As I watched the Timberwolves bow out in the 1st round yet again this evening, I've come to the realization that a certain pattern has emerged in the league. It seems that high school phenoms like Garnett & Kobe have led to the decline of the game's overall play. There are players who don't even consider college, and there are those that only go to college for a year or two. They come into the league clueless & spoiled. I wondered what Kevin Garnett's game would have evolved to had he decided to try to go to college. He gave no effort towards the end of the game, and he was simply outhustled by Tim Duncan. It seems that so many of these players succumb to all these dollars being dangled in front of them, but so few of them are actually ready to live in an adult world. The game is not what it used to be - not at all. Maybe MJ returning will breathe some much needed life into the NBA. Please - let me know what you think of all of this. Agree? Disagree? I welcome any & all suggestions from all angles. I'm not saying the players mentioned above can't hold their own, but rather their jumps straight from high school have left young athletes thinking that they should do the same. ------------------
So let me get this straight, you came the realization the decline of the nba is due to the high school players in the nba by watching garnett and the minnesota timberwolves lose to duncan and the san antonio spurs. Umm, ok. ------------------ I am an invisible man. [This message has been edited by kbm (edited April 30, 2001).]
If you could get a great, high-paying job w/tremendous benifits right out of high school, would you go to college? I wouldn't. I think that Garnett was too passive down the stretch, but I think that is more accurately caused by the toll an 82 game season took on him, especially since he carried that team to the playoffs and he doesn't realize how dominant he could be. I've seen interviews of Garnett, and he's one of the more mature guys in the league, the tragedy of Malik Sealy and the Joe Smith debacle have aged him beyond his years. I don't think there is anything really wrong with the game itself. There are some problems with the periphery - high ticket prices, lack of promotion of young stars and little positive publicity - but I think the game itself is fine. BTW, both Garnett and Bryant are getting degrees. ------------------ Founder and President of the Houston Homers Club(HHC) - Are you a homer? Join now! The Rockets will be NBA champions. Believe.
I am with Puedlfor, I have no problemn with the current NBA we have this season. So what if attendance is down, the product is still exciting and fun to watch. I don't see how you can say that players like Garnett and Bryant are the reason the NBA is on a downslope. Garnett is a top-5 player in the league, and Kobe is fast on his way (despite my hopes that he would show some vital, fatal flaw in his game). There is nothing embarassing about getting beaten by Tim Duncan and the Spurs. They are the est team in the league this year, and Duncan is an awesome PF. Granted, there are some high school players who come out and can't contribute immediately because they more seasoning, but they wouldn't have been in the NBA for several years anyway. I would rather see them develop in the NBA than wait to see them at all for 3-4 more years. ------------------ Give me ambiguity or give me something else. Sign up for season 2 of the CC.net NBA Sim League! http://bbs.clutchcity.net/ubb/Forum12/HTML/000328.html
Dude, Your example sucks! Plus, you make a sweeping claim that the decline in the nba is in the "overall play"? Give me a specific example! Here is some help: ESPN Sportcenter has caused the decline of the jump shot in the nba because younger players copy the flashy slam dunks they see in the highlight reels. ------------------ I am an invisible man.
I certainly can't blame anyone for jumping from high school to the NBA. Why play 4 years for no salary, all the while running the risk of a career-ending injury, when you have the chance to acheive your goal now by playing in the NBA and making mad cash to boot? You only have so long, physically speaking. You can always go back and continue to improve your mind. The problem, IMO, is the pampering these kids get. They want to make the highlight reels, of course. Who wouldn't? What they need is an organization, from players to coaches to owners, who is willing to teach them the discipline, and simply guide them as they continue to grow. As for the NBA as it is right now, I love it. There is no clear winner. Who will it be in the west: LA? SA? Sacramento? Or in the east: Philly, Milwaukee, hell, even Charlotte or NY? I don't think the Hornets will make it, but I never thought they would sweep Miami either. Personally, I think it will be between LA and SA in the west, and Mil and Philly in the east. I think the west will win it all, but who will come out on top in each conference is as up in the air as it has ever been. The only changes I think are necessary have to do with the pampering the youngest stars get. I still love this game. ------------------ "I have no regrets except that I wasn't up to keep Randy from getting on that plane." --Ozzy Osbourne on guitarist Randy Rhodes [This message has been edited by Lynus302 (edited May 01, 2001).]
