Completed Event: Men's Basketball at UNLV on February 7, 2026 , Loss , 78, to, 80
M Basketball
at UNLV
L 78-80
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Russell, Drechsel team up in Germany
6/25/2022 10:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro, Lopes Insider Blog
Former Lopes guards continue pro careers as Oldenburg teammates
In a draft for Grand Canyon basketball dream teams, a Lopes fan could make an ideal backcourt pairing of point guard DeWayne Russell and off-guard Trey Drechsel.
But a top franchise in one of the best European professional leagues beat everyone to it.
Russell, entering his sixth pro year, and Drechsel, entering his third pro year, will pair up this year in Germany after the former GCU guards signed on consecutive days last week with EWE Baskets Oldenburg of Basketball Bundesliga.
Seeing how Russell vaulted from GCU stardom to a thriving European pro career was a major reason Drechsel chose GCU when he transferred from Division II Western Washington. Soon, they will both be leaving their offseasons in Phoenix to see how Russell's dynamic game at 5 feet 11 blends with Drechsel's versatility at 6 feet 6.
"It will feel good to have a familiar face going through the routine with me for the first time," said Russell, a 2014-17 Lope who uses GCU Basketball Practice Facility as his training base in the offseasons. "I'm excited to be on the same team with him."
Russell is thriving in Europe, where his career started with a 2017 tryout for a second-division French league team in Nancy. Russell's performance there took him previously to Germany, where he helped turn around the Crailsheim franchise over
two seasons.
That attracted Treviso, a first-division club in the Italian league (Lega Basket Serie A). He spent the past two seasons there, averaging 11.3 points and 1.5 steals with 37% 3-point shooting and 4.4 assists to only 1.7 turnovers per game.
"One thing I try to pride myself on is wherever place I go is in a better position when I leave," Russell, 28 said. "This (signing with Oldenburg) shows how much I've grown. When I went to Germany before, I was on a team not as big as this team. It's an opportunity for me to go somewhere that is a winning culture already and I get to help the legacy.
"The way the coach's system is, I fit right in. They want to play fast, pressure the ball, get up and down the floor."
This is Russell's first family move. He will be joined by his wife, who was known at GCU as soccer player and track and field athlete Alexis Roberts and their first child, 1-year-old daughter Indie Rae.
"DeWayne is a seasoned player who has not only asserted himself in our league but also in Italy and in the BCL (Europe's Basketball Champions League)," Oldenburg head coach Pedro Calles said in a club release. "I like his character: DeWayne is hungry for wins and ambitious. With the way he plays, he suits us very well because we want to act with speed and aggressiveness."
Much like Russell, Drechsel's career has been on an uptick since leaving GCU in 2019. He began with two seasons in the Serbian league, where he dominated his last season with averages of 22.6 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 2020-21.
That landed Drechsel a contract with Partizan Belgrade, which loaned him to Polish club Stal Ostrow Wielkopolski last season. Drechsel, 25, led the team to the Polish Cup championship with 11 points and five rebounds per game.
Oldenburg bought out Drechsel's contract to acquire him.
"I think it's perfect for me," Drechsel said. "I kind of went through it my first couple of years to get this point, so now it's going to feel even better. For me, especially after the kind of experience I had last year, my main criteria was to go to a league where I know I can contribute at a high level and to a club that gives me a lot of responsibility."
Drechsel said the fit extends to how he and Russell could play together.
"It's going to be an exciting combo," Drechsel said. "The best part about us is we both play hard and that's going to be a lot to handle. Two guys who are that relentless is going to be a lot to deal with."
Drechsel also met his life partner as a Lope. His fiancée, Carlie Riedel, was on the GCU dance team and they will be married on July 21, 2023.
Oldenburg targeted Drechsel when he signed with Partizan Belgrade and 2019 and called him Calles' "dream player."
"Trey has been on my radar for years," Calles said in a club release. "He has made a good way from college to the Basketball Champions League so far and has continued to develop. On offense, he is strong both with and without the ball. His versatility also pays off on defense, where he can play in multiple positions."
Until then, Drechsel will continue rehabilitation on minor knee surgery in Phoenix while Russell gets in his work with other former Lope players, like fellow European pro Casey Benson.
"GCU is always going to be home to me," Russell said. "It's a place where I feel comfortable. I know a lot of people here. The new coaching staff has welcomed me with open arms to make it even easier. I'm always going to be around and cheering for all the sporting teams.
"The coolest part for me is that I saw it coming. When everything was getting built, I saw the process of this coming true. To see where it is today is surreal for me. Let's go, GCU."
But a top franchise in one of the best European professional leagues beat everyone to it.Russell, entering his sixth pro year, and Drechsel, entering his third pro year, will pair up this year in Germany after the former GCU guards signed on consecutive days last week with EWE Baskets Oldenburg of Basketball Bundesliga.
