Nine German championships and six cup wins – Brose Bamberg was a force in German basketball. But the successful times are long gone, the current reality is different. The Upper Franconians are in an absolute crisis with their coach Oren Amiel.
Bottom of the table in the Bundesliga
Only a few days after the European Cup embarrassment against KB Ylli, a club from Kosovo, Bamberg have also hit rock bottom in the Bundesliga. The 66:76 against the Veolia Towers Hamburg on Friday evening not only meant the fifth defeat in the fifth league game for the team around national player Christian Sengfelder, but also the fall to 18th and thus last place in the table.
Coach Amiel still has the backing of the club management
“When things don’t go well anymore, you have to do something. We need changes,” said the Israeli coach after the last bankruptcy. “No one is safe anymore, including me,” Amiel said. But the 50-year-old is still firmly in the saddle when it comes to managing director Philipp Höhne: “I didn’t say a word against the coach. I said the coaching team is now required to make the right changes – both mentally, in attitude, but also in the squad.”
“The coach is not available for me at the moment!” Bamberg’s managing director Philipp Höhne
Wright-Foreman no longer in the squad
After the defeat in the FIBA Europe Cup, Amiel publicly asked for forgiveness and spoke of an “embarrassing performance”. “We now have to make changes to get the situation under control,” he announced after the fifth Bundesliga defeat in a row. And he took a bold step by suspending top scorer Justin Wright-Foreman. Talks about terminating the contract with the US Point Guard are ongoing.
“Sometimes as a coach you have to make decisions that may not seem understandable to outsiders. Nevertheless, they are right, because they are in the interests of the team. In our current situation, it’s about finding our way as quickly as possible.” Bamberg coach Oren Amiel
For many fans a completely incomprehensible decision. It will be interesting to see how the team will develop and how the season will continue for Bamberg.
