JBBL action in Berlin, Germany. Credit: Florian Kurth/Pro Insight
In the latest edition of ‘P.I. Pulse’, Pro Insight’s Florian Kurth brings you the inside scoop on the latest happenings within the European basketball landscape. As the season kicks off, we’re excited to launch this new column, ‘PI [Euro] Pulse,’ dedicated to highlighting the noteworthy performances of emerging talent across the continent of Europe:
European Basketball is Back – and the ‘Next Wave’ is Here
Basketball season across Europe has been underway for several weeks, and as the first high-level youth tournaments tip off, it’s once again that time of the year when scouts, coaches, and fans spend countless hours watching games — whether through Synergy, live broadcasts or on-site.
A Pro B matchup during one of our recent trips to Würzburg. Credit: Florian Kurth/Pro Insight
Constant Movement in the Youth Scene
As always, the youth basketball scene hasn’t stood still during summer after the FIBA events. There’s been plenty of movement among promising prospects. Two familiar faces from Milano’s youth setup, Luigi Suigo and Diego Garavaglia, have both left Italy in pursuit of new challenges abroad. Meanwhile, a younger name is making waves at home — Cheick Niang — the younger brother of Saliou Niang, is already turning heads with impressive performances in Italy’s top league.
Germany has seen its own share of noteworthy transfers: Bayern Munich secured the talented Jerkicbrothers from Ulm, while Marko Volf departed the Bavarian powerhouse. At the same time, Jack Kayil wasted no time proving himself in the BBL with ALBA Berlin, showing flashes of the impact he could bring to Gonzaga in the 2026–27 season.
Europe’s Talent Pipeline Keeps Flowing
Even though many players have already signed to U.S. colleges this summer, there’s no shortage of exciting talent to follow in Europe. Just a quick look at France and Spain makes that clear: young prospects such as Aaron Towo-Nnansi (still only a teenager!),Sergio de Larrea, Stefan Joksimovic, Hugo Yimga Moukouri, and Adam Atamna are all logging meaningful minutes with their respective pro teams, even some at EuroLeague level.
What to Expect from This Series
In this recurring series, Florian Kurth will be pointing out the standout performances (and even some of the underwhelming ones) — calling attention to what’s truly worth your time on Synergy or other video platforms. The goal is to keep you up to date with the most relevant developments in each national scouting scene.
As we are actively working with a bevy of professional organizations and college programs, we won’t dive too deep into the specifics here — after all, providing that level of detail would devalue the quality and exclusivity of our clients. Instead, consider this series a curated overview of key trends and performances worth monitoring.
To kick things off, let’s take a closer look at Germany’s youth basketball landscape — a scene that continues to evolve and produce talent at an impressive rate. It’s not just German players who are coming through, but also foreign players, as was clearly demonstrated in Ulm with all the French NBA prospects.
Ulm @ Ankara: 96-93 (EuroCup)
Ulm @ Lietkabelis: 98-94 (EuroCup)
(+) Positional versatility
(+) Tremendous length (esp. how it shows up, defensively)
(-) Far from being a knock-down shooter (despite high averages in EC)
Summary: Currently getting limited playing time, but making the most of it. His focus should be on improving his physique in terms of muscle mass without losing his flexible athletic abilities.
Ulm 2 vs. Frankfurt 2: 84-64 (ProB)
18P-8R-1A-2TO in 29:21 MP
Ulm 2 @ Oberhaching: 73-92 (ProB)
(-) Range shooting consistency (despite improved mechanics)
(-) Lack of defined position
(-) Raw tactical understanding
Summary: Meissa is in the midst of the acclimatization process, which is understandable when someone of his age moves to a new, foreign country. He is playing between the U19 Bundesliga and ProB and is improving week by week. He was also able to accumulate a few professional minutes, with the number expecting to only increase.
