Dirk is Great, But Let's Take it Easy

The Dallas Mavericks are champions of the basketball world! They defeated the evil Miami Heat in 6 games to take the 2011 title on Miami's own floor! Dirk Nowtizki led a team of role players against a team with 2 and a half superstars and came out victorious! Dirk is the best scorer in the league and the best closer in the league! He should have been the league MVP! He's a top 15 player of all time!

Wait... what?

Are people listening to what they are saying? Does that last bit sound right? Let's look into it.

Before the playoffs if you were to take a poll of reasonably educated NBA fans where would Dirk rank? I personally would probably have him between 25 and 30, and I think the general population would probably have him around there or possibly slightly lower. Now what did he do in the playoffs to warrant the huge bump in the rankings...

He posted a PER of 25.2. A very good mark to be sure, a full 1.5 points better than Lebron James, and only 1.1 below Dwyane Wade. But wait, was this PER (which does a decent job of summarizing offensive production while factoring in pace and minutes played) affecting the huge jump in how people ranked him? I don't think so. He topped his 25.2 mark in 5 previous playoffs, with marks of 27.5, 26.8, 26.3, 28.4, and 28.3 in '04, '06, '08, '09, and '10 respectively. Now with the exception of 2006 (reached finals, 23 games total) and 2009 (second round, 10 games total), the samples were all rather small, but it looks from that data that Dirk did not exactly reach some new level in these playoffs. In fact, Dirk significantly outperformed this PER's in each of the past 2 years, so we shouldn't have been surprised by how he played this postseason. For the record Dirk also had 4 years where he had a PER higher than 25.2 in the regular season, so we have seen him play at this level for quite some time.

Now of course, PER isn't the all determining stat. So let's look at some other numbers. Dirk posted a stellar TS% of 60.9% in the playoffs, largely due to an absurd 175/186 performance from the free throw line. However, Dirk significantly outperformed that mark in the previous 2 playoffs, with marks of 63.5% and 64.3%. He had a reasonable EFG% of 51.4%, but once again he achieved higher marks the previous 2 years, and also in 2003. So yes Dirk definitely shot better than he normally has in the playoffs in his career, but he actually took a step backward from recent playoffs.

What about raw numbers? His 27.7 points per game was the second best mark of his career, topped only by his 28.4 in 2002. So good for him. However his 8.1 rebounds per game tied for the lowest mark in his career, and was far below his career playoff rebounding average of 10.4. Now some of that is clearly due to finally having a solid rebounding center in Chandler beside him, but it's still not an overly impressive performance. Also, despite having probably the best shooting supporting cast of his career, he averaged only 2.5 assists per game, which is right around his career playoff average, and worse than his numbers in his previous 3 playoffs.

Now of course people will say “Who cares how great he was playing in the first round in past years, it's all about what you do in the finals!”. Alright then, let's look at the finals. 26 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2 assists, under a block and a steal, 41.6% from the field, 36.8% from 3, almost 3 turnovers per game. What about those numbers screams “Oh my god Dirk is amazing!”?. Nothing. Now he was truly special from the free throw line, shooting 45 for 46. He grabbed only 2 offensive rebounds all series, compared to 14 by teammate Shawn Marion and 24 by Tyson Chandler. Heck Barea doubled his offensive rebound output. And yes, he closed some games out, namely game 6, when he went 5-6 in the last quarter to seal the ring, but people will conveniently ignore that Terry carried the Mavs for the first 3 quarters of the biggest game of the year while Dirk was busy going 4-21. Really, Dirk was the deserving Finals MVP, but was he even the best player, with Wade going for 26.5/7/5.2 with 1.5 steals, 1.5 blocks on a stellar 55% shooting while averaging slightly fewer turnovers and having a much bigger defensive impact? I don't think so.

Now, while coming up huge in the finals would be nice, it's not really necessary. Dirk's first 3 rounds were truly spectacular at times. The number of comebacks he led was astounding. His shooting in game 1 of the WCF was legendary. He came up clutch time and time again in these playoffs, as he has done for years. If there is one reason that people think so much more highly of Dirk, it's because this postseason helped erase the (entirely false) notion that he is a choker.

