# 2017–18 Basketball Bundesliga

The 2017–18 Basketball Bundesliga, known as the easyCredit BBL for sponsorship reasons, was the 52nd season of the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), the top-tier level of professional club basketball in Germany. The defending champion was Brose Bamberg. The regular season started on 29 September 2017 and ended 1 May 2018.
Bayern Munich won their fourth title and qualified for the 2018–19 EuroLeague.

## Notable occurrences

* For the first time in BBL history, two windows for FIBA national team play were planned in which the competition stopped. These were in November 2017 and February 2018.
* A number of nine teams participated in European club competitions this season, the highest number ever in German basketball history.

## Teams
### Promotion and relegation
#### Relegated from BBL

Rasta Vechta and Phoenix Hagen were relegated from the BBL after the 2016–17 season, as they finished in the last two places.

#### Promoted from ProA

Mitteldeutscher BC and Rockets got promoted from the 2016–17 ProA.

### Arenas and locations

| Team | City | Arena | Capacity |
| Brose Bamberg | Bamberg | Brose Arena | 6,150 |
| Medi Bayreuth | Bayreuth | Oberfrankenhalle | 4,000 |
| Alba Berlin | Berlin | Mercedes-Benz Arena | 14,500 |
| Telekom Baskets Bonn | Bonn | Telekom Dome | 6,000 |
| Löwen Braunschweig | Braunschweig | Volkswagen Halle | 6,600 |
| Eisbären Bremerhaven | Bremerhaven | Bremerhaven Stadthalle | 4,050 |
| Skyliners Frankfurt | Frankfurt | Fraport Arena | 5,002 |
| Gießen 46ers | Gießen | Sporthalle Gießen-Ost | 4,003 |
| BG Göttingen | Göttingen | Sparkassen Arena | 3,447 |
| Rockets | Erfurt | Messe Erfurt | 3,236 |
| Science City Jena | Jena | Sparkassen-Arena | 3,000 |
| MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | Ludwigsburg | MHP-Arena | 5,300 |
| Mitteldeutscher BC | Weißenfels | Stadthalle Weißenfels | 3,000 |
| Bayern Munich | Munich | Audi Dome | 6,700 |
| EWE Baskets Oldenburg | Oldenburg | Große EWE Arena | 6,069 |
| Tigers Tübingen | Tübingen | Paul Horn-Arena | 3,132 |
| ratiopharm Ulm | Ulm | Arena Ulm/Neu-Ulm | 6,000 |
| s.Oliver Würzburg | Würzburg | s.Oliver Arena | 3,140 |

## Regular season

In the regular season, teams played against each other two times home-and-away in a round-robin format. The first eight teams advanced to the playoffs. The last two placed teams were relegated to the ProA for next season. The regular season started on 29 September 2017 and concluded 1 May 2018.

