Giannis and Nikola Jokic Say the European Game is Harder Than the NBA Game | THE ODD COUPLE 

It's crazy, I'm old enough to remember when Euros were considered "soft" and playing with more finesse and less physicality. Now it's a complete role reversal. Sign of the times.

Anyone who saw even one game of Eurobasket can attest to this. No free fouls, no bs, less timeouts

To sum up what Giannis said, “uh, it’s harder…because they actually play defense.”

They also forget to mention that in the NBA you can take 3 or 4 steps plus a gather step 😂

In Europe there isn't a 3secs rule, the court is a bit smaller.But the most important thing is that no one is getting a free dunk like in the NBA,they will foul you 100% of the time

Thats the reason why Luka was able come into the NBA as a rookie, play well and adapt very quickly.

Chris’ idea of the basketball league champions playing against each other is literally Champions League Soccer. It’s a phenomenal idea and would grow the game even more. Imagine Barca vs GSW or Fenerbache vs Milwaukee👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 With streaming and team/national pride on the line…absolute box office 🎉🎉🎉💯

Kobe said the same thing on the Knuckleheads podcast. There’s no tactics in today’s offense, just drive and kick/read and react. Not a lot of set plays that break off into multiple actions depending on the defensive sets. It was more of a chess match back then

Those physical Eastern conference games were awesome. I love defense but young folks want to see 3 pointers and scoring.

Americans like scoring. The game is geared toward offensive players having an advantage. All for ratings.

FACTS!!!! Went to the court with some old timers (all of use in our 40's) and we destroyed the young ones. All they wanted to do is place solo. "Give me the rock". I don't have to score for our team to win. We played basic team basketball. They were pissed. Lost every game, and then they commented "that's old man basketball". So we replied "we won every game. It wasn't even close.". Crickets from them.

I saw this in the Olympics of 2004. The style was so familiar, I recognized the it based how physical they played and how the refs DID NOT blow the whistle as often. That was a sign that the rest of the world took notes during ‘92.

This is just more evidence that the 90s and early 2000s would be hard for these current players. Giannis basically described old school basketball. The talent isn't what it is today, but there was less space and it was more physical.

The talent is better in the NBA but Europe has different rules which make it tougher to score.

Also in Europe, there is no bias calls, marketing superstars and no foul outs...Bravo to Giannis, Luca etc..

As a guy that played in college and have friends that have played in college and in the NBA the euro game is different. No defensive 3 seconds, and can knock the ball off the rim. Floor is condensed, no flopping, etc it's like an advanced college. Many NBA guys say it was harder to score in college than the nba

So European is playing Old School basketball 90’s style the Jordan era 👍🏾

Considering Giannis and Jokic have won the last 4 NBA MVPs, they have credibility to say this.

*"FIBA rules" actually allow more physicality* in the game, similar (but not exactly the same) to the old school "no harm no foul" rules. That's what he was pertaining to. That's a fact. He's not saying that the level of the competition in the NBA is lower. In terms of individual skills and talent, of course the NBA players are at the highest level.

I’m new to the nba (since 2012) and even I can see the game is tough to watch these days. No post game anymore, just 3s.. spurs 2013/14 was an absolutely beautiful way to be a 3 point based team. Now everyone chucks 3s

That’s because, they are not getting 20 free throws in Europe

I would love to see that nba champion vs euroleague champion. They should do a 7 games series every summer

"It's all Greek to me" 😂😂😂 Love you Rob, all the way from Motherland South Africa

Essentially he's explaining everything MJ experienced and went through in a league where MJ dominated on the highest level. 🙄 He's not lying about it being a harder league over there than the current era of NBA basketball. It's clearly obvious, hence why their superstars in the Euro league come here and are some of best players we've seen ball. This is why the MJ vs LBJ is really not a debate to have because the 3(80's, 90's, early 2000's) era's of basketball MJ played in are FAR more harder/challenging than what LBJ played or plays in today. It just is what it is 💯

I agree with giannis it is harder like Rudy gobert can stay in paint forever in Europe But the talent in the nba is way better that the difference

And it shows. The las Eurobasket tournament was fantastic

Euro ball is def more physical but it really isn’t hard to understand. Smaller court=less ground to cover on D=what jokic and giannis said when u see help quicker…, no defensive 3 secs=packed paint, shorter 3 pt. Line, less talent overall=more grinders for D. This is self explanatory and has no bearing on the better league 🤷🏽‍♂️ not to mention they said there’s obviously more talent in the nba. Chris mentioned all this in the beginning.

