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Hall Of Famer Believes Giannis Antetokounmpo And Russell Westbrook Would Struggle In Europe: “They Don’t Play Defense In The NBA”
Former Boston Celtics big man and international star Dino Radja isn’t a fan of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Russell Westbrook when likening their games to the European basketball.
During an interview, the Hall of Famer made it clear that the two former MVPs would have a lot of trouble playing in Europe.
Via Nuggets Srbija, as transcribed by Basketball Network:
“They don’t play defense in the NBA, and you come to Europe with five guys who know what they are doing. They close your penetration; they don’t let you rebound in the offense … By chance, we played against Greece in the qualifications for the Olympic Games, and that was the tactic. Back then, Giannis was also a good player, he was not an MVP, but he was at the very top. Don’t let him penetrate, block him, and don’t let him receive the ball in the fastbreak. Everything else he gives, let him. He gave us four points.”
“To me, that Westbrook guy … Bring him to Barcelona, CSKA, or Barcelona and tell him to be the European champion … That has no chance of happening.”
Since entering the NBA, Giannis Antetokounmpo has compiled averages of 20.7 points, 9.1 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game on 53.0% shooting from the field. The Milwaukee Bucks superstar is a matchup nightmare who has nabbed several individual awards, including two prestigious MVP awards in back to back seasons.
Russell Westbrook, on the other hand, has done enough to be considered as one of the best players in the game today. He may not have the eye-catching team resume, but Westbrook is still a menace who has set and broken multiple historic records, and a player who will walk into the Hall of Fame when he it’s all said and done.
The question whether NBA players could thrive in Europe has been up for a while now. A ton of NBA fans may disagree with Dino Radja, but as a former player who has seen the best of both the NBA and European ball, the Hall of Famer is still a notable figure who’s entitled to his own opinion.
