Nico Mannion reacts to Draymond Green punch, shows his gratitude to Milos Teodosic / News - Basketnews.com

Nico Mannion doesn't think Draymond Green and Jordan Poole's altercation will impact the Golden State Warriors chances to defend the NBA title.

On his way through the roughest time of his career, Nico Mannion had dinner with Milos Teodosic.

3-pointers this season

36%16,0Points made:16,0Accuracy:35,6%Place in standings:1Record max:16Record min:16Most made 3FGs:Stephen CurryTeamNBAStatisticsSchedule

20-year-old needed to talk.

Just a couple of months ago, he couldn't walk up and down stairs by himself. He went to the hospital at 65 kilos before getting diagnosed with a severe intestinal infection that forced him to heavy weight loss.

Mannion got his weight back with some time, but it wasn't the same. He felt slow and sluggish, barely touching the backboard when he returned to training.

Unsurprisingly, he couldn't find consistent minutes on Virtus rotation. Not when Virtus had Milos Teodosic, Marco Belinelli, Isaia Cordinier, Alessandro Pajola, and later Daniel Hackett on their backcourt.

"It's not like injury when you know you'll be back in four months. There was no guidebook. No rules on how to get back to 100% healthy. It was day by day process. Very frustrating at times," Mannion revealed in an interview with BasketNews.

"We had a loaded backcourt. And it wasn't like I was just stepping in minutes and could help when I could play. It was two different battles going on. Me trying to find myself and get back to who I was, and me trying to work my way to the lineup and find minutes where I could," Mannion explained.

Who was Mannion?

He was 17.7 points and four assists point guard in a surprising Tokyo Olympics qualifying tournament campaign when Italy eliminated the Serbs in Belgrade.

Already impacted by an infection, Mannion posted 12.5 points and 4.5 assists on average in Tokyo, including a 21-point and 7-assist performance vs. Australia.

Mannion needed somebody to guide him through his battles and turned to talk about life with a former EuroLeague champion and the MVP.

Draymond Green

Team:Golden State WarriorsPosition:PF, CAge:32Height:202 cmWeight:104 kgBirth place:Saginaw, United States of AmericaProfileNewsStatistics

"He's been nothing but positive with me. He helps me a lot of times. He's demanding, but also, he's just a great person who genuinely cares about you. He's been there for me," Nico Mannion spoke of Milos Teodosic.

"Last year was rough for me, and he was always helping me out, giving me little pointers. We had dinner a couple of times where we just talked about life. And things like that aren't seen a lot of time from teammates," Mannion added.

What was the main advice he got from Milos?

"The first thing he was teaching me was to be patient," Nico Mannion said in an interview with BasketNews.

"At that time last year, I was 20. He said he went through the same thing. In his first two years in the EuroLeague, he played 5 minutes per game. So him going through that, having similar experiences, we could bond over that," Mannion said.

"He has a different perspective. As you're going through it, you may not see the big picture. But somebody who has been through it can tell you how it played out and what they think. Little things like that, being patient, little pointers in basketball, details, but with the life stuff, he's been great about keeping and helping me be patient," Mannion explained.

"Because I wouldn't say I'm very patient. I want to play. I want it now," Mannion smiled.

Credit Euroleague Basketball vis GettyImages

Nico Mannion was privileged to go through some of the highest-quality basketball programs.

He had a one-and-done season in Arizona. Then he learned from Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and others at Golden State. Landed at a historical Virtus Bologna club coached by considerably GOAT of the FIBA national teams basketball Sergio Scariolo.

"It's funny because, in my eyes, they're two completely different players," Mannion spoke of Curry and Teodosic, two of the greatest point guards on both sides of the ocean.

"To me, Milos is the best passer I've ever seen. And Steph is one of the best players in the world and undoubtedly the best shooter in the world. Being around both of them was a blessing," Mannion explained.

"Steph taught me a lot. The thing I was super impressed about Steph was his work ethic. You see him, and you know he's one of the best players in the world. But seeing him every day, the morning after the game, where he's in the weight room by himself. Or after the practice, he's still in the gym an extra 30 minutes after everybody else. You see that, and you understand why he is so good and why he is who he is," Mannion praised Curry.

"With Milos, he's almost difficult to learn because it's so natural to him. And it doesn't come naturally to anybody else. For him, it comes so easily. He taught me a couple of things, just some passing tricks about spots and angles. He's a basketball genius. He makes it look so effortless. But I've been really blessed to learn from two of the greatest in this sport," Mannion concluded.

Credit AP - Scanpix

Mannion played just 30 games for the Warriors (4.1 PPG, 2.3 APG) but became close to the organization.

The Most Improved Player award nominee Jordan Poole became one of his closest friends in Golden State.

During his tenure with the Santa Cruz Warriors, he received texts from Draymond Green.

On the "Players Choice" podcast, Mannion explained that Green was a big-time trash talker at the early stage of the season and used to call out his teammates, pushing them to compete at 100%.

But when he saw the footage of Green punching Poole, he left nothing but surprised.

"It was definitely surprising. But I think things like that often happen in basketball. Guys are competitive. I don't know anything about it, but to me, it was surprising. But at the end of the day, they're professionals. They're going to handle it how they handle it. They still go out there and try to win games. The relationship, I'm sure, will be fine. They're grown men. Their job is to play basketball, and they will continue to do it," Mannion spoke of his former teammates.

He doesn't think it will impact the Warriors chances to defend the NBA title.

"Whether they win or lose, I don't think it depends on what happened. They are both professionals. They're paid a lot of money to play basketball. I think they'll put it aside. I'm sure the relationship will come back as well," Mannion analyzed.

Mannion said he had never experienced anything like that in his career.But he had some nice words about both Poole and Green.

"Obviously, you see the arguments, people pushing each other, getting at each other face. You see those at least every year. Guys have tempers and egos. But I've never witnessed something like that," Mannion started.

"But one thing I'll say, Draymond and Jordan are both great people. Great people. When I was there, Draymond was like one of my vets. When I was in the G League, he was texting me, calling me, and talking about the game. When I got back after the G League, he was side by side, helping me, giving me little pointers. And JP was one of my best friends. So... To me, it was a surprising situation, but I'm sure they will work it out," Mannion concluded.

Credit USA Today Sports - Scanpix

Mannion is also trying to find ways to work it out there in Bologna.

He's still scoreless in the EuroLeague after the first three games, but in three Italian league contests, he averaged 11.7 points on 50% 3-point shooting, 2.3 rebounds, and 3.3 assists.

"Thank God I feel great. Health-wise,I'm back to 100%. I put my weight back on. Finally, I feel like I'm moving well," Mannion said with relief.

"As much as it was physical, it was also a mental battle because I've been used to playing and feeling in a certain way my whole life. After Tokyo, I got sick and lost weight. As I started coming back healthy, it was super difficult. Mentally I already had a feeling about how I play and move, but physically I couldn't do it," Mannion explained.

"But now I feel great, and I want to thank the organization once again for having my back the whole time. Because when I got there, it was the lowest how it could have possibly been. And they were very patient with me. They helped me to get back to health. Something I'm very thankful for," Mannion emphasized.

Now it's all about patience for a young 21-year-old Italian point guard.

A full interview with Nico Mannion:

URBONUS podcast:

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