your argument about the state of the nba due to highschool players jumping to the nba is weak. Some of the best players in the game are from highschool. Kobe, considered by many to be the best perimeter player in the league. tmac, who knows what this kid is capable of (barely old enough to get into a club), pre-fat kemp was incredible, jermaine oneal has developed quite nicely, and i expect the same from darius miles. ------------------
If I could sit on the bench in the NBA while getting paid millions to develop into a starter instead of going to college, I wouldn't hesitate to take it. Right now the league is feeling the hit of having a lot of young stars, but in 4 or 5 years this league will never be better. ------------------
You may have had a point, but there are players that have gone to college that dog it on the court and act like kids. Kevin Garnett hustles around the court more than most and if he didn't hustle towards the end, I'm willing to bet it was because he was spent trying to play defense on all 5 players on the opposing team. Kevin Garnett hustles. Kobe acts like a brat, but he hustles. As I said, I could just as easily point out guys that went to college and dog it. ------------------ Yugo grills, Yugo mills, Check out the oil my Yugo spills...
One of my NBA fantasies is to sit courtside at an NBA game refereed by 3 hard-nosed HIGH SCHOOL refs who would call the game using high school rules interpretations. Imagine! ------------------ Time is a great teacher-- only problem is it kills all its pupils. PowerbizOnline.com
Can the Three Stooges save the NBA? By Hunter S. Thompson There is too much ignorant squawking these days about the Decline and Fall of the NBA Empire. Neilsen ratings are down, the fan base is shrinking, and even the Commissioner's office says radical changes are needed to keep the game healthy. Many alarming statistics are cited to show that the NBA, as we know it, is withering away right in front of our eyes. But none of it is true. It is a landslide of gibberish dutifully parroted by sportswriters. What the hell? Somebody has to fill all those holes in the widely-cursed 24-hour news cycle. We live in faster and faster Times. Big news that only 200 years ago took nine weeks just to cross the Atlantic Ocean now travels everywhere in the world at the speed of light, and gossip travels faster. David Stern, center, and the NBA brass could learn plenty from Larry, Curly and Moe. Any geek with a cheap computer can log onto the worldwide Web and spread terrifying rumors about Anthrax bombs exploding in Dallas or half the population of San Francisco being killed in three days by a brown fog of Ague Fever that blew in on a vagrant wind from Mongolia. ... And never doubt for an instant that these things might be true. That is the wonderful perversity of gossip in the 21st Century. Nothing is impossible. Some things are more impossible than others, however, and the collapse of the NBA is one of these. The only thing wrong with the NBA -- or any other professional sport, for that matter -- is a wild epidemic of Dumbness and overweening Greed. There is no Mystery about it, and no need to change any rules. The NBA's problem is so clear that even children can see it -- especially high school basketball stars and half-bright manchild phenomena who don't need college Professors to teach them the difference between Money and Fun. There is a famous "Three Stooges" film clip that says all we need to know about the NBA. Here is how I remember it: On a warm afternoon in the summer, the Three Stooges decided to cool off by going out on a nearby Lake in a small rented row-boat and feeling the breeze in their hair. Why not? they thought. Floating around in the middle of a nice cool Lake was the smartest thing they could do on a sizzling summer day. So they dressed up in their normal black business suits and set off across town to the Lake -- where, after long haggling about money with the boat-rental man, they took possession of a 6-foot dingy with two oars and a small tin bucket for bailing out the odd leak or two of stray lake water. ... There were other boats on the Lake, and young couples were drifting around happily in the shade of wide sun umbrellas. It was just another idyllic day in the American Century. The trouble started when the boat sprung a leak, as rented rowboats will, and one of the Stooges noticed that water was rising around his ankles. He pointed this out to his companions and they began bailing water out of the boat with their handy tin bucket. ... But they couldn't stay ahead of it, even by using their black howler hats as bailing buckets. The leak was worse than they'd thought. The boat was filling up. It was then that they put their heads together and came up