney can also use his size in the post to play in the low block when guarded by a smaller player and he will certainly be one of the main offensive threats of the ALBA Junior Team next season.

Dominik Malinowski was the glue-guy for a Paderborn Baskets team as the 1991 born guard did nearly everything on the court. Being 1m98 tall and able to play the PG position, Malinowski is very interesting player as he offers a good body and a nice basketball skill set. With a scorer like Lars Wendt next to him, Malinowski was not a major offensive threat but he was present in all the other categories but took his responsibilities when needed. He can hit the three pointer in catch-shoot fashion or play the drive to create for his team mates or go himself for the bank shot from 45 degrees. He is also present on both ends of the court for rebounding situations and is definitely a player to watch in the next years.

Daniel Stawowski was one of the few interesting big guys in the Top4 as the 2m05 tall PF showed a nice versatility in his game and being mainly a face-up player attacking the basket from the outside. Stawowski also showed an good shot from outside and the ability to put the ball on the floor. However, his ball handling is improvable as he dribbles the ball quite high and is therefore always at the risk of a turnover. The forward from Franken Hexer can play it also in the low post where he has some back to the basket moves and decent athletic abilities to score close to the basket. An interesting point in Stawowski’s game is his capacity to pass the ball and create opportunities for his team mates.

JBBL Top4 Tournament

The JBBL (under 16 category) Top4 tournament was dominated by IBBA Berlin and their four former “Talente mit Perspektive” players Oben Ebot-Etchi, Robin Jorch, Mauricio Marin and Lennard Boekstegers. We just go over some of these players briefly as they are mostly 15 or 16 years old only and therefore quite difficult to evaluate. However, there was one player that really stood out in my opinion.

Mauricio Marin was the best player of the tournament in my eyes as the smooth and elegant guard of IBBA showed in the two games of the weekend an excellent arsenal of offensive moves and a really interesting long term potential. Marin can score the ball from behind the arc with great shooting (even having an a bit strange release) percentages but as well attack the basket with excellent speed and still create of the dribble for his team mates. Being announced at 1m86, the SG looks even a bit taller right now as the height was probably taken at the beginning of the season. Marin recognizes the game situations very well and can adapt his offensive possessions to what the defense gives him. When his shot was not falling in the Final, he created good open opportunities for his team mates with his drives where he kicked out the ball nicely to the open shooters on the opposite side or had the dish for the open big on the help situations. Right now, Marin mainly goes for his right hand when attacking the basket but as it worked very well throughout the weekend, we could not see if he is able to do the same when going left. He is also a great presence in the defensive rebound on this level and he will be certainly among the leaders this summer for the German U16 National Team.

Robin Jorch was the big guy for IBBA as the 2m01 tall player who will turn 16 in July scored mostly close to the basket due to his positioning and footwork. He finishes very well when being close to the basket and showed also some interesting back to the basket moves when playing in the low post.

Lennard Boekstegers showed a good touch from outside and knocked down a couple of three point shots over the weekend. The forward from IBBA can put the ball on the floor as well and also goes to the low post when being defended by a smaller player.

Oben Ebot-Etchi was the vocal and mental leader of the IBBA team on the court as the 1m83 tall PG showed amazing leadership and decision making for such a young player. Additionally, he was highly present on the defensive end with great lateral speed and a good feeling for stealing the ball. Offensively, he really lead the team but showed also some limits on the jump shot. It will be interesting to see how he develops when he is facing players that match him physically in the NBBL next season.

Andrej Pavicevic played an excellent semi-final where the son of Luka Pavicevic showed great passing skills and excellent decision making in the money time. In the final however, Pavicevic was not really present taking a lot of difficult shots and unable to create good situations for his team mates. The 1m92 tall guard is however an interesting prospect for the next years.

Marley Jean-Louis took over the offensive lead in the Final for ALBA Berlin behind a nice three point shot and a good drive with his right hand. The 1m86 tall SF/SG helped also out on the PG position where he used his rather thick body built to take an advantage in certain situations. It will be interesting to see in which direction Jean-Louis will go in the next years and if he has a future on the PG position or remains a wing player.

Philipp Winter is an athletic wing player who showed excellent timing to steal the ball for TSV Tröster Breitengüssbach. The 1m93 tall player showed also a good versatility on the offensive end where he can hit the three pointer but also go to the low post to play with his back to the basket. His shooting mechanics look not really regular at the moment but he could knock down his attempts nicely. A large knee brace puts however some question marks about his physical abilities for the future.

