Why Europeans Are Taking Over The NBA

AAU basketball and load management issues in the NBA are more connected than one might think. Young players are coming to the league as injured as ever, while on-court decision-making is also becoming a problem.
Is USA’s youth basketball system to blame? In this video, BasketNews’ Augustas Suliauskas compares the American and European ways of growing talents.
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[@BasketNews_com]

Do you think the US youth basketball system is falling behind the European? 🤔 Let us know in the comments below ✍ If you enjoyed the video, help us grow by hitting the like button & subscribing to our channel! 🙌 For more content like this visit: basketnews.com Lastly, don't forget to follow us on social media: Twitter: twitter.com/basketnews_com/ Instagram: instagram.com/basketnews/

[@Clawed1234]

Look at list of naturalized basketball players in wikipedia. Almost all are American, FIBA had to put a cap of 1 per team. Americans taking over international basketball so much Fiba had to put a cap. You used international players to help your argument. Europe has over double population of USA, and the rest of world has 20 times larger population of USA. When basketball becomes more popular in world, of course a bigger proportion of USA players will become international.

[@danielsmith7576]

no because most of the Europeans you describe was developed here in the us I hate the fact that euroleague fans are trying to claim that they responsible for giannis and embiid growth

[@Smido83]

@@danielsmith7576 Noone talked about Embiid... he isnt european. And he also grew up in the US Highschool system. And no, Giannis learned the fundamentals in europe. He learned the physicality and post play in the US, cause he had to grow into his body first. You cant bully 7'0 250 lbs grown men in europe as a 6'9 175 lbs 17 year old. But he learned sharing, tactics, offball movement, angles... also when and where to be on defense... oh, and he learned to be coachable. Something a lot of american Highschool stars struggle with. Look at Young... how many coaches did he forced the Hawks to fire up to this point?

[@radistaevski1550]

we do it better in Europe and thats clear we see and all will see it in the next 10 years the top 10 now has 8or9 europeans

[@alexo5303]

The individual skills are strong...the team play and passing is lacking. Totally agree with this video.

[@tooshmart6669]

-Joined the Navy in 1999. -Traveled to Spain for a med-cruise in 2001. -Got off the boat after about a month a "we" found a basketball court. -We have some tall guys, and a couple of high school hoopers from NY and Cali -We saw a bunch of Steve Nash looking white Spanish kids and laughed then said "we got next". -We got ran up and down, from the east all the way to the west on that basketball court by those kids. -They simply knew where and when to be as a team and just smoked us.

[@grosskopf2779]

Gotcha but the question also comes up is how good were you guys?LOL.

[@marcbuisson2463]

​@@grosskopf2779 I'd not be surprised if the average level of casual players would be higher in Europe than in the US. Do you guys have local casual championships and clubs?

[@grosskopf2779]

@@marcbuisson2463 Yes, local leagues and club teams, some travel

[@marcbuisson2463]

@@grosskopf2779 To be fair, I'm struggling to find national info about them '-'. Like, in France, we have around 4500 clubs, each having one or more adult teams. We don't stop after high school, far from it. From afar, it sounds like just a career or a way to reduce college costs in the US '-'. But as I said, I'm struggling to find info, maybe it's not the case.

[@grosskopf2779]

@@marcbuisson2463 In the USA, there are really three levels of basketball: High School basketball)from usually ages 13 to 18(there are exceptions max is 20) College Basketball - Usually from ages 18 -22(a lot of exceptions, I knew a player that played at the age of 26) and of Course professional in today's world 18 until... you can't play anymore(NBA,FIBA,G-league,China league,South America etc.) things can be confusing in the college different divisions NCAA I, 2, 3 and NAIA, Junior College. Now through all of that there's what we call intramural leagues which are like club teams, some are local, some travel, . This is usually in the college age but then there are leagues for ages like 40 and over, 50 and over, etc. In Highs school they have what is called the AAU league which runs parallel to regular HS but can be played over the summer, then there are traveling teams AAU. It's a lot, and unless you personally experience it, it can be confusing

[@TheFamousMockingbird]

greg popavic has been on about how europe trains for years. I remember like 12 years ago or more he was talking about how he would always make the spurs watch barcelona film and offensive and defensive set ups, and emphasize to them "if you play like this with the talent that is in the nba you will be unbeatable"

[@tumelotshabalala1239]

Yeah that was good before the NBA evolved to a 3-ball league. Noe Popovic sucks. Ancient tactics

[@milktea2422]

@@tumelotshabalala1239 more like he hasn’t had any good players or a star player since kawhi left. Seriously his kawhi lead team were doing pretty damn well against the warriors - the team that everyone is trying to copy. Idk how you can say such outlandish things in the modern time when theres 720p video of this around. Like you could probably say something reasonable about wilt chamberlains since there’s almost no footage of him. But saying this when there video proof in high definition is crazy.

[@tumelotshabalala1239]

@@milktea2422 any good or a star player? Demar Derozen?

[@plakomismark]

@@tumelotshabalala1239 hahaha right. now tell us how Demar is comparable to Timmy, Manu or Tony?

[@tumelotshabalala1239]

@@plakomismark he's comparable to them because he's an all-star. DUH.

[@pauli2951]

You should not underestimate how big basketball is in Europe and how it has been developing over the years.

[@michaelkeha]

And the fact Europe has already got the template for this kind of thing down thanks to football and rugby they know how to set up a proper trainer feeding system for their clubs and national teams

[@livefastdieyoung8703]

Black people in America think basketball is only for blacks a black sports when they see white players they get jealous,angry and depressed and start whining and start complaining because without the sports they all be broke,poor and doing odd jobs ..... They just don't want white people to take over the sports but it's inevitable white people's can also play too .....

[@barsk1]

​@@michaelkehaid say the most similar template is hockey. NHL is the top league just like NBA in America. Europeans just have been around in NHL for longer than in NBA. Id say if you learn the history or follow the NHL, you will see the similar patterns appearing right now in the NBA what happened in the NHL couple of decades ago.

[@Somm_RJ]

It's not that big. Football is way bigger than basketball. Basketball may not even be a top 5 sports in Europe overall. It's only relatively popular in Eastern Europe. That's why it's impressive how they were able to produce good and great players. USA vs Lithiania in a FIBA game is like USA vs a country comparable to the 10th smallest state of USA. California alone is 7 times larger than Lithuania and 21 times more people.

[@PIANOPHUNGUY]

Basketball is not very popular in the Netherlands or Belgium where KORFBALL is more popular. In England NETBALL is more popular, just like it is in the other Commonwealth countries (Except Canada)

[@MRDYNAMITEDAWG]

AAU was a tragic experience for me. I was on a top 20 team in NorCal and we barely ever lost. We had no plays. No practices. Our coach just told go do your thing and would just yell when you make a mistake. It could’ve been so much more. And the fact that we were “so good” with so little team work is just a sad reality of basketball now. People don’t play as hard as they can.

[@aw2584]

Damn bro that's crazy, that's where parents should've intervened; we all laugh at these overly invested fathers living vicariously through their sons sports careers and soccer moms, but if one person said something maybe it wouldve changed. Hell, you'd be better off with one of such weirdo fathers taking over the team and organising trainings based on drills found on KZbin or some ish lol. Then again you'd probably quickly find other parents complaining about their precious amazing sons having to actually train while they're winning anyway so there's always that.

[@simpsontrips4606]

As a basketball fan, but someone who also pays attention to cultural trends, I LOVE that this guy connected the dots the way he does. To me, the differences in philosophy toward player development is a reflection of a general tendency in America toward extreme individualism in all aspects of life. A huge factor fueling this now is the explosion of social media, the expectation that in order to be successful, one must always be in the process of "building their brand," to the point where marketing one's talents becomes more the focus than actually developing those talents. We all know that humility fuels the work necessary to achieve sustained excellence, but in today's America, humility is simply the opposite of the traits we tend to notice, celebrate, and reward in our youth.

[@FloSick808]

Well said my friend. It’s about unity, not selfishness. It’s a team sport. If you’re not making yourself and your team better, they’ll never go far.

[@juanpecan7089]

This video was damn good. The clips he used to show bad decision making were perfectly hilariously bad.

[@anklepick9524]

So true!

[@Zmaenlplibi]

While I agree with you generally, I think these proceedings are not the result of culture but mostly of completely unrestrained capitalism. The complete and utter commercialization of sports (trying to make profits of youth players, way too many games etc.) AND the public space (social media) leeds to what we perceive as a different "culture". I'd argue that culture in that case, is a lot more just a result of the systems, that we use to govern our affairs. And in the U.S. that's mostly unrestrained capitalism.