### Standings

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Bayern Munich | 34 | 31 | 3 | 3011 | 2573 | +438 | 62 | Playoffs |
| 2 | Alba Berlin | 34 | 29 | 5 | 3044 | 2540 | +504 | 58 | Playoffs |
| 3 | MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | 34 | 26 | 8 | 2932 | 2574 | +358 | 52 | Playoffs |
| 4 | Brose Bamberg | 34 | 22 | 12 | 2789 | 2594 | +195 | 44 | Playoffs |
| 5 | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 34 | 21 | 13 | 2815 | 2667 | +148 | 42 | Playoffs |
| 6 | Medi Bayreuth | 34 | 21 | 13 | 2849 | 2756 | +93 | 42 | Playoffs |
| 7 | EWE Baskets Oldenburg | 34 | 21 | 13 | 2922 | 2822 | +100 | 42 | Playoffs |
| 8 | Fraport Skyliners | 34 | 20 | 14 | 2649 | 2614 | +35 | 40 | Playoffs |
| 9 | s.Oliver Würzburg | 34 | 19 | 15 | 2690 | 2578 | +112 | 38 | |
| 10 | ratiopharm Ulm | 34 | 16 | 18 | 2748 | 2775 | −27 | 32 | |
| 11 | Gießen 46ers | 34 | 16 | 18 | 2949 | 3016 | −67 | 32 | |
| 12 | Basketball Löwen Braunschweig | 34 | 14 | 20 | 2527 | 2741 | −214 | 28 | |
| 13 | Science City Jena | 34 | 14 | 20 | 2677 | 2790 | −113 | 28 | |
| 14 | BG Göttingen | 34 | 10 | 24 | 2684 | 2980 | −296 | 20 | |
| 15 | Mitteldeutscher BC | 34 | 10 | 24 | 2748 | 2957 | −209 | 20 | |
| 16 | Eisbären Bremerhaven | 34 | 8 | 26 | 2647 | 2857 | −210 | 16 | |
| 17 | Rockets (R) | 34 | 7 | 27 | 2566 | 2914 | −348 | 14 | Relegation to ProA |
| 18 | Tigers Tübingen (R) | 34 | 1 | 33 | 2525 | 3024 | −499 | 2 | Relegation to ProA |
* ↑ Rockets Gotha started the season as "Oettinger Rockets", named after its main sponsor Oettinger Brauerei. However, from January 2018 the main sponsor left and the club would be simply known as "Rockets".
* 1 2 3 Bonn 6 Pts; Bayreuth 4 Pts; Oldenburg 2 Pts
* 1 2 Ulm 174–165 Gießen
* 1 2 Braunschweig 154–151 Jena
* 1 2 Göttingen 185–174 MBC

