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“Tell me a little bit about what it means to be the captain and being the leader of that group. What are you looking for in your group as the captain, as the leader?” Dennis Schroeder: “It means everything, first off, to be a Black man in Germany and be the captain of a whole country. Even in the Olympics, holding the flag for Germany meant a lot personally to me and my family. But the team makes it easy on me because, like I said, we’ve got high-character guys who know what I believe in, what the coach believes in, and what the whole federation believes in. That’s the reason it makes it easy on me to be the captain and to lead the way, because everybody is so committed to our program and to winning.”
Tell us a little bit about growing up in Germany. How was your experience just growing up in Germany around basketball? You know, you were always very, very competitive. Where did you get all of that from?” Dennis Schroeder “I mean, in Germany, nowadays it’s so easy — I would say, as a black kid growing up in Germany, it’s easier now than back in the day when I was growing up. I had probably like three Black friends. That was it in the whole city, you know, and we had 250,000 people in my city. So, yeah, growing up, all these kids asking you questions, all these kids trying to get under your skin sharpened me. The mentality of it was, ‘Hey, it’s me against everybody else.’ It didn’t matter what we were playing — soccer, ping pong, basketball, skateboarding — I wanted to win. I wanted to be the best because I wanted to show everybody that I belong here. And, of course, my family — my wife says I got it from my mom because my mom is really competitive as well when we play card games or board games. And, yeah, I think I got it from growing up in Germany and from my family, of course — the same DNA: trying to win, trying to come out on top. And, yeah, that mentality sharpened me along the way.”
Representatives from Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, two soccer and basketball heavyweights, Olimpia Milano, Panathinaikos, ASVEL, Bayern Munich and Alba Berlin were participants, signaling their interest in joining NBA Europe. NBA officials met privately with Fenerbahce, a top European team from Istanbul, last week in Berlin. Additionally, representatives from English soccer giant Manchester City were there, as were executives from Italian soccer powerhouse AC Milan, signaling their intent to either create new teams in their cities or invest further in existing teams.
Bayern Munich’s basketball team will begin the new year with a roster change, as Spencer Dinwiddie will no longer be part of the squad. The 32-year-old guard and the club have mutually agreed to end his contract, which had been set to run through the remainder of the season, due to personal circumstances.
With approval from the club’s sporting leadership, Dinwiddie returned to the United States shortly before Christmas following a serious illness within his family.
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It appears Spencer Dinwiddie has settled in quickly and confidently after choosing Bayern Munich over multiple options. “I talked a lot with my agents to look at all the opportunities available, whether it was in the NBA, in China, or in the EuroLeague. But the familiarity I had with Gordie [Herbert], the fact that it’s a beautiful city with great facilities, that was appealing,” Dinwiddie said to BasketEurope.
The veteran guard also pointed to a broader trend of NBA players recognizing the level of competition in Europe. “Everybody is realizing that there is another very high-level basketball league in the world. The EuroLeague is very competitive. We have the chance to keep chasing our dreams and to enjoy playing the game, no matter where you are in your career. I think that’s why a lot of players move from the NBA to the EuroLeague.”
NBA Europe managing director George Aivazoglou confirmed that the project will launch in October 2027, adding that teams from Rome, Milan (Italy), London, Manchester (United Kingdom), Paris, Lyon (France), Madrid, Barcelona (Spain), Berlin, Munich (Germany), one team from Athens (Greece) and Istanbul (Turkiye) will be playing in the competition.
Aivazoglou didn't specify which current (if any) EuroLeague teams will be competing. "We're talking with some existing basketball teams. We're also talking with football clubs that have a strong brand but don't have a basketball team—talks we're having in this country [Italy] and in this city [Milan] as well. And there are places where we'll be starting from scratch," he said.
Spencer Dinwiddie is in advanced talks to continue his career in Europe, with Bayern Munich emerging as a serious contender in the race for the 11-year NBA veteran, sources tell BasketNews. While other major EuroLeague teams – including Olympiacos, as mentioned in the Greek media reports – have been linked to the player, Bayern has recently emerged as a strong contender in the pursuit of Dinwiddie, per sources.
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In Turkey, the Final between the “12 Giant Men” and Germany became the fourth popular sport event in the country through 2025. More specifically, this historic clash drew a viewership of 18.2 million as the country was witnessing the first EuroBasket gold-medal game of the national team in 25 years. Out of this huge number, 15.6 million watched the match on TV and 2.6 million experienced the Final by streaming it on digital platforms.
Germany became EuroBasket champion for the first time after 1993 and 5.675 million people in the country watched the game live. The majority of 3.89 million preferred RTL channel while 1.785 million picked Magenta channel.
Álex Mumbrú did not travel with the rest of the German national team after winning the EuroBasket gold medal. While the players and staff flew to Frankfurt to begin the celebrations, the Catalan coach went straight to Barcelona, where, according to Mundo Deportivo, he was rushed to hospital.