Did the NBA recently change the draft eligibility so that players can't come from highschool straight to the pros?
Amare Stoudamire Dwight Howard Travis Outlaw Josh Smith JR Smith Monta Ellis There are tons of players that are doing well........not sure it has any connection to Tmac at all. Other than they all came out without college, which means they miss out on some maturation to an adult. DD
Per Wikipedia 2005 and beyond In 2005, the NBA and the players' union agreed upon a new collective bargaining agreement, which requires that: * The minimum age for entry into the NBA is 19; players must have their nineteenth (or later) birthday in the calendar year of the draft in order to be eligible; * Players who completed basketball eligibility at a U.S. high school, regardless of their nationality, must be at least one year removed from high school. The terms of the new agreement essentially ended the practice of drafting high school players, starting in the 2006 NBA Draft. The rules did not apply to the 2005 NBA Draft, and several high schoolers were selected, including Martell Webster, Monta Ellis , Andrew Bynum, Gerald Green, C.J. Miles, Ricky Sanchez, and Amir Johnson, who became the last player in NBA history to be drafted straight out of high school.
Like all things in life, hard work prevails. The biggest similarity with the majority of high school players is that they are all athletic freaks of nature. Many high school stars fail to pan out or hit a steep decline once ridden by injuries because they have relied on their athleticism too much. Their game is sculpted by their athleticism. You take a look at Shawn Kemp and Tracy McGrady, two players that solely rely on their athleticism not on their fundamentals to excel at basketball. It is only the ones who realize that they cannot only utilize athleticism that they begin to polish their games through hundreds of hours of practice like a Kobe Bryant, whose inner fire is incomparable. Once you get into the 30s, your athleticism declines at a rapid rate and then you have to adapt your game. Kobe is doing that as we speak, developing a consistent jumper and post up game, while occasionally using his athleticism to take it to the hole. This is where the stark difference lies between Kobe and Tracy. Kobe is an all around basketball player and Tracy is not. Tracy has poor shooting form, relying on elevation rather than arc on his shot, and he also does not have good change of direction dribbling skills in the paint, that's why he has trouble drawing fouls. I fear for Dwight Howard that if he suffers a freak knee injury, he will never be the force he is now.
T-Mac doesn't have fundamentals? T-mac only relies on his athleticism? Kobe is GOD? Man, you are the worst T-mac hater i ever seen!
The high school players that succeeded all had the same traits, very athletic, very skilled, and driven to succeed. The same traits as the college players who succeeded. DD
Tracy was doing well at their age too. Lets sit back and see how many of those players still be great in about 5 years from now.
i dont buy it. tmac played in 113 games his first 2 seasons combined. averaged about 20 minutes a game. it seems likely he would put the same mileage on his body playing collegiate. and many players declare eligibility before playing a full 4 years of college ball. its like someone else said. hes turning in a 30 point game and then logging like 7 point efforts? thats not physical.
Josh Smith, JR Smith, and Al Jefferson are doing just fine as well. It takes more than being a supreme athlete to come out of high school, although being able to pass the eye test is definately a step in the right direction. Let us not forget that Brandon Roy, who is by no means a physical beast, almost came out of HS too. It amazes me how much T-Mac bashing has gone on around here. He's made out to be gerald green coming off dual mircrofracture surgery by the sound of things.
Uh I think you guys are forgetting that Tmac does not exactly have healthy genes. He has a curved spine and was originally projected to only play for 3-4 years if I'm not mistaken. He already had health problems to begin with, the wear-and-tear of the NBA season just added to that lol.
Yeah, the curved spine, has anyone other than Tmac said this? Because he is not the most credible source around. DD
you can tell his back is weird, especially when he drives and goes around picks. watch how his back is arched and he can't go as fast around the corner. battier also probably has a spine issue, his is very bent. so does mike james. but i think there is no HS injury phenomenon. It depends on the type of player you are. Obviously Dwight Howard and Lebron are all very muscular and I think can withstand many injuries. The type of play also impacts how you get hurt.
So if McGrady went to college he wouldn't have scoliosis? McGrady just wasn't blessed with a durable body. If he went to college, he probably would have had less peak performance in the NBA.
You can't exactly throw in people like Howard and James into this argument. Neither one is 25 yet... Tmac at the same age was 1st team all NBA. I would love to see how Lebron James body holds up. Its not easy maintaining the quickness when you're 240lbs. Larry Johnson is the only guy with a similar body type and athleticism and look he was a shell of his former self after his back injury.
Hey Brooks, That's not the reason I started this thread... The discussion started with how fast T-Mac and other Hi-school draftees start to breakdown around their 7th year in the league compared to others who have went to college for a couple of years. I was looking at T-Mac, Shawn Kemp, etc... I was not speaking about the new guys that are in the league now such as LeBron. But the ones that have been in the league for 7+ years.
I think he was just stating fact. McGrady, despite his talent, does not have a very fitted body to go with it. In fact, he should be retired by now according to sources during his draft.
Why are people citing low-to-mid 20's high school guys as counter-evidence to the OP's argument? (Dwight Howard etc.) McGrady was a beast at that age too.
As i have always said coming out of high school doesn't give most people extra NBA years. The body can take only so many 82 game seasons. At 28 high school players are 10 year vets. How many guys are still dominant and at their peak 10 years in? Not that many. 10 years in is where guys start to decline and the same rings true for high school guys. There are exceptions (Kobe, Garnett, Malone) just as their are exceptions with regular college players (Kareem, MJ). Some guys can play at their peak from years 8-14 but most break down around then and start to fade. Most high school players start to wear down at 27 or 28 but some don't.
