Former second overall draft pick Darko Milicic did not meet the lofty expectations placed early in his the NBA career. The seven-foot center was a total bust, failing to adapt his playing style in Europe unto the big leagues.
Milicic was so devisive at the time partly because of his unusual attitude; punching walls and chugging down booze hands-free while shirtless are just two of his claims to fame during his underwhelming stint in the NBA.
ESPN's Sam Borden recently caught up with Milicic, who's found a new lease and happiness in life after professional basketball through farming in his home country. One rather unusual revelation from Borden's in-depth piece, though, was that former Detroit Pistons teammate, Chauncey Billups, actually had to teach Darko how to shower after games.
Darko would go home to shower after practices or games instead of staying in the locker room to clean up; he didn't realize that in America, the players all showered together.
“So I had to teach Darko,” says Chauncey Billups, who played in Detroit from 2002-08, “like, no, when we're done playing, when we're done practicing, you put your towel on and you go get in the shower. That's what we do here.”
For a second there, one could've actually believed that Darko Milicic had never regarded his personal hygiene until he met Chauncey Billups. Luckily, showering as a team was just something that the Serb wasn't accustomed to in Europe.
Sadly, his newfound bathing skill wasn't enough to rid of the stink of his on-court performances. In his decade-long stint in the NBA, Milicic averaged just six points and a little over four rebounds in 18.5 minutes of action per game, bouncing around six teams and never finding his niche.
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