Germany's last chance?
This is Dirk Nowitzki's last opportunity to go to the Olympics. After not making it directly at the EuroBasket in Spain last year where Germany finished fifth behind Russia, Spain, Lithuania and Greece, Dirk's team goes to Athens looking to fulfil his dream, and that of the entire National Team by making it to the Beijing Games.
The 2007-08 domestic campaigns involving most of Germany's National Team players were not what many of them expected. Dirk Nowitzki and his Dallas Mavericks, among the pre-season title favourites, finished seventh in the NBA's Western Conference. They lost in the first round of the play-offs against a strong New Orleans Hornets side, despite great performances from Nowitzki.
In Germany, meanwhile, Brose Baskets Bamberg with its five National Team players - Ademola Okulaja, Mithat Demirel, Steffen Hamann, Demond Greene and Robert Garrett - endured one of the most disappointing seasons the club has seen in a long time. In the Euroleague, Bamberg failed to reach the Top 16. In the BBL, they suffered a much bigger disappointment by falling to Oldenburg in the play-off quarter-finals. Oldenburg moved on to the semi-finals to meet ALBA Berlin, a team with two German National Team players in Patrick Femerling and Johannes Herber that finished the regular season in first. Berlin lost seven games and will take Bamberg's Euroleague spot for next season.
Jan-Hendrik Jagla had a far more successful season in Spain, winning the ULEB Cup and the Copa del Rey with DKV Joventut Badalona. In the play-offs, they were eliminated by FC Barcelona in the semi-finals. Jagla continued to develop his game in Spain and should be a great contributor this summer, and in the years ahead, for Germany.
Then there is the story of Bamberg and Germany coach Dirk Bauermann, who had to make a very hard decision after Bamberg's play-off exit. Forced to choose between remaining the coach of Bamberg or Germany, he opted for the latter. He is on a five-year contract with the federation. While players may come and go, he will remain and that is stability that Germany desperately need.
The good thing about playing for one's country is that there is always a new tournament to play in, so it's easy to get rid of the bad taste of a poor league campaign. For Nowitzki, this definitely rings true. One of his aims as a leading player in the world is to play at an Olympic Games. "It is our big dream to be at the Olympics, and this goal requires our entire focus," he said of the German National Team. Indeed, after back-to-back first-round exits from the NBA post-season, nobody wants an Olympic place more than "the German Wunderkind" from Wurzburg.
Once he leaves the National Team, and that is expected to happen after this summer, what does the future hold for Germany? Most of the players are in their mid-30s and no one really knows which direction German basketball will go. Germany have looked into the possibility that Los Angeles Clippers center Chris Kaman might be able to play since his great grandparents were German. Teaming Nowitzki and Kaman in any competition would give Germany quite a one-two punch. Maybe that would tempt Nowitzki to continue with the national side.
As for this summer, Nowitzki came to Germany in the middle of May to start his annual practice sessions with his mentor Holger Geschwinder. At the pre-Olympic tournament, Germany will face New Zealand and Cape Verde. Both teams are full of players that compete in their country's domestic leagues. With Nowitzki in the team, anything is possible this summer. Remember his MVP performance at EuroBasket 2005 in Belgrade? Germany entered the second half of a must-win game against Russia in the preliminary round trailing 26-16 and the team needed a three-pointer by Nowitzki with 27 seconds remaining to seal the 51-50 thriller. Even though Nowitzki carried the German unit, it was a team effort that earned the silver medal. Without the help of defensive maniac Demond Greene or the strong play of point guard Pascal Roller, the superstar would not have brought Germany as far as he did.
How did they qualify?
EuroBasket 2007
5th, (4W - 5L)
Results
Sept-3rd 2005
Germany b. Czech Republic 83-78
Sept-4th 2005
Germany b. Turkey 79-49
Sept-5th 2005
Lithuania b. Germany 84-80
Quarter-final round
Sept-8th 2005
France b. Germany 78-66
Sept-10th 2005
Slovenia b. Germany 77-47
Sept-12th 2005
Germany b. Italy 67-58
Quarterfinal
Sept-13th 2005
Spain b. Germany 83-55
Classification, 5th to 8th place
Sept-15th 2005
Germany b. Slovenia 69-65
5th place Final
Sept-16th 2005
Germany b. Croatia 80-71
