End of Season Wrap Up and Highlights, by Nathan

As this season comes to a conclusion, I have to say that I have enjoyed playing here in Luxembourg and representing my team Ettlebruck Etzella. This season, however, has been very unique. I have had to overcome many challenges as a player.

First, my team had already played 3 games without me, so I was thrown directly into the fire upon arriving. I didn't even know all of my teammates names when I played my first game. Without the preseason to prepare with my teammates I was forced to catch onto everything really quickly. Second, this was my first season using the "Euroball." The basketball that is used in Europe is different from every other ball in the world. It has a different number of panels which alters the overall look and feel of the ball. Turns out I have actually grown to like this ball a lot. And lastly, the structure of the league is unlike anything I have ever played in. Let me explain:


There are three different leagues here in Luxembourg (At least, three that I know of, there may actually be more) My team was in the First League which consists of ten teams. We played a round robin against each of the other nine teams. After those 18 games, the top six move on to play each other in another round robin, and then the top four play a normal "Semifinal" with a three game series.

The four teams that did not make the top six go onto the "play up/play downs" as they call it here. The top four teams from the 2nd division play a round robin with the bottom four teams of the 1st division. The two teams from the first league with the lowest record after these 8 games move down to the 2nd league for next season, and the two teams from the 2nd division with the highest record move up to the first league next season. In case its not complicated enough already, at the beginning of this round of "play up/play downs," season records are cut in half to make it more even. If it sounds confusing, thats because it is. I have been here for seven months and I just recently began to understand it.

My team did not make the top six in the regular season, so we have been in the play up/play downs and competing for the club's place in the top league next year. We secured this spot about halfway through the post season. Overall, it was a good season filled with exciting career moments for me. I was very blessed to be selected as an All Star back in February and I was also selected to represent my team in a 3 point shooting contest in March. Although I really wish we were competing in the playoffs for a championship, it has still been a great season thanks to my awesome teammates, coaches, and Etzella staff.

Here is a highlight tape I put together from this season: