Riesen Ludwigsburg

BG Ludwigsburg, for sponsorship reasons MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg (English: Giants Ludwigsburg^[1]), is a professional basketball club that is based in Ludwigsburg, Germany. The club currently plays in the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), the first tier of basketball in Germany.

Huddle at a 2021–22 Champions League game.

MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg
Leagues	Basketball Bundesliga
Founded	1960; 65 years ago (1960)
History	DJK Ludwigsburg 1960–1970 SpVgg 07 Ludwigsburg 1970–1987 BSG Basket Ludwigsburg 1987–2012 Riesen Ludwigsburg 2012–present
Arena	MHP Arena
Capacity	5,325
Location	Ludwigsburg, Germany
Team colors	Yellow, Dark Grey
Main sponsor	Mieschke Hofmann und Partner
President	Alexander Reil
Head coach	vacant
Retired numbers	1 (4)
Website	mhp-riesen-ludwigsburg.de
Home Away Third

Founded in 1960 as DJK Ludwigsburg, the club has been a regular in the BBL since the 1986–87 season, when the team promoted from the second division 2. Basketball Bundesliga. Between the period 1970–2012, the team was also known as SpVgg 07 Ludwigsburg and BSG Basket, before changing its name at the end of the sponsorship agreement with EnBW.

History

The team was founded in 1960 as the basketball section of the multi-sports club DJK Ludwigsburg. In the 1979–80 season, the team promoted for the first time to the highest tier, the Basketball Bundesliga. From 1970 until 1987, the club was known as SpVgg 07, as it was part of the multi-sports club SpVgg Ludwigsburg. In 1987, the team separated from SpVgg and was renamed BSG Basket Ludwigsburg.

In 2008, Ludwigsburg reached the German Cup Final for the first time, but lost to Artland Dragons, 60–74.

In the 2016–17 season, Ludwigsburg participated in the inaugural Basketball Champions League (BCL) season, where they were eliminated by one point on aggregate in the quarter-finals by Banvit. The campaign marked Ludwigsburg's best European performance in history, as it was the first time the team reached the knock-out phase of a European competition. In the 2017–18 season, Ludwigsburg set a new European club record when it advanced to the Final Four of the Champions League, after defeating Oldenburg and Bayreuth in the 16th round and quarter-finals.^[2] This was the first time ever the club qualified for the final stage of a European tournament. Ludwigsburg lost in the semi-final to Monaco, 65–87. In the third-place game, the team lost 74–85 to UCAM Murcia, finishing fourth.

On 19 July 2019, David McCray announced his retirement and his number 4 was retired by Riesen, the first retired number in club history.^[3]

The 2019–20 season was altered due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In a final tournament behind closed doors in Munich, Ludwigsburg reached its first German finals ever. In the finals, it lost to Alba Berlin on aggregate in two games.

Arenas

The MHP Arena is the home arena of the club since 2009

Ludwigsburg's home arena, since 2009, is Arena Ludwigsburg, later renamed the MHP Arena, after they moved from Rundsporthalle Ludwigsburg.

Naming

Partly due to sponsorship reasons, the team has known various names in its history:^[4]

• DJK Ludwigsburg (1960–1970)
• SpVgg 07 Ludwigsburg (1970–1987)
• BG Ludwigsburg (1987)
• BSG Basket Ludwigsburg (1987–2012)
• EnBW Ludwigsburg (2012)
• Neckar Riesen Ludwigsburg (2012–2014)
• MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg (2014–present)

Logos

• 
  Logo of Neckar Riesen Ludwigsburg (2012–2014)

Honours

Domestic competitions

• Basketball Bundesliga
  • Runners-up: 2019–20
• BBL-Pokal
  • Runners-up: 1992, 2008
• 2. Basketball Bundesliga
  • Champions: 1979-80, 1985-86, 2001-02

European competitions

• Basketball Champions League
  • Third place: 2021–22
  • Fourth place: 2017–18
  • Final Four: 2018, 2022

