Rodl to put Germany U20s through their paces
Hagen (FIBA U20 European Championship 2016) - By the first weekend in June, Germany U20 national team head coach Henrik Rodl will have a very good idea of what his final roster for July's FIBA U20 European Championship in Helsinki will look like.
Coach Rodl has invited 16 players to a mini-training camp at the sporting centre in Kienbaum from 26 May through 3 June and the most likely scenario is for Germany's 12-man team for the big tournament in Finland to emerge from this pre-selection.
Nonetheless, Rodl has also announced an additional six-strong list of players who will remain on call, leaving open the possibility that one or more of them join preparations at a later stage.
The main core of 16 includes three 1996-born returnees from last year's U20 German side, which finished in 11th place at the European Championship in Italy.
Shooting guard Andreas Obst of the Baunach Young Pikes averaged 8.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and two assists per game in the 2015 event.
Auch unsere U20-Jungs greifen ins Geschehen ein. #DBB #KoerbefuerD #GERmeinsam https://t.co/u0A5QYril4 pic.twitter.com/lVjv23HrTJ
— Dt. Basketball Bund (@DBB_Basketball) May 13, 2016
Wingers Joschka Ferner and Jonas Grof, of ratiopharm Ulm and Phoenix Hagen, respectively, also logged good minutes last summer as they combined for a tournament average of 9.1 points and 9.2 rebounds.
The biggest part of Germany's 2016 team of course is bound to be made up by several of the 1997-born players who left great impressions at last summer's FIBA U18 European Championship, by entering the quarter-finals.
Shooting guard Kostja Mushidi of French Pro A side Strasbourg and power forward Niklas Kiel of FIBA Europe Cup champions Fraport Skyliners headline this contingent of 19-year-olds who are poised to play at the U20 event for the first time.
Mushidi was Germany's joint top-scorer at the FIBA U18 European Championship in Greece, together with 1998-born rising star Isaiah Hartenstein, as they averaged 11.6 points apiece in the tournament.
Kiel meanwhile averaged 9.2 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists in that event and made his debut in the Beko BBL with Skyliners earlier this season.
Fabian Villmeter and Arne Chorengel will join Rödl at training camp as his assistants to help him put the 16 players through their paces.
“I am very pleased to be working with Fabian and Arne,” said Rodl, a EuroBasket 1993 champion with Germany.
“Fabian Villmeter is the head coach of the most interesting programme in Germany, at Baunach.
“He is having a great season, he is experienced and a true professional.
“Arne Chorengel represents the Oldenburg programme which I really appreciate, he is working in the BBL and he is set to have a great coaching career.”
Germany face Hungary in their opener on 16 July and will then go up against Turkey and Lithuania in Group A of the FIBA U20 European Championship.
Germany 16-player preliminary roster for FIBA U20 European Championship 2016: Mahir Agva, Georg Beyschlag, Joschka Ferner, Luis Figge, Robert Glockner, Jonas Grof, Karim Jallow, Marcel Keßen, Niklas Kiel, David Kramer, Leon Kratzer, Kostja Mushidi, Andreas Obst, Sebastian Schmitt, Lukas Wank, Jan Niklas Wimberg.
Players on call: Leon Baeck, Dejan Kovacevic, Lennard Larysz, Daniel Mixich, Tim Schneider, Moritz Wagner.
FIBA
