Exchange students speak language of basketball in GSL

Basketball fans in Washington got an early taste of the coming international basketball revolution more than two decades ago when German exchange student Detlef Schrempf helped Centralia to the 1981 State AA high school championship.

Things changed for standout players such as Schrempf, who went on to a University of Washington Hall of Fame and successful NBA career. The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association prohibited them from playing varsity sports, fearing a flaunting of the intent of the exchange program and high school athletes.

That rule changed again about a decade ago following a lawsuit, said Jim Meyerhoff, a WIAA assistant executive director.

This season two exchange students – Thomas Aabo from Denmark and Joakim Jorgensen from Norway – are playing for Greater Spokane League teams. While neither player is a Schrempf, both are contributing.

Aabo is a 6-foot-4 forward who comes off the bench for Rogers and is averaging a little more than a basket per game. The 6-5 Jorgensen sees time as part of Mead’s multiplayer rotation.

Both are products of European club programs in which practice is but a few hours a week and games are played in front of a handful of parents. The school atmosphere and level of GSL play have been a revelation to them.

“It’s a lot more fun when you have the school supporting you,” said Aabo. “Everyone knows you and you can feel it in the hallways.”

Jorgensen said he was shocked by the size of the crowd he saw at his first game, using English euphemisms to colorfully explain how he relayed the information back home to his dad. He added the level of play in the GSL is better than with his club back in Oslo.

“I’m one of the bigger guys and it was easier to take a rebound and everything,” he said. “I’m on a team with big guys here and these big guys can shoot, too.”

Aabo, from Glostrup, said he plays on Denmark’s National U16 team and in a league with adults. It has taken time, he said, to familiarize himself with Rogers’ system.

“It’s not that good of basketball in Denmark,” he said. “We’ve never been to the Olympics.”

Coach Brian Kissinger said he learned about the potential European basketball arrival from a Pirates football player who was a friend of the host family. He said he was skeptical at first, until watching Aabo play.

“He definitely has the ability to help us and has made a difference,” Kissinger said.

Jorgensen is still feeling his way with Mead.

“I don’t think it’s much different from any other player,” said Mead coach Glenn Williams. “It’s tough to come into a program where kids are playing 75 games together, the system is installed and nuances known. The learning curve is so sharp.”

Williams said that JJ, or the “Norwegian Nightmare” as he is called at Mead, is the first exchange student to play on one of his varsity teams.

He said Jorgensen is springy and light on his feet, and typical of a European, is comfortable facing the basket to shoot. He’ll contribute more as he gains confidence, said Williams.

Jorgensen, like Aabo, has played since he was young. He said that soccer was too slow for him and since he was always one of the taller players, basketball became a good fit.

“I don’t know what it is, but I feel like I’m doing worse than I usually do,” Jorgensen said. “Back home I just relaxed and played.”

Both exchange students speak English fluently and have similar stories to tell about their decision to become exchange students. They have traveled extensively and previously visited both coasts of the United States.

Jorgensen said he enjoys being around people and sought the diversity of a larger environment.

“I wanted to go to a new place,” he said. “I’d been to America and liked it.”

He’s living with his second host family, Jeff and Debbi Milligan, after befriending their oldest daughter, Shannon, at Mead to whom he expressed the desire to live closer to the school.

“It’s been an excellent experience,” Debbi Milligan said. “He’s very Americanized, very easy to please and has a great sense of humor.”

Aabo’s host parent, Marlene Maginnis, said she was excited to become an exchange parent after being approached by Spokane Public Schools.

“He’s a really good kid, loves basketball and wants to stay,” she said. “It’s been a privilege to have him come to my house.”

Kissinger also used the word “Americanized” when talking about Aabo. You realize, she said, after being around his exchange player how small a world it really is.

“He watched the Super Bowl and follows March Madness,” Kissinger said. “He knows American music and culture.”

Exchange students are eligible to play high school varsity sports for a year. The difference from before, Meyerhoff said, is that those who do are placed at a school by chance.

“That’s how it should be,” he said.

Thus it is that Aabo and Jorgensen play basketball in the GSL. But they’re also enjoying their stay. As Debbi Milligan said, coming here is as much about having a positive academic and social experience.