Dhe Euroleague is considered to be the second best basketball league in the world. Only the NBA is classified as stronger, although there are also voices that classify this in a more differentiated manner. Critics, for example, who like the more team-oriented approach in Europe, criticize the pronounced emphasis on individual and athletic components in the NBA. They then come to the conclusion that although the best basketball players are under contract in North America, the best basketball is played on this side of the Atlantic. The Europeans, who reverently absorbed and copied every trend from the United States for many decades, have long since developed a self-confidence and their own identity.
The success stories of European players in the NBA provide an important foundation. Dirk Nowitzki from Würzburg was an absolute model athlete in this regard, but with Luka Doncic from Slovenia, who is only 21 years old and Giannis Antetokounmpo from Greece, who is 25 years old, there are currently two Europeans who, like Nowitzki, are neither in high school nor college basketball America had played among the first line of NBA icons. In addition to this evidence that European basketball is competitive at the highest level in the “best league” in the world, people on the old continent like to point to the positive development of the Euroleague, which is getting closer and closer to the NBA in terms of quality.
But now a study by the Serbian Dimitrije Curcic on the website RunRepeat.com shows that this league is nowhere near as European as it is represented and perceived. On the contrary, if you look at the data you can see that the Euroleague has been influenced more and more by America over time. The number of American players has more than doubled since the competition started 20 years ago. For the first time this season, their share is more than 30 percent. At the same time, the number of European players in the NBA rose from four to 13 percent within these two decades. So there is an exchange taking place that can initially be assessed positively – more and more Europeans are able to play at the NBA level. But what consequences could it have if the trend towards more and more Americans in the Euroleague continues?
No restrictions on nationality
In contrast to the national leagues, there are no restrictions on the nationality of the players in the European premier class. For example, the two German representatives Berlin and Munich could compete with twelve Americans. In the Bundesliga, national players are protected by a quota of a maximum of six foreigners per game. But playing time in the Euroleague is indispensable for the development of absolute top German players. Correspondingly problematic is the tendency that the squads are put together more and more with a view to the Euroleague.
The Berliners have seven foreigners under contract. But it wouldn’t be a surprise if they added another one. Bayern Munich even noted nine foreigners on the match sheet for the start of the Euroleague on Friday. With the ailing Malcolm Thomas, another legionnaire was missing who can be considered as set. Not all of these foreign players are Americans, but in the twenty-year history of the Euroleague the German representatives are in second place with a quota of 38 percent of American players. Since 2016/2017, the proportion of Americans in the teams has been greater than that of the national players in the respective country.
Strong demand for Americans
Of course, one can argue that it doesn’t matter whether a player from another European country or from North America blocks the space for a German player. But it’s not that simple. Even if the American and European basketball philosophies have converged, the differences described at the beginning are still evident. It should be easier for a German player to compete with a European than with an American.
At least that is what Curcic’s study suggests when she suspects that the sharp rise in demand for American inside players in the second Euroleague decade is related to the fact that they know how to defend the three-point line better thanks to their agility. Ultimately, one could put forward the thesis that top European basketball is becoming more and more Americanized. The numbers are now available, now they have to be classified.
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