Derrick Taylor appointed new Head Coach of BBC Coburg

BBC Coburg, newly promoted to the ProB 2nd German Basketball League, will begin the second half of the season with a new Head Coach. First-division legend Derrick Taylor will replace Simon Bertram, who is in poor health.

The new man on the sideline will set store by his own past on court, as well as his wealth of experience as a coach. Taylor was drafted by Indiana Pacers in the NBA in 1986 and twice reached the final of the German Basketball League. He was also picked twice for the all-star team of Germany’s top flight. In 2004, he took charge of the second-division club TSV Tröster, after which he won the German championship as Assistant Coach with Bamberg, which was then still called Brose Baskets. That was followed by posts as Head Coach at BBC Bayreuth and Nürnberger BC in the ProA and ProB leagues. The 54-year-old, who will be given a contract in Coburg to the end of the season to begin with, last coached Bayreuth’s second team – whose players included the BBC’s point guard Kevin Eichelsdörfer – in the 1st regional division.

Taylor will be supported by Assistant Coach Johannes Wunder, who is already exchanging views and ideas with the German American. “It certainly wasn’t an easy decision for us. Simon Bertram has done an outstanding job since day one and has helped us achieve far more than just promotion to the ProB 2nd German Division. His influence on the program’s entire structure has been at least just as important. He sets standards when it comes to meticulous work,” emphasizes Manuel Fischer, Managing Director of BBC COBURG Spielbetriebs GmbH. Simon Bertram is to stay at the club and work in the youth section in a function that has yet to be defined. Talks on that are to be held next week. The change in Head Coach is intended to imbue fresh impetus into the team so that it is more successful in the second half of the season.