LAS VEGAS — When the Golden State Warriors won the 2015 NBA title, it became official — the slow it down and throw the ball inside style of play is a thing of the past, and pushing the ball and spacing the floor is the way of the future. Here in the NBA’s de facto summer capital, Mike D’Antoni, Ettore Messina and Bob Donewald shared some of their secrets on how their international experience has helped them positively influence the NBA game. With
Editor’s Note: Whether coaching or forecasting, Bobby Gonzalez knows college basketball. He went 8-0 picking games in the Sweet Sixteen a year ago, 7-1 in that round this year and 3-1 in last weekend’s regional finals. This is not some Bozo. It’s Gonzo. He knows what he’s talking about. It was 1991 and I was standing in the crowd at the Final Four as a New York City high school coach, watching All-American Larry Johnson of the dominant, unbeaten UNLV team
I once heard the statement in coaching, “if you are a great coach but a weak recruiter, you will get fired. But if you are a great recruiter and even a fair coach, you will survive.” Obviously, the goal is to be both. But it does explain the importance in college basketball of getting the best players. Ever since I started coaching, I have always been compared to John Calipari more than any other coach. I guess it’s because I made