They are the best athletes in the world. Ask Adam Silver. He'll tell you. But the 20 Brooklyn Nets gathered at the Nets training camp Wednesday watched as their 50-year-old owner showed them a thing or two about athleticism.
Mikhail Prokhorov came to Duke University to watch a bit of the team's scrimmage. Everyone knew that. Then he lined up his guys to instruct them in Tibetan Martial Arts. Yeah, Tibetan Martial Arts. None of them were a match for him in a routine that features large and small balls, some apparently excruciating positions and a whole lot of balance.
From watching this video by SB Nation's Adam Z. Porter and Connor Reid, it appears that Markel Brown and Shane Larkin, probably the team's two best athletes, did the best job. We're sure that others will later claim they did well, too.
"It’s only the first try," he said afterwards. "Imagine how I would look playing basketball? I would be clumsy. They are great athletes." And also, he has done this routine every day, for two hours, for five years.
In any event, whether the players ever master Tescao doesn't much matter. Training camp is about bonding, leavening all that physical exertion with some shared fun. Mikhail Prokhorov seemed to advance that cause. And no one got hurt in the process. Well, some egos may have been bruised.
Mikhail Prokhorov reiterates he's not selling the Nets - Rod Boone - Newsday
Mikhail Prokhorov does funny drills at Nets camp - Rod Boone - Newsday
Mikhail Prokhorov, Nets owner, demonstrates dribbling drills at camp (Video) - Rod Boone - Newsday
Welcome to crazy exercise time with Mikhail Prokhorov - Tim Bontemps - New York Post
Mikhail Prokhorov won’t even talk about Deron Williams - Tim Bontemps - New York Post
Prokhorov visits Nets at training camp - C.L.Brown - ESPN
Here's Mikhail Prokhorov bouncing a tennis ball on a board while dribbling a basketball, and other weird things - Devin Kharpertian - The Brooklyn Game
Owner Mikhail Prokhorov Made the Nets Do His Strange Workouts - Marcel Mutoni - SLAM
Team owner Mikhail Prokhorov is doing weird stuff at Nets training camp - FOX Sports
Mikhail Prokhorov Shows Up to Nets Practice, Is in Better Shape Than His Players - Brett Pollakoff - Complex
Mikhail Prokhorov led the Nets in dribbling exercises, and it was amazing - Dan Devine - Yahoo! Sports
Mikhail Prokhorov Hijacks Nets Practice, Demonstrates Insane Dribbling Workouts - Tom Ley - Deadspin
Mikhail Prokhorov lead Nets players in drills at camp Wednesday - Kurt Helin - NBC Sports
Prokhorov on Tibetan Martial Arts and Nets Team Chemistry (Video) - Chris Carrino & Tim Capstraw - Brooklyn Nets
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Day Two Recap of Nets Training Camp (Video) - Chris Carrino & Tim Capstraw - Brooklyn Nets
Prokhorov Plays Nets Trainer for the Day (Gallery) - Brooklyn Nets