Lebron also said it’s easier to score now than when he first came in the League. NBA needs to make adjustments to the rules to add more nuance to the game. I loved that about the 90’s. Players scoring on all three levels. Physical defense. Etc.

Bout time some one said it, the NBa has been soft for years now

Having been an official basketball referee for the past 11 years and a lover of sport history, Statistics, Science and History in whole, we've have to know that first of all that: 1- NBA is an entertaining sport while the EuroBasket or any Euroleague is a maximizing sport(focusing more on every tactical possibility to win a basketball game). You just think of it, if necessary they can apply ZONE DEFENSE throughout an entire game,if they notice man to man is going to annihilate their team. 2- The NBA thinks what makes their best players make them win a game, EuroBasket think what is favourable for a team to win, not necessarily in function to the best basketball player if it is not the best option to win a game, but even in functions to the best players if that is among the probability to win the game knowing that this probability has to be higher than the other probabilities which does not include the best player function to win a game. In other words, in the NBA not every player is treated as a threat, only 2 or 3 are, in the EuroBasket every player is threated as a potential threat so they are more defensively active and are all over the place. BRIEF HISTORY: GSW is the maximizing of EuroBasket(Barcelona Basketball team started this game. In fact it's fun how the lakers in 2008-2010 struggle with them in pre-season. Immediately after 2010 the Lakers stopped against the Dallas who adopted that Barcelona game style, then the GSW standardized it. ) To be Frank this way of playing team sport making faster passes than the team body can adjust in other to create A ROTATIONAL ADVANTAGE of making the difensive individual players having to rotate to catch up(remember a moving ball is always impossible for a body to stay behind, this is what creates the rotation delay that gives spaces to good shooters like Curry, Thompson and Ray Allen to prolifically score) started back with Brazilian soccer team in the 90's which dominated 90's soccer decade, then got adopted by the Barcelona soccer team dominating for a decade the European highest soccer league- Known as the Champions League, then translated to the Barcelona Basketball team who dominated European Euroleague (the highest basketball league in Europe)then to the Dallas Basketball team which annihilate the Lakers to win their 2011 and got standardize by the GSW to dominate these decades. However the USA national basketball tends to dominate the Euro National teams in the Olympics and World cup Just because their team being loaded with 15 HIGHLY POTENTIAL THREAT PLAYERS(the USA learn their lessons in the 2004 Olympics game), rather than the 3/4 threat of an European National team or an NBA team, makes double team rotating defense not to be so effective, because living open an All-Start player as Stephen Curry to double on a Kevin Durant is more destructive than guarding them one on one, which by the way is not easier because individually these 15 Best NBA players are superior to every other European individual Player(EXCEPTION MADE FOR GIANNIS-LUKA AND JOKIC). So this why the EuroBasket defense is effective on national teams like Greece-Slovenia and Serbia where their potential threat is 1 or 2 guys maximum and NOT EFFECTIVE on the USA national basketball team which has 15 highly potential threats. 3- And my last point, which is more of a psychological one. The NBA plays 48 minute a game, EuroBasket plays 40 minutes a game. The NBA has almost a quarter more game than the EuroBasket, and this make the margin of error in an NBA game to be higher than in the EuroBasket. In other terms: in the EuroBasket you can't permit yourself to mistake to much because you have 40 minutes to correct your errors than the 48 minutes in the NBA to correct your mistakes. And in a Basketball game 8 minutes is way long, almost another quarter of game 😉.

A World championship basketball tournament would be so dope. One of the best ideas I've heard in a while. Also, I keep hearing people complain about the game but the players are not at fault. They play the game within the rules. Blame the NBA for setting the tone.

They’re impressed by his detailed answers. Only in America do people say a lot without saying anything. In Asia and Africa, you speak little but every word means something

I remember years ago when Kobe got heavily criticized for saying this same sentiment , now look at this , he was right all along

Let’s not forget the carrying and traveling they don’t call

This was one if your best shows yet, keep it up

Young kids always saying the 80s and 90s was whack because nobody could play, now all these kids' favorite players (who are all under 30) are saying it's harder to play that way. Smh, people now a days don't pay attention and just want to live in the moment.

The rules are made for the players on the NBA, a lot of easy Points

Well, I guess Giannis dismantled Gilbert Arenas' total "Giannis doesn't know basketball" narrative.

It would be awesome if there was an actual world championship!

they both are correct, the game in Europe is more harder.