Seeing how Russell vaulted from GCU stardom to a thriving European pro career was a major reason Drechsel chose GCU when he transferred from Division II Western Washington. Soon, they will both be leaving their offseasons in Phoenix to see how Russell's dynamic game at 5 feet 11 blends with Drechsel's versatility at 6 feet 6.
"It will feel good to have a familiar face going through the routine with me for the first time," said Russell, a 2014-17 Lope who uses GCU Basketball Practice Facility as his training base in the offseasons. "I'm excited to be on the same team with him."
Russell is thriving in Europe, where his career started with a 2017 tryout for a second-division French league team in Nancy. Russell's performance there took him previously to Germany, where he helped turn around the Crailsheim franchise over
two seasons.That attracted Treviso, a first-division club in the Italian league (Lega Basket Serie A). He spent the past two seasons there, averaging 11.3 points and 1.5 steals with 37% 3-point shooting and 4.4 assists to only 1.7 turnovers per game.
"One thing I try to pride myself on is wherever place I go is in a better position when I leave," Russell, 28 said. "This (signing with Oldenburg) shows how much I've grown. When I went to Germany before, I was on a team not as big as this team. It's an opportunity for me to go somewhere that is a winning culture already and I get to help the legacy.
"The way the coach's system is, I fit right in. They want to play fast, pressure the ball, get up and down the floor."
This is Russell's first family move. He will be joined by his wife, who was known at GCU as soccer player and track and field athlete Alexis Roberts and their first child, 1-year-old daughter Indie Rae.
"DeWayne is a seasoned player who has not only asserted himself in our league but also in Italy and in the BCL (Europe's Basketball Champions League)," Oldenburg head coach Pedro Calles said in a club release. "I like his character: DeWayne is hungry for wins and ambitious. With the way he plays, he suits us very well because we want to act with speed and aggressiveness."
Much like Russell, Drechsel's career has been on an uptick since leaving GCU in 2019. He began with two seasons in the Serbian league, where he dominated his last season with averages of 22.6 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 2020-21.That landed Drechsel a contract with Partizan Belgrade, which loaned him to Polish club Stal Ostrow Wielkopolski last season. Drechsel, 25, led the team to the Polish Cup championship with 11 points and five rebounds per game.
Oldenburg bought out Drechsel's contract to acquire him.
"I think it's perfect for me," Drechsel said. "I kind of went through it my first couple of years to get this point, so now it's going to feel even better. For me, especially after the kind of experience I had last year, my main criteria was to go to a league where I know I can contribute at a high level and to a club that gives me a lot of responsibility."
Drechsel said the fit extends to how he and Russell could play together.
"It's going to be an exciting combo," Drechsel said. "The best part about us is we both play hard and that's going to be a lot to handle. Two guys who are that relentless is going to be a lot to deal with."
Drechsel also met his life partner as a Lope. His fiancée, Carlie Riedel, was on the GCU dance team and they will be married on July 21, 2023.
Oldenburg targeted Drechsel when he signed with Partizan Belgrade and 2019 and called him Calles' "dream player."
"Trey has been on my radar for years," Calles said in a club release. "He has made a good way from college to the Basketball Champions League so far and has continued to develop. On offense, he is strong both with and without the ball. His versatility also pays off on defense, where he can play in multiple positions."
Until then, Drechsel will continue rehabilitation on minor knee surgery in Phoenix while Russell gets in his work with other former Lope players, like fellow European pro Casey Benson.
"GCU is always going to be home to me," Russell said. "It's a place where I feel comfortable. I know a lot of people here. The new coaching staff has welcomed me with open arms to make it even easier. I'm always going to be around and cheering for all the sporting teams.
"The coolest part for me is that I saw it coming. When everything was getting built, I saw the process of this coming true. To see where it is today is surreal for me. Let's go, GCU."
+++ 𝗣𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁 𝗚𝘂𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗸𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘁 𝘃𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲-𝗔-𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗯 𝗧𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗼 +++ 𝗜𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝗿 @easyCreditBBL 𝘃𝗼𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟭𝟴 𝗯𝗶𝘀 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟬 𝗳ü𝗿 𝗖𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗺 𝗮𝗸𝘁𝗶𝘃 +++
— EWE Baskets Oldenburg (@EWE_Baskets) June 17, 2022
🖱 News mit Stats & Stimmen von @weezyRussell00, Calles, Klaric:https://t.co/jkWwFXgPR1
📡 +++ 𝚅𝚒𝚎𝚕𝚜𝚎𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚐𝚎𝚛 𝙽𝚎𝚞𝚣𝚞𝚐𝚊𝚗𝚐 𝚔𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚝 𝚟𝚘𝚗 𝙿𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚣𝚊𝚗 𝙱𝚎𝚕𝚐𝚛𝚊𝚍 +++
— EWE Baskets Oldenburg (@EWE_Baskets) June 13, 2022
📰 Die News zu @trey_drechsel5 samt Stimmen von Pedro Calles & Srdjan Klaric auf unserer Website:https://t.co/1fhOZvUJpT
Friday, June 05
Wednesday, June 03
Tuesday, June 02
Tuesday, June 02