MEXICO CITY – It is sometimes said that the NBA is a copycat league, but it seems that the trends of playing fast and pressing hard that has taken over the league are putting down roots at the G League level as well. Or at least with the Mexico City Capitanes, with new head coach Vitor Galvani having revealed how he wants to shake up the unaffiliated G League squad’s style of play at the team’s open training camp practice this week. But he’s not just cribbing from the Indiana Pacers-inflected approach currently taking the Association by storm.

“I seek a different style of play than what is commonly seen in the G League,” said Galvani (translated from Spanish). “It is a style that I like to call relentless, which would be tireless. I mean, we are attacking on both sides of the court.” It seems that Galvani and Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla think alike, as the Capitanes coach has taken a page out of Mazzulla’s book by looking to a famed European soccer coach for inspiration.

“I think everyone knows the coach of Paris and the coach of Manchester City, Pep Guardiola, and they have the same style in football of attacking on both sides,” recalled Galvani. “So, that’s the idea.”

For Mazzulla, Guardiola is a coaching legend, so it’s not hard to see why Galvani looked to the European soccer coach for inspiration. “He, tactically, is tremendous. He can manage talent, and he can develop talent,” said Mazzulla on his time spent picking the brain of the then-Manchester City coach in an interview with the “Men in Blazers” podcast. “I think when you’re taking a look at some of the best coaches of all time, they don’t necessarily have a weakness.”

For Galvani, borrowing from Guardiola is a path to try out — but don’t expect him to stick to it if it proves a poor fit for the Capitanes. “I see myself as a coach who is very flexible,” he explained. “That’s what I believe now. And let’s see how the first matches go. If I need to change, I will change. But the first and most important thing is that we try to execute in the best way possible.”

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