After the bad scenes surrounding Nick Weiler-Babbs, who crashed his head on the parquet on Wednesday evening and only regained consciousness after minutes, the Bayern basketball team have given a first all-clear.
The return of national player Paul Zipser for the FC Bayern Munich basketball team has been eclipsed by a serious accident suffered by team-mate Nick Weiler-Babb. The US American fell to the floor after a dunk attempt during the Bundesliga leaders’ 86-75 win over Hamburg Towers, was temporarily unconscious and had to be transported off the floor on a stretcher. Examinations at the hospital revealed a severe concussion, according to a statement by the club late this evening.
“We are lucky not to have to comment on the next tragedy, albeit on a lesser scale,” Bayern coach Andrea Trinchieri had said before the diagnosis. “A player should not touch the opponent in the air. Because that is dangerous. The referees should at least look at it. “
The win marked the 28-year-old Zipser’s return after a long rehabilitation period and his first appearance on the floor since undergoing brain surgery in June 2021. The former NBA pro was substituted for the final 15 seconds of the third quarter to applause but ultimately played no longer. “It’s a blessing to see him back on the floor,” Bayern coach Trinchieri told Magenta Sport ahead of the game.
In the first half, the Munich side were still dominated by the visitors. Hamburg’s Caleb Homesley scored 25 points there, including 16 in the last three minutes before the break. Thus the Towers had closed the gap to 46:28. Anfang crashed Weiler-Babb hard on the floor. Thanks to an 11-0 start to the second half, the Munich team found its rhythm. The hosts shortened the gap to 58:60 before the final period and turned the game around with an 11:0 run in the fourth.
Both teams set a sign of peace because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and wore T-shirts with the slogan “No More War” during the warm-up and on the bench. In addition, the players presented a banner with the same inscription before kick-off.
