Trust the system…we hear this phrase tossed around a lot in basketball circles. But how true is it in regards to players in the NBA D-League?
Answer: very true.
This is not in reference to the path for which many players travel along during their respective professional careers, trusting the system in a D-League sense, is in regard to players trusting their teams’ own style and or system. Whether that be defensive or offensive, it is important for NBA D-League players to trust that system, because when they step away from it, scouts, GMs and coaches notice.
With the direct 1-to-1 relationships between NBA and NBADL teams as the current trend, the systems NBADL teams run are incredibly thought out, and observed by their NBA parent clubs. When a NBADL player decides to step out of that system in hopes of showcasing their game, or out of comfort, it can really show out on the court in a negative sense.
Players don’t have the luxury to pick their own NBADL destination, so in essence, there is a large possibility that a player may be forced to play in a system that they don’t feel showcases their game best. But, they can do even more damage to their profile by stepping away from it, because coaching staffs, general managers and most importantly scouts will pick up on that.
This is in large part due to players thinking they need to have maximum volume on the stat sheet to get noticed in the NBA D-League.
In fact, at a recent game in which I attended, long after the game was over and players were heading out to the bus, I noticed a particular player stop and pick up a stat sheet on the ground. Now, was he just curious, or was there more to seeing this?
For me, the idea that he took the time to pick up the stat sheet and carefully look at it tells me he was interested in finding out his production, interested in his stats. Interested in what he projected to scouts, GMs and coaches in a numerical sense. However, the statistical value of a player doesn’t tell the whole story, and for many teams that is not the sole reason they award a player with a Call-Up.
Players shouldn’t have to pick up stat sheets, they should know what they left out on the court that particular night.
They should trust that they played hard in their particular system in which their head coach was looking to run. The rest will take care of itself. I’ve seen it many times. Call-Ups will be handed out box score or not, because now more than ever the NBA D-League is heavily scouted and attended by big time decision makers. Sure, they want that stat sheet too, but what they’re more interested in, is the player’s ability to perform in a given system and to showcase their “coachability”.
That can make or break a player’s dream of earning a Call-Up, not their +/- on a given night in a box score.
Read More From Gino Pilato’s “Behind The Grind”:
To D-League or Not To D-League?
For the past five years, Gino Pilato has worked inside and around the NBA Development League and minor league basketball and currently serves as Recruiting Coordinator forScorers 1st Sportmanagement
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