By Nikola Miloradovic / info@eurohoops.net
Darko Rajakovic welcomed Pedro Martinez to the Toronto Raptors’ preparations in Las Vegas ahead of the Summer League, using the visit to exchange ideas with the current Real Madrid head coach.
Speaking to Mundo Deportivo, the Serbian explained why studying fellow coaches remains an important part of his offseason.
“Coaching is a continuous process, just like sport itself. You’re always looking for ways to improve. The game is changing, the players are changing, everything is changing. Every season is a new story, and every summer I try to find time to analyze our team, but also the trends around the world.”
Rajakovic singled out Martinez’s work with Valencia, particularly on offense, as a source of inspiration.
“I like studying coaches in Europe, watching what they do and seeing what we can take and learn from them. We had one of the best European coaches, Pedro Martinez, come and visit us. He spent a couple of days with us in Las Vegas, and it was a great experience. He coached Valencia last season, and they had the best offense in the EuroLeague.”
The exchange has already influenced Toronto’s approach, while Martinez also took ideas back to Madrid.
“We spent many hours talking, and we’re still in touch. It was an exchange of ideas, and we’re using some of those things. When we played with our Summer League team, he took some of those ideas with him to Real Madrid.”
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