The European Game is in the NBA Finals

It wasn't too long ago that NBA teams would never dream of having a European player as a central figure on any team. 

Drazen Petrovic was the first Euro-star that I remember to start making a name for himself. After Portland traded him to New Jersey, he flourished—unfortunately his life was cut short just when his star was rising.

In the past, many people doubted the virility of the European players because they feared that the game would be lost in translation. Players like Dino Radja and Gheorge Muhresan came and went with little impact on their teams. 

The San Antonio Spurs were the first team to win with a European player play as a central role in a championship venue. The Spurs proved that there are tough-minded, skilled European Players.

Manu Ginobili accomplished what few players have done—win an NBA championship and Olympic Gold in the same year. Tony Parker, the point guard for the San Antonio Spurs won the finals MVP in 2007. Both of these players were drafted near the end of the first and second round.  

The Lakers run the vaunted triangle offense, in which a player's movement is predicated on the defense. The center and forward are the catalyst for this offense, since everything runs out of the low post. In this setup the Lakers use Pau Gasol, who complements his low post game with good passing.

Kobe Bryant spent his formative years in Europe, so the team has a natural flow with a European flavor.

As much as the Lakers scream Euro, the Magic have the style of play which is a perfect conceptualization of the European game. All of their big men except Dwight Howard, Gortac, and Battie have face-up game. The important factor here is Howard.

The Magic run a series of pick and roll plays, which dares the defense to pick its poison.  Howard sets the screens, and the shooters flair out to the three point line.

When Kobe is resting, it is up to Gasol to run the team; for the Magic it is Hedo Turkoglu. Turkoglu has the most pressure because he is the one who dictates the crunch time minutes in the fourth quarter.

The NBA has slowly incorporated the Eurpoean game into their fabric of everyday play.

Now, there are European players on both teams whose contributions will determine who will win the 2009 NBA championship.