Terry Thomas was the youngest player that saw some minutes on the tournament as the 1995 born wing was used in a backup role for Breitengüssbach. Thomas did not really show anything special but features a very interesting combination of length and fluidity and will certainly be a player to watch in the next years.

Malik Müller could not really step up for Urspring in the semi-final as the Jordan Brand Classic MVP was unable to score more than 1 point in the first half. He tried to go for more in the second twenty minutes but his shot did not fall and his drives were not strong enough to make the difference. Müller had some short minutes with the NBBL team on Sunday as well where he was used to play a defensive role which he executed very well. Being really strong physically, he had no problem to play against 3 year older players over two or three defensive possessions.

JBBL/NBBL Top4: Player Review is a post from: European Prospects
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The day started with the very interesting NBBL All-Star game that was however once again played in 4*10 minutes where the first three quarters had an unstopped clock. After some turnovers in the beginning, the game developed very well and finished with a big show in the end. A long three point shot to force OT and a MVP performance by Patrick Heckmann in the 3 supplementary minutes marked a huge game for this type of event where both teams wanted to win . There have already been about 5000 (!!) fans in the arena and the youngsters made them go crazy in the final moments of the game. The German youth system is progressing very well, the talented 1992 generation is looking very promising and may be at the same level than the already succesful 89s. With the Albert-Schweitzer Tournament and the U17 World Championship coming later this year, the German basketball fans are not lacking major youth competition either in the next months.

Patrick Heckmann (1m97 – Guard – 1992 – ASC Theresianum Mainz)

Patrick Heckmann was one of the players in this game who I have not seen before. This has changed now and I must admit that it was about time. The 1m97 guard, who is listed as a forward but played most of the time as PG, is definitely among the most talented players in the NBBL and in Germany in general. After a year with Cheyenne Mountain High School in the US, where he transformed a losing team into a Play-off participant, the athletic guard came back to Germany and plays an outstanding season with the ASC NBBL team but is also one of the team leaders of the ASC Seniors in the Regionalliga (4th German division).

Heckmann displays a rare combination of basketball understanding, leadership qualities, athletic abilities and a winning spirit. He led his NBBL to a surprising 8-1 record and showed also in the All-Star game why he is considered as a top talent, he scored 7 of the 9 points of the South team in the overtime to secure the win and earn a deserved MVP trophy. In the beginning of the game, Heckmann showed some nice drives out of the catch immediately beating his opponent with either the left or the right hand. He finished those penetrations very well and close to the basket where his good athletic abilities helped him. He can create for his team mates, this is why he should play Point Guard on the professional level.

The guard from Mainz showed all his leadership and basketball skills in the three-minute long overtime where he decided the game nearly all by himself. A nice drive on the break finished from 45 degrees of the glass with the foul, another drive finished with a finger roll and a ultra tough 3pt fade-away jump shot to seal the deal were the plays that earned him the MVP award. He finished the game with 19pts (7/8 FGs, 4/5FTs), 1reb, 2asts, 3stls and 1blk. With his basketball skills and a good body structure to build on, Heckmann looks right now as a very interesting prospect. Several professional teams tried to sign him after his year in the USA, but he returned to his hometown Mainz where he will stay until 2012 and get his high school degree. Afterwards, everything should be possible for him.

NBBL Stats: 25.7ppg (47.7% FG 89.3% FT), 5.5rpg, 2.3apg, 2.4spg, 0.7bpg

Besnik Bekteshi (1m86 – Guard  – 1993 – BBA Ludwigsburg)

The youngest player in the game was far away from being shy. The team leader of BBA Ludwigsburg showed interesting scoring skills, especially from behind the arc where he can knock down the threes easily. Despite looking a bit frail and not very explosive, Bekteshi created himself always the necessary space to get the open shots either by the dribble or by moving off the ball. His shot does not look super quick but the mechanics are very regular and he is not afraid to fire it up.

The guard is also driving to the basket and finishing the moves in a soft but intense way. He has some nice fakes that give him the necessary opportunities to score but he may lack a bit of the playmaking skills to become a real PG. However, as this was just an All-Star game, it is important to see how he acts when the normal regular games are going on. Despite being not too tall, he recognizes well when he is guarded by smaller players to go post them up and finish against them in the low block. His All-Star stats looked excellent though with 18pts (4/7 3s) and 7rebs. With two more seasons to go in the NBBL from this summer, Bekteshi has yet a long way to go, but he will probably be one of the main players of the German U17 National Team this summer.

