Bayer Giants Leverkusen
Encyclopedia
Bayer Giants Leverkusen is a professional basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 club, part of the Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen is a German football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the most well-known department of TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a sports club whose members also participate in athletics, gymnastics, basketball and other sports.-Origins and early years:On 27 November...

 sports club based in Leverkusen
Leverkusen
Leverkusen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on the eastern bank of the Rhine. To the South, Leverkusen borders the city of Cologne and to the North is the state capital Düsseldorf....

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. Based on the number of titles, Leverkusen is the most successful team in the history of German Basketball. In 2009, the Bayer
Bayer
Bayer AG is a chemical and pharmaceutical company founded in Barmen , Germany in 1863. It is headquartered in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and well known for its original brand of aspirin.-History:...

 company cut down sponsorship and the club went down to Germany's Pro B (3rd division) to restructure. The license for the Basketball Bundesliga
Basketball Bundesliga
The Basketball Bundesliga — commonly abbreviated BBL — is the highest level league of club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season is split into a league stage and a playoff stage...

 was transferred to the newly formed Giants Düsseldorf
Giants Düsseldorf
Gloria Giants Düsseldorf is a professional basketball club based in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The team was formed in 2008, when the Bayer company decided to dramatically decrease its sponsorship for its Bayer Giants Leverkusen. As a result, the Bayer Giants went down to...

.

History

Founded as TuS Bayer 04 Leverkusen in 1961, the club moved up to first division Basketball Bundesliga
Basketball Bundesliga
The Basketball Bundesliga — commonly abbreviated BBL — is the highest level league of club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season is split into a league stage and a playoff stage...

 in 1968. The club won 5 national championships and 4 cups as TuS 04 Leverkusen before it changed its name and continued its dominance as TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen. Until today, the club has won more national titles than any other German basketball team.
To the disdain of all of its supporters, in 2008 the Bayer
Bayer
Bayer AG is a chemical and pharmaceutical company founded in Barmen , Germany in 1863. It is headquartered in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and well known for its original brand of aspirin.-History:...

 company decided to make dramatic cuts in its sponsorship for the team and simply focus on its soccer operations. This move forced the club's basketball team to cede its Basketball Bundesliga
Basketball Bundesliga
The Basketball Bundesliga — commonly abbreviated BBL — is the highest level league of club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season is split into a league stage and a playoff stage...

 license to the newly formed Giants Düsseldorf
Giants Düsseldorf
Gloria Giants Düsseldorf is a professional basketball club based in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The team was formed in 2008, when the Bayer company decided to dramatically decrease its sponsorship for its Bayer Giants Leverkusen. As a result, the Bayer Giants went down to...

 and move down to Germany’s 3rd Division Pro B to restructure.
Thousands of club supporters gathered in the streets of Leverkusen
Leverkusen
Leverkusen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on the eastern bank of the Rhine. To the South, Leverkusen borders the city of Cologne and to the North is the state capital Düsseldorf....

 to protest the company’s move.

2009-2010 Roster

4   Florian Trmal Small Forward
Small forward
The small forward, or colloquially known as three, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically somewhat shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers, but on occasion are just as tall...

5   Max Brauer Shooting Guard
Shooting guard
The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...

7   Tom Spöler Small Forward
Small forward
The small forward, or colloquially known as three, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically somewhat shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers, but on occasion are just as tall...

9   Farid Sadek Shooting Guard
Shooting guard
The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...

10   Rodney Foster Point Guard
Point guard
Point guard , also called the play maker or "the ball-handler", is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position – essentially, he is expected to run the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that...

12   Ben Spöler Center
Center (basketball)
The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...

13   Lennard Jördell Power Forward
Power forward (basketball)
Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...

13   Matthias Wojdyla Small Forward
Small forward
The small forward, or colloquially known as three, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically somewhat shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers, but on occasion are just as tall...

15   Moritz Thimm Center
Center (basketball)
The center, colloquially known as the five or the post, is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. The center is normally the tallest player on the team, and often has a great deal of strength and body mass as well...

17   Sven Hartmann Shooting Guard
Shooting guard
The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...

20   Matthias Mauksch Shooting Guard
Shooting guard
The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...

22   Mathis Mönninghoff Shooting Guard
Shooting guard
The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...

24   Mostafa Shukoor Shooting Guard
Shooting guard
The shooting guard , also known as the two or off guard, is one of five traditional positions on a basketball team. Players of the position are often shorter, leaner, and quicker than forwards. A shooting guard's main objective is to score points for his team...

40   Hunter Henry Power Forward
Power forward (basketball)
Power forward is a position in the sport of basketball. The position is referred to in playbook terms as the four position and is commonly abbreviated "PF". It has also been referred to as the "post" position. Power forwards play a role similar to that of center in what is called the "post" or "low...