Diego Garavaglia (2026 – 6’7” wing)
Ulm vs. Besiktas: 99-101 (EuroCup)
(+) Fearless and communicative court presence
(+) Straight-up energy boost for his team whenever he steps on the court
(-) Could be more productive when attacking closeouts
(-) Foul-prone (especially in EC)
Summary: It was easy to predict that an energetic and disciplined player like DG would need less time to get up to speed at the pro level, as he has always been known as a hard worker, especially on the defensive end.
Jared Grey (2026 – 6’8” wing)
Hamburg @ Aris: 76-98 (EuroCup)
Hamburg vs. MBC: 85-93 (BBL)
(+) Plus-length on the wing
(+) Increasingly stable range shooting threat
(+) Contribution on the glass
(-) Decision-making can appear rushed in transition
(-) Could provide more energy
Summary: This name has been familiar to everyone since last summer’s U20 European Championship in Crete. With just under 20 minutes of playing time for the Eurocup team from Hamburg, the German-American is deservedly on several watch lists for the 2026 college class.
Alba Berlin vs. FC Bayern: 67-61 (BBL)
12P-5R-2A-0TO in 20:46 MP
Alba Berlin vs. Chalon: 92-97 (BBL)
(+) Unafraid of the moment
(+) Positional rebounding on the defensive glass
(+) Excels in open floor situations
(-) Occasional foul trouble
(-) Consistency at the FT line
Summary: Strong start in the BBL, while still calibrating in international competition. Consistency must be his focus this season. There is no question that he has strong physicality, solid game sense, and a good mentality, which should serve him well early and often at Gonzaga, next year.
Würzburg 2 vs. Frankfurt 2: 73-88 (ProB)
27P-1R-1A-1TO in 34:41 MP
Würzburg @ Heidelberg: 51-85 (BBL)
(+) Obsessed with winning – tough and physical playstyle
(+) Crafty offensive creator
(-) Can get tunnel vision as a decision-maker
Summary: A kid who is fun to watch! Appears 101% committed in every game, which he emphasizes by regularly showing his emotions. 10/5/2 averages in ProB are quite impressive for someone who is one of the youngest rotational players on the Würzburg farm team.
Nikolas Sermpezis (2026 – 6’4” combo guard)
Bayern 2 vs. Würzburg: 87-75 (ProB)
31P-7R-2A-1TO in 29:51 MP
Bayern 2 @ Fellbach: 86-74 (ProB)
13P-3R-0A-5TO in 30:00 MP
(+) Versatile offensive production
(+) Low TO rate and improved decision making
(+) Relentless rim attacker
(-) Efficiency from 3PT and FT
(-) Speed of release off the catch from 3
Summary: The German-Greek guard, who switched agencies this summer, is definitely on the upswing and even played twice for the Bayern 1st team. Definitely somebody to monitor for the 2026 college class.
Bayern 2 vs. Coburg: 57-72 (ProB)
Bayern 2 @ Ulm: 75-78 (ProB)
13P-5R-3A-1TO in 27:58 MP
(+) Above-average processing speed for his age
(+) Huge off-ball cutting / backdoor threat
(+) Defensive versatility
Summary: The fact that Caspar was registered for Bayern’s BBL team (at the age of 16) and will probably make his debut there, as we hear, speaks for itself! His body continues to develop, as does his game. Alongside Fabian Kayser, he is the most exciting talent of the 2009 generation.