NBBL Stats: 23mpg 15.6ppg (54.1% 2FG, 45.7% 3FG), 3.7rpg, 3.0apg, 3.6spg

Philipp Neumann (2m06 – Center – 1992 – Breitengüssbach) took the game pretty serious as the German Center was as happy as no one else on the final buzzer that his team has won. Playing as physical as ever, the 2m06 tall player did not show that much of progress in terms of forcing it inside tough. With his outstanding physical and athletic skills, he was very present in the low block where he saw several double or even triple teams on him and managing to score anyhow. Several of these moves looked forced but they worked. The main problem for Neumann is that he does not know yet when to give the ball back out and when to play it inside. However, he gave some passes back out yesterday which shows that he is working on this. It is important for him to do so if he wants to make the next step. Right now, he is still a very impressive player on this level, showing excellent scoring skills and big presence on rebounding and shot blocking. He may add some long distance threat in the future too but did not show much of face-up plays though. Most of the scores came from powering in the low post. He finished the game with 12pts (6/9 FGs), 7rebs and 5blks.

NBBL Stats: 22.0ppg (76.7% 2FG), 13.8rpg, 2.2bpg

Dennis Ogbe (1m97 – Forward – 1991 – Franken Hexer) was one important player for the South team as the PF from Franken Hexer did a lot of dirty work in the paint which you may not recognize like setting screens, boxing out and playing strong defense. It was always his task to defend the best scorers of the North team and he did a good job there. Offensively, he emerged in the last quarter where he hit two big baseline shots in the money time, one was a tough 3 pointer from the corner with 1.2 seconds on the clock to force the overtime after having seen his previous drive rejected badly. Ogbe needs to progress in his ballhandling as he is only 1m97 tall which limits him to play the PF spot in the future.

NBBL Stats: 21.4ppg (55.8% 2FG), 9.1rpg, 2.0spg

Niels Giffey (2m00 – Forward – 1991 – ALBA Berlin) is definitely back. After having missed several months because of a mononucleosis, the forward from ALBA Berlin showed in Bonn that he is still one of the most talented players in Germany. He can do it all, rebound, score and win games, even if the last did not happen yesterday. But it was him that had the big plays for the North just before the overtime with a huge three-point shot with Ogbe’s hand in his face from about 7.5 meters and 2 clutch free-throws made several seconds before the end of the regular time. His shot looks improved and he showed nice range throughout the game and can vary the outside-inside game pretty well. With his shooting improving, Giffey is on the right move and the long-time illness seems gone. He finished the game as top scorer with 22pts (8/11 FGs and 4/5 3FG) and 4rebs.

NBBL Stats: 13.6ppg (61.8% 2FG, 44.4% 3FG), 4.4rpg

Daniel Theis (2m05 – Center – 1992 – Braunschweig) came up with a very nice game in Bonn. The highly athletic and explosive center had several highlights in the game like a two handed slam over Neumann and Ogbe as well as an impressive rejection above backboard square height in the money time. He is very present in the paint with good work and he did a nice job on defending Neumann, giving him a hard time to score. Close to the basket, Theis tries to finish strong with the dunk and draws a lot of fouls with this presence. He is going hard for the rebound on both ends of the floor and showed also some correct skills for attacking the basket on the drive. The shot looks improvable but he can make the mid-range jumper correctly. He finished the game with 12pts, 8rebs and 2blks.

NBBL Stats: 18.7ppg (79% FG), 9.2rpg, 2.7bpg

About the Senior All-Star Game, there is not that much to say. Tim Ohlbrecht missed it with a last-minute illness and was not replaced. Robin Benzing did not see a lot of offensive opportunities as one of the Rookies in the game. And when the few attempts he got do not fall, it is hard to judge on what he did, especially in an All-Star Game. What can be said, is that he did quite a good job defending the smaller and more athletic forwards of the North and he had a very nice drive and dish in the beginning of the game. But it will be more interesting to come back on him once later in the season after having seen more of him in normal game action. Per Günther, Benzing’s team mate in Ulm, was voted into the Starting Five by the fans, but the small guard did look a bit lost among all the highly physical and athletic US born players around him. He did a correct job without a score tough but he is probably not the right player for an All-Star game as he is not particularly flashy or known for producing for the highlight reel.