Roster updated 03-31-2010



Notable players

12 seasons: '71-'83Hansi Gnad
Hansi Gnad
Hansi Gnad is a retired German basketball player with the German national basketball team and German league squad Bayer Giants Leverkusen . He currently serves as head coach of the Giants Düsseldorf....

 4 seasons: '95-'97, '99-'01Demond Greene
Demond Greene
Demond Greene is a dual German-American citizen and professional basketball player. He plays both the point guard and shooting guard positions. He is 1.86 m in height and he weighs 86 kg . His father is from the USA and his mother is German.Greene currently plays with the number 24 for...

 3 seasons: '02-'05Henning Harnisch
Henning Harnisch
Henning Harnisch is a retired German professional basketball player. He is 2.03 m tall and played the Small Forward-Power Forward positions...

 8 seasons: '88-'96 Jörg Heidrich 2 seasons: '73-'74, '76-'77 Rudi Kleen 11 seasons: '70-'81Michael Koch
Michael Koch (basketball)
Michael Koch is a German basketball coach and retired professional player. He has been the coach of the Telekom Baskets Bonn since November 2005....

 5 seasons: '91-'96 Dieter Kuprella 9 seasons: '68-'77>
Michael Pappert 4 seasons: '85-'89 Jochen Pollex 3 seasons: '69-'72 Sven Schultze
Sven Schultze
Sven Schultze is a German professional basketball power forward/center. He is 2.08 m in height and he weighs 111 kg . He currently plays with the German club ALBA Berlin.-German national team:...

 3 seasons: '02-'05  Derrick Taylor 2 seasons: '97-'99 Norbert Thimm
Norbert Thimm
Norbert Thimm is a retired German professional basketball player. He is 2.05 m tall and played the Center position. He currently works for the sports management company T.E.A.M...

 10 seasons: '69-'72,'74-'81 Lutz Wadehn 3 seasons: '86-'89 Christian Welp
Christian Welp
Christian Ansgar Welp is a retired German professional basketball player. Welp, a 213 cm , 111 kg center, became the leading scorer in Washington Huskies history as a college basketball player...

 5 seasons: '91-'96 Denis Wucherer
Denis Wucherer
Denis Wucherer is a retired German professional basketball player. He is 1.96 m tall and played shooting guard...

 9 seasons: '92-'98, '02-'05 Mike Hansen 3 seasons: '99-'02 Kristjan Kangur
Kristjan Kangur
Kristjan Kangur is an Estonian professional basketball player currently playing for Italian Lega Basket Serie A club Pallacanestro Varese. He plays the Power forward position.-Estonia and Germany:...

 2 seasons: '04-'06
Eric Taylor 2 seasons: '06-'08 John Best 3 seasons: '00-'03 Carl Brown 2 seasons: '03-'05  Chris Corchiani
Chris Corchiani
Christopher Corchiani is a retired American professional basketball player. Corchiani's college career lasted from 1988 to 1991 at North Carolina State University....

 1 season: '95-'96 Tony Dawson
Tony Dawson
For the British actor see Anthony Dawson.Tony Dawson is a retired American professional basketball player. A 6'7" and 210 lb. small forward, he played college basketball at Gulf Coast Community College and Florida State University. He played a handful of NBA games during the 1990s...

 2 seasons: '95-'97 Nate Fox
Nate Fox
Nate Fox is an American basketball player who plays for Okapi Aalstar in Belgium.Fox played college basketball in Maine Black Bears averaging 17.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in his senior year....

 5 seasons: '02-'03, '05-'08 Tom Garrick
Tom Garrick
Thomas S. Garrick is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 2nd round of the 1988 NBA Draft. He played guard in four NBA seasons, mainly for the Clippers...

 2 seasons: '93-'95 Kevin Pritchard
Kevin Pritchard
Kevin Lee Pritchard is a retired American professional basketball player.- College career :Pritchard played college basketball for the University of Kansas, where he was the starting point guard on the Jayhawks team that defeated the Oklahoma Sooners for the 1988 NCAA Division I men's basketball...

 1 season: '96-'97 Rahsaan Smith
Rahsaan Smith
Rahsaan Smith is a US-American professional basketball player. He is 2.08m in height and he weighs 106kg . He plays the Center position. His last team was Galgos de Tijuana of the Mexican League.-College career:...

 1 season: '97-'98 Milton Wagner 1 season: '97-'98 Clinton Wheeler
Clinton Wheeler
Clinton Wheeler is a retired American professional basketball player. He was a 6'1" 185 lb point guard and played collegiately at Division III's William Paterson University...

4 seasons: '89-'93

External links

Team Homepage
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK