Another young player will play abroad in the upcoming season. Dan Mantz will leave Luxembourg and his team AB Contern to play in Munich (Bayern Munich II) for the second team of the club, a club that is playing in the Pro B league in Germany.
Mantz will combine studies (construction engineer) and basketball next season: „It was a spontaneous decision to join the team in Munich. I wanted to study in Munich and play basketball but I did not expect to play at such a high level next season. After talking to Ken Diederich, he contacted assistant coach Andreas Wagner and then we talked about this possibility. It was a win-win situation as the team was looking for another player on my position. I like that the team is very young and that there is no professional player on the roster. Many players on the team are in my position to combine studies and basketball so that the club will also help us in that regard. »
The second team of one of the top clubs in Germany and Europe is focused on developing players in the second team: „While the goal is always to win games, the development of individual players is clearly the focus of the team and that is a big advantage for me. »
(Dan Mantz, Nr 11, at the European Championship this summer)
The 18-year old player recently averaged 5 points, 6 rebounds and 1 assist for the FLBB team at the U20 European Championship (Division B). Now he will take on a new challenge: „I never had the clear goal of becoming a professional player because it is too risky in my opinion, an injury can end that dream at any given moment. I want to keep a plan A in my head and that is focusing on my school/studies. If there will be a possibility to play basketball professionally in the future, I will have to take a look at the situation and take a decision. I love playing basketball and I definitely want to keep playing, as a hobby or maybe as a professional player at some point in my future. My life will now change completely, I will live abroad and play in a new league, there will be plenty of new experiences and that is what I am looking forward to at the moment. I hope that I will be able to find my role within the team and become a main player, possibly a starter. At this moment, it is difficult to predict how strong my teammates and the league are. »
Since he was 6 years old, Mantz played for AB Contern. „The club has become like a family to me. Over the last years, I went to school and had practice in the evenings, it was my life for many years. I will miss my best friend Charel Moes, all the other players but also the complete environment and the people that work for the club. I want to thank the club for all their support over the last years! »
