The German basketball players have long had their World Cup ticket in their pockets. Even before the final two qualifiers in Frankfurt am Main against Sweden on Friday and three days later in Finland, it is clear that Germany will be at the World Cup in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia (25 August to 10 September).
After bronze at the home European Championship, the team wants to play for the next medal. Dennis Schröder, Franz and Moritz Wagner, Maodo Lo, Johannes Thiemann – national coach Gordon Herbert will again have an exquisite squad with players in the best basketball age at the World Cup. Overall, the near future of German basketball looks rosier than it has in a long time – but is the upswing lasting?
In order to consolidate the current successes, someone who has celebrated great successes with the national team in the past is now getting involved with the German Basketball Association: Dirk Bauermann.
Bauermann now DBB junior coordinator
Since the beginning of the year, Bauermann, who won silver with Dirk Nowitzki in Serbia in 2005 and led the team around the Dallas Mavericks superstar to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, has been working as a youth coordinator in the association. “He is an absolute expert,” said DBB President Ingo Weiss.
“For me it’s a bit like coming home,” said Bauermann of the German Press Agency. While Herbert is currently preparing for the games against Sweden and Finland with the national team – without NBA stars and professionals from Bayern Munich and Alba Berlin – Bauermann is in Kienbaum. A youth course for the U18s is scheduled for the Olympic training center.
“It’s about supporting the boys in their development over the long term and preparing them optimally for the demands of modern European basketball,” said Bauermann. “The goal is to develop the next generation and the one after that of national players.”
To achieve this, Bauermann is now doing what he doesn’t really like doing – sitting in the car a lot. The long-time successful coach of Bayern Leverkusen and Brose Baskets Bamberg prefers to be in the hall himself and pass on his great knowledge. Which is why it is also very important to him, in addition to his role as coordinator for the entire male youth field, to also work as national coach for the U15 and U16.
Bauermann: “We have a lot of talent among the youngsters”
“There’s still a lot that can be done in this area in particular. The lads don’t have a full schedule yet, so there’s still plenty of time for individual training,” said Bauermann. “It’s about the basics, but also about decision-making on the floor. We have a lot of talent among the youngsters. It’s now about supporting and promoting the boys, especially in their individual abilities.”
But his job also includes maintaining contact with players, coaches, parents and club officials. Which is why Bauermann travels a lot through Germany and has numerous discussions. “I encounter a lot of openness in the clubs,” said Bauermann. “It’s only possible to work together, there shouldn’t be any side-by-side or even against each other.”
He also experiences great openness and the will to improve in the young people. Even if the players usually don’t even know who they’re looking at at first. “They have no idea who I am,” said Bauermann with a smile. “They googled it quickly, but 99 percent didn’t know beforehand.”