All of them are exactly right. We've been saying the NBA rules have the made the game easier and softer. Guys get away traveling and carrying their ass off. Palming the ball all over the place. Wide open lanes, no defensive 3 seconds, can't touch anybody. But guys want to drool over guys handles today. I mean I guess so if I could carry the ball all over the place, Id be a wizard with the ball too. MJ is the greatest scorer of all time by any metric. Of course he could get 40 ppg. That's probably his floor, smh.

If yall noticed this last year the nba changed a couple rules and gave the offensive player a little less leverage. These playoffs where physical for modern basketball. I think they've realized they've gone to far emphasizing offensive and are trying to slowly correct it and find a happy medium. Ratings will forever drive the product though.

He LITERALLY just said that playing in the 80s and 90s woulda been MUCH harder, without saying it 💯💯🤷🏾‍♂️

the biggest thing is that there's no limit to how long defenders can stand in the paint. that's why the floor ends up feeling more congested in FIBA-rules basketball. that's what jokic is saying about the help already being there all the time in the international game, whereas in the NBA the help usually can't coms over til after you beat your ma cuz they have to worry about defensive 3-in-the-key

hey after watching Euro basketball this year I can see what there saying, a lot more defensive plays that's for sure.

in Europe there is the 3 second rule and traveling, the court is slightly smaller, and zone defense is really zone defense, you can use all kinds of variables like 3-2, 2-3, 1-2-2 , 1-3-1, Europe's basketball is more strategic, you need to have a solid base of basics and fundamentals and have knowledge and a good view of the game. A good basketball player must not only have a good physique and physical abilities, in Europe it is as important or even more important to be intelligent and have a vision of the game.

The odd couple keeps it real! 👏🏽. Great take 👍🏽

EU game is basically like the NBA in the 90s & early 2000s

I think, if Euroleague could give similar salaries as the NBA, probably they will be competitive. Think about Giannis, Jogic, Doncic and probably some good American players in Europe, this would improve the teams and the other players and make them at a similar level but in a different way (because of rules). The higher salaries in Euroleague right now barely overcome the lowest in NBA.

Honestly it’s why I love the warriors, because they play team basketball💯🎯

An interesting thing to note is that they're only talking about on the offensive side of the court. Because of the rules and spacing and talent, it's a lot harder on the defensive side in the NBA.

They're right. It's a wide open game and everything is about stretching the floor (a major change from the 80s, 90s, early 2000s) . The European game has not changed to match that style and it shows. Also, there is way more physicality and less complaining

You can't play defense in today's NBA. the court is too spread. You get away with traveling and carrying the ball. They don't run offensive sets only pick and roll. 80s, 90s and 2000s ball it was harder to score. Plus the NBA is too young and really don't understand the game. They depend on athleticism

IT IS YOUR BEST VIDEO EVER!! ALL IS TRUE CHRIS !!!

Did he say the guys on GS aren't the most talented in the world??? Draymond is one of the greatest defenders of all time. Klay is top 5 shooter of all time. And Steph is the greatest shooter in the history of existence and top 5 point guard of all time!!! That's world class talent.

Why work harder when you can work smarter?

Chris said he’s about rings, but the joker and luka doesn’t have any rings

The people in denial are the same people who still think the U.S is "the best country in the world." These are literally the 5 best players in the league right now. What they're saying is facts. Embarassing from the "so called" country with the best basketball talent. The majority of the 5 best players and the previous LEAGUE MVPs have been international players. U.S basketball is decling. The world has caught up.

4:29 I love this lol!

Enough said! This is why you can’t compare current players with the former players.

Adam Silver ruined the NBA by making all these soft rules you can't even play defense. Everyone is out shooting 3s. Damn Steph Curry and Silver ruined the league.

Luka said the exact same thing on Old Man and Three about a year ago or so. It’s harder to score. It’s a technical distinction and it’s pretty much unassailable.

Love the Starter hat🙌🏾🙌🏾

Great segment, Chris and Rob. 20 years ago, no NBA superstars were mentioned in the same sentence with any European players. Now, you can say their talent level is on par. 20 years from now, we probably will see Euroleague keeping talents like Luka and Jokic because they'll no longer be a distant second to NBA.

The biggest difference is that they don't have defensive 3 seconds in European basketball so big men can literally just stand in the middle of the court. It makes big men much more impactful

Great point!

lol I know he didn't describe Miami's offense in the early 2010s as "give it to ya man and shake it up" 🤣

ROB G DROPPING FACTS !!!!!!

