Dennis Schröder takes "Unhappy End" to his hat
The German basketballers narrowly missed their third medal in three years. Nevertheless, the tenure of outgoing coach Gordon Herbert is a massive success. German basketball now ranks among the strongest in the world, something that would have been unthinkable recently.
"Of course, everyone is disappointed," Dennis Schröder said at the press conference after the 83:93 loss to Serbia in the bronze medal game at the Olympic Games in Paris. "First of all, we have to thank the coach for everything he has done for the German Basketball Association and the national team. He has contributed something to the culture. The fun, the atmosphere in the locker room - that's what he created. He started that three years ago. In three years, we have won two medals. Of course, we wanted the third, but we have achieved something that no one has done before. We really appreciate that. Right now, everyone is unhappy, but we have to look forward."
A German basketball national team has never come this far at the Olympic Games. The game against Serbia was the last one for Gordon Herbert as head coach. He is taking over FC Bayern. After the 65-year-old Canadian had clapped with his players and the opponents and left the parquet in the Paris Bercy Arena for the last time, he sat visibly dejected in front of the assembled press corps and summarized: "Everything in life comes to an end at some point. Of course, this is not the end we wanted. But these guys have given their heart and soul for three years. This was a real family. Congratulations to Serbia. Sorry, France, but this was the best team we faced at these Olympic Games."
The early tip-off at 11 am played much better into the hands of coach Svetislav Pesic's team. Unlike the 2023 World Cup final, where the German team still triumphed, this time the Serbian coach could rely on the three-time NBA Most Valuable Player, Nikola Jokic, and his regular point guard, Vasilije Micic. Sharp-shooter Bogdan Bogdanovic was in top form, as he was a year ago.
No Chance in the Bronze Medal Game
The trio from the North American professional league dominated from the start and put Serbia on the path to victory with a 30:21 first quarter. The team from the Balkans sealed off the zone in defense and forced Germany to take long-range shots that rarely fell. At halftime, the World Cup champion was eight points behind (38:46). A personal 7:0 run by Aleksa Avramovic in the third quarter then brought the preliminary decision (45:64), and the DBB team could no longer recover.
Jokic with the fifth triple-double in Olympic history (19 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists), Micic with 19 points, and Bogdanovic with 16 were the top scorers for the Serbs, who won their second Olympic medal (after silver in 2016) and thus gave coach Pesic an early birthday present.
Franz (18 points) and Moritz Wagner (16) were the best scorers on the German side. Schröder made 13 points and six assists but also six turnovers: "I could have played a better game. That's on me. I could have brought more energy. Just be a better point guard, make sure everyone is in the right place, yeah... That game is on me."
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There was certainly more in it. Perhaps not against Serbia, and maybe not in a final against the eventual Olympic champions USA. But overall, yes. Germany had lightly thrown away the chance of at least silver on Thursday, in the semi-final against France, with weaknesses hitherto unknown. The 69:73 defeat stung deeply and seemed to have broken the collective spirit of this previously untouchable team. "The semi-final, that's what got us in the ass," said Herbert in the end. "I told the players that we could have won it. But I think we shouldn't forget what we've achieved in the past three years. We played great, gave our all."
13 consecutive wins at an international tournament, since bronze at the EuroBasket 2022, had radically changed the view on German basketball. That the two defeats at the end, against two of the best teams in the world, are interpreted and discussed as thoroughly disappointing speaks volumes. Three medals in three years was the goal Herbert had set himself after the Olympics in Tokyo 2021. What was then still met with shock, skepticism, and even laughter from DBB officials and fans in the country, has long since become a new self-understanding. That is Herbert's achievement, who has founded the most successful era of German basketball through excellent leadership, clear communication in all matters, and the courage to dream big.
"We showed that Germany is one of the best basketball nations in the world," says Schröder, whom Herbert appointed as captain in his first act - a stroke of genius, as it turned out. "In the last three years, I've played basketball that I've never experienced in my entire career. These guys in the locker room, no ego, everyone only thinks about the win. Only guys with strong character, high IQ, obviously talented basketball players. We won two medals. Last year we won the World Cup. We wanted to achieve more this year, but sometimes you can't get everything you want in life."
Because the DBB, unlike all major basketball nations, categorically rejects a double function, and Herbert will take over the FC Bayern in the future, a successor will have to be found. "Yes, I'm a little sad because it's over. It was an incredible journey in the past three years, with fantastic guys, fantastic people. Every coach dreams of working with such players." Whoever takes over the position will not have it easy, stepping into Herbert's giant footsteps. "That's really hard to top," commented Schröder. "The coach has done great work in the last three years and brought us together. Before the game, I heard that something was already in the works, so we didn't have anything to say about that. I don't know. Tough question. They'll do the right thing. Hopefully, we'll get someone like Gordie who helps us build on what we've achieved."
Is a major change coming up now?
The next national coach will take over a squad that will largely remain intact. Captain Schröder has already announced that he wants to continue playing, "until I'm 40. That's my goal. Hopefully, all my guys in the locker room will decide to come back and play. Because if I play until I'm 40, they can play until they're 37, 38 and make it something special." The oldest players in the squad are Niels Giffey (33), Daniel Theis (32), Johannes Voigtmann and Maodo Lo (both 31).
At the same time, a lot of talent is coming in, and great work has been done in recent years. The U-18 national team won the EuroBasket last week. Franz Wagner, who scored the second-highest total of 111 points in these games, is one of the world's best young players at 22 years old. Justus Hollatz, who won the World Cup title with this team, is just 23. Tristan Da Silva (also 23), the younger brother of national team player Oscar Da Silva (25), will debut in the NBA next season with the Orlando Magic, alongside the Wagner brothers. Isaiah Hartenstein, who just signed a new $87 million contract with the Oklahoma City Thunder after his best professional season, is only 26.
Germany has established itself as one of the world's best teams under Herbert. The past three years should not be an exception, but rather the beginning of a sustained success story. Not only Schröder, who was selected for the All-Olympics Teams 2024 alongside Jokic, Victor Wembanyama, LeBron James, and Steph Curry, believes that this is more than realistic: "The U18 team won the European Championship, Tristan da Silva has just entered the league, Hartenstein - we still have many young guys who can play. The future of German basketball looks bright."
I'm not planning to make any predictions about the future coach, as I believe the DBB will make the right decision. Despite the disappointment of not securing a third medal, I'm still proud of what we've achieved in the past three years.
Given the team's performance and the upcoming talent, I'm not going to think negatively about the future of German basketball. It's an exciting time for us, and I believe we can continue to be one of the best teams in the world.