### Results

| Home \ Away | BAM | BAY | BER | BON | BRA | BRE | FRA | GIE | GOT | JEN | LUD | MBC | MUN | OET | OLD | TUB | ULM | WUR |
| Brose Bamberg | — | 88–73 | 75–77 | 83–65 | 82–55 | 79–74 | 75–67 | 87–84 | 100–61 | 80–71 | 80–73 | 103–66 | 63–71 | 85–80 | 95–82 | 97–63 | 80–77 | 70–67 |
| Medi Bayreuth | 85–75 | — | 83–76 | 97–85 | 84–62 | 84–74 | 69–62 | 96–75 | 86–83 | 75–88 | 70–73 | 82–74 | 77–86 | 93–72 | 98–102 | 85–71 | 88–75 | 86–80 |
| Alba Berlin | 81–75 | 100–68 | — | 90–69 | 88–81 | 64–66 | 106–69 | 88–66 | 98–71 | 100–67 | 96–86 | 91–71 | 70–80 | 95–61 | 91–83 | 99–63 | 102–73 | 80–76 |
| Telekom Baskets Bonn | 106–69 | 85–82 | 76–84 | — | 87–56 | 75–86 | 75–79 | 83–78 | 82–70 | 102–80 | 105–109 | 84–91 | 72–83 | 79–73 | 90–68 | 89–80 | 86–74 | 78–75 |
| Löwen Braunschweig | 68–94 | 75–100 | 62–72 | 73–76 | — | 81–68 | 77–74 | 85–96 | 91–86 | 69–68 | 67–74 | 71–63 | 82–91 | 82–68 | 99–88 | 94–77 | 80–73 | 73–71 |
| Eisbären Bremerhaven | 76–83 | 99–103 | 85–99 | 73–89 | 72–65 | — | 69–81 | 87–74 | 74–77 | 72–80 | 77–98 | 79–82 | 83–85 | 80–74 | 80–90 | 78–73 | 82–89 | 80–72 |
| Fraport Skyliners | 83–72 | 72–68 | 90–84 | 76–81 | 78–71 | 95–69 | — | 70–86 | 88–80 | 67–65 | 81–88 | 83–67 | 83–87 | 90–82 | 93–82 | 90–63 | 75–89 | 78–72 |
| Gießen 46ers | 96–105 | 107–96 | 102–87 | 80–86 | 84–79 | 89–73 | 83–59 | — | 102–111 | 84–60 | 98–118 | 107–99 | 53–87 | 71–96 | 95–99 | 110–98 | 70–84 | 80–86 |
| BG Göttingen | 105–98 | 70–93 | 69–88 | 65–91 | 75–79 | 81–78 | 95–92 | 78–94 | — | 86–60 | 62–88 | 96–90 | 72–78 | 75–88 | 85–93 | 95–75 | 84–94 | 81–74 |
| Science City Jena | 85–68 | 107–90 | 89–99 | 73–69 | 83–85 | 90–68 | 70–82 | 86–65 | 103–92 | — | 64–78 | 61–75 | 78–85 | 85–81 | 74–83 | 74–69 | 92–87 | 79–81 |
| MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | 91–74 | 78–47 | 67–86 | 87–78 | 72–59 | 92–69 | 79–62 | 81–83 | 93–61 | 91–62 | — | 99–77 | 73–90 | 94–54 | 90–86 | 88–79 | 89–54 | 87–77 |
| Mitteldeutscher BC | 74–76 | 80–93 | 80–89 | 61–87 | 84–78 | 98–90 | 93–96 | 97–102 | 84–89 | 94–100 | 81–92 | — | 77–95 | 82–69 | 71–72 | 93–88 | 80–69 | 78–86 |
| Bayern Munich | 77–68 | 96–88 | 72–91 | 78–50 | 111–53 | 98–95 | 72–60 | 107–83 | 91–77 | 101–78 | 91–71 | 111–91 | — | 102–80 | 95–74 | 84–72 | 100–95 | 76–84 |
| Rockets | 64–92 | 65–82 | 68–98 | 70–93 | 87–92 | 98–90 | 56–77 | 81–90 | 74–63 | 97–101 | 72–89 | 70–74 | 59–98 | — | 74–94 | 100–82 | 79–81 | 85–77 |
| EWE Baskets Oldenburg | 81–74 | 88–89 | 81–88 | 82–86 | 86–84 | 85–73 | 74–90 | 98–82 | 97–75 | 79–69 | 79–87 | 86–84 | 100–77 | 88–68 | — | 83–75 | 94–83 | 61–75 |
| Tigers Tübingen | 73–81 | 77–87 | 75–125 | 75–84 | 69–77 | 75–87 | 57–65 | 83–106 | 80–67 | 64–91 | 75–93 | 99–100 | 72–87 | 83–90 | 61–92 | — | 74–81 | 57–73 |
| ratiopharm Ulm | 67–90 | 74–84 | 68–72 | 87–94 | 88–77 | 85–77 | 77–78 | 90–95 | 89–65 | 87–72 | 84–77 | 93–76 | 75–89 | 78–62 | 70–87 | 95–82 | — | 72–69 |
| s.Oliver Baskets | 76–73 | 82–68 | 76–90 | 80–78 | 72–45 | 74–64 | 81–64 | 96–79 | 95–82 | 85–72 | 94–87 | 71–61 | 74–80 | 79–69 | 84–86 | 84–69 | 74–91 | — |

## Playoffs

All three rounds of the playoffs are played in a best-of-five format, with the higher seeded team playing the first, third and fifth game at home.
| Quarterfinals 5–19 May | Quarterfinals 5–19 May | Quarterfinals 5–19 May | Semifinals 20–31 May | Semifinals 20–31 May | Semifinals 20–31 May | Finals 3–16 June | Finals 3–16 June | Finals 3–16 June |
| 1 | Bayern Munich | 3 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Fraport Skyliners | 2 | | | | | | |
| 8 | Fraport Skyliners | 2 | 1 | Bayern Munich | 3 | | | |
| | | | 4 | Brose Bamberg | 1 | | | |
| 4 | Brose Bamberg | 3 | 4 | Brose Bamberg | 1 | | | |
| 5 | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 0 | | | | | | |
| 5 | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 0 | | | | 1 | Bayern Munich | 3 |
| | | | | | | 2 | Alba Berlin | 2 |
| 2 | Alba Berlin | 3 | | | | | | | 2 | Alba Berlin | 2 |
| 7 | EWE Baskets Oldenburg | 2 | | | | | | |
| 7 | EWE Baskets Oldenburg | 2 | 2 | Alba Berlin | 3 | | | |
| | | | 3 | MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | 0 | | | |
| 3 | MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | 3 | 3 | MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | 0 | | | |
| 6 | Medi Bayreuth | 0 | | | | | | |