[@Scroooge]

Hear Hear

[@DKtrek21]

For me, it's the coaches in the EU that make a whole lot of difference. There, you get yelled at at the slightest mistakes, get praised after wins or losses. Basically, your coach is like a father figure. Here in the US, coaches seem to be detached from their players. It's just business and nothing else. They look for the most talented ones instead of developing the weaker players. Can't blame them though, just a season of failure can send them packing.

[@mcfuckinanotheraccount808]

yelling isn't a sign of good coaching and that trend of the coaches being angry and screaming their lungs out is changing in sports, thankfully. youngest coaches in European's best leagues are calm and collected and emphasize making their players confident and confortable playing

[@justsawo483]

​@@mcfuckinanotheraccount808Younger couches maybe don't yell,but the best European coaches definitely do

[@Skyl3t0n]

@@mcfuckinanotheraccount808 I think he phrased that a little difficult. They yell because they care. It's not just buisness. There is a relationship, passion.

[@GerardC75]

@@mcfuckinanotheraccount808 they don't yell at you with bad manners it is just so you have a reaction, I never had a problem with my coach and I respected him a lot

[@scott4825]

Seems like at the elite level, they develop their reputation by any great player they coached and not team wins.

[@stevenhaas9622]

I even noticed this in my kid's soccer teams. All of the emphasis is on individual skill development (dribbling/ball control)with essentially no development of team oriented skills (e.g., passing, movement, positional awareness)

[@fangdog29]

That's not good for American soccer. European soccer is now heavily positional - just watching a Manchester City will teach how important positional play is.

[@matteoinvernazzi4331]

what? literally dribbling is one of the most useless thing to teach to a kid who's learning the basics of the game. Dribbling is cool, but without position, passing and most importantly TEACHING HOW TO KICK THE BALL (something i see less and less with my little cousin even in italy) there is no way you are gonna win and build a team

[@jeffhardy6333]

To this day (25) I can’t do more than 6 kick ups or dribble through cones quickly. I can defend, make runs and pass, that’s what always got me into the first XI. Dribbling doesn’t matter

[@Sethro92]

@@jeffhardy6333 come on bro, 6 kick ups? Just get the ball spinning backwards and you're golden

[@jeffhardy6333]

@@Sethro92 mate I got 2 left feet. I wish it was that easy for me, trust me😂😂😂

[@bonjouritsready]

The club system probably helps. European clubs (in football anyway so I assume basketball too), have their own youth programmes with the intention to develop their own talent to some day play for the first team. Their interests are in making the best player possible for themselves and not necessarily ‘winning’ at youth level - so long as the kids are developing into a player who could flourish in the first team and also learn the main tactics of the first team manager. They have no interest in highlights or exposure at this point, they’re not going to send them off to university once they hit 18. There are exceptional cases that get media attention at a very young age; Mbappe, Messi, Rooney - but at that point those guys were so advanced as kids they were thrown into the men’s game and were fully prepared to take the step to elite status.

[@tukiran3953]

it's different development system, nba team don't have youth system like football in europe, they got player from draft pick

[@ti8864]

Rooney😂, you mean Ronaldo. I think that's the only real system. Sports and school/university should be divided. In america you need to be extreme good at school or sports to afford a good education. But why a dumb person who can dribble a ball should be at a university? On the other hand you can't teach your players a system or philosophy like Ajax or Barca do.

[@ThundurusT]

@@ti8864 He meant Rooney, the man was a starter for Everton when he was 17.

[@The-Heart-Will-Testify]

I wish the NFL and the NBA had that, so many great talents have been destroyed by college sports. It's a scam

[@flortrupp]

Rooney was overrated as hell and an ego player. He better would have played Dome more years in a lower ranked team.

[@Kingprime89]

Before Luka was the main star in Europe, he suffered losts against other big teams. He learnt to be better and with this lessons he is growing better and better.

[@foxskyful]

Obviously he was just a kid

[@iluvdissheet]

Do you ever worry about his longevity? At a minimum, we should all be concerned about his weight management as it shifts too frequently to sustain a long career.

[@natebaxter9551]

​@@iluvdissheet his playstyle isn't really dependent on athleticism. That alone will extend his career not accounting for injury.

[@demondesires865]

Hall of fame giant slayer

[@juanpecan7089]

@@natebaxter9551 I mean, how long is he trying to play? Hookah Doncic doesn't strike me as a guy thats gonna need/want to play till his body gives up.

[@EverettBurger]

I'm not versed in basketball. I am not sure why KZbin recommended this video to me. But, I watched it. What he says at the halfway point is spot on. I have had family members in the NHL. When asked by high school athletes "what made them better hockey players" they said "I didn't play hockey year round; soccer made me a better hockey player" As a wrestling coach, I plead for my student athletes to join the cross country team in the fall.

[@bjramsay9949]

These types of cross sport skills are invaluable and often not obvious at all. I recall an interview with Drew Brees when he credited playing tennis in high school with developing the quick footwork he needed to prosper as an NFL QB. Of course he didn’t realise it at the time - he was just having fun playing. But that’s the point.

[@nirfz]

Heard an interview with a successfull football (soccer for the US guys) player after his retirement. He stated that he also didn't just play football all year round (Where he is from you'd play on snow during the winter.) So he went skiing and played ice hockey during winter in childhood and youth. He mentioned that "cross training" to have been very helpfull in teaching balance, and "to get the head clear from doing the same thing over and over again tha whole year". And each team sport you aren't the best of the team meas you learn to work for the team and improove.

[@unformedeight]

Aye, not sure why I got recommended either Closest I've got to this sport is watching Kuroko no Basket But a facinating video

[@kinglizard3406]

In EU we are encouraged to play other sports in our free time, I trained football (soccer) for the club, the position of goalkeeper, at school we HAD to play basketball, volleyball, football, handball, badminton, chess, even in my free time with my friends I played basketball, tennis, volleyball, if I played football I wasn't a goalkeeper like when I was playing for a club

[@MTXSHO9732vV8SHO]

Old School High School Basketball. It was mandatory to run CC in the Fall if you expected to be on the Basketball Team in Winter. Playing Football was discouraged unless it was your strongest Sport

[@artbet3907]

Eye blink analysis : 1:28 slow start, warming up 3:29 huge triple double 4:23 quick transition basket 5:25 back to back 8:06 long distance three Huge performance for the lithuanian forward, dry eyes at the end but great fourth quarter. Seeking his third MVP in a row.

[@Imnotsemi]

Truly the greatest not just in Lithuania not just in Europe but in the whole world

[@jeffreywhitlock4882]

The AAU trend is unfortunate. I learned so much from my coaches in middle and high school back in the day. Winning was important, but they were more concerned with teaching the fundamentals and building character. Those lessons have served me well in my life outside of basketball, which ended competitively for me in high school. One would think that passing, setting screens, spacing, moving without the ball, and help defense would be emphasized, but oh well?

[@MrDuncanquasar]

AAU ball has really hurt basketball here in the USA. Less times with quality coaches at high school level working on skill development. Plus the growth of basketball worldwide is impressive.

[@_________.]

Thugs coaching undisciplined kids is a recipe for disastrous citizens

[@mrhoopfan1]

Kids here play high school basketball too. Can't make AAU the scape goat

[@MrDuncanquasar]

@@mrhoopfan1 High school basketball is fine, most of the AAU circuit sucks

[@_________.]

@@mrhoopfan1 high school basketball and AAU are complete opposite things

[@mrhoopfan1]

@@_________. kids aren't at AAU as much as people try to say

[@Andy-eh7fz]

Great video! Agree 100%. Really wish Petrovic's life wasn't cut so short back in the 90's.

[@KRS7u5]

Drazen Petrovic and healthy Arvydas Sabonis would open american eyes sooner...

[@kobe5283]

Drazen is the best shooter of all time. Not greatest but best

[@harderway8568]

@@kobe5283 Even Reggie Miller complained about guarding him. No wonder, Draz's release was so quick that it was crazy. There's even a video of very young Steph Curry watching him play.

[@jeromrharris1126]

This will never happen ever and I can bet you that

[@marcocarbajal9299]

@@KRS7u5 Great Talents

[@criscurtean]

Great video demonstrating the differences. I can say from personal experience as a European who grew up in the United States, this similarity in development runs into soccer as well. When I had an opportunity for a pro soccer trial at 16 in Europe, guys of the same age group I noticed were way more advanced than me in IQ and technical ability from a tactic perspective. I think I worked just as hard as others but tactical development and teamwork is less stressed upon here in the US youth development with coaching not necessarily getting the best out of players and the team as a whole since it's being treated as a activity that parents are paying for compared to kids in Europe who enjoy the sport and are aiming at potentially pro careers.

