Tuesday, April 21st, 2020
Knapke inks pro contract
By Colin Foster
Photo by Dan Melograna/The Daily Standard
Luke Knapke dribbles during Toledo's game at Bowling Green this February. File photo.
Luke Knapke has accomplished a lot in his basketball career.
The recent one might have topped them all.
On Monday, the former Marion Local and Toledo basketball player struck a one-year deal with professional team Limburg United, which competes in the top Belgium league.
"It was a sense of accomplishment, for sure," Knapke said. "It just felt really good. It's what I've been working for my whole life. … I did it. I'm pretty proud of that."
Knapke becomes the sixth Marion Local alum to sign a professional sports contract, joining a list that includes former high school teammate Ryan Bruns (currently playing basketball in Spain), Cory Luebke (MLB), Nick Bertke (played basketball in Japan), Lori Albers (played hoops in Spain) and Bev Obringer (played hoops in Australia).
After his senior season with Toledo ended prematurely, Knapke hired an agent and began taking the next steps to get his name out there.
"We were actually getting ready to put together a workout video because a lot of workouts weren't going to happen," he explained. "When we were getting ready for that, a team in Belgium contacted my agent and we worked out a deal from there."
Limburg United plays in the Euromillions League of the Pro Basketball League in Belgium. United ranked fourth in the 10-team league when it was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In his senior year with Toledo, Knapke averaged career-highs in points (15.8 ppg), rebounds (8.2 rpg) and assists (2.2) while shooting 39.4% from the 3-point line. This year, Knapke set a Toledo record for single-game blocks with 10 against Cleveland State, became the all-time blocks leader with 197 and surpassed his own school record of 60 blocks in a season with 61. He finished his career as a Rocket with 1,451 points - an average of 10.9 points per game. Knapke had a career-high 33 points in a win over Marshall.
He is the first American to sign with United for next year. Knapke hopes to use his experience in Belgium as a springboard to a bigger market, he said.
