Derrick Zimmerman
Derrick Dewayne Zimmerman ( born December 2, 1981 in Monroe, Louisiana ) is an American professional basketball player. Zimmerman not made the jump from the NBA Development League in the most highly doped professional league NBA, so he continued his career in Europe as of 2006. After stops in Germany, Italy and Bosnia and Herzegovina, he played from 2008 almost five years in the Basketball Super League Ukraine for different clubs. After a brief return in hand, the highest German league basketball league, where he stood in 2013 for the MHP giants from Ludwigsburg under contract, he plays since 2014 in the Polish Tauron Basket Liga in Energa Czarni.
Career
From the Wossman High School in his native moved Zimmerman 1999 to study at the Mississippi State University in the neighboring U.S. state, where he played for the college team Bulldogs in the Southeastern Conference of the NCAA Division I. 2002 won Zimmerman along with, among others, Winsome Frazier in the team the Bulldogs the championship tournament of this Conference and entered the national finals of the NCAA, in which one does it in the second round, losing to the Longhorns University of Texas at Austin. In another finals appearance the following year would retire in Zimmerman's final 2003 against another worse rated team, the namesakes of Butler University, in the first round. Nevertheless, Zimmerman, who counts assists and steals each of the two best players in the history of the Bulldogs has been selected in the NBA Draft 2003, 40 out of the Golden State Warriors.
Before the season starts in 2003 in the NBA Golden State Warriors Zimmerman dismissed from his contractual obligations and these then played for the River Dragons from Columbus ( Georgia) in the NBA Development League (D - League). After he had not again made in the summer of 2004 on the NBA Summer League and various training camp to jump in a season squad, he reached the River Dragons the final of the D -League in 2005. Together with Ramel Curry, who should also be active in Ukraine later, the River Dragons, however, the final in front of a home crowd lost significantly against the Asheville Altitude. Then subjected to the River Dragons as Toros to Austin (Texas ) to. Although the Toros with Marcus Fizer the Most Valuable Player presented the D -League in 2006, they could not move again in the final. Zimmerman himself was the end of March 2006 for the second consecutive year as a " Defensive Player of the Year" ( German Defender of the Year ) Award of the D -League and was allowed in April 2006 to complete two assignments for the New Jersey Nets, whose interest in the summer of 2005 he had drawn up.
After it was nothing to do with a long-term commitment in the NBA, Zimmerman moved to Europe in 2006 and played as Nachverpflichtung from early November for the Brose Baskets in Bamberg in the German top flight basketball league. Here, however, he could not meet all the expectations, so that the contract was prematurely terminated in December 2006, after only six weeks. The rest of the match played Zimmerman in the Italian Lega Basket Serie A in Avellino, together with his former teammate Ramel Curry. There was enough, however, only to the first non - relegation zone, which you could just as secure because of the better direct comparison against Bipop Carire RE itself. The 2007/ 08 played Zimmerman in Bosnia and Herzegovina for the Master of Široki Brijeg. After winning the national cup titles, but it was not enough to defend their title in the championship.
2008 Zimmerman moved to the Ukraine and initially played the following two seasons at the traditional BK Budiwelnik from Kiev. According to the vice Cup 2010 Zimmerman moved to BK Howerla from Ivano -Frankivsk, with whom he reached the third place in the championship in 2011, while his former club Budiwelnik in 14 years won the championship for the first time. In the season 2011/12 Zimmerman played for local rivals Budiwelniks BK Kiev, before turning to the BK Dnipro - Azot from Dniprodserschynsk joined for the season 2012/13. As the BK Kiev before but this club played at the end of the table and the end of February 2013 they separated, whereupon Zimmerman immediately by relegation-threatened German first division Neckar Giant (now MHP giants) was from Ludwigsburg for the remainder of the season 2012/13 obligation. With the association of sporting relegation was narrowly missed by the Ludwigsburg then secured the acquisition of a wild card. Zimmerman was not until the beginning of 2014 a new contract with Energa Czarni from Slupsk in the Polska Liga Koszykówki.