AMSTERDAM (FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 European Qualifiers) - The apple has never fallen far from the tree in the Franke family.

Yannick Franke, the explosive Dutch scorer getting ready for the Netherlands' World Cup Qualifiers in Groningen against Romania (June 28) and Italy (July 1), is a third generation national team star.

His father, Rolfe, the recently appointed coach of Dutch club ZZ Leiden, played for the national team at the EuroBasket in 1989 and last featured on the court for the Netherlands in 1997.

The late Wim Franke, the father of Rolfe and grandfather of Yannick, also played for the Oranje. He was in the Dutch sides at the 1961 and 1963 European Championships.

"I LOOK FORWARD TO THE WINDOWS, TO GET HOME FOR A WHILE AND PLAY AT HOME. ALWAYS GOING BACK TO THE DUTCH TEAM IS A FINE FEELING, SEEING GUYS THAT YOU HAVE KNOWN FOR SEVERAL YEARS. THEN YOU COME BACK WITH FRESH ENERGY. IT ABSOLUTELY HELPED ME BACK IN ITALY."Yannick Franke

"My family is a basketball family," said Yannick to FIBA.basketball.  "Both my mom and dad played professionally so it was kind of an easy choice because they’ve been my teachers from the very beginning and I liked it.

"My dad played for the national team and my grandfather so it’s nice because of the history we have. Unfortunately my grandfather passed away before I turned professional. I had hoped that at least, he’d see the first couple of years of my pro career."

Yannick just finished his club season with Dolomiti Energia Trentino in the Italian basketball league, helping the outfit reach the play-off finals. They lost to EA7 Emporio Armani Milano in six games. He says that his parents take a keen interest in his career and certainly enjoyed visiting him in Italy.

"They loved it," he said, "the culture and everything."

As for his profession as a pro player?

"My father and my mother enjoy the ups and downs," he said. "They are two different people. I always listen to both of them and they usually have a different opinion. I just get the parts of what I need out of it."

Yannick is indispensable for the national team. He set the tone in November for their only win in the Qualifiers with 24 points in a 68-61 home triumph over Croatia.

"EVERY TIME I PUT ON THE ORANJE SHIRT, IT’S SOMETHING I DREAMED OF SINCE I WAS A KID. I KNOW THAT BASKETBALL IN HOLLAND HAS GONE DOWN BUT WE’RE TRYING TO BRING IT BACK UP AND I THINK WE’RE DOING PRETTY WELL SO FAR.
Yannick Franke

He made 9 of his 11 shots from the floor, including 2 of 3 from behind the arc, and finished with a team-high +23 efficiency. His grandfather, Wim, would have loved watching that game. Wim once scored 43 points in a contest for the Netherlands, the current record for points in a single game for the national team.

"It was a big step for us," Franke said. "It was a big and proud moment for us. It showed we’re heading in a way that we want to."

The Netherlands followed up that result, however, with a 75-68 defeat at Romania. They also lost twice in February, 80-62 at Italy and 82-78 at Croatia.

"Unfortunately, we lost to Romania in the second game of the first window and in the second window, we weren’t ourselves," he said. "But luckily, we still have the chance to advance to the Second Round if we beat Romania by more than 7. We’d be through unless something strange happened."

Franke says it's an advantage to have the experienced hand of Toon van Helfteren at the helm of  the national team. A former Netherlands star himself, Van Helfteren steered the side to FIBA EuroBasket 2015 and was also successful in last summer's Pre-Qualifiers.

Van Helfteren is the veteran coach of the Netherlands

"He’s very tactical," Franke said. "He’s an experienced person from the older generation and that’s a big help for us. He can tell us what they used to do back in the day. Most of that is an advantage for us. How he looks at the game. He’s like a teacher, older and wiser and knows what to do."

Putting on the national team shirt and competing internationally has been a terrific boost for Franke's career. He says the international breaks in late November, and February, to play Qualifiers came at the right time.

"I look forward to the windows," he said. "To get home for a while and play at home. Always going back to the Dutch team is a fine feeling, seeing guys that you have known for several years. Then you come back with fresh energy. It absolutely helped me back in Italy."

The pressure will be there for Franke and the Netherlands when they host both Romania and Italy in Groningen in the third window. By suffering three defeats already, their backs are against the wall. No matter what happens in those games, it's all good for Franke.

"Every time I put on the Oranje shirt, it’s something I dreamed of since I was a kid," he said. "I know that basketball in Holland has gone down but we’re trying to bring it back up and I think we’re doing pretty well so far.

"We have some opportunities to go even higher. I’m really glad the way we’re going right now as an organization and the direction we’re heading. And for me, it’s my third, fourth year. I like playing for the national team."

FIBA