[@Ccm2019]

Gregg Popovich said that USA basketball will decline since most of them are only focused on winning, without considering fundamentals. You can see it on the way NBA players chasing rings and switching teams if it doesn’t work. Unlike before that Players stick to their own teams even though it’s hard.

[@CZVdarkoSRB]

Denver Nuggets is a example of this with Jokic, Porter and Murray.

[@rainlemon]

my gramps used to coach Yugoslavia, created some clubs, was the first wave of the balkans bball scene, and a few years back, Popovic invited him to coach a bit over there, show some of the fundamentals. sadly, he was already in his 90' , had to decline and then died a few years later. i used to play in the montenegrin league, and played serb players, and all had the fundamentals down, and the ones that played for the points, would lose the game for the team.

[@Telopead]

On one hand it’s the ring fishing culture in the NBA. A bunch of superstars running around the league asking for maximum support for themselves. For teams to do that, young guys often got traded for immediate helps. No actually coaching been done. On the other hand, the draft/social media oriented training camps for younger teens. It’s all about “me” and “my flashy scoring”, no actual concepts of team and how to win with it.

[@stevenscummy1458]

Yeah they're getting left behind. I always see these highlights of high school prospects and they're just doing a bunch of fancy dribble moves/etc but aren't really playing a good game of team basketball. Even just in this video when you see clips being compared that are just a few seconds long, the Europeans look like they're playing a well organized game, and the Americans just look like they're all over the place, defense looks clueless, etc

[@Ccm2019]

@@user-yx4pc9oz5t We’re talking about Basketball

[@NolanHawkeyeAnthony]

As a former high level ball player myself, I can confidently say the American youth basketball system is broken. I was lucky because my father always encouraged practicing more than playing in tons of mediocre AAU basketball games. Most of these kids need waaaaaaaay more practice and development. Too many games

[@Cbraaten]

Yes

[@aaronabner4317]

Showboating is on the rise and the fundamentals of teamwork are no longer important. “Teamwork is not a preference; it's a requirement.” - John Wooden

[@Ivander85]

You really get the feeling watching some of these AAU games that the best players don't even have to try particularly hard and are more focused on showing off their moves and high flying dunks. That sorta stuff is generally frowned upon if exceedingly showcased in Europe. There seems to be a clear difference in mindset of team-first vs me-first. Young Euro players have to play against pros and need to have their sh*t together or else they're being benched, simple as that. When a late 2nd round pick wins multiple MVPs it should be a major wakeup call.

[@Londronable]

Yea. C. Ronaldo back in his teens was like that. Showboat with a relatively low end product. Didn't take that long for him to fix it but still.

[@louiscypher4186]

@@Londronable You hit on the core of the problem. Ronaldo is a generational talent one of the greatest to ever play soccer. But for every Ronaldo there's 100,000 Rafael Scheidt's. The AAU system is busy trying to find the next Michael Jordan and in doing so they aren't developing guy's with potential but less raw talent. The AAU will still produce superstars, but we're going to see more and more workhorse players coming out of Europe.

[@romainviry3185]

@@Londronable why is football into the conversation ? Analogy is not always comparison

[@dasallmaechtigeJ]

And when 90% of all players are American/Canadian, yet the last 4 MVPs went to foreigners.

[@MyWorldFootball]

"When a late 2nd round pick wins multiple MVPs it should be a major wakeup call.". Misconception, Jokic was drafted in the second round because only the Nuggets knew about him. It's not that no one considered him promising, just no one knew about him(except for Denver).

[@patriciamccormick9321]

The fact is that kids spend all their time practicing shooting 3’s rather than working on screens, layups, passing and practicing footwork inside the paint. Kobe’s 7 year plan for Gigi’s team was to teach all the above, they were in year three when they died.

[@grype83]

As an American I welcome international players because the way they play make the game fun to watch again. Some will think I’m crazy because all they want to see is dunks and threes but these shots used to hit different when used sparingly and it’s fun to watch the whole team get involved not just a single player. Even when Jordan started he couldn’t win like that, he certainly tried but they needed better players, team ball and Phil Jackson. Still think MJ could have passed a little more but he definitely got better with time and better coaching.

[@lucasoscar]

Manu Ginobili could be the first and one of the best examples of load management, people were sure we would be physically destroyed by 30 and he played at a high level until he was 40

[@blackjacktrial]

Anyone who doesn't play every minute of every game could be said to be load managing. Chuck and MJ would hate if you suggested that any team with reserves was load managing though. Yes, it sucks that players can't play every game. Maybe 98+ games a year to win a championship is too many for any one player to play at 100% in. If so, either expectations or the number of games needs to change.

[@pedrao420]

he is not european

[@lucasoscar]

@@pedrao420 dont know if you are trolling but of course he is not european but his career and development is like he was, even his last name is italian, and i also never said he was, just took him as the prime example of load management

[@JRFP8]

@@pedrao420 he played in europe before going to the NBA. From 98 to 02 in Italy.

[@FrankHor101]

​@@pedrao420 who cares? They suck

[@TWM2975]

As a college wrestling coach, I found a lot of this to be true even in the sport I coach. Youth sports in the United States have gone the way of big business for some time now. Fundamentals are not encouraged at the youth level, as long as the wins come with it. The top end guys usually are outliers to that philosophy, which is why they are so coveted, but that leaves the remaining 95% of kids who embrace bad habits for quick results. Sadly, those kids carry those bad habits through to higher levels (high school and college), and are often afraid of growth, and progress to help them "jump levels". I wish I knew the answer to this issue here in the U.S., but as long as kids are thought of as commodities for the benefit of their adult mentors, things won't change.

[@IrkedLurker]

Astute observation coach. This not just a basketball problem. Club/travel sports are limiting young athletes physical development. I’m a personal trainer and the amount of kids/teenagers that I encounter who can’t squat ass to grass, can’t differentiate between a torso rotation and a pelvic rotation is disheartening. Like is mentioned in the video and you said as well. These kids play their sport year round but hit the same moves and never significantly improve. There’s never an off-season. I think the nba is the first time players actually have time to deload and improve body function

[@cabraonropes5622]

@@IrkedLurkerin England my coach would say he would rather us loose games playing properly and us develop rather than win by letting the best players score etc etc.

[@samsowden]

Youth sports should not be business at all, ever, period.

[@37wilde]

To some degree the kids are a commodity too in Europe. I think a major difference is the that we don't have high school, college and then professional sports. The Clubs are independent organisations and train the kids all the way from the little leagues to the professional men. They have an interest to train well rounded athletes and not to waste their talent before they even make it to the big leagues.

[@kinglizard3406]

In EU we are encouraged to play other sports in our free time, I trained football (soccer) for the club, the position of goalkeeper, at school we HAD to play basketball, volleyball, football, handball, badminton, chess, even in my free time with my friends I played basketball, tennis, volleyball, if I played football I wasn't a goalkeeper like when I was playing for a club.. and it had impact on mind and body..

[@NnamdiWien]

I dont play or watch basketball but your videos are very informative and get me more invested in that sport. very good videos!

[@quentingeoffroy2811]

100% agree! Thanks for the analysis.

[@julienf9039]

You hit the nail on the head. AAU teams are mostly "unorganized". Its all about flash and clout with the American system. They would rather make the next highlight than the hockey pass because there is so much competition and focus on the game. In Europe you need to be exceptional to garner national attention. In the US all you need is a mixtape.

[@romainviry3185]

exactly. If teens are playing only to get the next TikTok highlight dunk without checking who's next to them and how their team is playing, you're building young selfish superstars that will eventually miss shots or drop balls because of their lack of team structure awareness. In europe it's a known fact that BBall is a collective sport ^^

[@Orange7825]

This. I once triggered a bunch of Bones Hyland's fanboys by pointing out that it's weird he puts out his own mixtapes and creates his own hype with so little under his belt.

[@yourdreams2440]

nah i can just see the racism coming from your comment

[@Orange7825]

@@yourdreams2440 nah man I'm just an older dude (😓) who doesn't like how modern athletes use social media for clout, unless it's like LeBron who raises awareness for important causes

[@LunaticTheCat]

​@@yourdreams2440 Racism? Huh?

[@Lola23339]

I played bball all the way up to HS, in HS, on AAU teams and I was a four year starter in college. In between all of those games, I was constantly playing pick-up games both indoors and outside on hard surfaces. In my 30's, I started experiencing a lot of knee pain and that resulted in a number of surgeries. The surgeries helped some but I still have a lot of issues and my knees, according to my surgeon, look like the knees of a much older person. In America, constantly playing bball is the norm for good players. Europeans don't play nearly as much as we do...and that's the way to go. I think it'd be great to cut down on AAU games and playing outside. When I have time, I help the HS coaches that coach my son. I'm always telling the kids to either not play outside, especially on concrete, or greatly limit it. Too much wear and tear on knees and ankles is part of why we're seeing so many injuries in the NBA. I think kids, with their parents' help, can cut down on their play enough to make a material difference on their health when they get older. Just my 2 cents based on my experience.

