Tyler Hansbrough spent seven seasons in the NBA, playing for the Indiana Pacers, Toronto Raptors, and Charlotte Hornets.
After his years in the league, he moved overseas and played in China, which had quite an impact on him.
According to Hoops Hype, per NBACentral, Hansbrough feels that playing in China is a lot harder than playing in the NBA.
Hansbrough spoke at length about the differences:
“The NBA game has gotten softer, no doubt about it. When I went to China, I felt like I was stepping into the NBA in the ’80s. It was physical.They foul you hard, and they go inside a lot more. They’re not just heaving up threes and relying on analytics the way the NBA does. Analytics hasn’t really hit China yet. There’s no load management or recovery time either. If you suggested that to them, they’d laugh in your face. It was a grind—two-a-days, film sessions at night after practice. It was exhausting, but it taught me a lot about toughness. In the NBA, there’s so much focus on resting players, but in China, you’re expected to show up and work. It was a whole different culture, and it made me appreciate the game differently.”
Tyler Hansbrough says playing in China is tougher than playing in the NBA
“The NBA game has gotten softer, no doubt about it. When I went to China, I felt like I was stepping into the NBA in the ’80s. It was physical.They foul you hard, and they go inside a lot more. They’re not… pic.twitter.com/9WGBR7zTEv
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) December 12, 2024
Hansbrough states that analytics and load management aren’t an issue in China and that is why play is so much more competitive in that country.
They are more physical and generally take the game more seriously, according to Hansbrough.
Of course, just because load management and relying on analytics aren’t prevalent in China right now doesn’t mean they won’t be a problem in the future.
As those two things become more popular in the NBA, they will make their way all over the globe.
Hansbrough isn’t the only person who has criticized the state of the NBA and favorably spoken about overseas leagues.
But no matter the complaints, it’s unlikely that the NBA will change any time soon, although Commissioner Adam Silver has been trying to combat load management over the last several seasons.
More than anything, Hansbrough’s statement proves that basketball really has become an international sport.
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