And this leads to the next problem; our society's tendency to associate the success of a team with the performance of the individual. For Dirk, a championship validates every thing he has worked hard for, it vanquishes the demons left over from that horrible loss in '06. For us, a championship validates nothing. Or at least, that's how it should be. Dirk didn't win the title, the Mavericks did. Was Dirk extremely important? Of course he was. But there is no way they win the series without the enormous contributions of Jason Terry (who probably hit more clutch shots than Dirk in the finals), Tyson Chandler (who seemed to outrebound the entire Miami team at times), Jason Kidd (who hit so many huge threes at the most crucial times), Shawn Marion (who forced the league's best player to have his worst series in years), JJ Barea (who carved up Miami's D despite all logic that would tell us that's impossible), Deshawn Stevenson and more. Heck Brian Cardinal was huge in game 6. So yes Dirk was huge, and he, along with his teammates, earned this title. But here's the ridiculous logic people use. Dirk played pretty well in the finals, he got great help, and they win, so now Dirk is a true champion, a winner, and all those other great things. This is what happened. Now suppose Dirk plays at the same level, but now suppose Bosh shot 7-16 instead of 4-16 in game 2, which we all know he was fully capable of doing since he was missing open shots, and now game 2 is a 4 point win for Miami instead of a 2 point win for Dallas. Now suppose Terry doesn't catch fire in the first half of game 6. With Dirk shooting 1-12 the Mavs are probably in a 10 or 15 point hole and might never recover. And just like that, the Larry O'Brien trophy is headed East.

Now obviously that is a purely hypothetical situation, and far from reality. But did Dirk's impact on the game change in either scenario? No, it did not. Yet the situation changed completely, and possibly the winner of the series. Yet one scenario results in Dirk being thought of as a clutch hero and the other as an unreliable choker? I fail to see the logic behind that reasoning.

It's a flaw in our general way of thinking, and the media doesn't help. What sounds like a better story? “Dirk has a solid series as Mavs beat the Heat”, or “Dirk leads Mavs over Big 3 and cements his legacy”? It's not a contest, the second sounds better, and is also a much easier story to write. In today's world stories must be catchy, and to do that writers often tend to produce material that is usually exaggerated, and frankly quite often wrong.

So those statements at the beginning of the post (Dirk is the best scorer in the league and the best closer in the league! He should have been the league MVP! He's a top 15 player of all time!), are all statements I have heard several times since the Mavericks won the title. Let's quickly examine each.

First off, best scorer. Per 36 minutes he average 24 points on a True Shooting Percentage of 61.2%.. Very good numbers. He does have a case for this one, although Durant, Melo (the most versatile scorer), and Lebron all have a good argument as well.

Best closer? I think he probably wins this one. There are other players with an argument, but when you consider the stats, and look at how dominant Dallas becomes down the stretch because of his play, I'm not sure anyone beats him out, at least not for this year.

League MVP? Now this is where is starts getting silly. Dirk was not the league MVP. Granted, he probably deserved better than the 6^th place finish he got. I feel he was certainly more valuable than Kobe, and probably more so than Durant too. But no he was not the league MVP. He did not mean more to his team this year than Dwight Howard or Lebron James, both of whom deserved it more than Derrick Rose, but that's an argument that has been addressed many times (for the record I think Dwight was the MVP). Dirk had a very good season, and I'm not a “stats tell the whole story” guy by any stretch, but 23 points and 7 rebounds per game with average defense does not an MVP make when Dwight is averaging 23 and 14 on 60% shooting with incredible defense, or when Lebron is being... well Lebron. Dirk had a very good regular season, and a great playoffs, but this is just a case of people placing too much value on the results of the playoffs. Dirk was not the regular season MVP.

And finally... Dirk is a top 15 player of all time.

Wait...

Hold up...

Are you serious?

WHERE DID THIS COME FROM?

Look I'm a Dirk fan, I've been one since around 2001. I defended his performance against the Warriors in 2007. I defended him when people said he was mentally or physically soft, when the reality was that getting beat by the Spurs isn't something that warrants excuses. I defended him when people said his defense was horrible, or that he was a choker...

But I will not defend this. Dirk is not a top 15 all time player. He's great, but here's a quick list (in no real order).

MJ, Magic, Bird, Kareem, Wilt, Russell, Duncan, Oscar, West, Baylor, Olajuwon, Garnett, Shaq, Kobe, Moses, Barkley, Erving, Havlicek Stockton, Isiah.

That's 20, quite easily. Even if you don't agree with all 20, there are numerous other arguable ones, such as Karl Malone, Pippen, Walton, Iverson, Nash, Pettit, Reed, Ewing, Drexler, Mikan, Robinson, Kidd, Cousy, and screw it, Lebron. Even if you throw out the old guys because, let's face it, they just weren't as good at basketball, there are still easily 15 guys who are better than Dirk. And you know what, there's more that I'm forgetting.

