Spanish ex-world champion to become national coach
The German Basketball Association has reportedly found a successor to Gordon Herbert. The presumed new national coach is a blank slate in Germany. He not only steps into giant footsteps, but also faces great challenges.
Spanish national team player Álex Mumbrú is said to become the new basketball national coach, according to information from the "Hamburger Abendblatt" and the "Bild" newspaper. The 45-year-old former professional would succeed successful coach Gordon Herbert, who moved to German league champions Bayern Munich after the Olympic Games. The German Basketball Association (DBB) will present the new national coach at a press conference on Thursday (12:30 PM).
The association has not yet officially confirmed the appointment, but details still need to be clarified. The DBB declined to comment on the reports. Mumbrú played as a professional exclusively in his home country and played for teams like Real Madrid. He won the World and European Championships with the Spanish national team and won the silver medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
Coaching experience with Spanish clubs
After retiring from his playing career, Mumbrú first coached Bilbao Basket before moving to Euroleague club FC Valencia in 2022. His tenure there ended in April, partly because his team missed the playoffs significantly. Mumbrú would now prepare the national team for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles in the medium term. Before that, the European Championship in four countries with the final round in Riga in 2023 and the World Championship in Qatar in 2027 are on the agenda.
Who will play alongside captain Dennis Schröder in the coming years is unclear. Herbert had demanded a fixed commitment from the players for three years, which has now expired with the Olympics. Players like Daniel Theis (32) and Niels Giffey (33) could end their careers in the national team. The core of the current team is around 30 years old and could still be there for Los Angeles. However, Franz Wagner (22) could take a break next summer to rejoin the team later.
The DBB has enough players with great potential. Maximilian Kleber (32) and Isaiah Hartenstein (26) from the NBA were not even considered by Herbert. There are also interesting players like Oscar (25) and Tristan da Silva (23), Justus Hollatz (23) or Kevin Yebo (28). The U18 team, which just won the European Championship, also offers a lot of talent for the future.
The German Basketball Association (DBB) is set to present the new NBA-unconnected coach at a press conference on Thursday, replacing successful coach Gordon Herbert who moved to Bayern Munich. Despite speculations of Spanish national team player Álex Mumbrú becoming the new coach, the association has not officially confirmed the appointment yet.
Should the rumors prove true, Mumbrú would bring a wealth of coaching experience, having coached Bilbao Basket and FC Valencia in Spain, and leading the Spanish national team to win the World and European Championships and secure the silver medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.
