Like many college basketball programs, Rutgers also went overseas to do some recruiting this offseason and decided to add not one, but two international players to their roster.
One of those two, Denis Badalau recently spoke with us here at The Knight Report about his journey from Romania to Italy and now the United States.
“The main reason I chose Rutgers was coach (Steve) Pikiell,” Badalau told TKR. “He gave me the best vibe, so when I first spoke with him I knew I really liked this guy, so I just decided that I have to go there.”
As mentioned above, the 6-foot-8 forward spent last season playing professionally in the top league in Italy and has already noticed some similarities and differences in the game.
“I would say back there are more details,” said Badalau. “Back there the coaches would pay more attention to little details and stop practices more often to help everyone understand what they need to do. I would not say it’s a big difference, but you can feel it a bit. You’ll find more show here, back there coaches just like baskets and defense.”
Looking back at Badalau’s recruitment, there wasn’t a ton of tape out there on him as a player, but he went on to describe what he brings to the Scarlet Knights this season.
“I’m a versatile guy,” he said. “I like to rebound and I like to pass the ball. I would say that my specialty is passing the ball when the defender doesn’t expect it. I also work a lot on my three-point shot and I have a mid-range game, but you won’t see it all that often.”
Another one of the major differences for guys coming from overseas to play college basketball is the school aspect of things, but for Badalau it’s been a relatively easy transition so far.
“I think the school system back in Europe is a bit different,” Badalau said. “You have to go in person because you don’t have online classes. If you went to class you had to pay attention or the teacher’s going to be mad. Here I pay attention, but the teacher’s not going to be mad if I’m not. I’m taking rock and culture, that’s a nice class. I like college.”
Rutgers Basketball will open their 2025-26 season on November 5th, as Rider University will make the short trip in-state to take on the Scarlet Knights.
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