The DBB team missed out on a medal at the Olympics and now the term of office of national coach Gordon Herbert is coming to an end. What’s next for the German national basketball team?
Who will be the new national coach?
Gordon Herbert shaped the national team as national coach for three years, now the Canadian will take over FC Bayern and thus fulfill his wish to coach a EuroLeague team once again in the autumn of his career.
There is talk from DBB circles that they want to present a successor very soon. Dennis Schröder also hinted at this at his press conference after the defeat in the third-place match against Serbia. “I heard before the game that something was happening. I think they’ve already found someone,” Schröder revealed.
In May, vice-president Armin Andres had already outlined the requirements profile of the potential successor in Bild: “It is important that the new coach plays a similar system to Herbert and is more of a psychologist than a tough dog.”
It is also clear that Herbert’s successor should concentrate exclusively on the national team. A double commitment including employment at a club is not desired, so Herbert was denied clearance for the job at EuroLeague team ASVEL last fall, among others. The association has not changed this policy.
Herbert himself had suggested his assistant Klaus Perwas, but he is apparently not interested. The other assistant, Bret Brielmaier, who is popular with the team, is also out of the draw because he is also under contract as an assistant coach with the Orlando Magic.
What are the next dates?
After the Olympics is before EuroBasket. The next major event is already scheduled for next summer. But first the DBB team has to qualify. In a group with Montenegro, Bulgaria and Sweden, the three best teams will reach the tournament
Two games have been played so far, with Germany winning clearly against Montenegro in February (85:61), but then suffering a defeat in Bulgaria three days later (62:67). All four teams have recorded a win so far. The next international match window is in mid-November (November 22), when Germany will first host Sweden and then the Scandinavians at home (November 25). It is not yet clear where the games will be played.
In these two duels, however, the DBB team will not only have to do without the NBA players, but also the players from the EuroLeague. Although the dispute between the EuroLeague and FIBA has recently eased somewhat, the dispute over the dates has not yet been completely resolved
EuroBasket 2025 will once again take place in four countries. One group stage each will be held in Limassol (Cyprus), Tampere (Finland), Riga (Latvia) and Katowice (Poland). The final round will then take place in the Latvian capital. The matches will be played between August 27 and September 14.
Which players could retire from the national team?
Columnist Danilo Barthel already hinted at it in his last column at the Olympics: It is quite possible that some players will retire from the national team in the coming weeks. Names were not explicitly mentioned, but a look at the age structure of the squad is enough.
Niels Giffey (33), Daniel Theis (32) and Johannes Voigtmann (31) were the oldest players in the squad at these games, and Giffey and Voigtmann in particular have been involved in almost every major tournament since 2013
Will Dennis Schröder continue?
The German captain will turn 31 in September, but the point guard is far from thinking about retiring. Schröder said after the Serbia game that he wants to continue playing until he is 40. It is therefore likely that he will play at the upcoming EuroBasket, even if the Braunschweig native is likely to become a free agent again in the NBA in the summer of 2025.
That was a problem before the 2021 Olympics in Tokyo, but the following year Schröder played in the home European Championships at his own risk, even though he did not yet have an NBA contract in his pocket at the time. Shortly after the tournament, Schröder signed with the Los Angeles Lakers.
