In a recent interview with French publication L’Equipe Pau Gasol said he prefers European-style basketball over NBA-style.
“I prefer the European game to the NBA because basketball is a team sport and more beautiful to watch when the players pass the ball or when the ball movement to create shooting situations.”
Gasol, who spent a large portion of his career playing basketball in Europe, was also playing overseas this last summer.
The NBA certainly has a history of being more isolation-oriented, but you would be hard-pressed to find a team or coach that didn’t encourage ball movement. Regardless, there is certainly a stark difference in the style of play overseas as compared to that of the NBA.