German All-Star Day 2010: the NBBL steals the show is a post from: European Prospects
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The defending champions of Urspring Academy had to suffer the most this weekend. Heavily favorite once again, their top scorer Maurice Stuckey had a double rupture of his ankle tendon last week and some of their players were also heavily engaged in different tournaments (Rho, NIJT) over the last weeks. This can however not been seen as an excuse for the extremely poor display of the team during the semi-finals where they really looked bad against a short but aggressive Paderborn Baskets team. And it was this team, coached by Artur Gacaev that came out of the tournament with highest number of new gained supporters.

The team displayed a very pleasant to watch basketball, based on tremendous defensive pressure, excellent offensive organization and a player in Lars Wendt that emerged as a top prospect for Germany during this tournament. The 1m83 tall guard formed an electric back court duo together with his twin brother Ole Wendt (NBBL All-Star this winter). Being born in October 1992, they were among the youngest players of the tournament giving more than 2 and half years to some of their competitors. But they came out great in my eyes.

Ole Wendt takes more care of the PG duties where he sets up the game perfectly using his excellent handles to put the defense in trouble. His drives create a lot of open positions for his team mates on the wings and he drew a large amount of fouls. He had several nice plays, especially during the final where he scored a huge three point shot after a behind the back dribble to create the necessary space to shoot. And he does not need that much of space to go for it.

His twin brother Lars Wendt looks even more interesting in my eyes. It was him that took all the big shots of the team, increasing his playing level through out the game. You could see him several times asking for the ball and do his stuff, and most of the times it was great. He has tremendous three point range and very quick release that allows him to shot against any defender. He scored even several three pointers with the foul, some of them from 7 to 8 meters. While most of his scoring comes from behind the arc, his size limits him a bit when driving as he is not particularly athletic. But his drives were excellent and mostly were stopped by fouls where he was nearly automatic from the line. He is definitely a player to watch for the future and it will be interesting to see if he can develop into a PG as he will probably lack of size to play the SG on the highest level.

However, during the final of the tournament, the team of Paderborn could not hold his playing and intensity level through out the 40 minutes. After another great performance during the first 20 minutes, everything looked like it is going to be the major upset. But ALBA Berlin behind a great Niels Giffey took over the game in the final quarter. In front of more than 2000 fans, the German SF made several big plays to take the lead back for his team. And it was him that nailed the highly important three point shot after a perfectly executed setup in the decisive moment of the game. Giffey scored in multiple ways, including post up scoop shots with his left hand, mid-range jumpers of set threes. And he did not show any kind of nerves when he needed to score his FTs in the money time. To get an even better insight on him, you can find it here in my post about the forwards of the Nike International Junior Tournament that was played in Berlin a week before.

Giffey got some important support during the final from the strong but short PF Steven Monse who used his wide body to create some trouble in the paint. Probably a limited player when it comes to upside, Monse can develop into a solid role player in the next years as he displays the necessary work ethics and physical build to compete against professional opposition. Another key player for ALBA Berlin was their PG Konstantin Klein who came up with the game winning steal 10 seconds before the end of the game and converted the necessary FTs to seal the victory.

The game for the third place saw Breitengüssbach bring home the Bronze medal behind the nice scoring effort of their PG Daniel Schmidt who displayed some good understanding of the game and correct long distance qualities. Erik Land however was a bit of a disappointment for me as he could not lift his team to the Final in the semis and was unlucky too during the Sunday game. However, his combination of intensity, footwork and post game can help him to grab Bundesliga minutes in the next years.

Urspring Academy finished 4th this weekend and besides the rebounding presence of Justin Raffington (30 rebounds in two games), it was difficult to see something positive. Raffington showed some abilities to hit the jump shot around the key but his post play needs some polish. His year long injury did not help him on this point for sure. Top 92 talent Kevin Bright looked tired like he did already during the NIJT last weekend. At least, he came up with a correct individual performance on Sunday where he scored 17 and had 11 rebounds. But it was time for him to get some rest before the summer and the upcoming preparation for the U18 European championships.