## Awards and statistics
### Major award winners

| Award | Player | Club |
| Most Valuable Player | Luke Sikma | Alba Berlin |
| Finals MVP | Danilo Barthel | Bayern Munich |
| Top Scorer | Philip Scrubb | Fraport Skyliners |
| Best Offensive Player | Philip Scrubb | Fraport Skyliners |
| Best Defender | Thomas Walkup | Riesen Ludwigsburg |
| Most Effective Player | John Bryant | Gießen 46ers |
| Most Effective Player | Robin Benzing | s.Oliver Würzburg |
| Best German Young Player | Andreas Obst | Rockets |
| Coach of the Year | Aíto García Reneses | Alba Berlin |

### Statistical leaders

| Category | Player | Club | Average |
| Points | Philip Scrubb | Fraport Skyliners | 18.3 |
| Rebounds | John Bryant | Gießen 46ers | 10.6 |
| Assists | Jared Jordan | Walter Tigers Tübingen | 6.4 |
| Steals | Retin Obasohan | Rockets | 2.0 |
| Blocks | Julian Gamble | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 1.8 |
| Turnovers | Tai Webster | Fraport Skyliners | 3.4 |

## All-Star Game

The 2018 BBL All-Star Game was played in the Lokhalle in Göttingen on 13 January 2018. Team International won the game 145–132 over Team National. Peyton Siva was named Most Valuable Player of the game.
Team National :
| Pos | Player | Team | Selections |
| Starters ||||
| G | Per Günther | ratiopharm Ulm | 7 |
| G | Maodo Lô | Brose Bamberg | 2 |
| F | Robin Benzing | s.Oliver Würzburg | 5 |
| F | Danilo Barthel | Bayern Munich | 5 |
| C | Andreas Seiferth | Medi Bayreuth | 3 |
| Reserves ||||
| G | Dominic Lockhart | Göttingen | 1 |
| G | İsmet Akpınar | ratiopharm Ulm | 1 |
| G | Maurice Stuckey | s.Oliver Würzburg | 3 |
| F | T.J. DiLeo | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 1 |
| F | Andreas Obst | Rockets Gotha | 1 |
| F | Johannes Thiemann | MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | 2 |
| C | Maik Zirbes | Bayern Munich | |
| G | Joshiko Saibou$^{REP}$ | Alba Berlin | 1 |
| F | Yorman Polas Bartolo$^{REP}$ | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 1 |
| Head coach | Dirk Bauermann | s.Oliver Würzburg | 4 |
Team International :
| Pos | Player | Team | Selections |
| Starters ||||
| G | Peyton Siva | Alba Berlin | 1 |
| G | Trey Lewis | ratiopharm Ulm | 2 |
| F | Rickey Paulding | EWE Baskets Oldenburg | 7 |
| F | Assem Marei | Medi Bayreuth | 1 |
| C | Devin Booker | Bayern Munich | 1 |
| Reserves ||||
| G | Thomas Walkup | MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | 1 |
| G | Nate Linhart | Medi Bayreuth | 1 |
| G | Jared Cunningham | Bayern Munich | 1 |
| F | Josh Mayo | Telekom Baskets Bonn | 2 |
| F | Michael Stockton | Göttingen | 1 |
| C | Scott Eatherton | Löwen Braunschweig | 1 |
| C | Luke Sikma | Alba Berlin | 1 |
| Head coach | Raoul Korner | Medi Bayreuth | 2 |
* Injured player.
* REP Player selected as replacement.

## Clubs in European competitions

| Team | Competition | Progress |
| Brose Bamberg | EuroLeague | 12th qualified |
| ratiopharm Ulm | EuroCup | Regular season |
| Bayern Munich | EuroCup | Semifinals |
| Alba Berlin | EuroCup | Top 16 |
| EWE Baskets Oldenburg | Champions League | Round of 16 |
| medi bayreuth | Champions League | Quarterfinals |
| Telekom Baskets Bonn | Champions League | Regular season |
| MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg | Champions League | Fourth place |
| s.Oliver Würzburg | FIBA Europe Cup | First qualifying round |