Sure, basketball fans hungry for hoops are anxiously trying to find out how they can watch the easyCredit BBL Final10 tournament just because there is not much other live sports available during these crazy Covid-19 times. But the 10-team event running from June 6-28 in Munich’s Audi Dome actually is must-watch for NBA scouts and those interested in this year’s NBA Draft – whenever that take place – and those in the coming years.
Nearly all 10 teams competing have youngsters who have stood out at the club or national team level – many who will be called upon to shine in Munich and others who might get a chance to show in the Audi Dome what they can do – also thanks to the format.
Here is a breakdown of the youngsters by team.
ALBA Berlin: Lorenz Brenneke (2000), Malte Delow (2001) Jonas Mattisseck (2000) Kresimir Nikic (1999)
Berlin’s mastermind Aito Garcias Reneses has always given his youngsters a chance to play and the season-ender should be no different. The 2000-born guard Jonas Mattisseck has gotten regular playing time all season, though the return of Stefan Peno – who will be making his 2019-20 debut – could cut into his minutes. The 2000-born power forward Lorenz Brenneke played in four games in February and March as did 2001-born shooting guard Malte Delow. Berlin’s 1999-born Croatian center Kresimir Nikic appeared in three games this season but those came in November and December.
BG Göttingen: Erol Ersek (1999), Bennet Hundt (1998)
Göttingen have two youngsters in 1999-born Erol Ersek and 1998-born Bennet Hundt. The Austrian-German Ersek comes to Göttingen on loan from FC Bayern Munich and it remains unclear how much he will help the team given he hasn’t played above the third division ProB this season. This could be a great chance for Hundt though to finish strong a season that started on fire. The small playmaker collected two points-assists double-doubles in the first three games and also poured in 25 points against MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg in the fifth game of the season. For his first five games, Hundt, who had arrived in Göttingen after not getting a chance with ALBA Berlin, averaged 15.6 points while shooting 42.3 percent on three-pointers and dished out 7.0 assists and only 2.4 turnovers for an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.92 in nearly 30 minutes a game. But after the calendar turned from October to November, Hundt had been stripped of his minutes, reaching 20 minutes only twice in the final 15 games with the only other big game coming against FC Bayern Munich in December when he had 19 points on 4 three-pointers to go with 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Göttingen head coach Johan Roijakkers let Kyan Anderson run the show after Hundt’s quick start and the fact that Anderson is not in Munich could be a golden opportunity for Hundt. But Roijakkers brought in Leon Williams for the tournament, who played for the the coach at Göttingen in 2016-17 and 2017-18.
Brose Bamberg: Moritz Plescher (2000), Mateo Seric (1999), Nelson Weidemann (1999)
The 2000-born Plescher made his easyCredit BBL debut in March while the 1999-born big man appeared in five games in February and March and began to become a part of the extended rotation. The 1999-born Weidemann meanwhile averaged 5.2 points, 0.7 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 10:39 minutes in 18 games over the course of the season, but he had just returned from an injury in early March and scored 24 points with 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 turnovers combined while averaging 14 minutes in his last three games of the season. So, Weidemann will definitely be excited about getting a chance to pick up where he left off.
EWE Baskets Oldenburg: Jacob Hollatz (1998), Filip Stanic (1998)
Hollatz is not really a high-level talent, as opposed to his younger brother, the 2001-born Justus Hollatz with Hamburg Towers, and Jacob has only played in two games this season. Stanic is a big man who helped the 1998-born German generation to some high accomplishments at the youth national team level but only joined Oldenburg in March from Mega Bemax Belgrade. The tournament could be a chance for him to regain some shine.
FC Bayern Munich: Sasha Grant (2002), UPDATE: Jason George (2001), Matej Rudan (2001)
Bayern come into the tournament as the prohibitive favorites, having lost just twice during the season in the league and despite not having Greg Monroe and Nihad Djedovic. Bayern also have three of the best youngsters in the tournament but it’s unlikely that any of them will really get playing time. The 2001-born George appeared in two games this season – in late January and early February – while the 2002-born Grant played in three games – though none in 2020. The 2001-born Rudan meanwhile has yet to make his easyCredit BBL debut. If Bayern can build some big leads, head coach Oliver Kostic may put in his youngsters as Bayern would need to play 10 games in 23 days to win the title. UPDATE: Bayern did not include George and Rudan in the roster for the tournament.
