As if the great dramatist William Shakespeare had put pen to paper: Fourth playoff quarterfinals for the German championship, ten seconds to play, Berlin is 81:83 behind in Ulm and needs a win to avert the end. Johannes Thiemann grabs the rebound, fits Maodo Lo, Berlin boy, identification figure of the German series champion. With the last of his strength, Lo dribbles to the Ulmer basket, climbs up for the final throw, the three-pointer to victory – and the ball slams against the ring.
It’s over, the defending champion failed surprisingly – and the game had its tragic character. This mistake by the Berlin director stands for much more than the mere elimination of the big favorite against a strong outsider. It tells the story of an ever better staffed Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), a competition that is constantly gaining in attractiveness – but it also tells the story of a permanent overload of its best professionals.
National players Thiemann, 29, and Lo, 30, are best suited to explain the madness of this basketball season. Before the season both returned to the team as European Championship heroes, Germany had triggered a little euphoria by winning the bronze medal. As a result, two key players started the season without a break – as did Israel internationals Tamir Blatt and Yovel Zoosman, by the way.
In addition to the Bundesliga, the champions also played in the Euroleague, a second packed competition, which added up to 75 games this season – so to speak, two seasons in one. Center Thiemann didn’t want to complain or belittle the performance of Ulm, who was playing well, but admitted that “the stress in such a long season naturally played a role. We didn’t have the best form at the back. The tank was a bit empty, it will be difficult against a team that is so hot.” Coach Israel Gonzales assisted: “We had a lot of problems, we were not in good physical condition for this playoff.”
Ulm is bursting with strength and self-confidence, after a bumpy start to the season, the team is in top form at the right time
Ratiopharm Ulm also played an international competition, but the requirements in the second-class Eurocup were lower. The Swabians also had to struggle with injuries, but in the decisive phase of the season the team obviously slipped into good form: Philipp Herkenhoff, who had torn almost every ligament in his knee and had to work towards his comeback for a year, demonstrated his skills . Powerhouse Karim Jallow and the massive, NBA-experienced center Bruno Caboclo, who the Ulmer signed at the beginning of the year, brought a lot of energy to the court – all three scored 14 points each. Director Yago dos Santos, who forms a strong Brazilian duo with Caboclo, directed the game as usual and was also the top scorer (16 points).
It was a high-class and intense game, on the one hand the champion, who mobilized the last reserves of strength and had his best shooters in Jaleen Smith (18 points) and the 22-year-old top talent Malte Delow (15). On the other hand, the underdog, who had created a good starting position with two away wins and was now successfully countering it with his physical game. This new balance is undoubtedly good for the competition, it makes the Bundesliga more attractive than it has been for a long time. Who had not expected the usual final comparison of the two financially strongest representatives Alba Berlin and FC Bayern before the season in the title fight? Now, in Ludwigsburg and Bonn, two more up-and-coming teams are in the semi-finals – Bonn in particular have had a splendid season and, after winning the Champions League, many even consider them the first contenders for the title.
Like the Berlin team, the Munich team is battered after a brutal season and important players are missing
The people of Ulm are now capable of a lot, this success brings self-confidence and energy. The Ulm coach Anton Gavel has given the semi-final opponent FC Bayern the role of favorite while still on the field. Gavel won the double with FC Bayern (2018), he knows about the pressure in Munich, especially after missing three championships and a previous season without a title. And he knows that Bayern are just as battered after 75 competitive games as Berlin, three important players are missing injured.
“Something has to happen”: Berlin’s center Johannes Thiemann (centre, against Ulm’s Robin Christen and Bruno Caboclo, from left) was not in full possession of his strength in the decisive season finale.
(Photo: Roger Buerke/Eibner-Pressefoto/Imago)
That in turn is not good for the competition, explains Johannes Thiemann. “Every spectator wants to see the best players, but then they are missing injured.” Players like Vladimir Lucic, captain of the Munich and Serbian national teams. Players like Lo and Thiemann because they don’t show their best performance in the season finale and are eliminated early. And in September, the Basketball World Cup is already coming up in Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines. Thiemann says: “You can’t play through eleven months for ten years. No body can do that.”
This topic is by no means new, the clubs have been warning of this overload for years – nothing has happened. “But something has to happen,” says Thiemann, “that’s harmful for basketball.” After all, the Berlin internationals can now relax a few more days before the World Cup. Thiemann is no consolation: “It’s just bitter to be eliminated from the title fight so early.”
The Berliners will learn their lessons from the season, the squad needs to be broader, younger: “Something will happen there,” says Thiemann. Managing director Marco Baldi had announced a change at the Magentasport broadcaster weeks ago. But it is not the moment to talk about the future, according to Thiemann: Now is the moment for mourning.