Courtside at an NBA playoff game between the Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks is not usually where you would expect to meet with a Premier League manager.
But when the TV cameras panned to Sixers head coach Nick Nurse, viewers saw Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glassner, chairman Steve Parrish, general partner and Sixers co-owner Josh I could see Harris. .
Glassner had a practical reason for his trip to Philadelphia. The opportunity to speak directly with Parish, Harris and fellow Sixers owner David Blitzer would have been beneficial as Palace ramp up preparations for next season after securing Premier League safety. .
But the Austrian has had a strong interest in the NBA since he was young, and given his “intrinsic motivation” to improve himself, he also relished the opportunity to go to the Wells Fargo Center. Dew.
Glasner is ambitious and keen to learn and gain knowledge in every way possible, an attitude that is evident in his work in his homeland of Germany and now at Palace, where he has played in the Premier League. He's off to a promising start to his career.
“We were Chicago Bulls fans. He's a big NBA fan,” said Roland Hoffpointer, a lifelong friend of Glasner's who still lives in his childhood village of Riedau. The Athletic.
Hoffpointer recalls his admiration for Michael Jordan, the superstar who dominated the basketball world in the 1990s. It was Jordan's former Bulls teammate Steve Kerr, now the head coach of the Golden State Warriors, an NBA team based in San Francisco, and an avid football fan himself, that Glassner learned more from. seems to be inspired by. He spent a week with the franchise in November, studying the way the team operates, including Kerr's coaching techniques.
Hofpoynter is keen to point out that Glasner's interest in basketball hasn't been influenced by his early years in business, but added, “Maybe now he was in San Francisco watching the Golden State Warriors.'' “It's probably due to the influence of the times,” he says, but I don't think anyone would object to the 49-year history. Elderly people's motivation to learn. He earned a degree in business management while playing in Austria and admits to having a constant curiosity.
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“I tried to educate myself in different areas and continue to exchange ideas, including other sports,” Glassner said. “I was on the Golden State Warriors NBA team to get experience. In other sports, he might be able to carry one or two things.”
Palace players have been impressed by Glasner's attention to detail and his ability to clearly communicate what he wants from his players. By doing so, Glasner believes he can best convince them that improving is not only in the team's interest, but also in their own.
Spending time with the Warriors, Kerr (who has previously spoken of his admiration for Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp) and watching basketball during his time as Eintracht Frankfurt coach has been rewarding for Glasner. He would not be the first football coach to take strategic inspiration from the sport, although it seems to have had a greater influence on his approach to man management than his tactics.
“The way they change direction depending on where the ball is and where the basket is is very similar,” former Sunderland manager Gus Poyet, whose father was an Olympic basketball player for Argentina, said in 2015. said in 2013. And the ball, it's the same with basketball.
“I've never seen a basketball player run toward his basket to mark without looking over his shoulder. You need to mark in a certain way, so these little things help. . Certain movements become natural.
“It's the same with analysis: play to your strengths, look for weaknesses, and try to isolate players.”
Similarly, Joe Mazzula, head coach of the NBA's Boston Celtics, said: The Athletic In February, he spoke about Manchester City manager Josep Guardiola's influence on him and the importance of transitions in play in both sports.
“Everyone tries to separate basketball into offense and defense, but it's one game,” Mazzulla said. “It's spacing and decision-making and shot selection and then transition defense.
“Basketball and soccer are the same, but the transition is happening very quickly. You can be on the offensive side and two seconds later you can be on the defensive side. So the game is always changing.”
Dutch former professional basketball player Laurent Vreerink, whose company Taktaries works with soccer players on individual tactics, believes that focusing on the individual is essential.
“There are a lot of advantages and disadvantages in one-on-one and two-on-two,” he says. “All aspects of team and individual are the same. I use a lot of basketball elements in football, although the execution may be different because it's hands and feet.
“Football has always been a team sport, but we look at basketball as an individual sport. That's why we have different coaches in basketball. The larger number of players means twice the individual attention in basketball. This means that with more individual coaches, you can grow even more on an individual level. Basketball is even more advanced than soccer in terms of knowledge and tactical decision-making.
“The culture of basketball doesn't compare to football. We need to spend more time on individuals.”
It's an analysis that Glasner cites as his specialty in basketball, but his commitment to personal improvement may have crept into his consciousness over time as well.
“There were three or four things (I took away) that were very interesting,” he said of his time in San Francisco. “Basketball is different, but the personal development and training is much more advanced than soccer. They have three player development coaches and the coaching staff is pretty much one player to one coach (ratio). is.
“They not only analyze the players on video in individual sessions, but they also go out on court and train one-on-one with them. We have 26-27 players, so to make that happen we need 27 players. You will need a coach.”
Glasner's coaching staff at Palace is not particularly strong, but he has brought a five-strong squad to the club to replace the two left behind after Roy Hodgson's departure: Paddy McCarthy and Dean Keary. This definitely allows for more emphasis on the individual, and most of his coaches also have areas of expertise such as defense or set-pieces.
There are other crossovers between basketball and soccer. For example, Golden State draws inspiration from Barcelona's tiki-taka style during Guardiola's era.
At Palace, there was evidence of a change to something closer to that. His opening goal in last week's 2-0 win over Newcastle United was evidence of sharp short interplay and one-touch passing – in that case between Jean-Philippe Mateta and Jordan Ayew.
But Glasner's system is premised on efficiency above all else. This is a phrase he uses often, as his team doesn't press hard with all their might, but instead uses some type of trigger to press the opponent at the right moment and play high up the pitch.
Glasner previously denied wanting to learn more about the 76ers, but hinted he might be interested in the future.
“Not at the moment, but it's always important to not just watch football,” he said. “(As a soccer coach) you don't have a lot of time to think about different sports and situations. I like meeting people from other sports. I can learn from everyone.
“It means that leadership, organization and one big world become more important for mental care. It’s important for both the players and the staff. I try to develop myself to learn every day. It will not only help you but also keep you young.”
Basketball seems to be an important part of his life, and there are similarities in the way he approaches management, even if the crossover is largely incidental.
From SV Ried to Wolfsburg to Eintracht Frankfurt and now Palace, Glasner has shown a dedication to self-improvement. Palace already seem to be reaping the benefits.
(Top photo: Getty Images)