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Share on FacebookBy Jim Reilly
Brave New World
Having selected foreign-born players Yi Jianlian and Andrew Bogut with their last two first-round draft picks, the Milwaukee Bucks have fully embraced the emerging global influence in the NBA. But selecting players and coaching them are two different things. In the second chapter of Basketball: A Universal Language, by Truman Reed of Bucks.com, coaches Jim Todd, Brian James and Tony Brown discuss the challenge of reaching across cultural and international borders in the world of basketball.
"Sometimes communicating can be difficult, plus you know I'm from Boston, and I have that Boston accent," said Jim Todd. "So even some of the players who've spent their entire lives in the United States are going to have trouble understanding what I say sometimes. I'm speaking my own language as it is, and sometimes guys look at me like I'm from another planet!"
Brian James credits Basketball Without Borders as a key factor in improving his ability to communicate with international players. "My first day, I was trying to not only speak English, but use a lot of sign language, in terms of rebounding, and guarding, and footwork and things like that."
Tony Brown thinks an international background will benefit Milwaukee's prized rookie Yi Jianlian as he adjusts to the NBA. "From what I understand, his national team coach, who is from Lithuania, spoke English to most of the guys," said James. "I watched Yi play four of his five games in Las Vegas and I could tell by the way he was coached that he understands basketball. When the official would call traveling, or whatever, he knew exactly what was going on."
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