Basketball

Guardiola and his new NBA trick: “He flew all over the field. It was a sight to see.”

Published

1 week ago

January 15, 2026

Robert

Guardiola and his new NBA trick: “He flew all over the field. It was a sight to see.”

“Renew or die” is a maxim that governs the high standards of many elite coaches in all sports in the face of the frenetic pace at which everything changes and evolves. A proverb that will resonate with even the brightest minds who will someday conquer the world. pep guardiola and nick nursethe coach who led the Toronto Raptors led by Marc Gasol and Sergi Ibaka to a ring in 2019, with help from Sergio Scariolo on the bench.

Nurse, now. philadelphia 76ers Joel Embiid’s words make it clear that just like Pep, he can’t stop learning, which is why he stopped by Embiid’s facility last summer. manchester city Go meet Guardiola and absorb his methods. This is soccer, not basketball, but after all, the former Barça coach is also a fan of the philosophy of learning from other sports to become a better coach.

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Top soccer and basketball coaches

Pep Guardiola & Nick Nurse

The Manchester City and Philadelphia 76ers coaches swapped jerseys over the summer.

The American coach was in Manchester in August for Basketball Without Borders, an NBA-sponsored event that brought together the world’s most promising teenage players. It was an opportunity to go and meet Guardiola at City’s training sessions, as the Boston Celtics coach had already done in 2024. Joe Mazzula.

Nick Nurse, who hadn’t talked about it before, spoke to MD during the Sixers’ last two games in Toronto to explain what the visit was like and what he learned from the Catalan coach.

“It worked out really well. Basketball Without Borders was in Manchester this summer and I was like one of the coaches, and it got us right into the game.” premier league. So I toured a little bit and went to training, which was two days before their home debut. And that was really something, we should sell tickets to see him lead a training session,” Nurse, who was completely impressed by Pep, began to explain.

“He was flying all over the field. It was really motivating. It was really serious, it was really something to watch, it was really good. I stayed with it. It was just how energetic and expressive he was in command, passionate and all that kind of stuff,” Nurse said of being stunned by that look.

The current Sixers coach is englandHe was a player and coach for Derby Rams in the early 90s, so he managed several teams between the decade of the 90s and the first decade of the 2000s, including Brighton Bears from 2001 to 2006. Brighton and Hove Albion The topic of the Premier League and the controversy surrounding the stadium that began construction in 2008.

“Then I was lucky enough to sneak over to Brighton and Hove. They built a new stadium about two blocks from where I lived. And I had to see it because I’d been driving by for years. I was like, ‘Let’s vote no on the stadium, let’s vote no on the stadium.'” They built the stadium, so I had to see it. Then we went to see the Crystal Palace. chelsea The next day I had a very productive three days of soccer,” Nurse also said in a long response.

But Pep Guardiola also learned some valuable ideas from the American coach. Asked about how basketball could utilize football concepts, Nurse (who was originally scheduled to learn from Pep) was surprised when Guardiola said he had more basketball questions than football questions.

“He ‘steals’ more from us. You see him putting behind-the-back blocks in the corners, flare blocks in the corners. He asked me a lot more questions than I asked him,” Nick Nurse also noted.

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Celtics coach’s Catalan disciple

Pep Guardiola & Joe Mazzula

Mazzula visited Guardiola in February 2024, followed by Pep, who also visited Guardiola in June to give him support and advice ahead of the final against Mavericks. Luka Doncic That the Celtics won.

The Sixers coach caused laughter among his staff with Guardiola’s final comment, which used a basketball concept. However, the reality is as follows. “Idea thief” As Pep has always defined himself, the Catalan has taken ideas from many coaches, including technicians and players from other sports such as volleyball, tennis and chess. And basketball is often among the other areas that Guardiola draws inspiration from. Without saying more, he is one of his trusted subordinates for many years. Juanma LilloI often watch basketball.

In this connection, the blocks that Pep asked a lot of questions about could have direct application to football. Although they do not always exist with a moving ball like in basketball, they are one of the pillars of set pieces, and numerous screens are used to define these strategic actions.

In fact, playing after a timeout in basketball is the equivalent of a dead ball action in the beautiful game, with some differences. rock In both sports, it is done to establish the final play finisher.

celtics coach, Joe Mazzulatalks about how concepts like field spacing and transitions can transfer from football to basketball, and in fact, Pep Guardiola even advised him to hone his approach in this regard for the 2024 NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. Luka Doncic.

Still, the most well-known example of an NBA coach inspired by Guardiola is Steve Kerr. The Warriors coach wanted to somehow recreate Pep’s Barça, with its coral reefs and dizzying ball movement, on a hardwood forest, so he played vintage FC Barcelona videos to fans. steph curry When he arrived on Golden State’s bench in 2014, he told them what ideas he wanted to implement. The rest is history. Four rings have taken place in the past decade under the leadership of the greatest marksman of all time. He mentioned those videos in an interview two months ago. lebron james And Steve Nash. And Kerr himself talked about it with the MD three weeks ago.

