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New-look ALBA: Different... but the same

New-look ALBA: Different... but the same

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10 August 20234 Mins read

Andy West

Slovenian 22-year old point guard Ziga Samar has been recalled from a season on-loan at Hamburg Towers, where he gained invaluable high-level continental experience in the BKT EuroCup and excelled with impressive averages of 9.8 points and 6.1 assists per game.

A year ago, ALBA Berlin was enjoying a rare summer of stability as it prepared for the new Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season, counting upon virtually the same roster of players which had mustered a solid 12-16 record the previous campaign.

What followed was the ultimate sporting expression of hot and cold, hit or miss, hero to zero, as ALBA oscillated wildly between beating everybody (winning its first three games of the season) and beating nobody (losing its next 12 in a row). Eventually, Israel Gonzalez’s squad finished on 11-23, third from bottom of the standings – not exactly a colossal failure for a club with ALBA’s budget and long-term outlook, but not a roaring success either, especially when combined with a disappointing quarterfinals exit from the domestic championship.

Summer makeover

So now it’s time for a new approach, and the summer picture in the German capital is looking very different from the continuity of 12 months ago. Yes, coach Gonzalez is still there, but many of his most important and most experienced players have departed.

Veteran do-it-all leader Luke Sikma has taken his entertaining brand of creative basketball to Olympiacos Piraeus; backcourt general Maodo Lo will be calling the shots for EA7 Emporio Armani Milan; sharpshooter Jaleen Smith has also headed to Italy, joining Virtus Segafredo Bologna; Tamir Blatt and Yovel Zoosman are both back in their native Israel with Maccabi Playtika Tel Aviv and Hapoel Jerusalem respectively; dynamic big man Ben Lammers has returned to Spanish basketball, joining reigning EuroCup champion Dreamland Gran Canaria.

New three-point slinger in town

Amid so many departures, it has been necessary for ALBA to undertake a pretty drastic remodeling of its roster, as sporting director Himar Ojeda admitted in an interview with the club’s website in July.

“Due to many expiring contracts, it is not easy to keep the squad together this year,” he explained. “At the same time, it also gives us the opportunity to sign new players and bring in a breath of fresh air. Many clubs renew their squad every two years, whereas we have recently taken a different path with more continuity. But now this summer we have to change a few more things and dare to make a little bit of a fresh start.”

That fresh start entails some new faces, but it doesn’t mean a radical change in sporting approach. And the acquisition of Matt Thomas suggests that Gonzalez will be sticking to his run and gun, fast-paced, open style of basketball.

During his half-season with Panathinaikos Athens earlier this year, Thomas sent a reminder of the quality that first became evident to European basketball fans when he helped Valencia Basket win the EuroCup title back in 2018-19: that he is one of the most prolific three-point shooters out there. In the last 10 games of the season Thomas attempted 42 three-point attempts, converting a handy 40.5%. That shows he is ready to quickly adapt to ALBA’s style and perhaps inherit the role of Smith, who ranked fifth in the league with an average of 6.0 three-point shots per game last season.

Good enough is old enough

ALBA’s summer recruitment is also staying true to the club’s established philosophy by betting on young talent...and especially young Italian talent. First it was Simone Fontecchio, who enjoyed a breakout season in Berlin in 2020-21, then it was Gabriele Procida, and now it’s the turn of Matteo Spagnolo. The 20 year-old guard has been snapped up from Real Madrid, and knows that his lack of experience will not be a hindrance to playing time at a club which has traditionally lived by the mantra that if you’re good enough, you’re old enough.

The same applies to a returning youngster and another former Real youth talent, Slovenian point guard Ziga Samar. The 22 year-old has been recalled from a season on-loan at Hamburg Towers, where he gained invaluable high-level continental experience in the EuroCup and excelled with impressive averages of 9.8 points and 6.1 assists per game. Now Samar will have the chance to step up to the highest level in Europe, taking over the playmaking responsibilities previously held by Lo and Blatt.

ALBA’s willingness to give youthful and hungry players a chance to develop is also evident in the recruitment of Justin Bean. At the age of 26, the American forward is not exactly young, but his career remains very much in its early stages. Impressive numbers at Utah State – where he averaged Sikma-like numbers of 17.4 points and 9.9 rebounds per game in his final year – have not yet led to any significant impression at professional level, but Bean should find the perfect nurturing environment to unfurl his interesting talents in the German capital. And notably he is another player with great shooting range, averaging a remarkable 46.5% from three-point range in his final year at college.

ALBA is likely not done bringing in new faces, but it already had an unusually busy summer in the transfer market, and perhaps we can conclude that the new-look ALBA will be different, but the same.