Some other notes

• The weekend was also used to give away the season awards of the NBBL. Coach of the Year was for Henrik Rödl of ALBA Berlin, MVP of the season went to Maik Zirbes from TBB Trier, Jonas Wohlfarth-Bottermann won the defensive player of the year award and the best Rookie (born in 1993) was Alexander Blessig from FC Bayern München
• Despite being a popular success with several thousand fans, I was a bit disappointed by the small number of Bundesliga coaches or officials in the Arena. A League that is desperately looking to create a “more German” image seems not to be very interested in its future players. Except for the ALBA Berlin staff, I did not see a lot of other teams that were present despite having no Bundesliga games during the Final day.
• My personal All-Tournament Team:
  PG Ole Wendt 8.5ppg 3.0apg
  SG Lars Wendt 24.0ppg (10/21 3FG 14/17FT)
  SF Niels Giffey (MVP) 25.0ppg (14/19 2FG 4/7 3FG 10/10FT) 5.0rpg
  PF Steven Monse 8.5ppg 8.0rpg 1.5bpg
  C Justin Raffington10.0ppg 15.0rpg 2.0bpg

Highlight Videos of the tournament

Thanks to the great work of schoenen-dunk.de, you can find here highlight videos of the four games of the tournament

NBBL Top4 2009: the Wendt-show was not enough (UPDATED with Videos) is a post from: European Prospects
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Niels Giffey (2m00 – 1991 – ALBA Berlin)

The German forward was un-doubtfully the most talented player of the wildcard ALBA Berlin team. Combining an interesting mixture of size, athleticism and skill set, Giffey had however to play a lot on the PF and even C position while his future should be SF. But the limited size of his team forced his coach, the former NC Tar Heel Henrik Rödl to use him against the bigs. While this did not put him that much in trouble defensively, where he used his quickness to steal a bunch of balls in the post, offensively, you could see that he prefers to play on the wing and attack the basket facing it.

The biggest progress in Giffey’s game is that he has now a pretty good three point shot, at least in the catch-and-shoot fashion when receiving the kick out passes. His mid-range game is normally one of his strengths but his shot from around the key was off during the days in Berlin. So he focused a bit more on his drive where he displays good speed and that he can conclude with powerful dunks. The problem comes however from his ball handling which can still be improved.

You can see him several times run into the defense and having to try difficult stuff because he struggled with his dribble. These drives came often from the high post where he excelled in a role as high-low passer with his cutting wings or posting up big man. What is the part that makes Giffey a interesting Euroleague prospect though is his presence on defense. He can steal the ball in the passing lanes, come for block shots and defend post players pretty well. Additionally, he can handle the pressure as he managed to play a close game with 4 fouls through out the full second half.

Stats: 14.3ppg (49% 2FG 46% 3FG) 5.6rpg 2.0apg 2.7spg 0.7bpg

Nemanja Knezevic (2m01 – 1992 – Hemofarm Vrsac)

A player that had some interesting moments during the NIJT 2009 was the 1992 born forward Nemanja Knezevic. Not particularly athletic, Knezevic displays a already well developed body and good understanding of his own skills and the basketball game in general. Because of the short size of his team, Knezevic got guarded mostly by taller players and he always recognized that situation to take them outside and beat them of the dribble.

He beat his opponents like this of his both hands with a preference for the left hand despite being right handed. His handles on these penetrations looked ok but not great. It was surprising to see his opponents always giving him the possibilities to beat him like that as Knezevic has not a particularly good outside shot. He takes the ball in front of his face to shoot which makes it barely impossible to shot over a defender.

Nemanja Knezevic driving against Bakary Konate (Gran Canaria)

He can work his opponent in the post too when he gets guarded by a physically weaker or smaller player. His big body helps him here even without having particularly developed post moves. Still being a year younger than the competition, Knezevic needs to improve his shot and can be one of the Serbian leaders of the 92 generation. On the other hand, he needs to put away some laziness he displayed on some passes during the fast break. But this did not look particularly happen that much.

Stats: 10.4ppg (54% 2FG) 4.1rpg

Osvaldas Matulionis (1m99 – 1991 – Lietuvos Rytas)

The strong Lithuanian forward displayed in Berlin once again the full arsenal of his talent. Doing going in nearly every domain of the game without being great, Matulionis is the perfect player you want to have on your team in order to win. Not only that he has a picture perfect shot, the small forward is also present in the rebound on both ends of the court.

Defensively, he plays a lot in the passing lanes which gives him a good amount of steals which he can use to run the break. His main offensive threat is of course his shot, especially in catch and shoot action where he is netting with high percentages. Additionally, he is very present on the offensive glass where he uses his correct athletic abilities and large body to grab a fair amount of offensive rebounds.