Additional Names to Follow
Endurance Aiyamenkhue (2007), Alec Anigbata (2004), Jett Beard (2009), Nevio Bennefeld (2007), Daniel Biel (2007), Fin Borczanowski (2008), Jaron Braun (2010), Kemal Buljubasic (2010), Ivan Crnjac (2007), Lars Danziger (2008), Maxwell Dos Santos (2010), Finn Döntgens (2004), Jona Drücke (2009), Jamie Edoka (2008), Danny Egbe (2010), Leo Friedlein (2009), Levin Fröse (2011), Christoph Gördes (2009), Tobias Jensen (2004), Roko Jerkic (2010), Noah Kamm da Cruz (2010), Anton Kemmer (2008), Djordje Klaric (2009), Dion Kovacevic (2010), Leonard Kröger (2008), Epke Kruthaup (2008), Fynn Lastring (2008), Joel Lindsay (2008), Niclas “Nici” Mattner (2010), Johan Friedrich “Fiete” Meinberg (2010), Teo Milicic (2008) Valentino Monin (2010), Milo Murray (2007), Berin Nurkic (2011), Zacharie Perrin (2004), Paul Plato (2009), Justus Reintjes (2010), Racim Rezouani (2010) Fynn Rieck (2009), Jervis Scheffs (2007), Colin Schröder (2006), Yanu Slingerland (2008) Andrija Susic (2008), Yohann Tchouaffe (2009), Lukas Veller (2008), Marko Volf (2010), Kenan Youdom (2009), Liam Zwanbun (2009)
Rochester, N.Y. — Two people have been arrested following a double shooting Thursday evening on the city’s southwest side.
Officers responded around 5:20 p.m. to the area of Bartlett and Seward streets, where they found two men, ages 20 and 37, who were both shot in the lower body, according to police. Both men were taken to Strong Memorial Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Two suspects, a 35-year-old man and a 32-year-old woman, were arrested following a police chase that ended on Pullman Avenue.
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An investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or Crime Stoppers at (585) 423-9300.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach State athletics for the 2025-26 season is sponsored by Marilyn Bohl.
For ten minutes of the opening half Long Beach State proved they can go toe-to-toe with some of the Big West’s best teams.
However, the Beach couldn’t get into a rhythm as they dropped their road contest 74-64 Thursday night in Irvine at the Bren Events Center in the first round of the Black and Blue Rivalry.
“Credit to Irvine,” Long Beach State coach Chris Acker said. “They did a good job disrupting our best player, and Gavin. We didn’t have enough guys to step up and make plays tonight.”
Gavin Sykes got the Beach off to a nice start with 4 points to give LBSU a 6-2 lead with 17:19 remaining in the first half. UCI responded with a 4-0 run to tie the game.
However, after Petar Majstorovic was fouled hard by UC Irvine’s Harrison Carrington which was later reviewed and upgraded to a flagrant one – the Beach went on a 4-0 run to take a 10-6 lead with 14:51 left in the first half.
Sykes and Majstorovic did what they could as they went up against the Anteaters who entered the contest with the second-best defense in the Big West allowing 67 points per game.
Before the contest LBSU found out they’d be without one of their key rotational piece as Shaq Bender did not travel with the team as he deals with the flu. The absence loomed large for LBSU as UCI was able to key on Sykes and Majstorovic.
After taking a 10-6 lead, the Anteaters went on a 5-0 run to take an 11-10 run with 11:30 left in the first half. Sykes ended the run with a 3-pointer to give the Beach a 13-11 lead.
UCI (11-5, 5-0) answered right back thanks to a basket from Jurian Dixon that tied the game and Tama Isaac gave the Anteaters a 15-13 shortly after and that was enough as they’d lead the rest of the way.
Sykes scored 21 points and Majstorovic scored 15 to lead the Beach. Cole Farrell chipped in nine as the trio combined to shoot 18-32 from the field while the rest of the team shot 7-28. Majstorovic also had eight rebounds.
LBSU (5-11,1-3) had plenty of opportunities to score, but the Beach wasn’t able to take advantage of the opportunities.
Dixon led the Anteaters with 23 points and Kyle Evans had 15 points and six rebounds. UCI extended the lead to 18 midway in the second half before LBSU went on a small run to cut the deficit to 10 points.
Long Beach will continue Big West play when they host Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday in the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid on Saturday at 4 p.m.
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — A group of 15 Philadelphia coaches were recognized Thursday night for completing a program designed to help them better support young athletes facing academic challenges, violence and emotional struggles.