[@cool_cat007smoove3]

Training too much can effect performance

[@H41030v3rki110ny0u]

sounds kinda sad to get people off of the blacktop though lol.. so counter to USA basketball culture..

[@nodeout5465]

Have you seen knees over toes guy? Sounds like his experience as well. I’m 43 and dealing with some knee pain as well. The problem is a lot us were not taught the proper way to care for our knees and other joints. It just you dont realize it until years later.

[@Lola23339]

@@H41030v3rki110ny0u I totally agree. It's definitely a sacrifice.

[@Lola23339]

@@nodeout5465 I've watched a few of his videos. The guy seems to know what he's doing. Hard to know.

[@royw-g3120]

Lots more international players in the NFL too. They take a while to develop but also are a lot “fresher” as they have not gone through the years and years of grinding practices. Jordan Mailata a great example.

[@leelayogarugs2760]

great video! spot on! keep up the good work!

[@user-rv3mi8ys6w]

Let's talk facts. To play basketball in Europe needs to have a basketball iq, read the defence, read the offence, constant movement with or without ball and the defence it's wayyy more difficult to face than in nba,where some players just step aside and open lines for the offensive player to attack. And first and foremost lack of fundamentals in America. it's all about how we will provide a show and their youth have adopt this kind of culture.

[@gahdhsh623]

that's why i stopped watching nba at 2am and just watch euroleague like a normal person. it's just boring to watch hours of commercial for bad basketball. let's go red star ai gamisou pao!

[@nickklavdianos5136]

@@gahdhsh623 My man learned Greek to trash talk Panathinaikos, that's the Balkan basketball atmosphere we all love!

[@sulwhale3171]

@@gahdhsh623 which one because there also clubs like the football (soccer)

[@sulwhale3171]

@@gahdhsh623 for basketball then you have Taiwan’s where Dwight is only going crazy with dropping 82 games

[@sulwhale3171]

@@gahdhsh623 82 points

[@Telopead]

“upon reaching 16 of age, you’re going up against grown man, and had to find way to contribute even in the slightest way.” I’ve experienced the same thing and I find it to be incredibly helpful for maturity in your playing

[@deekusucks]

Facts. I was playing men's Division 4 basketball every now and then here in Finland back when I was 17 years old, and even though it's literally shit tier beer league basketball, it's against fully grown adult men, so getting to the rim for example was a completely different ball game. You can't move those 30-year-old bodies around like kids your own age, and they know how to play smart defense, and flat out make you look silly. I was getting pushed around in the paint and brick walled on screens. You really need to learn to take a completely different approach to the game when you're at a disadvantage like that. I'd imagine it's probably very similar to what 19-year-old American rookies coming out of college ball are up against when getting into the NBA, except that the grown ass men they're going up against are also the most skilled hoopers on the entire planet.

[@jamie49868]

That is how college once was when you came in against upper classmen. Only a handful of freshmen started or even played significant minutes when guys stayed 4 years. The NCAA even made freshmen ineligible for a long time. Those couple extra years learning to play as a team and in a system meant/means a lot.

[@Londronable]

Yea, as a European how long it takes to get to play for real is odd to me. 16-17 year olds often will get game time in football if they're good enough. I honestly think it's about money. Simply making rules they can't be paid until they're supposed to be "fully developed" is an easy way to save money on developing players.

[@xazarl3381]

@@Londronable It's because the us has a highschool system, into college system and college sports is huge in the usa i think it would be like lower league football in europe kind of but not the same since i assume they all college aged.

[@Tom-eq7eh]

Coming is a 16 and 17 year old into a 1st team can often provide a very important thing for these guys, a kind of low level ego death. A reality check where they realise how far they have to go physically and technically, so they can refocus and grow much more easily without their ego getting in the way, and if done succesfully they come out on the otherside either more confident than before but for the right reasons (see luka) or ready to be a team player and a cog in a side

[@Notbaokhanhsosorry]

I think the fact that the NBA G League introduced the G League Ignite team somewhat proved that in the US, at least there are some people who reconsidered the fact that the youth development in the US need an overhaul. In long terms, there should be more opportunities where top high school talents can come together and play against G League teams. That should be the real test for those kids, rather than their peers.

[@mrconfusion87]

Makes sense!

[@haticealbayrak2387]

usa needs a national leauge system with regulations other than nba. Most teams in europe has 2- 3 million euro budget this is nothing for usa.

[@Emanuele_Vittorio]

love you guys❤ Always beautiful arguments

[@vraelatao2264]

Why EU talent flourish in the NBA today is mainly due to a massive improvement regarding kids personal training in EU. The problem with EU players has always been that they were project players. They understood the game, often had a superior IQ but lacked confidence and scoring abilities and thus, quickly got relegated to bench roles. Now it seems that when their potential is identified the training they receive before the nba is much much better than it used to be.

[@localhobo5362]

Ball aslo has changed in Europe as well. Players have more "room to breath" now, and it's not all about 100% team plays.

[@vraelatao2264]

@@localhobo5362 agreed

[@haruyanto8085]

Usually they are met with a lot of hate and skepticism (some case racism), hence they are "project", this way the teams can kick them out or bench them without angering the american fans too much, we see a lot of this with Chinese or African NBA players, being non-American you gotta be careful not to get too big in the sport or else.

[@hmmm2564]

Did they really lack confidence?

[@vraelatao2264]

@@hmmm2564 I believe it yeah. It really is about the way they are taught and their environmemt. Just to sum up : -traditional EU training = youth dont get much minutes but play/train almost every day. They play experienced and skilled adult players or the best promising kids of the country(u17/19). Team first Basketball, find the opened shot, learn tactics and space, learn to be a contributor even if you play 8 minutes. If you force a shot, you go sit on the bench. The goal is simple : WIN. GAMES. -AAU/NA Training = grind your skills, play your level of competition, focus on yourself, polish your handles and play for your stats so that you can get clics & scholarship. When you travel on weekend you have to show everybody you're the best. Team ? who cares about your team ? You won't play with them next year! Tactics ? You'll learn tactics and how to be a good teammate later. The EU system overall is a much better environment, but a few years ago the youth system was too much about team first and EU players often arrived in the NBA lacking individual skills (shoot/handles/postup). Now it seems this has been corrected, so I'm not really surprised to see more and more EU talent come and flourish in the NBA.

[@LucaPetraliaPhotography]

Your analysis seems more than correct to me. European basketball focuses a lot on team effort, fundamentals, defence and efficiency. That's why you can still see very low scoring at the highest levels. This develops the right mindset, rather than a flashy run and dunk mentality that creates amazing highlights, but doesn't allow players to develop properly. Also, as you mentioned, as a promising young players, you get to play with and against veterans, learning a lot of their mental and physical tricks during a real game. On the opposite if you're a beast in high school or college, only few players have the chance to compete against you phisically, and it is a lot easier to sit down, enjoy the ride, and think you're already a great player. Then when you jump in the real competition it takes years, and a humble mindset to catch up

[@josiah566]

incidentally, a lot of Kobe's early basketball life stories come from when he would hang out with the 76ers when he was at home in Philadelphia, or with pros wherever his dad was playing or working. He was submerged in pro basketball and adopting that humble, high IQ studious attitude that, as one NBA analyst put it (I forgot whom) makes his 39 inch vertical more potent than someone else's 42.

[@mrhoopfan1]

Lol, Euro Giannis is Mr Run and Dunk

[@LucaPetraliaPhotography]

@@mrhoopfan1 nice job man... You took one of the few that fall outside of that description to prove a point. Nice job.

[@mrhoopfan1]

@@LucaPetraliaPhotography Cool, Luka embodies team effort, efficiency, and defense, lol....same thing James Harden was doing ... For one guy we said " he is ruining basketball ", the other guy we call " fundamentally sound, plays the right way, genius, etc" despite him dribbling the air out of the ball half the time....

[@minidoku6382]

@@mrhoopfan1 you're right. Luka is an extremely lazy defender Like Harden.

[@nathanaelsallhageriksson1719]

When I was a kid me and many of my friends liked playing basketball with each other. And because I played with people who were taller and better than me I learned to position myself in ways and to do things that allowed me to be very usefull even though my shots weren't the best. And furthermore, even though my friends who practiced basketball actively didn't play every day, only training once per week, they still played every day on their own initiative because they like the game and are passionate. I don't think you need 3 matches per day to teach kids to play well.

