Dhe captain stands for continuity at the Fraport Skyliners. Quantez Robertson will extend his contract in Frankfurt this week, this time by two years and probably for the last time. The 36-year-old professional basketball player has been wearing the Bundesliga club’s jersey since 2009, and during this long time the longest-serving Skyliners player has become the face of local basketball. With his willpower and enthusiasm, the American has been the leader of the team and the fans’ favorite for years.
Also in this season, which ended in twelfth place for the Hessians after 96:89 at home over Hamburg, Robertson was the longest professional of head coach Sebastian Gleim with almost 33 minutes playing time per game. In all 34 encounters, the build-up and winger was the starter on the field. The king of ball thieves in the first division is far from being obsolete.
Right now, the role model Robertson is important as a decisive constant in the Skyliners line-up. Because after this season there is a lot of movement in the Frankfurt workforce. Above all, Gleim is looking for a new professional challenge at league rivals Crailsheim. It probably didn’t seem absolutely necessary to him. But when CEO Gunnar Wöbke told him in the first half of the season that he would have to give up his coaching post after the round and then two years and could become sports director, Gleim decided to change jobs. With Crailsheim he accepted the offer that aroused the greatest anticipation in him.
The words of Wöbke, however, will have annoyed him. His boss is of the opinion that the team has significantly more potential “to be more successful in sport than we were”. The managing director would also have liked Gleim, who had worked for a long time in Frankfurt as the head of youth development and school development, to give the talents Len Schoormann and Bruno Vrcic more playing time. It is not often that Wöbke criticizes the public with such openness. Nevertheless, the outgoing head coach and youngest head coach of the league has not yet sought a confrontation with his long-term boss.
It may still take some time before Gleim’s successor is found. Wöbke would prefer to tie a sports director to the club first. He also took on this task all those years after Kamil Novak left the Skyliners in 2012. However, the Frankfurters only want to afford a new sports director if the federal government extends the corona aid for this year. In addition, Wöbke is expecting a decision from the city of Frankfurt soon on the basis of the property on the Kaiserlei. There the Skyliners would like to build a multifunctional arena themselves with the support of regional companies. Without a positive signal from the future city government to the hall, the first division basketball club will probably leave it with the signing of a new head coach. Otherwise the new sports director will choose the head coach.
In addition to the leading figure Robertson, the young players Schoormann, Vrcic and Maximilian Begue will also be part of the Skyliners squad for the coming season. It remains to be seen whether Richard Freudenberg, who is only 22 years old, will be able to continue his career after an injury break of several months. With the two center players Michael Kessens and Marco Völler, the club has the option of extending the cooperation. This also applies to the builder Konstantin Konga. However, this is repeatedly thrown back by injuries. Matt Mobley, the second best Bundesliga shooter after the main round with 20 points per game, will probably improve both athletically and economically on his further career path. The Spanish clubs Badalona and Malaga have already expressed their interest in the 26-year-old American. Robertson, on the other hand, continues to focus on the Skyliners. He will end his career in Frankfurt.
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