Basic concepts such as grouping players on one side to define those on the other side are another concepts that can be used differently in both sports. Alternatively, a forward drops to receive and moves the center back, creating space for others to penetrate in the same way a center drops to head to help someone cut into the paint.

Other NBA coaches like Pep’s Catalan compatriot Jordi Fernandes (Nets), Darko Rajkovic (Raptors), Kenny Atkinson (Cavaliers) and Charles Lee (Hornets) all cite Pep Guardiola as a role model to learn from.

However, the coach of manchester city He also didn’t miss the opportunity to learn from the NBA and steal some ideas from the NBA. nick nurse. He tries a new strategy by applying basketball blocks to soccer pep guardiolathe same enthusiastic idea thief who started on the bench almost 20 years ago.

Source: Mundo Deportivo

Robert

I have been working as a sports journalist for about 6 years now. I currently work as an author at Sportish, which is a sports news website. I mainly cover sports news and I love writing about all aspects of the sport. I also have experience working as a broadcast journalist, so I have some great insights into how sport is reported and presented.

Basketball

Doncic on returning to Dallas: ‘This will always be a special place for me’

Published

3 hours ago

January 25, 2026

Ralph

Doncic on returning to Dallas: ‘This will always be a special place for me’

Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic He shared his feelings about returning to Dallas, where he spent 7 years as a member of the Mavericks.

Cheers erupted in the arena during the Slovenian’s introduction, and fans chanted “MVP” when Doncic went for a free throw.

“I was very happy to come back here. I went home and looked at my cars. But, you know, it’s always emotional. I was very pleased that the fans applauded me when I was introduced.”

It will always be a special place for me. I’ve spent seven years here and a lot of things have happened, both good and bad. When I went to Madrid at the age of 13, I felt good every time I returned to Slovenia. That’s why it will always be a special place for me.

Fan support? It was really special. I didn’t know what to expect because I know how the city responds to such cold weather, but I’m really grateful to a lot of people for coming.

Doncic helped the Lakers win 116-110 with 33 points, 11 assists and 8 rebounds in the match.

Source: Sport UA

Ralph

Ralph Bean is a writer for Sportish. Ralph has written about sports news for the last two years, and is currently an author on the site. He enjoys writing about sports, and hopes to cover more stories in the future.

Basketball

VIDEO. Chicago retires youngest NBA MVP in history

Published

3 hours ago

January 25, 2026

Ralph

VIDEO. Chicago retires youngest NBA MVP in history

At the end of the match against the Boston Celtics at the United Center (114:111), the former NBA star’s number 1 jersey was officially removed. Derrick Rose.

Rose becomes the fifth franchise player to have his jersey retired, joining Michael Jordan (23), Scottie Pippen (33), Jerry Sloan (4) and Bob Love (10).

Many members of Rose’s family and former teammates attended the ceremony, including Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, Tej Gibson and Kirk Hinrich. Rose’s favorite Bulls coach, Tom Thibodeau, also attended the meeting, giving a special speech.

“He showed everyone what it means to be a great Chicago Bulls and a great person. To me, the next stop is the Hall of Fame, no doubt about it. Thank you Derrick, I love you,” Thibodeau said.

Rose was selected first overall by the Bulls in the 2008 NBA draft. For seven seasons, he led the team to success, including the 2011 Eastern Conference Finals.

At the age of 22, he became the youngest MVP in NBA history for the 2010-11 season. Rose was also a three-time All-Star, All-NBA selection and a gold medalist for Team USA at the 2010 and 2014 World Cups.

Source: Sport UA

Ralph

Basketball

NBA. Miami beats Utah with Lakers running back Mikhailiuk in Dallas

Published

5 hours ago

January 25, 2026

Ralph

NBA. Miami beats Utah with Lakers running back Mikhailiuk in Dallas

Six games were played in the NBA regular season on the night of January 24-25.

The match between the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Golden State Warriors, planned to be held in Minneapolis, was postponed for security reasons.

Utah hosted Miami and suffered a heavy defeat.

Jazz started the game well and took the lead in the middle of the first quarter. This marked the end of the home side’s success and their lead at the big break reached 21 points (52:73). Taking control of the game after a long break, Heat further widened their difference with a 147-116 victory.

I spent 17 minutes on the field with Utah Svyatoslav MikhayyukDuring this time, he recorded 8 points (2/2 free throws, 3/4 two-point shots), 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal.

The most productive player of the match was Adebayo, who had a double-double with 26 points and 15 rebounds.