[@siphillis]

Likewise, the end of players spending more than a single season in college also has had a demonstrable effect on fundamental play. Like the EuroLeague, you've got players staying on the same teams for years, actually practicing between games, forcing younger players to hang alongside bigger, stronger competition. Reducing that all down to a one-and-done stint is denying those players the chance to actually learn the game outside of the AAU environment.

[@livefastdieyoung8703]

They spent only on black kids if they spent the same money on whites kids in America they will be better than them and again Black people in America think basketball is only for blacks a black sports when they see white players they get jealous,angry and depressed and start whining and start complaining because without the sports they all be broke,poor and doing odd jobs ..... They just don't want white people to take over the sports but it's inevitable white people's can also play too .....

[@jeffhardy6333]

Yeah but those young players on the European teams actually get a salary. NCAA teams will never pay someone so why stay?

[@AnaInTh3Sky]

It has everything to do with Federated / Club structure. In Europe sports are usually run by local national-regional-local federations of clubs. This means that from a very young age, players are taught the responsibilities of belonging to a club, where funding and promotion/relegation depend on winning, not individual performance. Also, having clubs instead of highschools opens a whole different universe of signings, player development etc. For our US friends: in Europe every professional team has youth programme where players get scouted, developed and rise through the ranks if they are good (Luka being the perfect example). A good player will be spotted very VERY early (9-10yo) and signed to a decent club, where he/she is not the best player in the team, constantly tested against older kids, etc. the best of the best join the youth programmes of pro-teams where they get full scholarships from the age of 11-12. In addition to that the regional and national federations do their own scouting and develop the national squad in the summer. It cant really be compared with the US, where players aren't reaaaaally tested in a "professional" environment until they go to college. Thats 6-8 years disadvantage with europe during the most important time!

[@Augrills]

That’s kind of sad their lives are so on the rails that way. No room to dream. You made it at 9 years old or you’re not going to make it

[@loosiakunst]

@@Augrills there are exceptions though, it all depends on the character of each player

[@jeffvanderwerf3391]

I was thinking about the club situation. The value of such a system is just as you described. The downside, of course, is that some players do not develop until they are 16-18+ years old. What is the pathway for "later bloomers" in the club situation? I generally like the club environment, it makes sense, but there are so many examples of guys not growing until they are older. I went to college with a former Laker named Devean George. He went to my DIII school when he was 6'3" and by the time he graduated he was closer to 6'7" and was first-round pick of the Lakers. I know he's an outlier, but I think it illustrates the point.

[@AnaInTh3Sky]

@@jeffvanderwerf3391 On the contrary! Because the structure is much wider and much more efficient, even late bloomers are identified quickly and moved to where they "belong". For example, let's say a player is a late bloomer and only starts overindexing at 18-19, he/she would play in the lower national leagues (usually we have 3 national divisions, and countless regional divisions) playing against the B, C or D teams of bigger clubs. Those talents get scouted, brought into more professional clubs and developed accordingly. Barcelona, Madrid, Pana, etc have many many teams playing in each category precisely for that purpose. Imagine a much much bigger G-League, where the lower teams of NBA teams play against semi-pro teams. We have quite a lot of examples in the Euroleague of players who for whatever reason only make it to the main leagues age 25-26 and then go on to be very successful!

[@xazarl3381]

@@jeffvanderwerf3391 Your missing the european part since i dont know the basketball system il explain it the football/soccer way. You have a pyramid in all european countries lets take england you have the prem, Championship, League one, League two, Van national, Van national north and south and then it keeps going down lots of tiers. Take a player like Jamie Vardy he was in the lower leagues didnt get picked up by a big club but kept playing kept scoring. Bigger team spots him buys him moves up still keeps scoring bigger team buys him moves up more. This dude climbed all the way up to the premiership with Leicester City and even won the league. But There are players who will never make it but you can still be a pretty decent player in lower leagues and make a living. Take like Bukayo Saka he is 21 right now hes been in the Arsenal Academy most his life and joined the senior squad at 18 playing vs prem players. You can often see 16 and 17 year olds getting game time.

[@user-cz6do3vj7y]

The thing abt Serbian basketball no matter on what position u are, u will know how to play every other position. That is rule number 1, that is why Jokic was a MVP. And to be far if someone from our country is in NBA right now believe in their game, their talent, bc in Serbia , it is really hard to get to that position to PLAY in some local basketball club. They just don't let everyone as in USA.

[@Andy-eh7fz]

Serbians and Croatians are my favorite basketball players

[@bradleylovej]

I respect the hell out of that approach. I mean, I think everyone should get a little bit of floor time, but holding people accountable and making them really learn the game is very commendable

[@slobodankaradzic9582]

​@@Andy-eh7fz Doncic's father is Serbian

[@kinglizard3406]

@@slobodankaradzic9582 Dončić was born in Šempeter pri Gorici, Yugoslavia, now present-day Slovenia.

[@brothabox6998]

Yes,i agree with u.Slava Ukrajini..pozz iz Srbije 💪🇷🇸🇺🇦💪

[@claudioutrera7233]

Brilliant analysis dude!!!

[@mosessupposes2571]

Thank you for this comparison. It was very interesting and some education I needed as a geocentric US fan.

[@achastos]

I think the truth lies somewhere in the middle. Young kids should learn fundamentals and right plays, but they also should play enough games to develope their player attitude and identity. In the past, too structured basketball in young age and too much emphasis on plays and drills was a problem in Europe (at least in my country Greece , where somehow still is). I remember as kids below 12 years old, when we were going to be a part of a team, they used to say: "You are too novice to play games." And we were doing endless drills and plays we never used because we were never playing the game! Even scrimmages in practice were rare. And if we played , was always "staged" to learn plays. No wonder you saw most kids hating it and leaving the team after few months..

[@bradleylovej]

This is a really insightful comment. The answer does seem to lie somewhere in the middle of the American and European systems.

[@Kris_Dozer]

@achastos The Duncan Robinson podcast with the Wagner brothers will explain it a bit, particularly from Franz’s viewpoint.

[@cool_cat007smoove3]

Indeed

[@soi_ratken]

You are so right! Even Giannis who never really went through the euro system had during his first years in the NBA trouble developing his basketball "attitude". I remember him saying "whatever the coach tells me to do I will do" when answering question like "why didn't you try to take over" or something like that. This is typical euro basketball mentality. The team (and coach) comes first. Individual skills are only there to service the team. Obey the play! The system comes first! But it is players who can bend these rules through personality and skill that become truly special. It is they who make even strict euro coaches say. Yep, let him do his thing... Bogdanovic, Spanoulis, Luka, Navarro, Diamantidis, to name a few.

[@s1.m511]

The problem isn't a focus on team vs individual basketball. The problem in the US is a development system focused around a draft and colleges. You're never going to have a successful development system if you have a draft system which means teams aren't insintivised to invest in youth development.

[@burbulinadas12]

Great video! As always, informative, looking for rational explanations and interesting! Keep it up

[@loiteringrambler1268]

i have played for 8 years in europe. In our club during these 8 years the sole focus of our coach was conditioning, teamplay and defence. We never had shooting drills or something like that. Only offensive drills we ever had was shooting free throws under exhaustion, layups with contact and most importantly how to set screens and run cuts(automatics). This automatics were done every single training session. Actually we were punished for doing flashy stuff in games, carrying the ball for too long or not setting screens, running cuts. Punishment were things like getting pulled out for the rest of the game, extra conditioning after games and practise

[@joostvdenden]

Good material analysis of the issue at hand. AAU is easier to monetize, I suppose. As basketball lovers, we should fight against the increasing commodification of the game we love.

[@milanserval4897]

Problem in USA is that it is more important to have a 3pt shooting and crazy dunks and players are superstar they are more important than teams,while here in EU team is everything. Players train from age 5 to play team basketball

[@milikas]

Agree

[@notsure7899]

A lot of American coaches in the lower levels (high school, college) have recognized this for years but seem to be cancelled out, overwhelmed by the rising influence of NBA-style basketball over the past 30-40 years. We hope that the success of European players in the NBA will help swing the pendulum back to team oriented basketball.

[@oscaralegre3683]

@Reality dunks are the best part in basketball

[@oscaralegre3683]

@Reality without spectators the Sport is dead. You gotta give them a show too

[@oscaralegre3683]

@Reality you realize without money they also die? They are all about money remember that

[@reginaspanties]

this is such a good video. ive been trying to figure out all the load management stuff, and came to a lot of interesting and different conclusions, but you put it all into one video plus making some amazing links, that i havent came across yet. great great stuff. also, pointing out that we shouldnt just blame the players for missing out games is such an important take, i hope it will become general consensus soon.