Dirk is terrific, he's a transcendent scorer, a dependable clutch player, and by all accounts a beloved teammate. But he lacks certain things that most of those players in that upper echelon possess, such as a dominant impact on the defensive end. Or some other skill to fall back on when his shot isn't falling (in game 6, when he was busy going 4-21 through 3 quarters, what else was Dirk doing to try to impact the game? Not a whole lot). He's not a great rebounder for his size (I don't care how far away he is from the basket during the offense, no 7 footer should only grab 2 offensive rebounds in a 6 game series). He's an incredible player, but to get into that top 15 or so players of all time, you need to be nearly perfect. Dirk is not.

It will calm down in a few years. People will look back on this year's playoffs, and they will remember that Dirk was consistently cool under pressure, that he delivered when they needed him, that he submitted a few truly memorable performances, and that he found redemption. And we will think back, and compare it to the other great runs in history, and realize that while Dirk was special, in the grand scheme of things it wasn't as magical as it seems in the moment. And nobody except the most die hard of Dirk fans will still be making these ridiculous claims.

Unless of course, he does it again. And if there's one thing we've learned in these playoffs, it's that Dirk is fully capable of proving people wrong.

What Not To Tweet: By Paul Pierce

Pierce Needs To Be Careful Next 
Time He Puts His Fingers On His Bird

Those are the ominous words tweeted by Paul Pierce after the Boston Celtics beat the Miami Heat twice to start their 2010-2011 season. I smelled trouble. People jumped right on the hate wagon and thought it was 'so hilarious.' I could not understand for the life of me why Paul Pierce wanted to start a feud with the best player alive or why he chose open and dis-respectful mocking to publicly fire shots at Lebron.

Not just a shot at Lebron. Also an indirect hit on the SS Wade as their team had been dealing with intense hate all summer. Did he forget that Wade is arguably the second best player alive: the same rules apply? The mud slung in the Heat's general direction from fans and the media was unprecedented. And Pierce wanted to join in? I have a few questions I'd like to ask...

Why?

Why kick a fellow player who's down? Every word of Lebron's was being dissected under a media scalpel, a knife Pierce knows well. There's a code most players seem to follow (and/or should follow) that stipulates NBA players and media members are on opposite teams. You shouldn't join in with your opponent to attack one of your own.

How Do You Gut Punch A Man Like This?
He Has A Car Bed

Therein lies the irony. Pierce is all too familiar with negative press. Years at the helm of a laughing stock in Boston put him on the receiving end of scorn, blame and shame. Pierce isn't better then Lebron either. He demanded a trade that got pre-empted by the arrival of Ray Allen and KG. The difference was the Cavs had destroyed their cap and lacked assets, could not right the ship and lost their star player.

So little class. A stomach punch in the midst of the messiest sports divorce in history... while smugly happily married after years on the rocks? Lebron was emotionally down so Pierce pushed his face in the dirt. My father taught me at a young age, mocking others hardship is classless.

That's the court of human decency. This is not Dr. Phil. So lets examine this on the court of hoop.

Did Pierce Believe He Was In Their Heads?

Why in Red's name would you want to take a cheap shot like this at the best player in the world? Someone who is by all counts flat out better at the game then you are. Why take a cheap shot at the second best player in the world and best friend on his team? Not even to mention, take a cheap shot at one of the best power forwards in the league who's also on that team.

Wade/James have a history of their seasons ending to a massively stacked Celtics team. It's been amplified by a massive fall from grace. Both James and Wade were media darlings. James especially had become a media villain. The fuel has been set all around these two teams. Why give Lebron a match? Why go out of your way to provide extra motivation to a guy who's so damn good and has so much to prove? It's like teasing a ravenous dog with a pork chop.

They had the talent to beat Miami. They didn't have the right attitude. Lebron had the right attitude though, and he used it to eviscerate them out of the series in 5 games. Over-confidence in your own ability, and not respecting your opponent is always a recipe for disaster. It makes arrogance pie. If Pierce really did think he was in their heads, it back fired in the grandest of fashion.

Did The Britches Fit?

The FMVP Tropy: Something Else That Didn't Fit

Take a look at those first two games. Was this over-confidence justified? Did Pierce put on a spectacular show? He was mostly a spot up shooter and that had a lot to do with Lebron's smothering D.

