Before getting to know Srosa, let's take a look at the main achievements of his career:
6-time Euroscar European Player of the Year
2-time Euro Basketball Sir
3-time USSR league overall champion
Winner of the 1982 World Championships
1985 Europa League championship, mvp
1988 Olympic champion
1993 Spanish Cup MVP
1994-95 Spanish Cup mvp
Member of the Nye Smith Hall of Fame
Some fans may say that these are all honors for Europa League or world competitions, and he doesn't seem to have anything to show off in the NBA, the world's top basketball hall. Yes, the old Sabonis does not have much honor in the NBA, not that he is not strong, but there are objective factors: one is the age problem, the other is the rule problem. We'll talk about this later!
Arvidas Sabonis was born on December 19, 1964, in Lithuania, which is rich in basketball players. His father was a tailor, his mother was a beauty queen and an actress, and neither of them was tall! As for how his father married such a beautiful wife, we don't know, just as his parents don't know why he grew to 2.21 meters! At any time, the height of the body will naturally be considered to play basketball. So at the age of 13, Arvidas Sabonis began to learn to play basketball, and at the age of 15, he was selected for the Soviet national youth team that still existed at that time!
A year later, the Soviet Zalkilis Kaunas signed Avidas Sabonis against CSKA Moscow and developed a strange training program for him, which we called Seedling Booster! And his horrific performance in the game made the Soviet people at that time feel incredible! Won the World Championship with the Soviet Union in 1982, won the European Championship in 1985, and blocked the United States from the final at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and won the championship! This also prompted the U.S. team to form a dream team of NBA stars in 1992!
How good is Arvidas Sabonis? As we all know, in the 1980s, due to the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union, there was basically no communication! But this does not affect the NBA team's pursuit of the old Sabonis, the Hawks and the Blazers have chosen him in the draft despite political risks! But because of politics, the old Sabonis could not make the trip! Now think about it, if he can enter the NBA when he is first selected, will there be a new change in the NBA?
The old Sabonis, who was finally allowed to go abroad in 1989, did not go to the NBA, but chose to destroy Europe! He has a guard-like passing vision and technique, plays with standard and clean movements, and has a head that is twice as big as the average person and is filled with basketball IQ! A few years later, looking at the window full of honors, the old Sabonis finally decided to go to the NBA! So at the 1996 NBA All-Star Rookie Game, the elder Sabonis became the oldest rookie member at the age of 31!
In the seven years from 1996 to 2003, Sabonis the Elder led the Trail Blazers into the playoffs every year, reaching the Western Conference Finals twice. And almost flipped the Mavericks in the first round of the final season after falling behind 0:3! Admittedly, Sabonis Sr. is not outstanding in the NBA: averaging 12.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 24.2 minutes per game! His best season was only 16.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists, but you can't ignore his role on both ends of the team's offense and defense! As they say: he is a marshal, not a general! He can't kill you, but he can destroy your home!
At the end of the 2003 season, the elderly Arvidas Sabonis returned to Kaunas! There he continued to kill all sides, dominating the European arena at the age of nearly 40! In 2005, sabonis the elder officially announced his retirement, and later served as president of the Lithuanian Basketball Association! Inducted into the Nye Smith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011! As the first center in the history of fiba, Yao Ming regards him as an idol and has always been close to him! Fans know that Yao Ming is a game lover, it is said that Yao Ming's first game id name is called Sabonis, which shows Yao Ming's love for the old Sabonis! And Yao Ming also commented that if anyone can beat O'Neill at his peak, one is Wilt Chamberlain; the other is the healthy Avidas Sabonis!
As a traditional European player, sabonis the elder has a solid basketball foundation. Defend, strategize, organize, singles, everything! Unlike the NBA players, he doesn't need to jump high, he doesn't need fancy performances, he just needs simple technique to send basketball to the basket!
Finally we will answer why the elder Sabonis is "bland" in the NBA! On the one hand, there is the problem of age and injury, and the unscientific training method when he was young made him scarred when he entered the NBA at the age of 31! On the other hand, the rules of the NBA are different from those of the fiba, and the establishment of three seconds of defense and the expansion of the three-point line have hindered his play! This is also one of the reasons why many European players do not adapt to the NBA! But, in any case, Arvidas Sabonis's achievements in the world basketball world are obvious to all! As one of the greatest centers in basketball history, he is still the "roof of the world"!
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