9 teams will compete in the 2023/24 LBBL season. National team head coach Mariusz Dziurdzia shares his thoughts about the upcoming season.
First of all, Dziurdzia hopes that the number of teams in the highest league will climb back to 10 teams in the upcoming season.
Which teams can be considered the favorites to win the title in the 2023/24 season?
Gréngewald Hueschtert has to be named first. The current champion was able to keep the team together and added national team player Amanda Cahill to form a super strong trio with Samantha Logic and Lauren VanKleunen. Most of their JICL players are very experienced which gives them another advantage. T71 Dudelange will definitely be in the discussion if all players stay healthy. They had problems with injuries at the end of last season which did not allow them to be at their best. These two teams are the favorites to enter the finals. AB Contern is another interesting team, they added Charlie Bidinger and kept the core together. Amicale Steinsel, Sparta Bertrange and Basket Esch have strong teams as well and should be able to make the play-offs.
Gréngewald Hueschtert and T71 Dudelange will compete in the EuroCup once again, which is a good sign for women’s basketball?
Absolutely, I am happy that two clubs take part in this competition one more year. They put our basketball on the map which is a good sign, the players gain important experience in these games which also helps the women’s national team in the long run.
The groups of both teams –> EuroCup: Gréngewald and T71 know their opponents
With Ehi Etute (T71), Luxembourg has a special talent, what do you expect from her in the future?
Ehi is a special talent, she has a lot of work to do before she will go the United States. She needs to use this last season in Luxembourg to develop her game. She needs to improve a lot of things if she wants to play at a very high level in the future, she clearly has the abilities to have a good career.
Who could play a role in the JICL MVP race next to the current MVP Etute?
I think that the MVP race will be featured by the same players like last season. Esmeralda Skrijelj will be in the discussion together with Catherine Mreches and Mandy Geniets depending on their health this season. Obviously Ehi will be a top JICL player once again. I hope that a young player can make a jump and enter the discussion during the season.
The game mode:
Most teams will start the season with the same coach, Basket Esch will be coach by Alexandre Carradore which is the only change in the league. There were not many off-season moves overall, national team player Charlie Bidinger joined AB Contern, Nadine Bourg and Emily Leid will will play for Basket Esch this season, Isa Hämäläinen will play in Steinsel together with Mikayla Ferenz. Most teams have also added at least one professional player. Résidence Walfer and Etzella Ettelbruck will compete in the women’s National 2 in the 2023/24 season.
