We're fresh out of an ALBA game. For those not in the know, ALBA is the team representing Berlin in the German Basketball League. (It is also the name of Berlin's major trash carrier - the team's sponsor)Some friends of N's family offered the tickets to us as a present. They did the same thing about this time last year. At that time we said that we would try to see more of the games, but never made it. Now we have another season almost over, the playoffs are right around the corner, so unfortunately I'm afraid that we missed out on this year too.
Today's game reminded me of how much I really enjoy watching decent basketball. This league is probably on a playing level somewhere between American College Basketball and the National Basketball Association. That in itself makes in interesting to me. I NEVER liked the NBA with all of their high-falutin', high-priced players. (Of course we're not talking about the WNBA - those ladies are still workin' the floor hard, and for considerably less money). College basketball is where it is at for me with American basketball. These guys know they're pretty good, but no one is offering them multi-million dollar contracts, so their heads haven't exploded yet.
Watching this league play here in Germany has a lot of that good feeling for me. The game still has some heart, lots of teamwork, and usually good sportsmanship. Tonight #1 ALBA played one of their biggest rivals, but for the second time in a row we've witnessed ALBA trampling all over #4 Bramberg Brose Baskets to a sell-out crowd. YEA!!!
It is quite interesting to see some American faces out there on the boards. As the players from each team were being introduced I heard some unmistakably American names - ALBA has a Bobby Brown and a really good guard named Julius Jenkins - Bamberg has a Dwayne Mitchell. It makes you wonder if these guys decided to come to Germany to play instead of going to college. Nonetheless the crowds go crazy when they hear their names. I would like to do a little research on it all, surely the stories are interesting.
1 comment:
I'm with you on college basketball. I was so happy to be back in the US during a bit of the March Madness, though I was disheartened when my team lost in the final four.
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