FRAPORT SKYLINERS: Richard Freudenberg (1998), Aaron Kayser (1999), Gytis Masiulis (1998), Len Schoormann (2002), Bruno Vrcic (2000), (UPDATE: Maximilian Begue (2001), Jordan Samare (2002))
Frankfurt will be the team to watch for NBA scouts as Skyliners are loaded with interesting talents. Frankfurt have long been one of the top addresses for young players which was a big reason why the 1998-born Freudenberg chose them upon his return from the United States. He averaged 8.9 points on 43.9 percent from three-point range and 3.3 rebounds in 23 minutes this season, topping out with 21 points on 4 three-pointers against HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim. The 1999-born Krayser appeared in two games in February and March and 2000-born Vrcic, who came to Frankfurt from FC Bayern Munich, even scored 9 points in his debut against ALBA Berlin in October. Frankfurt made international news in the build-up to the tournament when they brought in Lithuanian 1998-born talent Masiulis, who is considered among the top 15 players in the international NBA Draft class, chose to play for Skyliners in the tournament. It will be a good test for Masilus because he may be needed to play center for Frankfurt as Leon Krazter is injured and because it will show how quickly he can adapt to new situations. The other Frankfurt prospect is the youngest but may be the best of the bunch with 2002-born Schoormann. Frankfurt got the 17-year-old point guard into six games this season and he may receive more playing time than any other games as backup point guard Daniel Schmidt will not be with Frankfurt in Munich. UPDATE: Frankfurt are bringing even more talent as 2001-born shooting guard Maximilian Begue and 2002-born center Jordan Samare both were included in the team – neither of them having made their easyCredit BBL debut.
HARKO Merlins Crailsheim: Aleksa Kovacevic (2002), UPDATE: Vladen Lazic (2001), Sören Urbansky (2000)
Crailsheim come into the tournament hoping to continue to dream their dream of what’s been their most magical season to date. The team has two youngsters who probably won’t get much playing time. The 2002-born Kovacevic is a Serbian point guard who arrived in Crailsheim for the 2017-18 season. He led the U19 NBBL in assists in 2018-19, only turning 17 in March 2019; and then led the NBBL in assists (8.4apg) and steals (4.5spg) while also averaging 16.6 points and 4.7 rebounds this season, in which he also made his easyCredit BBL debut in in February and played for BBA Ludwigsburg at the 2019-20 Adidas Next Generation Tournament, leading the Munich event in steals (5.0spg) while picking up 9.0 points and 5.5 assists as a guest player. Crailsheim’s other player is 2000-born 7-footer Urbansky, who saw just two brief appearances this season. UPDATE: Crailsheim did not bring Urbansky but did include 2001-born Croatian poitn guard Lazic, who has not made his easyCredit BBL debut. He averaged 17.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 3.3 steals in the U19 NBBL in his third season with the club after coming over from KK Zagreb.
MHP RIESEN Ludwigsburg: Radii Caisin (2001), Lukas Herzog (2001), Ariel Hukporti (2002), UPDATE: Johannes Patrick (2001), Jacob Patrick (2003)
Ludwigsburg will have their eyes on the prize as well after losing just twice this season. And John Patrick might need some of his young talents to get him the title. The 2001-born Caisin has received irregular minutes but appeared in 11 games this season, scoring 5 points in an October game and twice playing 12 minutes. The 2001-born guard Herzog meanwhile played in two games this season, including in the last contest before the season was suspended. At the time of this writing, it’s unclear if Ludwigsburg’s jewel big man Hukporti will be in Munich as the 2002-born big man has reportedly signed a deal with Lithuanian club Nevezis Kedainiai. Hukporti has not really received many minutes this season though, averaging just 5:47 minutes in which he has picked up 1.5 points and 1.7 rebounds, getting into double-digit minutes just once against Brose Bamberg in late December. UPDATE: Head coach John Patrick has also included his two sons: 2001-born guard Johannes Patrick and 2003-born point guard Jacob Patrick in the team. Neither has played in the easyCredit BBL though Johannes has been included in game rosters in the past.
RASTA Vechta: Philipp Herkenhoff (1999), Luc van Slooten (2002)
Vechta were unable to bring back many of their American players for the tournament, meaning the rotation will be shortened which means the club’s two youngsters could see more playing time. The 1999-born Herkenhoff averaged 4.9 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 15:20 minutes a game, topping 20 minutes just four times but picking up 10.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in those contests, including 20 points against Basketball Löwen Braunschweig. Herkenhoff played perhaps his best basketball in the playoffs last season against Brose Bamberg for Vechta in a shortened rotation, averaging 15.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals in four games as Vechta shocked Bamberg. The 2002-born van Slooten may still not get into many games as he played just six times this season, totalling 4 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists in a combined 24:42 minutes.
ratiopharm ulm: Christoph Philipps (1998) UPDATE: Moritz Krimmer (2000), Marius Stoll (1999), Zach Ensminger (2001), Kristofer Krause (2000), Nicolas Bretzel (1999)
Ulm of course had 2001-born Killian Hayes for the season but the Frenchman will not be in Munich as he prepares for the 2020 NBA Draft in the United States. Ulm’s other youngster on the team will be the 1998-born Philipps. The small forward played double-digit minutes in three of his last four games and averaged 1.8 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists in 7:30 minutes. UPDATE: Ulm actually included a lot of youngsters on their team, which is not really a surprise considering they always give young players a chance to play. In fact, it would have been a surprise had they not brought some if not all of these players. The 2000-born Krimmer appeared in one game for Ulm this season while the 1999-born Stoll – the son of managing director Thomas Stoll – has played four games in his career so far. The 1999-born Ensminger is the son of former German league legend Chris Ensminger and made his professional debut in October. The 2000-born Krause already has three easyCredit BBL games under his belt and the 1999-born Bretzel will be making his season debut at the tournament after having hip surgery last fall. He played four games in the previous two seasons.