Doc Rivers says European players are better prepared than US prospects / News - Basketnews.com

Rivers said the Europeans are better prepared because they practice more and play team basketball instead of having to show off playing multiple games in a single day.

Credit: AP Photo/Matt Slocum - Scanpix Credit AP Photo/Matt Slocum - Scanpix

Doc Rivers spent 14 seasons playing in the NBA. He was the head coach in the league for another 25 seasons. Now, he cautions the current US players.

Rivers sat down with NBA sportswriter Bill Simmons on his The Bill Simmons Podcast, where the now-former NBA coach said that the European prospects and European players overall come better prepared into the league compared to the American youngsters.

"These young American players better watch out because the European players are better players coming into the league, they're better prepared coming into the league. They're competitors, and a lot of our young players are not. They play six games in a day. They come into the league, and they want to put on a show," Rivers said.

"Kevin Garnett always told my story in the locker room because I would walk in every time we played in LA, every single time [I would say], 'This is not a show, this is a competition. Anybody here that wants to put on a show for the Hollywood actors, you're not playing tonight.'"

Asked to remember and compare the days when he was a player to the current time, Rivers admitted that the foreigners were not as strong and tough both offensively and defensively back in the day.

"They all were soft," Rivers laughed. "When you saw a foreign guy, you had a good game. That's like the Larry Bird thing. 'You put this guy on me? This is embarrassing.'"

Then, Rivers remembered a meeting he had with several people from the league.

"One guy who charts the games says that the American players in the summer, high school kids, play six games a week, and they have one practice. The European players have one game a week, and they have six practices. The second part is because you have all these games, you stop being competitive," Rivers explained.

Rivers' son, Austin, was a long-time NBA player as well. At one time, Rivers even coached his son on the Los Angeles Clippers. The veteran specialist said that the issues in the youth development system could be seen when his son was playing, and they are more apparent now.

"I watched Austin play growing up. It hurt him. Number one, this stupid ranking stuff. 'You're the number one player in the country.' Who knows where you're at? Number two, you play three of four games in a day. It used to drive me crazy because Austin, at halftime, would not even take a shot. He would just sit," Rivers shared.

"I remember walking across the court one day, and I want not that type of a parent, I said, 'Hey, are you gonna shoot some free throws? You're gonna warm up?' He said, 'Dad, I've got five more games today.' They're going to play 48 minutes because the stars at AAU never come out. They can be up by 40, and they're not coming out," Rivers said. "It drove me nuts watching this. It's even worse now."

The last five NBA MVP trophies were won by international players, and it seems that the story will not be different this season as well. However, Rivers said that the situation could change if the youth development system is altered to better match the one in Europe.

"It has to be fixed because we have the talent. The players are far more talented than we ever were. It ain't even close, but they don't know how to play. They don't know how to play team basketball. Everyone has these individual coaches. In Europe, they have team coaches," he explained. "They do three-on-three stuff, and we've got to get back to that or, I'm telling you, American players, you're gonna lose jobs. Who were the last five MVPs?"

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