Willie Cauley-Stein did not step on an NBA court last season. The Rockets invited him to training camp, waived him before the season started, then spent most of the year in the G-League. He signed two 10-day contracts with Houston and ended the season on their active roster. He will head to Italy this season and play for Openjobmetis Varese.
Cauley-Stein is going to Europe by choice because he prefers the style of play, he said to the media after arriving in Italy, through Sportando.
Here in Varese, however, I must say that I have found a good organization and strong teammates, I am very happy. I chose to come to Europe because of the more ‘tactical’ way of playing compared to the 1vs1 basketball played today in the NBA, which is conditioned by the players’ desire to make personal statistics. Here in Europe every game and every ball is important, unlike in the NBA where all 82 games are equal.”
You could say that it’s Cauley-Stein teasing the fans (and media) of his new team), or talk about how one thing we do as humans is adapt and think about the situation we’re in. – whether we like it or not – is best for us. One thing is certain: Cauley-Stein has supporters for her position.
Here are my three quick thoughts on this:
1) Every game in Europe is more important than 82 in the NBA? Cauley-Stein makes the case for shortening the NBA regular season. He argues that scarcity adds value to each game (similar to how each college or pro football game is more important because there are fewer of them), so the NBA and the owners won’t give up the money. in fewer games.
2) The European game differs from the NBA version in part because of the rules. We saw this in the World Cup, where the lack of any illegal defensive rules – especially a defensive 3-second rule – changed the defenses, and that changed how the -attack on breaches of that defense. Size and bulk are more important than in the NBA game, where agility and shooting are emphasized. Fans and players may prefer one style over the other, but they are both tactical – an NBA spread pick-and-roll is a tactical choice. Isolating an elite player is a tactical choice. Which involves…
3) There are better athletes in the NBA, and this is a good tactic to free them from isolation. There are amazing basketball players in Europe, but the athleticism in the NBA is on another level. To use elite names, if you have Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Damian Lillard, DeMar DeRozan, Kyrie Irving or Luka Doncic, then going 1-on-1 with them is good basketball (they are all more than a points per possession of isolations at the end. period). James Harden has thrived alone for years and is still effective at it.
Better athleticism in the NBA means more players who are able to get to the rim or create space for their own shot, and if they are efficient at it then it is wise to get them alone or simply pick-and-roll actions. It’s been that way since before Michael Jordan was in the NBA, and that hasn’t changed.