Marcus Fulton, athletic director and football coach at Boys’ Latin of Philadelphia Charter School, said the sport has long been a guiding force in his own life. “Football helped me chase the dream,” he said.
Fulton said his decades of coaching in the city have shown him the pressures many young players face.
“I’ve been coaching for 25 years in the city of Philadelphia, so I know some of things going on with our guys in terms of the academic struggles, the violence that happens. I lost a couple players before,” he said.
The coaches were honored for completing the Open Door Abuse Awareness and Prevention program, which teaches trauma-informed strategies to help athletes on and off the field.
“We’re teaching coaches how to put on a lens for trauma in order to be able to help out kids a little deeper,” said Valencia Peterson, founder of the program.
Peterson created the initiative after experiencing trauma of her own when her mother was killed at a young age. The program focuses on mentorship, violence prevention and creating safe spaces for youth.
Peterson said coaches often play a critical role in young people’s lives.
“The coach is usually a first line for kids, and it’s their only father figure, it’s their only stability. The only consistent thing they have is a team. So we’re giving the coaches the tools they need to help regulate, to help see them for who they really are,” she said.
As part of the training, coaches learned to lead with empathy, help players manage emotions, and identify signs of mental health concerns.
MidCity Tigers coach Adolph Sanna said he hopes the lessons help athletes understand “that they have an opportunity to see what another side of life is like where people are concerned about their fears, their doubts and the things that are going on with them.”
Fulton said he wants the young men he coaches to carry these lessons into adulthood “to be successful. To be good husbands, good fathers, good mentors in the city of Philadelphia.”
The Open Door Abuse Awareness and Prevention program also offers mentorship for boys and girls who do not participate in sports, aiming to help youth across Philadelphia “become the best version of themselves,” according to the organization.
KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Plans to build a state-of-the-art, $40 million youth sports complex in Kalamazoo County are on hold for now.
The county commission heard plans from the developer during their Thursday night meeting, who asked for variances into protected slopes and woodlands in order to build the facility and parking lot.
The property is a 20-acre site, located within the Westwood area of Kalamazoo adjacent to US-131.
Discover Kalamazoo says the sports complex is expected significantly boost the local economy, potentially generating nearly $49 million annually as well as bring more than 600 full- and part-time jobs.
Local use would be prioritized, increasing participation for underserved youth.
A student athlete from Oshtemo Township spoke of her support for the project during public comment.
“I think it would be cool to play basketball and volleyball at a place like this because there aren’t many places in our area,” she said. “It will help bring new people to our area which will help my mom’s business.”
Some residents spoke in opposition to the project, citing traffic concerns and not wanting a large structure near their homes.
The commission voted to request more information on one variance request that would clear a significant amount of trees before moving forward.
Mudsock Youth Athletics has named Tim McCoy as its 2025 Volunteer of the Year, honoring his more than 10 years of service to the Knights football program and his dedication to the organization’s mission to foster character, leadership and community through youth sports.
“Tim’s work with the Knights goes far beyond the field,” Executive Director of Mudsock Youth Athletics Scott Spillman stated. “He has built a program where young athletes not only develop their skills but also learn the importance of responsibility, teamwork and service. His leadership elevates the entire Mudsock community.”
McCoy joined the Knights as an assistant coach in 2015 and became head coach in 2021, according to a news release. Through that volunteer work, he has mentored athletes, supported fellow coaches and strengthened the program’s culture.
“Tim’s dedication sets the tone for the program,” Spillman stated. “The environment he creates encourages young people to strive for their best and fosters connections that last well beyond the season.”
McCoy was honored during the Mudsock Youth Athletics’ annual volunteer appreciation event, which celebrates individuals whose time and commitment make youth sports possible.
“Congratulations to Tim McCoy on this well-earned honor,” the news release stated. “His leadership and service continue to leave a lasting impact on young athletes and the broader Mudsock Youth Athletics community.”
For more about Mudsock Youth Athletics, visit myathletics.com.
