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| Comense: Italian Champs 2004. |
**Originally appeared on SLAM Online March 8th, 2012**
If there's one trait you need to play for an extended stretch overseas - and
not go loony -it's the ability to adjust on the fly. You have got to be able to
roll with the punches. I might go as far to say: expect the unexpected. Even then,
you're bound to have a surprise or two.
From year to year, team to team, things are never the same. What may have
been the norm for one club, might be unheard of for another. Any previous assumptions
should be thrown out the window when you go into a new season.
And if you're coming straight from college, toss those US-norms even further
out the window.
What am I talking about?
Living arrangements, practice schedules, roommates' habits, team routines, language
barriers, gym/arena problems, travel/hotel accommodations, payment issues, media/fan
critique, the list goes on and on! No one thing can be taken for granted.
The Moment of Truth
Year to year, you never know what you're going to get when you walk into
your apartment for the first time. I always say to myself, if I wouldn't live
in it in the US, it's not acceptable to live in while in Europe either. I think
clubs try to take advantage of inexperienced players sometimes, and try to get
away with less-than-stellar apartments.
On two occasions, in my nine seasons abroad, I've had to ask to be moved to
a hotel until they found something more suitable. First and second year players
might be hesitant to speak up when living arrangements aren't up to par. But in
reality, if you're not happy off the court, your production on the court will
suffer.
But at the same time, you need to keep in mind what reality is. The US and
Europe are vastly different places, so your expectations need to reflect those
differences.
And depending on the club, they may or may not ask you to live with teammates.
Whatever your preference may be, that could be a good or a bad thing. I have
always preferred to live by myself while in Europe, but I've had roommates on
several occasions as well.
Now what about on the court?
Sprechen Sie Deutsch?
First and foremost, your coach and/or teammates might not speak English. If
they do, great -- you're good to go! But if they don't, you have to be ready to
watch and learn. During drills you might need to go to the end of the line, so
you know exactly what's going on when it's your turn.
You learn by observing. And you'd be amazed at how quickly you pick up basketball terms. That's always a great moment when you're able to understand your coach's instructions without having to go to the end of the line.
You also need to make quick-friends with someone who will translate for you. I've had great teammates throughout the years who have had the patience to
translate pre-game talks, practice rants, and day-to-day communication with
coaches or presidents. You really can't make it without them!
I'm sure many of you have seen the movie
Love
and Basketball. The locker room scene in Spain is actually somewhat
realistic -- where Monica relies on a teammate to translate her coach's
pre-game speech. Although 'he say to give the ball to you' might be a SLIGHT
exaggeration!
One thing I had no problem adjusting to was learning the that phrase 'get on
the baseline' (in
whatever language),
was no-longer cause for a panic-attack. Anyone who's run countless suicides
during practice can appreciate that! Throughout my time in Europe, I haven't had to run too many suicides -- which has been a welcomed change.
Home Court Advantage
The gyms can be cause for concern at times as well. There might be days
where there's no heat in the gym when you arrive for practice or a game. It
might be 50 degrees inside the gym, but guess what, you still have to play!
My first season in Italy, we played in Napoli in December or January. Since it's
in the south of Italy, and there's really only one 'cold' month, the gym didn't
have much of a heating system. The host
team had blankets on their bench so they were prepared. But I certainly wasn't.
My hands were like icicles, and I was stiff, and miserable the whole game.
This season in France, the heat in our gym is hit or miss. Some days it's
there, some days it's not. You just have to come prepared.
I learned by my fourth season abroad, in Poland, to have long tights and
long sleeves to practice in -- just in case. But I'm always happy when I don't
need them!
Plane, Train, or Automobile
Another thing you need to be ready to adjust to is how your team travels to
away games. Depending on the country and club, you could see anything. You
could have the best/fastest scenario: taking a plane. Or you can have the
worst: taking 12-hour bus rides.
The most difficult travel situation I've had to adjust to was while I played
in Germany. We would ALWAYS travel the day of the game. No matter how far we
had to travel. Eight-hour bus rides on the day of the game made for an
interesting time. It's not your preference. But guess what, you adjust and
learn to deal with it. It's amazing that we actually won some of those games!
No Pay, No Play
Probably the most important adjustment is learning how to handle late
payments. If you play long enough, they're bound to happen. With the exception
of one or two seasons (thankfully I can include this season in that list), I
have had clubs not pay me on time at some point.
There can be numerous reasons as to why you're not getting paid on time:
president is unhappy with your team's performance, sponsors/city are late
giving the club funds, they don't have the money, paperwork/accounting issues.
Whatever the reasons, you're never happy when payday has passed, and you haven't
seen your check.
None of those reasons are good reasons, but it's what might happen. And how
you respond can vary a great deal. It might depend on the club's reputation,
your working relationship with management, your own previous experiences, economic
climate, etc.
It's not unheard of to sit out practice if a team is late paying you. After
all, you're there for a reason: you're there to play basketball and get paid
for it. When the money's not there, you don't play. Some people have the motto:
'No pay, no play.'
If management is up front with you (in cases where sponsors are late
providing funds), and they have shown you can trust them, you might give them a
little leeway. But if they get too far behind (and that's at your discretion),
you have to put your foot down. Otherwise you are getting taken advantage of.
Imagine your employer missing your payday! How long would you stand for that?
In my opinion, it's never okay for a team to withhold your payment because
of lost games or poor performances on the court. But it happens (it happened to me on two or three occasions -- and each time, I handled it differently).
Sometimes the situations can be pretty complicated, and vary a great deal
depending on each scenario. Payments/late payments seem to be what people are
most-interested in hearing about, so if the interest is there, I'll do a follow
up with more in-depth situations.
You Can't Please Everyone
Smaller issues such as: dealing with fan/media critique after poor
performances (they can be very blunt), sometimes not having a trainer present
at practice (makes things interesting if there's an injury), less-than-standard
hotel stays, not being able to get a phone/internet put in your apartment for
three-plus weeks -- can also arise at some point during your time overseas. You
just have to try to not let it bother you, and move on.
All in all, you need to pick your battles -- because you're not going to get
everything exactly how you want. What is TRULY important to you? Those are the
things you need to speak up about, and demand to have taken care of. Do your
best to remain professional, and remember what you are there to do.
To be as successful as you possibly can, you have to be able to roll with the punches, and do
what you do best: hoop!
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