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SUMMER 2008! For ratiopharm Ulm, the summer 2008 became an eventful seventy-plus day stretch that allowed the team to add new faces, improve skills, recharge batteries and enjoy personal time with family or travel. Returning to Ulm during the first week of August, ratiopharm Ulm reunites with a new look for the 2008-2009 season as the team tips off preseason practice Sunday night August 10th at Ulm University gym North. Let's take a look at what summer 2008 was for ratiopharm Ulm. Ulm Management THOMAS STOLL and ANDREAS OETTEL Using the summer to continue with the excellent progress off the floor, Ulm management led by Thomas Stoll and Andreas Oettel improved the organization in many small areas over the last few months. And as the last few seasons have demonstrated, little things mean alot. After welcoming back ratiopharm as the main sponsor and leading the push for the new Arena in the city, this summer focused on plans to grow the budget and plans to continue the development of entire operation. Hardwork pays off and what may seem like small steps forward often add up to major strides before one knows it. For the Ulm management, the summer of 2008 has been effort to set the table for success of the team on the floor this season. Ulm Retrurning players JEFF GIBBS Ulm's Mr Incredible spent the summer in Columbus Ohio with his family as he and wife April enjoyed time with son Trey and daughter Faith. With a summer to rest and relax, Jeff returns to Ulm for his 4th season and Bundesliga basketball fans all over Germany will once again be treated to one of the most unique and talented players in the world. SEAN FINN Sean spent most of the summer in Kansas City but made a few trips west to his hometown of Hays, Kansas. Ulm's big man also traveled to Mexico, Cincinatti and Las Vegas. After finishing last season strong, Sean looks to build on his development. Working out with several European Pro's in Kansas City, Sean returns to Ulm ready for a strong new year. DRU JOYCE and ROMEO TRAVIS Dru and Romeo spent the summer in their hometown of Akron Ohio but were challenging themselves in the Las Vegas NBA Summer League with the Cleveland Cavaliers team. Both Dru and Rome played well in Vegas responding extremely well to the challenges and taking tremendous confidence in their performance from their experience. Both also continued to work toward their college degrees from the University of Akron, worked the LeBron James Elite camp and spent time with family and friends at home. SEBASTIAN BETZ After enjoying much success with the German junior national program over the past few summers, Sebastian took this summer off to rest his body, recover from minor injuries and improve his skills. Spending time in both his hometown of Weilheim Germany in Bavaria and also in Ulm, Basti worked hard in the weight room and also on the basketball court. Ulm fitness coach Thomas Fritsche has spent excellent time helping Basti gain strength and conditioning level which has Basti primed for a big step this year. EMEKA EREGE Ulm's captain was a world traveler this summer. After a fantastic trip to Thailand, Emeka traveled to Italy and the USA along with spending time with family in Berlin and Lagos Nigeria. Emeka's travels allowed him to catch up with many friends and family along with have lots of fun all over the world. After an injury filled last season, Emeka is rested and refreshed and ready for a great new year. Ulm New Players
PER GUNTHER Playing in Romania with the Germany U20 National team, Per has excelled as the teams point guard and floor general. Regarded as the top young German point guard available, Per played a major part in German wins over Sweden 90-64, Ireland 112-40, Czech Republic 100-57, Azerbajian 124-38 and Macedonia 81-75 in their march to the top of the A-group. After using the summer to compete internationall with the junior national program, Ulm's excellent young point guard is ready to challenge himself and make the next steps into the Bundesliga in 2008-2009. LEE HUMPHREY Spending the early part of the summer at the University of Florida, Lee worked on his game and trained daily with former Gator teammates and current Gator players. Under the direction of outstanding strength coach Matt Herring, Lee kept himself in top shape while keeping his game sharp in the summer at his beloved school where the sharpshooter played a major role in helping the Gators to back to back NCAA titles. Midsummer Lee returned to spend time with his family in Maryville, Tennessee.
KEITH TRIPLETT After a tremendous season in Romania, Keith and wife Michelle spent their summer in Toldeo Ohio where they spent time enjoying their daughter Kalea and family. Resting after a healthy season filled with success, Keith and Michelle returned to Ulm early to get a head start settling in. With a fantastic year in Kaiserslautern under his belt in 2005-2006, Keith is primed for a breakthrough year in the Bundesliga in 2008-2009! A rookie from Marquette, Dan attended the Eurobasket Pro Tryout camp in Las Vegas Nevada where he played on the team coached by Ulm's Mike Taylor. Immediately impressing with his play, Dan continued his outstanding summer 2008 by making the Minnesota Timberwolves roster for the Las Vegas NBA summer league. In total, with basketball, Dan was in Las Vegas for the month of June 21st through July 21st. After his successful summer in Vegas, Dan returned to Milwaukee Wisconsin before traveling over to Ulm. MICHAEL SCHROEDER With a brief vacation to Spain, Ulm's newest big man spent his summer in Goettingen enjoying family and friends before arriving in Ulm early. Upon his arrival in Ulm, Michael made an excellent impression attending the fan club meeting and getting to know many of ratiopharm Ulm's enthusiastic fans. Reunited with Sebastian Betz, a former teammate from Breitengussbach, Michael settled on playing in Ulm after receiving interest from teams in Spain and other countries outside of Germany. With a solid years experience under his belt, Michael is ready to make the next steps in his career this season in Ulm! Ulm Staff RAINER BAUER Along with completing his teaching duties before summer vacation and a holiday in Greece, Ulm's hardworking assistant coach and youth coordinator helped recruit several top young players to the Ulm NBBL team including Cedric von During and Nemanja Kekic. THOMAS FRITSCHE For the second summer in a row, Ulm's motivated young fitness coach spent time in the USA at famed Athletes Performance in Arizona. Thomas also worked the LeBron James Elite camp in Akron Ohio where he and fellow Ulm youth coach Jochen Lotz were in top form. Thomas continues his education at the University in Ulm and returns to ratiopharm Ulm ready to put his new concepts into practice. Ulm Head Coach MIKE TAYLOR It was a summer of change for ratiopharm Ulm Head coach Mike Taylor as family moved from Pennsylvania to Fairfax, Virginia and the term 'Working-vacation' applied. Making excellent connections into the strong Washington DC basketball network, the summer provided plenty of opportunities to watch players and put guys through workouts. The summer basketball circuit included stops at the VCU Invitational, ACMT Camp in Columbus Ohio, a recruiting trip to Florida and a two week stint in Las Vegas for the NBA summer league and several tryout camps. Along the way, the current Ulm head coach crossed paths with former Ulm players Calvin Oldham, Bo Dukes, Adrian Autry and Mike Born connecting Ulm's basketball past with its future. Returning to Ulm August 3rd, looking back on a positive summer of 2008 points the way forward to a fun season ahead! Ulm opens their preseason Sunday night with an open practice for the public and over 500 fans are expected to attend catching a glimpse of the teams first action of the 2008-2009 season. Follow all the fast breaking ratiopharm Ulm baketball action all season long on Taylorhoops.com! GO ULM! MIKE T
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