It didn’t look like the hopelessly last team in the Euroleague was playing against the defending champion and first team. In a fascinating game, the basketball professionals from Alba Berlin kept the best in Europe, Real Madrid, and their audience in suspense for an evening. The Berliners still had a 13-point lead (51:38) in the third quarter on Tuesday and only missed the chance for the biggest surprise of the game day in the last few minutes.
The Spaniards converted their glorious past and impressive presence into a victory of 86:79 points. However, the promising future of Berliners seemed clearer than ever before. For this season’s finale in May and for years to come, this game seemed like a promise.
In order to realize this future, Alba must take a different path than the Royals. They benefit from the appeal and financial power of football in their club and spend tens of millions of euros more than they have. The Berliners, on the other hand, look for talent, take time to train them and try to keep them with long-term contracts or at least benefit financially from their departure. It’s not just the brothers Franz and Moritz Wagner, who play together for Orlando in the NBA and played their part in winning the World Cup with the national team in the summer, who represent Alba’s excellent youth work.
“You have to have the will to learn more than others”
There is, for example, Malte Delow. On Tuesday he was in demand as the second builder alongside Martin Hermannsson (13 points, five assists) and took on his Argentine counterpart Facundo Campazzo (14/6). Three points and three assists in just under twelve minutes of playing time are secondary to the fact that coach Israel Gonzales preferred him to Slovenian point guard Ziga Samar in the second half. The trained playmaker prevailed against the born one. “I don’t think you’re born into it,” says Delow: “You have to have the will to learn more than others, to pay attention, to communicate, to think about the game, to watch videos and to make others look good.”
Delow switched from football to basketball when he was 11, and at 23, unlike Samar of the same age, he is a veteran. He was German champion with the U16s, the following year with the U19s, made his debut in the Bundesliga at 18, and before he even signed a contract, he had already been German champions with the professionals twice. He has played 141 games in the Bundesliga and 114 times in the Euroleague.
On his debut for the national team, he showed that he belongs to the promising generation after the world champions. And because all of this doesn’t go unnoticed by scouts and agents, Alba has tied him down early until 2027. When the contract expires, Delow will be 26 years old and has been with Alba for 15 years.
Jürgen Kalwa, New York Published/Updated: Recommendations: 2 Stefan Koch Published/Updated: Theo Stemmler Published/Updated: , Recommendations: 20
He missed the beginning of this difficult season for Alba because of a torn meniscus. Now he shows again that he has mastered the complete repertoire of a professional basketball player. Dribbling, throwing, passing and above all: keeping track. “I’m not particularly athletic, not particularly fast and can’t throw particularly well,” says the 1.98 meter long player without any coquetry: “I’ve always read the game, even when I was young, and tried to be part of the team “He will be able to understand the defeat against Real Madrid. “The result is not gratitude for what you do,” he has learned: “It can be due to a single throw, a decision whether you celebrate in the evening or whether you lie in bed and cry.”