His size limits Matulionis probably in his development as a SF but he lacks the speed to become a high class SG prospect. However, his great shot may open him some doors on the highest level, even when being a bit undersized for the wing spot.

Stats: 12.5ppg (53% 2FG 85%FT) 6.1rpg 2.0spg

Tommaso Ingrosso (2m05 – 1992 – Montepaschi Siena)

Surprisingly selected to the All-Tournament team, Tommaso Ingrosso is definitely a  very interesting player. He is present in every aspect of the basketball game and will develop into a future Senior NT forward for Italy probably. Displaying a great mixture of size, speed, athleticism and basketball IQ, he showed in Berlin that he is not afraid either to take the big shots for his team.

Ingrosso excelled when he got the ball outside the arc and could take his opposition of the dribble. He showed nice penetration skills when using his left hand and can also go for the dish out of these drives. He knows exactly what to do during the game, using a lot of fakes and angles in order to create for himself or his team. He also goes some times for what I call the rugby player drive, grabbing the ball strongly with his two hands and holding it close to his body in order to avoid the steal.

With his versatility and size, Ingrosso can play the two forward spots and creates matchup problems on both of them. He is working hard on the rebound and goes for a lot of hustle plays in the paint. Still being a year younger than the competition, he has the time to develop his skill set and become a better long distance shooter so that he has the full arsenal of a modern small forward.

Stats: 6.9ppg 7.4rpg 0.7bpg

Cesar Augusto Lima (2m05 – 1991 – Unicaja Malaga)

The Brazilian Pf of Unicaja Malaga formed an athletic inside duo together with Malick Fall, but being in a very different style than the African player. Lima runs the floor very well and he is a great presence in rebound, where he has lots of tips in or follow up baskets. His footwork helps him a lot in this area as he makes quite big steps and can in this way move himself around the defenders.

As a post moves, he relies a lot to his jump hooks which he scores quite well. He also creates some options for himself through different moves out of the star move in the paint. His range will probably develop a bit more over the next years and a three point shot is currently in the making. His athleticism helps him in defense where he rejects shots against his direct opposition. His good wingspan is a good additional asset for him too.

Lima probably needs to add some kilos of muscle to play a role in the future of Unicaja as a Euroleague player. We will see how he develops in the future and if he can add the necessary power for the Euroleague battles in the paint.

Stats: 11.0ppg (52% 2FG) 9.9rpg 1.6bpg

NIJT 2009: the Forwards is a post from: European Prospects
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• Union Olimpija is still winless in Berlin after their loss by 20 points against Lietuvos Rytas today. The Wildcard team looks like the weakest team in the tournament right now despite the presence of Mirza Sarajlija. However, the guard sensation from Slovenia who hit 6 out of 11 three today, is still recovering from his recent injury. For the Lithuanians, it was Jonas Valanciunas who had a good game with 23pts and 11rebs while yesterday’s top player Osvaldas Matulionis was limited to three units.
• Hemofarm Stada Vrsac overcame the winners of the Stella Azzurra tournament Gran Canaria in a game that saw the domination of the Serbian forward Nemanja Knezevic. The 1992 born player, that may have a limited upside scored at will against a Gran Canaria defense that used several players on him, but could never stop him. He got some all-around support by Petar Lambic, another 1992 prospect from the Vrsac team. Oscar Alvarado got fouled 15 times which may be a new record for the NIJT history but it was not enough to lead his team to a win.
• FMP totally destroyed a poor Unicaja Malaga team. For FMP, you could see the talent of the 1993 born PG and recent Jordan Brand Classic MVP Nenad Miljenovic who scored 13 points.
• The last game of the day saw another good performance by the short ALBA Berlin team against Montepaschi Siena who killed the Germans in the paint. But the performance of the day was coming from the ALBA side where SF Niels Giffey had an impressive 39 efficiency points. It was maybe the presence of German NT coach Dirk Bauermann that pushed the versatile forward to score 27 points, grad 12 rebounds while adding 3 assists and 3 steals. He got some surprising support from big man Friedrich Lotze with some ugly looking but netting base line jumpers. For Montepaschi, the two 1992 born Tomaso Ingrosso and Nunzio Sabbatino won the game for the Italians with some important buckets and Nika Metreveli did his job in the paint.

