By Cesare Milanti / info@eurohoops.net
Over the course of his long tenure in the G-League, Brandon Randolph stopped by the Austin Spurs as well. Featured in one interview with the team’s official YouTube channel, he took pride in being passionate about food – not only eating it, but standing tall behind the stove.
Recently, he traveled to Paris during the FIBA break in February, and there was one dish that particularly surprised him: escargot. He fell in love so much that he tried them several times.
“At first glance, you don’t really know what you’re getting yourself into. But once you try it, you’re shocked by how amazing that is. That’s probably how I would describe myself: I think I’m a surprise on the court. I’m better than what you expected,” he told Eurohoops.
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His words don’t come out randomly, as he also stands by the facts shown on the court in his first-ever professional experience overseas, hugely helping RASTA Vechta.
Rather than a rookie at his first official season in Europe, the 27-year-old forward has been stepping up to deliver high-level performances. With the German Bundesliga coming to the clutch period of the season, he’s solidly among the candidates for MVP of the Season.
Usually, it takes time to adjust to Europe, as differences are pretty evident from the States. “The biggest adjustments have been the physicality, the pace of the game, the size of the court, and the rules. It’s a big difference,” Brandon Randolph mentioned to Eurohoops. But he has good guidance by his side.
Martin Schiller’s contribution and Germany’s level
Taking a look at the course of his career, from graduation from college with the Arizona Wildcats in 2019 to actually getting his first professional appearances, there’s a pretty big gap.
Getting undrafted in the NBA Draft, but called up by the College Park Skyhawks, it looked like a climbing route towards opportunities in the NBA, with the Miami Heat, could eventually emerge. But then he got released, and when the call from the Wisconsin Herd arrived, COVID-19 hit.
The Milwaukee Bucks‘ development team didn’t go into the G-League bubble, and eventually, Brandon Randolph tore his ACL, too. That was a long way from getting back to his usual habits.
“Martin Schiller has been constantly helping me, he’s a really good teacher. I started off a little rough, but his wanting to teach me has really helped. I wanna be better every single game and constantly work on my game. That has helped me with my success so far,” he recognized.
At the end of the day, it isn’t common to be coached in your first-ever year overseas by somebody who has previous experience not only in Europe, but in the States too. Martin Schiller recently led Zalgiris Kaunas and Zaragoza, but also had a three-year stint (2017-20) with the Salt Lake City Stars.
“Our relationship is great. Having the experience of coaching both in the States and all over Europe, he has helped me and my teammates out a lot. He really understands who I am as a player, before I even came onto the team,” Randolph added about Martin Schiller.
“He knows how the G-League and players from the States are. He doesn’t give up on us. We’ve had a lot of ups and downs, but he’s constantly instilling in us that there’s always a new opportunity to learn. That has helped me grow on and off the court.”
RASTA Vechta indeed had to go through ups and downs, not only domestically, where they are standing in 11th place at a 14-14 record, just behind ALBA Berlin and the postseason.
They were eliminated in the Basketball Champions League Regular Season with a 1-5 record, but Brandon Randolph didn’t disappoint by averaging 15.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. He shone shooting 46.3% from two, 41.4% from beyond the arc, and 94.7% at the charity stripe.
Getting to know that in Europe, it’s about a “whole different mindset”, playing more to compete rather than eyeing the main goal of your trajectory towards the NBA, he’s cherishing the BBL opportunity.
“Germany was the main country I was looking at when coming overseas. I felt like I had a long stint in the G-League, and it was time to branch out. Teams didn’t really know what the feeling was about me: recruiting a G-League player into Europe isn’t easy, because a lot of times it’s hard to adjust,” he said.
“This is a really good league. Honestly, having teams like Bayern Munich and ALBA Berlin help, and the league is packed with good players, good teams, and organizations. It’s a great country to start off your career. It has shown me the difference between Europe and the States.”
“It’s been a great adjustment league for me. Right now, everything is super tight in the standings. Anybody can be in the Playoffs, Play-Ins, or out of the postseason within one win or one loss,” he said.