[@beastoonline1991]

it's also been shown that a ton of exercise in a expertise sports while very young significantly increases your chances of injury as an adult when playing at a high level. Lonzo Ball is a perfect example of this

[@dronesclubhighjinks]

Don't most American NBA players go through NCAA, though? Does that help to correct the deficiencies of the AAU system or does it continue them? Great video! I don't know why KZbin recommended it to me, but I really enjoyed it. I'm going to look through your playlists now. 😄

[@frankpetronella]

A big issue with NCAA is the one-and-done system. A player can be eligible for the NBA after one college season. So you show up in August, and by the next April, you are done with NCAA basketball. So not as much coaching can truly occur

[@listabambino]

Thanks for this cool video bro

[@rwalker0130]

as a former huge bball fan that has fallen off over the last 10 years or so - I don't know about the AAU aspect but I feel like the "individual skill vs team play" aspect has been killing the league for 20 years. I watched a lot of ball in the 90's and knew about 80's legends so I was horrified at the ball hogging, flashy street style that Iverson, Marbury, Steve Francis, Baron Davis etc played (take a guess how many championships they have between them) and how these guys became some of the most popular players

[@gameimprovements4347]

It's been killing the league but unfortunately increasing the revenue/ profit at the cost of purest form of 5 vs 5 basketball itself. Sad

[@Sethro92]

I remember growing up and just stealing the ball easily from so many different aau teams because their guards couldn't dribble with both hands. It has only gotten worse as I've watched my younger cousins coming up through the ranks. The level of basketball in the US today compared to 15 years ago has gone extremely down hill. Yeah there's still those generational talents but the overall team play is so weird to watch nowadays. Bad organization from coaching staffs, pretty much just letting kids do whatever. No structures offense, lazy defense, poor conditioning. Most of our high school JV teams from 2010 would beat most these 2023 varsity teams.

[@rwalker0130]

@@Sethro92 seems like a lot of the AAU coaches are just paying the lottery, trying to cash in on a big star instead of actually coach a team

[@Sethro92]

@@rwalker0130 100%

[@user-ir7zd9li9d]

The only wrong line I found was that Lauri is not unathletic! I think has a great bounce and is able to posterize lot's of players!

[@Mrsuperdestroyer]

Markkanen is a beast lol and it's kinda funny how little attention it gets. People talk about him like he is like Dirk just because of his skin color.

[@user-ir7zd9li9d]

@Charmander I agree with you! 85% of viewers have no idea how to win but they shout loudly their opinion and DUH 💩💩 most of them watch 1 or 2 games a week and they believe they know what is right or wrong in the league

[@BoxCarBoy12]

People be like "white men can't jump" lol

[@user-ir7zd9li9d]

@Soundtallica in Chains if you watch carefully, any race' person can jump! Not every person but is a lil percent of the whole population!

[@Wallyworld30]

@@BoxCarBoy12 Not after Mac McClung

[@davidrummel133]

I can say just from playing a lot of pickup ball in the US with average folks like myself that when I try pick-and-roll it seems like at least half don't understand what to do. Often times screeners just stand there and neither roll to the hoop or pop to an open spot, which definitely makes it far less effective. I've also been trying handoffs and not many seem to get what I'm driving at. It's a whole lot of pass it around until someone decides to take it in 1-v-1 or we are able to swing it to a guy who jacks up an ill-advised 3-ball. Anyone open on the perimeter is not open because of a nice off-ball screen, just poor defense. And forget about backdoor cuts, that doesn't make any sense to young players today because they aren't breaking anyone's ankles in the process.

[@tamonize1266]

Great content! Subscribed!

[@OverEast34]

Here in the US, the biggest issue imo is the coaching. A lot of guys who are coaching basketball here don’t actually know the game that well and refuse to attend coaching camps to gain more knowledge. On the flip side, coaching is why you’re seeing more Europeans, Africans, and Australians becoming great fundamental guys at all levels.

[@kieranjtierney]

OverEast34 It's not the coaching. European have a much higher avg IQ than Americans & they are capable of strategy & teamwork that is beyond the capacity of Americans to understand. That said, we still have a much deeper talent pool & have more individual talent, probably always will. Europeans are not taking over the NBA anytime soon.

[@OverEast34]

@@kieranjtierney I see these kids at tournaments, have coached, and have close friends in the basketball circles here and we all say the same thing. Kids can’t just pick up basic ball concepts on their own, so someone needs to teach them. I see so many guys who think just because they’ve played and followed basketball for so long they think they know what’s up, but they don’t stress things like screening, cutting, rotating on defense, etc.

[@PrinceZakariyya]

@@kieranjtierney so why have USA won them many times over them in the olympics? you liceheads are ridiculous.

[@kingquestOZ]

​@@kieranjtierney Higher IQ lol. Basketball fundamentals are taught. If Europeans were superior, team USA couldn't just throw a team together in 2 months and still win Gold.

[@MHiggs-rx5zz]

​​@@kieranjtierney Preposterous statement and boarderline racist in your implication that IQ differentiates American and European players. American players up until the early 2000s were just as fundamentally sound, team oriented, and heady as the current crop of Europeans that everybody is lauding over. There are a multitude of reasons why American players are developmentally behind...none of it has to do with IQ. I'd suggest you do better research than fall back on lazy, ignorant tropes.

[@alexo5303]

Really like the part about the medical staff decisions. Thanks for providing this detail.

[@daytimestudios3678]

Great information.

[@alexlindbjerg8283]

The secondary sports are also a primer. Luka evidently learned a lot from playing soccer. Jokic evidently learned a lot from playing volley ball And so on.. Tim Grover pointed to the fact that a lot of players are getting injuryed from doing too few movements and not bluiding the muscles that will prevent injuries.

[@rockemil1]

Highlight culture also plays a part in this. Kids are looking for that viral moment of deep 3s or crossing someone up, etc.

[@jetlifewill23]

I've said this for the last 8 years and it's coming to fruition,its time NBA squads start their own academies at certain youth levels and focus on fundamentals, spacing,defending etc. one thing is for sure though NBA needs to fix this quick

[@andrewshandle]

Yep, without a doubt, be more like European Soccer teams. Although due to the draft existing, there will need to be some changes to the system, maybe the NBA teams will just fund an independent organization to run the academies. They are _kind_ of doing this with the G-League Ignite program, the problem there is it's much too late in players development to make the impact you'd want to see. See Jalen Green for an example.

[@ThaTruth223]

that’s what the g league is for……

[@andrewshandle]

@@ThaTruth223 it's much too late by the time someone is in the G league.

[@benjaminbronnimann3966]

@@ThaTruth223 clubs in europe have U-7 (under 7 years old) teams in their youth academies, they often develop these kids for 10-15 years before they even get to the pro level, by the time players in the US go to the G-League they're 18 and already have most of their development behind them, that's way too late.

[@chris.48]

I always asked myself this question. like why does the nba not have academies like football instead of drafting which a lot of the picks dont go so well. In an academy if a player has the potential but wont get playing time (due to the senior players being better) just loan them to a small club for them to develop.

[@outsideview9052]

Very good topic and presentation.

[@austinfu2102]

one more thing. Here in Europe, football is big. It's a sport where individual talent can never surpass team effort. You have to learn to cooperate with your team, you have to understand the space and timings. For these European basketball players, yes, they are basketball players, but they, for sure grew up with football around. And that use of space and time and understanding of team effort is always there, which I also believe helped shaping their play style.

[@princessaka3189]

such a great video. i would as always also add the diffrent rules. as every european player already said its harder to score. it makes players already think more teamoriented.

[@zergbong]

as a European I think AAU is a good idea that went too commercialized. It is fine to have casual league where young players can hoop, but it is not good when it is the main factor in selecting players. A lot of the american AAU footage is just players going straight to the basket. EU youth basketball has a lot of half court offense, sets, etc.

[@crystalized7206]

0:27 look at luka and devin having such a good time. Look at their smiles they seem so happy.

[@ArnauViaM]

Decision making vs individual talent. Of course you need both but to me its clear what each system focuses on. Great content

[@carjack2390]

Damn! It's tough to hear but I agree, the American AAU circuit has really changed over the past decade. I'm so nostalgic about AAU because I grew up hooping in the Chicago circuit of 10-12 years ago and it was the best basketball in the Midwest. I see videos now and there is no teamwork. BACK IN MY DAY, every AAU team just played different versions of motion offense. At all times, every player was suppose to be attacking, passing, cutting, screening or flashing. You would get benched immediately if you played stagnant, missed a cutter or forced bad shots. The only set plays were after out of bounds, I see how it evolved into what it is currently, and that's a shame to me. Now every game just looks like one star kid emulating James Harden and trying to go viral, while every other player stands in the corner. AAU used to have brutal defense too, the refs refused to call fouls until somebody got hurt. 10 times a game, refs would tell kids to toughen up and learn to play through contact. You would never get away with that anymore, not in America at least. (Sorry for the novel, anybody who made it to this point hahaha)

[@Rufgaudas]

Interesting thing is - in Europe players gets benched super fast for a very bad decisions during defense. You can rarely see coaches getting mad over some bad offensive play (missed shot, TO, bad pass,..), but if someone missed a cutter on defense or is late on help defense, and most importantly - doesn't make an early foul to prevent easy drive/score while team is still not in penalty - coaches benches players really fast. If your team has 2 team fouls, you are a guard, got a switch and now you are defending a center 2meters away from the basket - you better make that foul as soon as you can, else hear the screams from the coach while sitting on the bench :D

[@ejcmaestro6520]

I have never been a fan of american style of basketball ever since then but i do like NBA players and their style of play got worse as the years pass. No doubt that they have the best basketball talent but in terms of team basketball especially today they are probably the worst.

