Antetokounmpo s international arena "loss of strength": the difficulties of rules and style

On August 27, France defeated Greece 92-77 in the European Championship warm-up match, and Antetokounmpo scored only 20 points in this game. This performance is very different from his dominance in the NBA, triggering in-depth discussions by famous ESPN reporters Brian Windhorst, Tim Bontemps and Tim McMahon: Why does Antetokounmpo find it difficult to show his dominance in the international arena?

From the data level, this game is undoubtedly abnormal for Antetokounmpo. Windhorst took the lead in pointing out: "The rules of the international arena are very unfavorable to Antetokounmpo. The opponent can not only engage in high-intensity physical confrontation against him, but also frequently make falls in front of him." In the NBA, the rules have many restrictions on defensive actions, which creates better offensive space for powerful breakthrough players like Antetokounmpo. However, the differences in international rules allow the opponent to physically confront him more "unrestrainedly" and disrupt his offensive rhythm. The frequent use of fake throwing tactics can also easily interfere with the referee's penalty, further limiting Antetokounmpo's performance.

McMahon analyzed from the perspective of game style and stadium space: "The stadium space and game style in the international arena are completely different from the NBA." He also quoted Doncic's rookie season to explain Antetokounmpo's dilemma. "Doncic once said that scoring in the NBA is much easier than in European arenas. At that time, some people misunderstood that he was questioning the NBA's defensive level, but what he really wanted to express is that the NBA's stadium space is much wider than that in Europe." The NBA focuses on the opening of offensive space, and the players' running and tactical arrangement revolve around creating an open offensive environment, which is very consistent with Antetokounmpo's breakthrough in scoring with his strong physical fitness. The international arena's game style pays more attention to the overall compactness of defense, and the court space is relatively narrow. Antetokounmpo is more likely to encounter double-teams and intensive defense when breaking through, which undoubtedly increases the difficulty of his scoring. As the world's top breakthrough player today, Antetokounmpo's dilemma in the international arena is caused by the differences in the rules and style of the game. The rules and style characteristics of the international arena limit his unyielding breakthrough advantage in the NBA arena. In order to regain dominance in the international arena, Antetokounmpo may need to adjust his game style to better adapt to the environment in the international arena. For fans, this also allows everyone to see that even superstars will face different challenges under different game systems. Whether Antetokounmpo can find a solution in the international arena in the future is worthy of our continued attention.

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