Today’s picks (live from Berlin) is a post from: European Prospects
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• It was Branislav Dekic that scored the game winning layup with 5 seconds to go in a thriller game that was dominated by the ALBA defense and Dejan Musli’s offensive presence. A last second three pointer by ALBA missed its goal and the Serbian could celebrate their first victory. Dejan Musli had no opposition in the paint as ALBA had only one real Center and the Serbian big was guarded mostly by PF shorter than 2m. That’s why we saw ALBA set up different defenses in order to slow down the FMP game. Malte Ziegenhagen scored 4 out 6 three pointers to be the main offensive threat for ALBA while Niels Giffey was off with only 3 out 12 shots from 2.
• Unicaja beat Montepaschi behind the efforts of their bigs Augusto Cesar Lima and Malick Fall.
• For Lietuvos Rytas, it was Osvaldas Matulionis that helped them to overcome Hemofarm Vrsac, despite being fouled out in the final minutes. Jonas Valanciunas was present in the rebound but had also foul trouble and did not finish the game. Hemofarm had a good team effort, but it was not enough to come up with the win at the end.
• I can add nothing about the first game of the tournament as it was already over when I arrived at the gym. A gym that saw lots of fans and executives right from the first day on. Multiple NBA teams are in the arena too and the number of representatives will increase by tomorrow. Unfortunately though that the games are played simultaneously on two courts so that it is impossible to follow all the games during the day.

Today’s picks (live from Berlin) is a post from: European Prospects
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Group A

Union Olimpija Ljubljana is one of the two Wildcard teams. They did not manage to qualify despite playing two tournaments and despite having a very interesting group of talent. However, the total absence of inside impact players makes them vulnerable. The main player to follow of course in Mirza Sarajlija who had already some Euroleague games. But the quick guard is questionable for Berlin because of a small knee injury. So the main roles offensively will be taken over by the Ukrainian guard Andriy Lebedintsev, who is a nice scorer but also a great defensive pressure guy, and by wingman Matic Sirnik. The younger players of the team feature also some interesting guys and it is especially the 1993 born Djordje Micic who already attracts the interest of the international scouts.

Lietuvos Rytas had already a great team during last year’s NIJT built around a back court that put tremendous pressure throughout the game. With the addition of the top Center prospect Jonas Valanciunas (MVP of the U16 EC in 2008), the team looks like on the favorites for this year’s edition. You better be prepared to see full-court pressure of Ovidijus Varanauskas, Augustas Peciukevicius and Mantas Kadzevicius during 40 minutes and three point bombing by Osvaldas Matulionis. Definitely, Lietuvos Rytas will be one of the teams to watch during the 4 days in Berlin.

Caja de Canarias Gran Canaria was a big surprise for me when they qualified during the Stella Azzurra tournament in Rome this winter. But this team is probably the closest one to a perfect team chemistry. A true Point Guard in Oscar Alvarado (MVP of the Stella Azzurra tournament) who won’t impress you with flashy passes, crazy scoring but with basketball knowledge, game temp control and defense; Alejandro Lopez who is an off guard that can score and runs the break. The wings are occupied by true team players while the inside is composed of three highly different player types: a shooting seven-footer from the Czech Republic in Milan Jaros, the rail-thin and raw but highly athletic Bakary Konate and the hard working powerful Samuel Dominguez.

KK Hemofarm Stada is more unknown to me as I never saw them play and they have no outstanding superstar talent. But their team basketball helped them to qualify through the FMP Tournament in Belgrade. Petar Lambic is one of the more interesting players of the group, he played for example during the Jordan Brand Classic in 2008.

Group B

Unicaja Malaga impressed during the Hospitalet tournament with a team built around Tautvydas Sabonis, the son of the great Lithuanian Center and the Brazilian inside player Augusto Cesar Lima. Sabonis plays the SF position and has a good basketball IQ and can connect on long distance shots. Lima is more of an inside presence on both sides of the court. Having never seen them play in person, I am looking forward to see these guys in action in Berlin.

FMP Belgrade is the 2008 champion and will try to defend the cup this year in Berlin. Probably the most impressive team in the paint with Branislav Djekic and Dejan Musli. But the guard positions around Nikola Vukasovic and the wings  around Strahinja Mladenovic will not be far behind in terms of talent and basketball skills. But I see nobody in the tournament that can match the power of Musli and FMP looks like a highly likely title candidate.

Montepaschi Siena is the other big team of the Group B and they will play for the first play too. The guards Simone Centanni and Nunzio Sabbatino can both score at will, but being very different in their style, Centanni being more of a shooter while Sabbatino is a pure drive specialist. Tommaso Ingrosso is a very versatile forward while the Georgian big guy Nika Metreveli is one of the NBA prospect of the tournament because of his interesting combination of size and skills.