In game 1, of his 4 makes, 3 were 3 pointers. Rondo dominated with 17 dimes and Ray Allen went 5/8 from 3. Game 2 was very much a repeat. Pierce scored 6 more points. Pierce was still totally unable to prevent Lebron from a 35 point triple double (-1 dime) and BBQing the Celtics 20 point lead on a 4'th quarter spit for the second time.

Despite the Celtics being up 20 points for the vast majority of both games, Bosh playing terribly, Wade playing hurt and being invisible, despite all these things the Heat were down by a mere basket with less then a minute left. Twice. Lebron took over, he had an answer for Rondo and slowed him down. The Celtics had no answer for James. So why when you were lucky to hang on twice would you want to slap a guy like that in the face once?

Did The Tweet Cost The Celtics?

Close To PP: Consider This
Motivational Gift For Next Season

People talk about the Perkins trade as being the turning point in the Celtics season... perhaps their last chance to win another championship. I don't think this is true. No one will talk about it, but it was the tweet. Not merely 140 charterers but everything each letter represented in their approach to this season and the new look Heat.

Upon reading Pierce's tweet I thought the Celtics were in trouble. In sports you can often see story arcs taking off long before they gain altitude. What goes up, must come down, and Paul Pierce threw his blatant mockery as high as he could for the world to see. While he was looking up at it, he participated in a 7 game series with the Heat, and it landed right back in his face at the end of game 5.

The true turning point came long before the trade deadline. It came after game 9 of 82. Pierce thought he could make some headlines at Lebron's expense and took a cheap shot. Instead of a few laughs, he made it personal and lacked the talent to compete on that level. Mid-thirties post-prime players should all learn not to make it personal with guys in their prime.

I'm sure Pierce soon forgot about it as he moved on to Memphis. I can assure you, Lebron did not forget. I'm sure he thought about it repeatedly while practising his jumpers and lifting weights. Something in me knew the Celtics weren't going to win when I read the missive. I would not be surprised if the tweet is taped to a mirror in the Heat locker room. Realistically, I'd be surprised if it's not. And that's The Truth.

Raptor Truth: 2009-2010 Preview

Raaarrrr!!! How Well Do Dino-Bots, And The Raptors, Function In This Winter's Canadian Climate?

Out of the off season slumber awakes a sleeping giant... Full Court Pest is back to start the season off with a full preview of the Home Country (in lieu of town) Toronto Raptors. The Raps have had the most active off-season of any team in the NBA and stand at a cross roads with regard to Chris Bosh and thus the future direction of the franchise.

Lets take a peek at the full roster as it stands today:

NUM	PLAYER	POS	HT	WT	DOB	FROM	YRS	NUM
3	Marcus Banks	G	6-2	205	11/19/1981	Nevada-Las Vegas	6	3
7	Andrea Bargnani	C-F	7-0	250	10/26/1985	Rome, Italy	3	7
0	Marco Belinelli	G	6-5	200	03/25/1986	Bologna, Italy	2	0
4	Chris Bosh	F	6-10	230	03/24/1984	Georgia Tech	6	4
8	Jose Calderon	G	6-3	210	09/28/1981	Villanueva de la Serena, Spain	4	8
10	DeMar DeRozan	G-F	6-7	220	08/07/1989	USC	R	10
5	Quincy Douby	G	6-3	175	05/16/1984	Rutgers	3	5
30	Reggie Evans	F	6-8	245	05/18/1980	Iowa	7	30
1	Jarrett Jack	G	6-3	197	10/28/1983	Georgia Tech	4	1
15	Amir Johnson	F	6-9	210	05/01/1987	Westchester HS (Los Angeles, CA)	4	15
12	Rasho Nesterovic	C	7-0	255	05/30/1976	Ljubljana, Slovenia	11	12
13	Patrick O'Bryant	C	7-0	250	06/20/1986	Bradley	3	13
26	Hedo Turkoglu	F	6-10	220	03/19/1979	Istanbul, Turkey	9	26
24	Sonny Weems	G-F	6-6	203	07/08/1986	Arkansas	1	24
21	Antoine Wright	G-F	6-7	215	02/06/1984	Texas A&M	4	21

You Think I'm Joking??? Sadly, I'm not. Go Huckabee! ;0
Obviously, Toronto has prudently been sticking to it's somewhat unofficial plan of signing Euro players. Something that makes undeniable sense to us at Full Court Pest. When Euro players and their families will enjoy Toronto, the most multi-cultural city in the world, and many American players (and people) believe our government buildings are under igloos, creating a Euro haven means free agents become easier to sign and Toronto becomes the ideal destination for the fastest growing group of ballers on the planet. Create a system that favors skill players and you've suddenly turned an unattractive US sell into the first place Euro's want to play.

