Dennis Schröder held the bronze medal firmly in his hand as if he never wanted to give it back. “Nobody would have believed us capable of that, it’s crazy, an unbelievable feeling,” said the German NBA man. It was the successful conclusion of a remarkable home European Championship for the German team, which of course was followed by the final in which the Spaniards secured their fourth European Championship title against France. Those Spaniards who had the German team on the verge of defeat in the semi-finals, who were the superior team on Sunday evening and deservedly secured the European crown with an 88:76 final victory.
National coach Gordon Herbert said he didn’t sleep much after the narrow 91:96 defeat in the semi-finals, and at first he didn’t know how to drive the disappointment out of the players’ minds. But in the end it worked brilliantly. “We were very depressed on Friday, but it made us even stronger,” said Herbert. “It’s outstanding how this group ended this excellent tournament.” With an 82:69 win against the surprise team from Poland, which had proved to be an unpleasant task.
The fewest had the Poles on the list, who also went into the game for bronze as the clear outsider. In the semi-finals, teams like Greece were expected, around NBA top player Giannis Antetokounmpo, who was complimented by the Germans in the quarter-finals from the tournament. Or the Serbs around Nikola Jokic, the most valuable player in the NBA, who were defeated by Italy in the round of 16. Or the defending champions Slovenia with their exceptional NBA player Luka Doncic, who were beaten by the Poles in the quarter-finals. If you wanted to draw a trend from this European Championship, it would be that the better teams prevailed against the teams with the best players.
The hosts’ game against the tenaciously fighting Poles was not a treat of the quality that the German team had offered in the previous games against the continental heavyweights France, Lithuania or Greece. Nevertheless, one never had to get the impression that third place could be in danger. At half-time, Germany seemed to be in the lead with 36:23 points, always kept the events under control and simply had more quality in the squad.
When the outsider equalized in the last quarter, it went quiet in the Berlin Arena
But the opponent didn’t want to give up this unique opportunity for a surprise coup so easily – which the German selection encouraged him to do with careless mistakes and bad throws. And it happened, as often happens in such games with a supposedly clear distribution of roles: The Poles suddenly began to hit high percentage points, Michal Sokolowski, the best Polish shooter with 18 points, scored a three-pointer in the last quarter to equalize 59:59.
A tough piece of work: Franz Wagner and Jonas Wohlfarth-Bottermann (from left) prevent Poland’s Michal Michalak (middle) from throwing.
(Photo: Wojciech Figurski /Newspix/Imago)
Then it became quiet in the arena, which was not completely sold out with 12,913 spectators, which was probably due to the high ticket prices, which could not be obtained for less than 100 euros. But the national coach remained optimistic. “We also have a lot of quality in the squad,” said Herbert, and indeed: Johannes Voigtmann, who scored 14 points, grabbed six rebounds and was later voted the best player of the game, scored with great certainty from distance and brought a boost of energy to the game Defensive game that didn’t work at the usual high level that evening.
Captain Schröder, who lost an unusual number of balls, also activated the last reserves of strength and led his team to the ultimately secure and well-deserved success. “It was the ninth game in 18 days,” explained Andreas Obst. “My legs were tired, but we pulled together again.” Obst was one of those guarantors of success, having the best value in the tournament with 25 threes sunk. “It was really hard to find the energy again,” said Johannes Thiemann, “I also think both teams were nervous and made a lot of mistakes.”
In the end, the drudgery was worth it, as the bronze medals that the players proudly presented were a clear sign. The reward for all the players’ efforts, and perhaps a signal for a bright future for German basketball. Because the team impressed with their performances, public interest increased from success to success. Gordon Herbert has devised a three-year plan – and all the players have expressed their unconditional will to be part of the game. The World Cup is coming up next year, and qualifying only seems a matter of form. And in 2024 the Olympic Games are in France, big goals, the start on the way there has already been a great success.
The protagonists also agreed on this: “I do believe that we have done something for German basketball,” explained Maodo Lo: “This is the reward for the hard summers that we put into the national team year after year.” Then the playmaker dared to think outside the box: He hopes that this European Championship will also give a boost in his own country, “across the board, in every league”. It is good for basketball what has grown there in Cologne and Berlin, “and a confirmation of the work that is being done in this sport, in this country”.