At a 2012 Adidas Eurocamp event on Tuesday, NBA success stories Danilo Gallinari and Nicolas Batum engaged European prospects in a Q&A session that touched on the transition from foreign leagues to the NBA. Gallinari had some of the most interesting sound bites of the day, as noted by Brett Pollakoff of NBC's Pro Basketball Talk. The Nuggets forward warned players that scouts already have plenty of information on your game when you reach the United States, but it can be wrong at times and everything comes down to replicating the positive traits on the court again.
Even if you manage to break into the NBA, it can be tough to find a comfortable role in offensive schemes that are often much different than the European style, and Gallinari relayed a great story on that topic:
"For me it was very difficult in New York, because I was running up and down the court and I was not receiving the ball. After 10, 15 games I went to Mike and said, ‘What the f-? I run to the corners and I never get the ball.' So he told me, ‘Whenever you have that ball, you have to shoot it. I don't care. You get the ball, you shoot it, you do whatever you want. I will never say not to shoot.' You get in that mentality, and the ball was getting to me. I was still running to the corner, but the ball was getting to me. I don't know why."
Something tells me Gallinari hasn't had to present George Karl with the same line of questioning during his time with the Nuggets, which points to a lesson learned during his extended transition to the NBA.
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