[@_________.]

Thats a lie

[@alanmjohnson]

I love that bit about refs telling players to toughen up.

[@individual1-floridaman491]

When overall court awareness (especially in defence) and passing are considered as an 'afterthought' you will inevitably see a decline in the quality of teams.

[@borisbabich]

Good stuff!

[@aoyawang3890]

8:44 I'm glad Fontecchio is mentioned in this video - this guy should be given more opportunities in the NBA! Besides, a bit surprised that Markkanen is not talked about in this video :)

[@SIMOLAMBOTZ]

Now Fontecchio is a rotation player 💪🏼

[@thee-sportspantheon330]

It's probably the classic case of learning through intuition vs learning through study. One method raises the floor the other raises the ceiling.

[@host2498]

I think a certain level player can decide or have some influence on whether they sit out games or not. It's definitely not one sided. When playing with Europeans one of the things they always push is ball movement an off-ball screens. Something a lot of guys don't implement in their game

[@Alexwhatisit]

I remember reading a comment by someone a while back that if Yugoslavia didn’t dissolve into a living hell they would have had an absolutely dominant national team/prospects in the nba.

[@ivanstojanovic621]

That's true, biggest tragedy for basketball at all was dissolution of Yugoslavia, imagine now that national team with Doncic, Jokic, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Bojan Bogdanovic, Vucevic, Saric, Hezonja, Musa, Nurkic.... they would be neck to neck with team USA at the olympics.

[@sebastianstark8517]

In general, I would agree that the Europeans seem to be more focused on the fundamentals and more prepared for the NBA than most of our homegrown talent. This was not always the case, but the sport has certainly seemed to evolve this way. We are no longer so much better than players from other countries that we can just dominate them on talent alone. The talent gap has closed, and it's now come down to who prepares better and/or works harder.

[@patrickvolk7031]

I think one of the problems with AAU athletics at this point is there's a lot of teams created mainly for a few stars, and the team is built around them. The stars don't learn, and the other players aren't important to the father/coach. Seeing it a lot in youth baseball as well. Instead of feeding up the chain, learning all the way, it's more like all star team after all star team. Too many parents think their kid is the next Jordan, Kobe, or LeBron.

[@jeffvanderwerf3391]

My son plays AAU basketball, predominantly to stay in shape for school teams. He has been lucky to be good enough to play quite a few minutes, but he has kids on his team who sit on the bench for all but 1-2 minutes at the end of blow-outs (although there are a lot of blow-outs in AAU). Coaches often focus on the main 6-7 players, in order to win, and the other guys are there to fill in when there are injuries or foul outs. It is disheartening for the kids who really need more development opportunities, I think. I don't think many parents in my area (NYC) expect their kids to be Lebron or Jordan, but I do think a lot of them think their kids are going to play college ball, which is nearly as unattainable -- especially the D1 scholarship level. AAU feeds on that dream. On the other hand, local schools don't always offer opportunities for kids to improve -- they have them try out and expect them to be good enough -- so AAU is main chance for kids hoping to make varsity (or even JV) to play. I think basketball in particular is tricky. The best kids when they are young do not need to be very tall or fast. However, as we all know, some kids do not hit their growth spurts until the are 16-20 years old. In a sport that relies to much on height, that makes it tough to predict which kids will end up with the right physique; as a result, some kids stop playing too early because they may have skills but are simply too small.

[@advancedchiropractic667]

I am 53 and still play basketball with the 20 somethings. They all stand at the perimeter. No one moves. I set picks and they wave it off. Rarely do they pass inside and make a cut. Finally, they take crazy long 3 point shots. Different game then what I grew up with.

[@karmaahtv3424]

Hey man, hope you see this, but I actually wrote a paper for my senior year in college about this (back when Luka won ROY, Paskal MIP, Giannis MVP, Rudy Gobert DPOY)... loved this vid btw

[@SansaCarioca]

It's very interesting. Thank you

[@lucaspallaressieiro5157]

In Europe u are also playing against vets that try to be physical and trash talk the young players. And u have veternans in your team that help u giving advice if how to face different tipes of deffence and give advice off the court like how to face long travels or how to manager presure. They have have top level coaches and if they shot a step back three in a competitive game and they miss it they got benched.

[@rimimimimimimimim4170]

I think it’s more that Basketball is getting more and more popular in Europe and with the euro league being a completely different league to the nba where so much is in the coach and they can lose their job easily if the team isn’t playing well, coaches don’t let their players do a lot of the things done in the NBA and make them play winning basketball, so I think it might just be the culture of coaches and coaching because of the euro league where it isn’t as much of a star player league and a lot of teams play team basketball and it’s up to the coaches to get the best out of the team so instead of just trying to get the best players in Europe it’s a lot of developing your players the best and coaching them the best, obviously that’s the euro league and it’s not the same in lower level basketball, but still coaches who use to play higher level basketball will coach how their coaches taught them

[@panoskakkavas4022]

Basketball has been prevelant in Europe for the past 37 years or so . The reason the Euroleague has boomed in popularity outside of Europe is mostly because of the internet and people start to lean their harsh judge of European Basketball since they get way too many examples mostly of the defensive plays presented to the fans which , at the same time , firmly expose the weaknesses of many top NBA stars . As far as the coaches go , yeah , it's pretty much an one man dictatorship on the bench since they're forced in active participation into the game ( seriously , if the coach loses their cool at any point , it's means trouble ) .

[@rimimimimimimimim4170]

@@panoskakkavas4022 yeah mistake from me basketball has been around in Europe for a while, but it does seem like NBA scouts are more interested in foreign players than ever before, and are actively looking to scout foreign players from across the world but Europe especially instead of just trying to get the best American players, leading to more and more European players being drafted into the NBA.

[@foxskyful]

Please dont think anymore

[@hidajetsejdic4270]

@@panoskakkavas4022 Americans think nobody played basketball before, like the “rims in the hoods” don’t exist in Europe… It’s typical arrogance and ignorance… Europeans are better educated in basketball, it’s not one men game in Europe, it’s a team game. That’s why Luka, Giannis and many more guys say that is harder to play in Europe… Luka or Jokić can’t shoot 30+ every game in Europe, no way!

[@panoskakkavas4022]

@@hidajetsejdic4270 Which is true . The biggest difference is that in the FIBA we don't play with defensive 3 secs and handchecking is firmly encouraged . Thus , defenses are tougher and more provocative with less chance for penalization to anyone .

[@elizabethduke3804]

We’re overlooking the value of soccer (football) in these conversations. The value you gain in soccer whether in vision, how to manipulate with footwork, teamwork, angles and passing, etc.. these are are developed in soccer, whereas our sports in the US value individual dominance. In soccer, you rarely see individuals dribble passed multiple defenders and score on their own - they have to work with their teammates and manipulate their opponents and the game. This is exactly what you see Doncic, Jokic, and others doing daily.

[@soldyD]

Remember, basketball is a team sport, not an individual sport

[@renemubuntu6707]

I been watching nba constantly for the last 10 years.everything you said has been more and more evident since 2k17 .younger Americans players are easily getting injured and play with lower Iq on nba floor in contrast to before.A great example is Rj Hampton whom was a superstar in high-school. I thought he would become at least nba all star .but when he on nba floor ,he lacks good decision making .constantly making turnovers

[@ga4rfc9]

Watching Euroleague and NBA is like night and day. Even in the pros there is a lot more emphasis in the NBA on iso ball with the superstar on the team having high usage and bearing the load of the offence. In Europe it is much more team focused and they will pass the ball and move constantly on offence until they find the right play. They often play full court defence. They draw up more specific plays. The NBA is obviously levels above in terms of the skills of the players so there are a lot more highlight worthy moments.

