It’s been a while basketball-EM national coach Alex Mumbru (46) had to be hospitalized. Then the Spaniard struggled on the sidelines despite suffering from pancreatitis. Immediately after the victory in Riga, we returned to the clinic in Spain. Mumbru had to spend four weeks and lose 16 kilograms!
At the start of the 2027 World Cup qualifiers in Qatar, the former professional player will now return to take command of the defending champions. And it started with a big surprise…
The 16-man squad for the games in Ulm against Israel (28 November/19:30, Magenta Sport) and in Cyprus (1/1/17 December) includes four newcomers alongside newly crowned European champion Isaac Bonga (26/Partizan Belgrade) and Munich’s Oscar da Silva (27), Justus Hollatz (24) and Andreas Obst (29). Including one (almost) forgotten professional!
Apart from Norris Agbokoko, Till Pape and Collin Welp who are active in Easycredit BBL, Mumbru also nominated “Big Man” Mahir Agva (29) for the first time. The man from Reutlingen of Kurdish origin has played for various clubs in the Turkish Süper Lig since 2019. He is currently under contract with Yukatel Merkezefendi Belediyesi who are in twelfth position and putting up stable numbers (8.1 points, 7 rebounds per game).
Agva was last used in DBB’s U20 side, but was always overlooked by Mumbru’s predecessors – now he will make his debut.
NBA pros are typically not available for the national team window in November. Therefore, captain Dennis Schröder (32/Sacramento Kings), Orlando Franz (24) & Moritz Wagner (28), Tristan da Silva (24)+ as well as NBA champion Isaiah Hartenstein (27/Oklahoma City Thunder) are absent. Euroleague stars Maodo Lo (32/Zalgiris Kaunas), Daniel Theis (33/AS Monaco) and Nick Weiler-Babb (29/Anadolu Efes Istanbul) were also dropped.
Since Johannes Thiemann (31), who is active in Japan, as well as Leon Schieber (28) and Johannes Voigtmann (33/both from Bavaria) are not in the European Championship squad, Mumbru “discovered” Agva again. And Welp could also follow in the footsteps of his famous father for the first time at DBB, who played 106 times for Germany.
However, Mumbru had to cut four more players before the game in Ulm.
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