Dallas lost at home to the Lakers.

The guest team was successful in the first half, winning by 13 points at 65:52. In the third quarter, the Mavericks made a 16:0 move to take a 72:69 lead, and Dallas was +8 – 87:79 before entering the final 12 minutes. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the home team increased the difference to 14 points, reaching 93:79. They held their opponent to more than 10 points after that, but 7 minutes before the siren, the Lakers began their comeback. The guest team got back into the game by making a move at 10:0, and with 2 minutes and 15 seconds left in the quarter, Hachimura put the team ahead 108:106 with his three-point field goal. This moment became a turning point because the Lakers did not give up the lead and won 116:110.

The most productive player of the match was Luka Doncic, who had a double-double with 33 points and 11 assists.

NBA. Regular season, January 25

Charlotte – Washington – 119:115 (35:34, 31:24, 27:23, 26:34)

Charlotte: Miller (21 + 10 rebounds + 6 assists + 5 losses), Ball (20 + 11 assists), Bridges (20), Knippel (16), Diabate (11 + 14 rebounds) – start; Sexton (9), Kolkbrenner (8), Green (6), James (6), G. Williams (2).

washington: Johnson (26), Sarr (24), Carrington (15 + 8 assists), George (11 + 8 rebounds + 7 assists), Riley (7) – start; Shempeni (15 + 11 rebounds), Watkins (11 + 6 steals), Brenham (3), Cooper (3), Hill (0).

Philadelphia – New York – 109:112 (34:34, 30:26, 13:30, 32:22)

Philadelphia: Embiid (38 + 11 rebounds), Maxey (22 + 6 assists), Edgecombe (14), Oubre (14 + 7 rebounds), George (9) – start; Barlow (4), Grimes (4), Bona (2), Watford (2).

New York: Brunson (31 + 6 assists), Anunoby (23 + 7 rebounds), Hart (10 + 13 rebounds + 7 assists), Towns (10), Bridges (9) – start; Shemet (12), McBride (9), Robinson (6 + 10 rebounds), Hookporti (2), Yabusele (0).

Orlando-Cleveland-105:119 (23:25, 25:30, 22:27, 35:37)

orlando: Banchero (27), Bain (20), Black (16), Carter (11), Suggs (9 + 6 assists) – start; M. Wagner (13), Richardson (4), Penda (3), Bitadze (2), Silva (0).

cleveland: Mitchell (36 + 9 assists), Tyson (17), E. Mobley (13 + 7 rebounds), Wade (10), Allen (8) – start; Proctor (12), Tomlin (9), Ball (6 + 8 rebounds), Porter (4), Bryant (4).

Chicago – Boston – 114:111 (30:28, 22:30, 36:27, 26:26)

Chicago: White (22 + 7 assists), Vucevic (16 + 7 rebounds + 6 assists), Buzelis (14 + 8 rebounds), Smith (14 + 9 rebounds), Okoro (12) – start; Herter (12), Dosunmu (10), Williams (10), Giddy (4 + 8 rebounds + 10 assists + 5 turnovers).

Boston: Brown (33 + 8 rebounds), White (15 + 7 rebounds + 7 assists), Pritchard (10 + 7 assists), Houser (8), Williams (2) – start; Simons (21), Walsh (7), Queta (6), Garza (4), Gonzalez (3), Scheierman (2).

Dallas-Lakers-110:116 (28:37, 24:28, 35:14, 23:37)

dallas: Christie (24), Marshall (21 + 11 rebounds), Caleb Martin (17), Flegg (16 + 7 rebounds + 6 assists), Powell (0 + 7 rebounds) – start; Williams (20), Thompson (6), Gafford (2), Washington (2), Nembhard (2), Robinson-Earl (0).

Lakers: Doncic (33 + 8 rebounds + 11 assists + 5 turnovers), James (17 + 8 rebounds), Smart (13 + 7 rebounds), Larevia (13), Ayton (9 + 11 rebounds) – start; Hachimura (17 + 8 rebounds), Vanderbilt (8), Hayes (6), Vincent (0), Timmy (0).

Utah-Miami-116:147 (34:35, 18:38, 37:35, 27:39)

Utah: George (19), Nurkic (17 + 10 rebounds + 12 assists), Bailey (12), Mikhailiuk (8), Williams (5) – start; Sensabaugh (23), Collier (16 + 9 assists), Filipovski (9), Clayton (5), Anderson (2).

Miami: Adebayo (26 + 15 rebounds), Larsson (20), Wiggins (17 + 6 assists), Powell (13 + 6 assists), Yakuchenis (12) – start; Jovic (23), Fontecchio (14), Jaques (9 + 7 rebounds), Smith (6 + 10 rebounds + 5 steals), Johnson (5), Gardner (2).