[@stuksy4321]

so true, what a good video. Also, old timers (not necessarily college or pros only) in the US who grew up with drills like running lines, coaches throwing balls and kids having to dive after it, vicious blocking out drills, and being chewed out out like they were marine corp recruits, and/or couldn't have a sip of water until after practice (yeah, that was dangerous in hindsight). Having to run miles and do tons of push-ups when you screw up, well can understand this. Also, kids don't get coached through 3 or 4 years of college anymore, so they're fundamentals are often really really bad, including their mental toughness (obviously not all of them ).

[@kavindra1977]

It's true as a european hooper in the 90's, I had my playing time and made a lot of progresses because, all of us were trained equally and given a chance. I was seldom on the bench and played against grown men at training and on playgrounds too; developing many skills, tactics, passing, different type of shooting, a sense of humility, of course some show time too. Plus we had a great variety of sports practice for free or affordable prices for most of children not only a happy few, like tennis, soccer, handball, baseball, rugby, american football, tennis table, badminton, bowling, petanque, and other sports like fencing, swimming, climbing, running, cycling, martial arts, which encourage young players to develop and be happy. It's not like we can only play basketball and are prisoner in a ghetto; many young players have maybe a better social chance to succeed in life because of social care and the less inequities in the society which alas maybe is changing now.

[@zombie92110]

Not agree 100% but for the most part yes. I think the elephant in the room didn't get adress witch is that international basketball is getting better and better over the years as basketball becomes a more popular game around the world. That the natural curve of a sport that is becoming global. The competition just goes tougher when everybody start taking the game seriously and investing in it to improve their players. I wouldn't be surprised to see in that current decade a All star game when more than half of the player are international and/or team USA not winning gold medal.

[@Londronable]

Bingo. Nobody is surprised the best football players don't come from one country. Make a best 11 and you could probably argue a best 11 of 11 nationalities.

[@micahatkins5286]

The truth is they’re not taking over the NBA. We’re just seeing the growth of basketball as a major sport across the world. It’s become more & more popular since the days of Jordan and the Dream Team. AAU is a problem but it’s an overstated issue when it comes to the Increase in international players we see today. The pool is steadily growing. Teams look for talent which is, primarily, centered around potential, consistency, body types & athleticism. Structured basketball experience may help some better their chances, but it’s not something that’s responsible for the changes we’re seeing within the league’s diverse field of players. Teams still want the taller (lengthy) guys with the potential to be great or major contributors to their teams. Period. People tend to overthink things when looking at the rise of players like Luca, Giannis & Jokic. They’re just exceptional players who’ve made the most of their opportunity, which is now much greater on an international level. As it continues to grow we should expect the same in years to come. Besides, ….. do we ever here any discussions on the weakness and downsides of Euro development? Of course not, but maybe we should.

[@MHiggs-rx5zz]

...and we won't, because the narrative has been pushed that "proper" basketball isn't taught in the US anymore, and as a consequence, we're losing ground. I certainly have my issues with AAU, Adidas & Nike camps, and HS coaches who aren't certified to coach fundamental, team basketball...but let's not get it twisted...the bulk of the NBA talent still comes from the US despite these deficiencies. On both the junior and senior national team levels, the US wins more than it loses. The US is still sending players overseas who go on to have successful careers. The rise of Doncic, Jokic and others is the inevitable result of the game going global following the Dream Team's debut 30 years ago. And I suspect that in the years to come more players from Latin America, Africa, the Caribbean, and Asia will also enter the league to ply their trade. The NBA hasn't become the England's Football Premiership yet, where the best players collectively aren't English. We'll see how demographics change in the next 20 years in the NBA.

[@ulilleper]

​@@MHiggs-rx5zz lol u just hate some white boys are showing up and doing damage. Cry more racist

[@Ok-oo2kh]

Exactly, finally someone with brain

[@greysonyu5626]

why do this man only got 91K sub? his video is good

[@andreasottohansen7338]

While from another sport, one of the biggest football stars from where i am from (Denmark), showed a similar thing. He is a massive deal here, but he didn't score loads of goals. Instead, his skills were in setting up goals, which could be seen in the statistics

[@saucycooper6886]

I think a lot of it has to do with the way that sports are run, high school sports are common in America where as in Europe they are separate, club teams are a much better way to develop talent from a younger age

[@bradleylovej]

What's funny is, AAU is our version of club teams. Apparently we're just bad at the club system lol.

[@localhobo5362]

@@bradleylovej because European clubs are more invested to do a better job of developing a young talent. Kid get accepted into Barcelona youth programm at the age of 10 and 8 years later they will sign him to play for a pro team, if they took good care of him and did a good job developing his talents, they are happy, player happy. AAU doesnt care what will happen to a player after he is out.

[@Smido83]

I think you are 85% right. But the 15% missing is professionalism. There is real money in basketball in Europe over the last 10-15 years. Trainers Physicians aso aso. All bigger clubs have real money behind them now. European players were allways skilled, but they did lack the physicality and mindset. I am pretty sure a Bargnani or even Darko Miličić would fit way better, had they gone through the modern professional youth system.

[@filipmilosevicpavicic5307]

Mindset???????? Europans have 10x better mindset than americans

[@Smido83]

@@filipmilosevicpavicic5307 Mindset of dedicating everything early on... Take Dirk for example. He nearly didnt sign up for the draft cause he wanted to get an apprenticeship and go to the army... he played a lot of different sports and wasnt focussed on Basketball as a profession at a young age. Hence why he had huge problems in his first season. If it wasnt for Donnie and Nash who helped him a lot, he couldve easily been another failed european talent in the 90's early 2000... If he was drafted by another club, not sure he would even be a NBA player for more then a couple of years. Now look at Luka. He trained professionally since age 13. Dedicating everything to be the best player possible. Same with Jokic. When he choosed basketball, it was only Basketball and nothing else. Thats what I mean. Talented american kids do the same thing for decades. European players were allways skilled. But now they also have the 100% dedication early on, cause even youth leagues are highly professional. They werent 20 or 30 years ago, cause the clubs just didnt have any money. Exception was the east block... but thats a different story how they treated talentend kids.

[@nenadjovanovic4780]

Great breakdown!

[@Chico_Tee99]

I'm not gonna lie, this was a great video bro. Keep it up

[@gountzas]

I miss the era when basketball had players that were doing all the dirty work defensively. All we see now is crazy paced basketball games and teams trying to catch the score of the other team, with just a little defense

[@milikas]

Yeah, that’s a great discussion. I feel like americans are looking just for how athletic player is, how many 3 he can shoot, but everyone forget that the best players make others better, with the high basketball IQ, passes, being efficient on both ends on the floor, that’s what europe is teaching, to play as a team, not to make individual show.

[@luizmatte4345]

Americans think basketball = hurr durr jumping and dunking Team sports are always played with your brain, physicality is never gonna be as important as your IQ, never...

[@Nini-kc5ss]

@@luizmatte4345 what is this take??

[@luizmatte4345]

@@Nini-kc5ss Correct Or are you gonna tell me the average american basketball fan i.e. casual, doesn't think dunking is what makes a player great?

[@Nini-kc5ss]

@@luizmatte4345 nah bruh even as a casual people know the basics. Its a very popular sport here compared to europe so I don’t understand your take.

[@kurtyoung2599]

Good break down!

[@hervedavidh4117]

You are spot on !

[@nogins]

What the NBA ought to do is expand upon the G-League into the amatures ranks. Let me give an example: Westchester Knicks [Over 20] Major Junior Knicks [16-19] Knicks U16 [15-16] Knicks U14 [13-14] Knicks U12 [11-12] Knicks U10 [9-10] Major Junior is the primary stepping stone to either the NBA and/or College, and is only accessible by way of the Amature or Overage draft. In this system, the average College freshman is 20 years old. But most of the best talent is entering the NBA at 18, or go going back and forth between the NBA and Major Junior. As in this system, standout players are recognized early, as in Europe.

[@Cactuarbomb]

I think a major factor in the ability of European's to make better choices and understand where they're supposed to be at all times is interlinked with soccer being the number 1 sport in those countries, another sport that has a high focus on those sorts of skills and thought processes.

[@Arkansya]

We learn these sports as "team first" more than "show off tour talent"

[@oscaralegre3683]

@@Arkansya guess what. Argentina is the World soccer champion.

[@epicmarschmallow5049]

​@@oscaralegre3683 They're also the only non-european team to win in 20 years and did it on the back of a record numbers of penalties at the most openly corrupt event in history

[@oscaralegre3683]

@@epicmarschmallow5049 Brazil 5 World cups. Argentina 3 and Uruguay 2.

[@pascualmartinez9702]

@@oscaralegre3683 this is not a soccer video and most good argentinian players play on Europe

[@Cocosmatte]

I'm from germany and I'm playing basketball in the highest League and I really need to say it's way harder to score in europ basketball cause all people play full Court defense and more physical plays are allowed .Handchecking and more.