The 3rd guy just killed their whole argument right off the bat

GREAT TOPIC! sheesh hearing about the Lakers and Nets gets old😒

These guys are great.

Part of the reason it’s harder for them is because they’re playing with 4 scrubs so the entire other team is focusing 100% on a Luka or Giannis and don’t care about their teammates scoring

You also forget that those players play for years together. So they know each other and know what others can do..... here it's just put people together and see what happens if we had more teams like the warriors keeping their cores together the nba would probably be harder because the teams would be more in tuned with each other instead of pieces just filling in.

The 90's Bulls played team defense but MJ definitely was playing iso ball. It was the triangle for Christs sake

A lot of Americans dont watch fiba so they think it's trash but when u see there ain't no dad 3 seconds ain't no lane to basket zone defenses

The notion that the NBA doesn't play ANY defense is bogus. Fans, analysts, and the media were hailing the 2022 Boston Celtics as one of the greatest defensive teams of the modern era. Just because Curry did a number on them doesn't mean they weren't great. DPOY, two great wings, and being able to switch 1-5 is as great defensively as you can get.

The rules are different and less spacing so it’s more difficult to create and the skill level isn’t as high so players have to be more physically to catch up that’s how it was in the nba in the early 2000 more defensive minded teams less scoring and more team basketball because of it

If i'm not mistaken in the late 80s the nba champ used to play the top euro teams in some tournament and i remember the magic lakers lost a finals once and barely won the teams they beat, it was close many times.

That's an AMAZING business pitch! A World League. The winner gets the world cup. Man that'd sell so many PPVs, break attendance and viewer records. I'd love to see that. One can only dream

I agree 100%, even though I never played in Europe. Teams seam to stay together longer and players don't seem to be as concerned about "brands" and only scoring points and filling up stat sheets. P.S. Why do you think the transition for players like Luka, Ginobili, and Jokic wasn't too hard. They were not as physically gifted, but knew how to play "team" basketball and they allow coaches to coach! Giannis is the same (although he is a freak athlete), even though he is not nearly as skilled as the best players. He works very hard, wants to win, and is able to be coached. P.S. Look at Tim Duncan (not from Europe) who never played AAU but played in Virgin Islands. Look at Dirk too, it is becoming more and more evident that playing in AAU is detrimental to the NBA.

jxmyhighroller did a video near the end of last season about the 3 possibly being too valuable, and he said that last season for the first time in league history a 2 point attempt was more valuable than a 3 point attempt. So the league is changing, we are remembering the importance of the midrange and playing team basketball. If you run them off the 3, the ball gets moving and you get layups. We don't need to go back to the way it was, things are changing, possibly for the good, let's see where it goes.

I like how do you do keep it real in the real one's barely get their own TV show we know that.. especially in these days

Giannes is by far my favorite player in the NBA. He’s a real one.

It is a harder game. Don’t need as much athleticism overseas more quick decision making

I don't think he was being disrespectful. We have all seen it. Baby fouls, low basketball IQ, its just all talent. Which isnt bad for the consumer. But the NBA product has decreased. Kids have taken over the game today. Euros is more of a mans game.

Well said...

Rob you misspoke. The last 4 MVPs went to non American players. Both back to back.

This is why Miami gave Giannis so much issues his whole career and especially in the bubble. Heat and Raptors play good physical basketball. Celtics did under Ime, interested to see how they play this season.

As an NBA fan, I have to say the NBA has gotten soft.

True!

They’re speaking facts! Luka said the same thing when he first got into the league. The amount of space nba players have to operate now makes scoring easier than ever. European basketball is similar to the nba from 2000-2013

That boi Broussard said “if we had a world basketball tournament” 😂😂😂

All true. Look how well the Celtics did last year playing a team system. The Nets couldn't handle it. NBA is designed to be flashy and exciting, the NBA does not want to increase degree of difficulty.

This show is the best sports radio show in America and it's not even close.

3:13 Rob is a funny guy🤣🤣🤣

Yeah I remember living through those Detroit vs Spurs finals….. Oh Lord it was trash 🗑 lol…

I like the idea of playing a champion game against the Euro league.

Amen!

Giannis , makes a good point and explains himself.

The one thing that would destroy the Euro game is great shooting. When you hear the players talk about it (no defensive 3 seconds, double teams, etc.), a team like the Warriors would punish with their shooting ability and motion offense set up