So where does that leave us with Chris Bosh? (Note: CB4 is from Texas, about as non-euro as planet earth gets) He does not seem happy with the past few seasons disappointments but this season promises a much different outlook as the first full season without Sam Mitchell running the team. Unfortunately, due to Mitchell winning the COY award 2 years ago, his firing didn't actually happen till last year. Success oddly can sometimes castrate actual progress. Sometimes Sam Mitchel's face oddly resembles a knife in a Jewish delivery room. At least it was a success with the now thankfully defunct, www.firesammitchell.com blog.



Apologies For The Announcer, Maybe The Worst In The League, But This Game Shows The Flashes That Bargnani Was Picked #1 For, He's A 7 Footer Who CAN Take Over A Game
In lock step with that firing Andrea Bargnani picked up where his rookie campaign, of 06-07, left off. A developing big showing that his skills can translate to wins. Bargnani's production appears to have been directly linked to the coaching/freedom he received. Unfortunately this much reported hole in the post which they've wasted many assets trying to fill with the likes of Marion and Jermaine O'Neal now appears self-imposed. Bargnani's flashes went from moments in games, to scoring 20 PPG on + 50% shooting from 3 for the entire month of March. Bargnani's highly developed skills started taking over late season games which should continue now that he has his footing. He's not all offense however as he also averaged well over a block a game.

The nice shooting touch will work well to stretch the defense with new swing man Hedo Turkaloo. He proved Toronto's Euro Destination strategy was a winner when he reneged on an agreement with Portland after Hedo and his wife realized what living outside of the States and in Toronto would mean to them culturally. While Turk is a notoriously poor defender he's yet another long player with plenty of range. Hedo has also learned to close out big games in his Orlando years becoming a match up nightmare with Rashard Lewis. Combined with Bargnani and Bosh I can't see any way of defending 3 bigs over 6'10" who are all mobile, can take you inside, and shoot from the perimeter. 5 through 3, Toronto will be an absolute match up nightmare for any team in this league to defend much like the Magic were with Hedo last year.


We Know Why You Choose Toronto Over Portland, Mmmm... FCP Salutes, The Pride Of Turkey, The Kebab!
Orlando's real problem (who shouldn't have come close to challenging the Cavs let alone win that series) was the lack of a true point who could run the team. They were offensively broken, especially after Nelson got hurt, as their strategy down the stretch was to throw it to a scorer and see if they could get it in the hole. Dwight literally was jumping up and down waving his hands while open in the post as swing players (usually Hedo) were trying to split/collapse defenses on the perimeter. This will not be an issue in Toronto as they have about as pure a point guard as humanly possible.

If Jose Calderon was Heroin, the Toronto Raptors would be awaking with a massive hypodermic needle sticking out of a lipstick red dot on their chest after winning a Twist Contest. They'd also crush eyeballs under their toes in Tarantino's later kung-fu films. With his shot improving every year and last year's season being the all time best free throw season in history (at 98.1%) Calderon threatens to improve even more as he pulls his game together and is the core to Toronto's offense. With a system built around him any skilled player can be thrust into the mix as he facilitates the offense. He's not Steve Nash yet, but has yet to only approach his potential.



Rock... Meet "The People's Caretaker"
Sporting by far the league's best assist/turnover ratio at 4.23 no one takes care of the ball better. Two seasons ago, he had an unheard of, ridiculous, insane, 71-1 assist/turnover ration for the last month of the season. That's considering the raps were playing in a system not built around his special handling/passing skills and without nearly the offensive firepower while the team was playing with 0 emotion. With the organization stating (and acting) on promises to play a run/gun style this year, expect Calderon to start turning heads. For those of us paying attention, we already know he's playing at an all star level and is a serious contender to lead the league in assists if things go well.

When Calderon is not on the floor TO has picked up Jarret Jack as a more then adequate backup. Jack has spent his career as a cusp starter. He's not going to take a team over the top, but he's also not going to sink you when your point or shooting guard need to get off the floor for a stretch. On his best nights, he will take you over the top and win a game for you. That's everything you want in a reserve.