Moreover, alongside a tight competition composed of a limited group of players, he’s contending for the MVP of the Season in the Bundesliga. Something rare, if you think about it.
“The first year is always a test run. You’re trying to feel out the game and the environment. I don’t think I had too many opportunities overseas, but understanding who my coach was, trying to kind of feel out the coaching staff and who’s going to be on the team, being on RASTA was the best opportunity for me.”
“It wasn’t my only opportunity, but I felt like it was the best one. I chose correctly, and I love it here,” Randolph added. He loves it in Germany, where he has met again a long-time basketball friend.
From Carsen to Carsen, just in another world
Scrolling down on Brandon Randolph’s social media, there’s always support and love sent by another American sensation of this season’s German Bundesliga, and not only: Carsen Edwards. The reason behind such closeness lies in their childhood and adolescence, back in the USA.
“Growing up, since I basically started travelling around the US to play basketball, around 10-11-12 years old, I’ve been playing against Carsen [Edwards],” RASTA Vechta’s leader commented.
“I’ve always seen him in every single competitive tournament. Knowing and competing against each other is always fun because we’ve always been two of the best players on our teams. After the game, we just constantly show each other love. On the court, we’re rivals, but off the court, I think we’re brothers.”
“We love competing against each other. I’ve seen him at every level: before college, in college, everywhere. It’s nice to see that we can continue to streak of competing against each other in Germany.”
Getting to know they would have gone up against each other on the other side of the world was “pretty crazy,” and it brought back memories from the past for Brandon Randolph, also thanks to pictures sent by his mom capturing the two hooping all around the States when they were younger.
“Realizing he was in Munich, and I in Vechta, knowing that we’ll play against each other brought back the same type of love that we have for each other. It’s been a great experience playing against him again.”
While Carsen Edwards didn’t find the best of opportunities to begin his overseas career with Fenerbahce, Brandon Randolph has been RASTA Vechta’s leader since day one. Considering how well Bayern Munich’s guard has been improving, the route is drawn for the 27-year-old forward, too.
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“My goals are to be at the highest level possible. It doesn’t matter whether it’s in the States or whether it’s in Europe. I want to be at the highest level possible and prove to people that I can be at the highest level. I think I definitely deserve to have a shot at the EuroLeague and prove myself there,” he shouted.
“[I wanna] prove myself everywhere. There would be an adjustment period to every level I go to, but I deserve to be at that next step. Once I get there, I’ll make sure everybody knows I belong there.”
Providing athleticism and verticality at the rim, Brandon Randolph says that he takes pride not only in offense but in defense too, as he doesn’t “want anybody to score” on him. “I want to be the best defender and the best offensive player on the court, no matter what,” he commented.
“I’m always trying to stop the person in front of me. Where I can improve my game is staying solid, both emotionally and physically. Sometimes I can gamble a lot, and that can get me in trouble. Keeping my defender in front of me and not gambling can really help my game to go to the next level, constantly being in tune throughout the whole game going forward,” RASTA’s forward said.
Most importantly, rather than improvements on the court, it looks like he’s conscious about his mental strength. “I feel like I’ve been under the radar of my whole life,” he underlines.
“Every step I’ve taken, I’ve always proved people wrong. People kind of always doubted me, and I’ve taken that as motivation to continue to level up, to make the next steps in my game, to motivate me. I do different things to motivate myself, but seeing people overlook me has been a trend my whole life.”
“But now I’m starting to beat those trends and put myself on the map, put myself out there. Just being recognized motivates me and makes me have more fun,” Randolph emphasizes.
“I’m always going to have a different type of motivation every single game. I’m always going to bring the mentality of thinking that I’m the best player on the court, no matter what anybody says. It makes the game more fun for me that I’ve been under the radar.”
With RASTA competing for a spot in the German postseason, getting back to play against a long-time friend like Carsen Edwards, and already showing his capabilities in European basketball, his first campaign away from the G-League and the States has been looking almost like a fairytale to him.
Eyeing the EuroLeague as his potential next step and keeping the same underdog mentality, Brandon Randolph could really make a name for himself in Europe. He knows the ingredients for such a recipe.
PHOTO CREDIT: Basketball Champions League