How a Gamble to Take an Opportunity in Germany Paid Off – With Myles Hesson – Ep. 24

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He’s been requested multiple times, so we were happy to be able to get Great Britain and Gravelines star Myles Hesson on for Episode 24 of the Hoopsfix Podcast.

Jumping on a call from France, where he is in the middle of the season with Pro A and FIBA Europe Cup side BCM Gravelines Dunkerque, Hesson spoke for a little over an hour on his career so far, being one of the few players to have worked his way up European leagues after starting in the British Basketball League.

In this conversation, hear from Myles on:

• What happened with the GB Senior Men this summer and why he couldn’t suit up
• The balance between representing your National Team and putting your own career needs first
• Whether or not he plans to play for GB next summer at Eurobasket 2017
• How asthma was one of the main reasons he switched from football to basketball
• How at 17 years old he didn’t make his college first team
• Why he didn’t end up going to the US for college like most of his peers
• The impact British basketball and Birmingham legend Steve Hansell had on his early career
• His take on basketball in Birmingham and the politics that surrounds it
• How his first appearance with the GB U20s in the summer of ’09 was down to pure chance of the trials being near his home
• Why he first enrolled at University of Wolverhampton to avoid having to get a full time job which would take away from his burgeoning basketball career
• His decision between choosing Leeds or Essex when deciding to move on from Birmingham
• The impact of an injury in his first BBL season with Essex
• How a day before planning to sign a contract offer with Leicester he received a call from Tim Lewis with an opportunity in Germany which he jumped on
• What initially happened in Germany, seeing him suit up in the BBL the same day he landed, before playing Pro B in the following days – without any type of contract
• How his first call up to the GB Senior Men’s team came about in the summer of 2012, and how training with the likes of Luol Deng, Pops Mensah-Bonsu and Joel Freeland motivated him to work harder
• His rise to prominence in the German leagues
• How he would compare the French league with the German league and which suits his game better
• And much, much more!

As always, I’d love to get your feedback, come back after you’ve listened and lets get some discussion going in the comments.

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