Rounding out the bench at the 2 guard spot is Marco Belineli. While slightly overlooked on the dysfunctional Nellie run Warriors, his second season saw marked overall improvement towards his very real potential as a solid player in the NBA. An accomplishment when playing behind Corey Maggettee, Jamal Crawford and Monta Ellis: 3 players who have never taken a shot they didn't like.

Straight Off The Streets Of C P T, Demar Derozen Was A Certified Draft StealOther moves have brought Rasho Nesterovic and Marcus Banks to the fold. While both players have something to offer neither can be described as potential impact players. Demar Derozen, while a rookie, could be seen as a steal at 9'th in this, one of the worst drafts in memory. Anyone who watched him play at USC knows he plays with heart, not ego, and works hard... always. Athletic scoring, rebounding and defense all seem to come naturally to him without taking away from his teammates or the system he's playing in. Solid starter on a good team will come very soon to his promising young career as a player with the potential to help off the bench right now. After Summer League, ESPN's David Thorpe ranked him 4'th out of all rookies and claimed he was most impressed by Demarr from the whole summer.

So whats the final ingredient to this team? Well known in Canadian hoops circles, but little known outside them, is interim made permanent coach, Jay Triano. Is he the kind of guy to take this team of gunners and make them run? A resounding YES from Full Court Pest! It was playing for Triano on the Canadian Olympic Team where Steve Nash got his groove back before becoming elite in Dallas resulting in Canada's best ever international finish in the Olympics. Triano is a Canadian legend in his own right who in all circumstances has gained and held a strong respect from his players as seen as Bargnani's near instantaneous resurgence under Triano last season. His mild tempered demeanor fits with the European talent on his team. With the respect of Coach K, and legit all-time Canadian hero Terry Fox, Triano seems to be the home town perfect fit for Toronto's players as well as it's dedicated fan base.

This leaves us with one player. Bosh. Is Chris Bosh really important to the Raptors now? Personally, I have never thought of Bosh as a franchise player type. I love his game, but I'm not sure if he's really a Duncan type of player. I'm sure the Raptors would be more then happy if he wanted to re-sign. If he does not, I wouldn't lose much sleep and seek a trade partner ASAP. The Raptors are a young, energetic, talented team. If they can resist the allure of trying to win right now and make steady moves contention is just around the corner.

Does Chris Bosh Still Fit In Here? We Love Him, But He's Got To Sort Out What He Wants
So decide now. If Bosh wants to stay, build around him. If he does not want to negotiate to stay by the all star break, make a splash and trade him for someone who does want to stay and join the Raptors talented young core of skill players. Would trading Bosh for Jeff Green and some of OK City's high draft picks be a bad idea? What about for the freakish Anthony Randolph and Stephen Curry? Would Cuban listen to a Bosh for Dirk trade? One thing is certain: Bosh is coveted in this league. His value will never be higher and legit building blocks could be obtained for him if he's no longer interested in being that block himself.

Its quite possible this is the year the Raptors turn it around. By finally playing small and running Bosh's mobility, along with the new arrivals, and Bargnani's resurgence, Toronto could be on the verge of becoming the league's next great offensive team. Whenever you take 3 players capable of scoring 20 PPG from anywhere on the court and put them on a team with a great point guard, athletic role players and a coach committed to playing to his team's strengths, big points is not only possible, but should become the norm with a concept that has frankly never truly been tried in the pro ranks.

Consider how little it would take to get Darko Milicic who excelled in Euro-play as a teenager... would his potential finally reach fruition when surrounded with others who grew up on the same courts as he did? Its astounding that no NBA teams have sincerely tried to copy the Euro model as other sports are trending towards finnese instead of force. European skill players now dominate the yearly NHL scoring books as a similar example a few years ahead of hoop.

Europeans Are Hungry To Play NBA Ball, But They Don't Have A Complementary Home... Yet?
Impact European players like Ricky Rubio, Gasol, Calderon, Hedo and Dirk become more and more commonplace and the Raptors plan to use it's city's international status as a marketing tool to attract any non-US talent. Not only that, but it appears they are building a team concept geared to reduce the adjustment from international to NBA basketball. We've seen veritable NBA all-star teams look lost on the international stage vs skill teams of notorious nobody's from countries as small as Greece and Puerto Rico. Its almost surprising that it's taken this long for someone to realize that if Puerto Rico can embarrass Team USA, and Spain can hang with a legit NBA allstar team in international style game, what happens when you try the reverse? A veritable international all star team playing that same skill game in the NBA's house. The Toronto Raptors are poised to find out.