Season by season

Season	Tier	League	Pos.	German Cup	European competitions
1985–86	2	2. BBL	1st
1986–87	1	Bundesliga	10th
1987–88	1	Bundesliga	8th
1988–89	1	Bundesliga	6th
1989–90	1	Bundesliga	7th		3 Korać Cup	R1
1990–91	1	Bundesliga	7th		3 Korać Cup	R2
1991–92	1	Bundesliga	1st		3 Korać Cup	R3
1992–93	1	Bundesliga	3rd		3 Korać Cup	R32
1993–94	1	Bundesliga	5th		3 Korać Cup	R1
1994–95	1	Bundesliga	5th
1995–96	1	Bundesliga	12th
1996–97	1	Bundesliga	14th
1997–98	2	2. BBL	5th
1998–99	2	2. BBL	2nd
1999–00	3	Regionalliga	1st
2000–01	2	2. BBL	5th
2001–02	2	2. BBL	1st
2002–03	1	Bundesliga	12th
2003–04	1	Bundesliga	13th
2004–05	1	Bundesliga	8th	Third position
2005–06	1	Bundesliga	6th
2006–07	1	Bundesliga	2nd	Third position
2007–08	1	Bundesliga	13th	Runner-up	2 ULEB Cup	RS
2008–09	1	Bundesliga	11th
2009–10	1	Bundesliga	11th
2010–11	1	Bundesliga	9th
2011–12	1	Bundesliga	16th
2012–13	1	Bundesliga	17th
2013–14	1	Bundesliga	8th
2014–15	1	Bundesliga	8th
2015–16	1	Bundesliga	6th		2 Eurocup	R32
2016–17	1	Bundesliga	8th	Semi-finalist	3 Champions League	QF
2017–18	1	Bundesliga	3rd	Qualifying round	3 Champions League	4th
2018–19	1	Bundesliga	10th	Round of 16	3 Champions League	RS
2019–20	1	Bundesliga	2nd	Round of 16
2020–21	1	Bundesliga	3rd	Group stage
2021–22	1	Bundesliga	4th	Round of 16	3 Champions League	3rd
2022–23	1	Bundesliga	4th	Semi-finalist	3 Champions League	PI
2023–24	1	Bundesliga	8th	Round of 16	3 Champions League	QF
2024–25	1	Bundesliga		Round of 16	4 FIBA Europe Cup	QF

Players

Current roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name Ht. Wt. Age F 1 Scott, Joel 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 102 kg (225 lb) 24 – (2001-04-19)19 April 2001 SG 2 Patrick, Jacob 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) 88 kg (194 lb) 21 – (2003-11-21)21 November 2003 G 3 Ogungbemi-Jackson, Jarred 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) 80 kg (176 lb) 33 – (1991-08-11)11 August 1991 F 5 Simon, Justin 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) 98 kg (216 lb) 29 – (1996-05-06)6 May 1996 PG 6 Patrick, Johannes 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) 74 kg (163 lb) 23 – (2001-12-30)30 December 2001 G/F 8 Maldonado, Hunter 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 92 kg (203 lb) 26 – (1999-03-24)24 March 1999 G 12 Anigbata, Lenny 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 80 kg (176 lb) 20 – (2004-06-10)10 June 2004 F 13 Polas Bartolo, Yorman 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 88 kg (194 lb) 39 – (1985-08-08)8 August 1985 G 15 Mañjon, Ezra 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 77 kg (170 lb) 24 – (2000-12-03)3 December 2000 C 18 Wohlfarth-Bottermann, Jonas 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 105 kg (231 lb) 35 – (1990-02-20)20 February 1990 SF 21 Pleta, Dominykas 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) 92 kg (203 lb) 20 – (2004-10-06)6 October 2004 F 24 Tischler, Brandon 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 94 kg (207 lb) 24 – (2000-08-18)18 August 2000 G 37 Baumer, Julis 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 86 kg (190 lb) 18 – (2007-01-04)4 January 2007 G 55 Pemberton, Elijah 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) 88 kg (194 lb) 27 – (1997-05-31)31 May 1997	Head coach John Patrick Assistant coach(es) Lars Masell Kenji Sato Legend (C) Team captain Injured Roster Updated: March 13, 2025

Retired numbers

Riesen Ludwigsburg retired numbers
No.	Nat.	Player	Position	Tenure	Ref.
4		David McCray	PG	2007–2012, 2015–2019	[3]

Other notable players

- Set a club record or won an individual award as a professional player.
- Played at least one official international match for his senior national team at any time.

• Goran Kalamiza
• Ingo Freyer
• Karim Jallow
• Konstantin Konga
• Jens Kujawa
• Khadeen Carrington
• Siim-Sander Vene
• Shawn Huff
• Takumi Ishizaki
• Andrius Giedraitis
• Donatas Zavackas
• Povilas Čukinas
• Donatas Sabeckis
• Sam Waardenburg
• Matthew Bryan-Amaning
• Rawle Alkins
• Jon Brockman
• Will Cherry
• Elijah Childs
• Mike King
• Walter Palmer
• Jerry Green
• Coby Karl
• D. J. Kennedy
• Marcos Knight
• Mark Montgomery
• Royce O'Neale
• Mustafa Shakur
• Jaleen Smith
• Michael Stockton
• Isaiah Whitehead