Topic: H-D: MU recruit dreams that he can be like Mike

[biggreenarms]

Aleksa Nikolic wants to "Be Like Mike."

No, not that Mike.

Our Mike.

MD not MJ.

Marshall's new recruit from Serbia wants to be like the best point guard in the Herd's basketball history.

Namely, Mike D'Antoni.

Granted, the 6-foot-5 and still growing Nikolic will have some big behind-the-back passes to fill, but the comparisons between he and D'Antoni are inevitable.

Just ask Danny D'Antoni.

Marshall's new head basketball coach is eminently qualified to compare the two considering he is Mike's older brother. So, tell us, Danny, how do they stack up?

"He's quicker than Mike," said D'Antoni of the young Serbian point guard, who has the wingspan of a 6-10 player. "And he's longer than Mike. Mike was long, but he's even longer. Mike was probably stronger."

And if Nikolic wants to "Be Like Mike"?

"If he wants to be like Mike. ... if he wants to 'Be Like Mike,' " said D'Antoni with a grin when he realized he was repeating the Michael Jordan marketing slogan, "he'd better be an extremely tough competitor.

"Mike was made because he was a tough, tough competitor. Real tough."

Indeed.

His intense competitiveness combined with D'Antoni's intelligence is what made Mike such a successful point guard and coach in the professional ranks.

But that's innate. It can't be taught. And it can't be learned. Either Nikolic has it or he doesn't. Early indications suggest he does possess that competitive edge.

"He's very creative," said D'Antoni. "He sees the game a little differently than most. Try to coach that on somebody. ... that's a hard fix.

"So, we'll bring him in and give him time to adjust to the language, adjust to the physicality of the game. Once he does, I think he has the skill and the mental creativity to be very good."

The question is how soon can Nikolic leave his hometown of Pancevo, Serbia, and travel to Huntington?

"For me to predict that, I can't do that," said D'Antoni. "When you are dealing with this. ... you've got to get through all the legal barriers and the rules and politics. It's a little more difficult. Sometimes it takes steps."

D'Antoni should know more about Nikolic's ETA when Marshall assistant coach Scott Rigot returns from visiting him in Serbia this weekend.

"His family needed to see somebody from Marshall," explained D'Antoni. "It's a courtesy. They need to be able to associate a face with Marshall.

"They don't have any idea where West Virginia is. If they follow college basketball, they might know where Kentucky is. But they don't know the difference between Kansas and West Virginia."

Imagine if everything goes well with Nikolic. Serbia could become a pipeline for Marshall.

"I talked to Mike about it," said D'Antoni, referring to his brother. "I asked him what type of country and what kind of kids usually come from there. He said Serbia was probably the No. 2 country in Europe at producing basketball players.

"They have big kids. They usually play hard. They're very smart. And they're skilled. Pretty good combination, don't you think?"

Precisely.

That's why Serbia could be such a productive recruiting area for Marshall if Nikolic is as talented as his YouTube highlight video suggests.

Why, even the guy he wants to emulate was impressed.

"Mike saw the film of that kid," said D'Antoni with a grin. "He said, 'Man.' "

That's the first step of being like Mike.

http://www.herald-dispatch.com/sports/marshall/x271214441/MU-recruit-dreams-that-he-can-be-like-Mike