Getting Fynn Lastring to the United States was a bit of a pain.
“I had some problems to get the visa,” the 6-foot-10 German freshman center for the UNM Lobo men’s basketball team said on Wednesday. “That was a little rough.”
And when Lastring, who signed in April, finally was in his new temporary college home of Albuquerque, he spent his second full day away watching the World Cup with his new teammates, as his beloved German national team suffered the biggest upset of the tournament thus far — a loss to Paraguay on penalty kicks.
“Maybe my first or second day, yeah. That was a little tough,” Lastring said. “To lose against Paraguay is a little crazy. I hope next time it’s gonna be better.”
Luckily, between acclimating to a system he loves playing in and with an internationally-rich roster of fellow newcomers, the newest of the newcomers has spent the past 10 days jumping right into the fire with his new team, and loving every minute of it.
“Everything’s been really good here,” Lastring said. “I mean, I’m just happy to be here now to be able to practice … Just doing basketball (now), it’s great.”
Though he speaks fluent English, Lastring did note having two Austrian teammates — Beni Schuch and Imran Suljanovic who had a three week head start at UNM on Lastring — here speaking German and helping get him up to speed has helped make him feel at ease.
VIDEO: Eric Olen on summer workouts (July 8, 2026).
As for on the court, UNM coach Eric Olen says the 19-year-old German who played this past season for professional club the Artland Dragons in Germany’s second-tier pro league and has been a part of the Rasta-Vechta club team for the past several years, has very much been as advertised since his arrival.
“I think Fynn is a really talented guy,” Olen said. “He has great size, understands the game, has played at a high level, really shoots the basketball; so (he) gives us kind of a different element with shooting at that position that we’re always looking for. He’s done a good job so far. I mean, he’s learning quickly and seems to be acclimating well.”
Despite having played at a high level until just about a month ago in Germany, he said he’s really been impressed with each of his teammates in Albuquerque thus far.
“It’s my first real practice with guys from America. I never did that before,” Lastring said. “I mean, Jake’s shooting (referring to sophomore guard Jake Hall), and the other guys and how athletic they are, that’s something new for me. I didn’t know that.’
NCAA Pit stop?
The NCAA is expected to be nearing a decision on where it will place a second location for preliminary games for the NCAA Tournament since announced tournament expansion to 78 teams.
UNM has made a bid for the Pit, which the Journal reported on last month. CBS Sports on Wednesday posted a story asking five of their national college basketball writers where they thought the NCAA should take the early games with three of them writing a few hundred words on why the Pit is their pick.
Olen, meanwhile, was asked by the Journal his thoughts on the subject on Wednesday.
“I think this is a place that should be hosting preliminary round games,” Olen said. “I don’t know all the sort of logistics that are required, so I don’t want to speak to that, but I would just say that they’ve done a really nice job of finding a community in Dayton that really supports that event, and I’m confident that this is that type of community. And I hope that they factor that in appropriately.”
4 for 1
Uriah Tenette will be wearing the No. 1 this season for the Lobos.
Last season, as a true freshman point guard, he didn’t exactly have the pull to get his customary No. 1 that he’s worn his whole life when senior point guard Deyton Albury already had claim to that number.
But Tenette’s No. 4 jersey sold well last season, and he is well aware that changing numbers creates a bit of a problem, especially for younger fans who want to be just like their Lobo idols.
So the sophomore Lobo point guard and his dad, Michael, had an idea.
⤵️ Join us at Cool Springz Trampoline Park in Abq this Sunday, July 12, from 1-5pm for special meet & greet with @UNMLoboMBB PG @uriahtenette! Own a Tenette No. 4 jersey? Come get it signed & we’ll order you complimentary brand new Tenette No. 1 jersey! See you Sunday! #GoLobos pic.twitter.com/U65Q0DURX2
— Robert Portnoy (@RobTalksLobos) July 8, 2026
Anyone with a No. 4 Tenette jersey can show up to Cool Springs Trampoline Park from 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday and get that No. 4 jersey signed by Uriah Tenette and his dad, footing the bill, will order you a new No. 1 Tenette jersey, free of cost for anyone with an old Tenette jersey.
And if you don’t have that old No. 4, the meet-and-greet event will feature giveaways, autographs and photo opportunities for all.
This is it, right?
We’re in July, and while the Lobos have not yet had a practice with all 12 players listed on their roster participating, at least we know this is the full roster, right?
“We’re always recruiting, so never say never on additions,” Olen said with a grin. “(I) don’t think we’d make any additions prior to … the (end of) summer. Maybe somebody in the fall, timing wise.”
Reach Geoff Grammer at ggrammer@abqjournal.com or follow him on Twitter (X) @GeoffGrammer.
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