ALBA Berlin will play its first NIJT with a Wildcard as host of the tournament. The team finished 9th in Rome but they can be considered stronger than that. Next to the ALBA players around the athletic forwards Brian Wenzel and Niels Giffey, the team features additional players coming from the partner academies of ALBA Urspring and Central Hoops Berlin. Kevin Bright and Justin Raffington are the guys to watch coming from Urspring, Bright being a versatile athletic defender while Raffington gives the team the necessary size and physical presence in the paint. Head Coach Henrik Rödl will certainly try to impress the local fans with good basketball.

You can find additional information on the tournament in the official Media Guide that can be downloaded here

Nike International Junior Tournament: preview is a post from: European Prospects
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Maik Zirbes had an impressive playoff opener with his TBB Juniors Team and showed why he is considered as one of the most interesting inside talents in Germany. For those who don’t know Zirbes, you see here a massive 2m06 tall guy who dominates easily in the paint due to his large frame. Additionally, Zirbes shows a sweet stroke and is running the floor decently. However, he showed no precise moves with his back to the basket, mostly trying to go for a spin move start and beat his opponent of the dribble or a jump hook. It was him though that held his team in the game, from the outside. Baseline jump in catch and shoot fashion or one dribbling jump shot from the top are in his arsenal as well as the hesitation three point shot with a defender on him. He jumps not very high on the jump shots and his shot release is not super quick, but the mechanics look very good.

Most of Zirbes’ 38 points came of situations that his team mates created for him and he finished close to the basket. His positioning and pass reading is working very well and he is trying to finish with fancy dunks and goes mostly for two handed layups off the glass. Defensively, Zirbes is not a huge shot blocker, he does not try to reject his opponents even when not being in foul trouble. His rebounding is coming mostly of positioning and physical presence and less of jumping the highest. However, Zirbes is a pretty decent athlete and had also two nice dunks on the break. He will finish his high school this summer and then continue with Trier as a full-time professional basketball player.

Another interesting player on the Trier team is the 1992 born PG Maxim Schneider. The 1m85 tall guard had a nice first half but disappeared a bit during the 2nd 20 minutes when the team played a lot better.

The main player to observe with Basketball College Rhein Neckar was the 2m09 tall Small forward Danilo Barthel. After having some break out games with the ProA team of USC Heidelberg, Barthel showed his nice offensive game during the first half. Three point shot, beating his opponent of the dribbling, post moves, he looks like a very skilled forward with great size. Being also very altruist, he did not try extraordinary things and relied on those that he knows he can do. Behind his emotional effort in the first half, his team managed to lead against the highly favorite team of Trier by 13 points at halftime.

In the second half though, Barthel was nowhere to be found. He did not try anything and passed the ball every time to his team mates. This looked like he is currently somebody who runs with the team but is not ready to become a leader. You can however say that he did not force anything and did not refuse any open shots. He had no clear scoring options out of game situations and he did not try to create some for himself. Defensively, Barthel showed some presence in the defensive rebound but can not be considered as an extraordinary player in this area. He is present but not going to crash the boards aggressively.  Talentwise, Barthel is a very nice prospect and his recent selection for the U18 National team is underlining this fact. But he needs to get tougher and grow into a leader role. Being one year younger than the competition may be a reason for this.

Max Bohrmann showed a correct game defensively against Maik Zirbes making him take tough moves on the post up. However, he went often for help situations on Trier drives and let Zirbes open. Offensively, Bohrmann was not very lucky and his different drives from the top finished off the rim. He scored however 15 points on hustle plays and of situations created by his team mates. The 1991 born 2m07 tall Center looks a bit limited by the absence of a good shooting stroke.

Another player to watch is the 1992 born Alexander Kuhn who played a correct game on the Small Forward position. Kuhn showed the nice combination of having a good long distance shot and an aggressive drive.

The game to watch in the North Playoffs was the ALBA Berlin versus Team Bonn/Rhöndorf match-up. In the video below, you can follow two very interesting prospects with Niels Giffey from Berlin and Jonas Wohlfarth-Bottermann from Team Bonn/Rhöndorf. And it was Giffey who finished the game with the best statistical numbers with 24 points and 13 rebounds.

NBBL Playoffs started this weekend is a post from: European Prospects
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