with a brilliant solution -- They would use the oars to punch a hole in the bottom of the rowboat, so the water could more easily flow out. ... And when that didn't work, they punched another hole in the bottom of the boat. And then another. They were getting desperate, and the boat was in danger of sinking. Still they bailed crazily with the bucket and three hats. They were far out in the middle of the Lake and none of them knew how to swim. Other boaters ignored them, or laughed when they screamed for help. ... What a fine Hoot it was to see these three stupid, fat men flapping around like wild rats in the middle of a calm little lake. ... Yes sir, that was the Three Stooges for you, Real Jokers. The moral of this story is clear as a new pane of glass to everyone in the world -- except the greed-crazed owners of the NBA franchises. They are dumber than the Three Stooges, and so is that babbling jackass of a Commissioner. Stern should have been put out to pasture a long time ago. But don't worry. Quick exit, Soon come. And it won't even be noticed. The Game will go on. ------------------ "Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored."- (Aldous Huxley)
I'm with Puedlfor, there is nothing wrong with the game or the league for that matter, which is what makes the new rules changes puzzling and disappointing. As in most industries, the NBA is going through a bit of static period right now, following a 20 YEAR!! boom that saw the league explode in poplularity and profitability. Add the natural business cycle with the fact that the "torch" is being passed from the most popular generation of players (MJ, Dream, Bark, etc.) to a young, explosive, yet unknown and unproven generation of players. Actually I'm glad the NBA is "down" right now. It is keeping all the band-wagoners away, leaving the game and the league to the real fans. Remember when the Rocks won the first championship and how hard it was for non-season ticketholders to see a game. This past season, however, it was so nice to be able to walk to the ticket office and buy tickets. Before you had to call when the schedules first came out and if you were lucky you could get tickets for the Spring. Or how about the people who would try to start conversations about the Rocks, eventhough they only knew who Dream was, and when you would say something like, "Yeah, they gotta beat Denver tonight to stay atop the division, gotta keep up with San Antonio", they would say something like, "Oh, Denver has a team? San Antonio has a team? That's COOL!" (True story, I wish I was making this up) Oh well, when the Rocks are among the elite again in the next few seasons, right when the NBA becomes "Hot" again, I guess I have to start getting used to all of this, again. wonderful. yay. ------------------
Thanks for the feedback. Most of it, anyway. I asked for thoughts, not insults. All I'm trying to say, people, is that with the exception of the obvious high school phenoms (kobe, KG, mcgrady, o'neal, miles) the game could be in a bit of trouble when you look at this year's potential draft picks, and many of the top prospects are high schoolers. I remember a while back when the direct jumpers were Darryl Dawkins & Mo Malone. They didn't exactly leave much of a legacy (at least not Dawkins), but there weren't many college-skippers after that. Should the league have a mandatory 2-year college requirement? Kobe & Garnett are different. Kobe did well on his SAT's, while Garnett could not even get the minimum for a Division I scholarship. If he's going to get a degree, it's a shame that he may very well have to buy one. Maybe the real chance is taken by the owners when they gamble on these players. If your calling is to play pro ball, then follow your dream. Don't forget the value of an education, though. ------------------
Just 2 observations: 1. The young stars are promoted heavily. I can recall several commercials on television featuring the likes of Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter, and Jason Williams (why oh why does Jason Williams get a commercial). 2. Young players seem to do beter when they can receive guidence from veterans, ala Steve Francis and CB4 or J. O'Neal and Reggie. ------------------ "Of course, thats just my opinion, I could be wrong" -- Dennis Miller
Want to know what Kobe & KG'd play like if they'd gone to college? Watch them next year. ------------------ C-son --------------------- Dream on
Demanding that NBA players ahve a minimum of 2 years college would be discriminatory and probably illegal. Maybe we should demand the same of Grocery Store Checkout people - heck, they sure could use it! Seems like half NBA caliber college students get special "assistance" anyway, so they probably do not get the full value of a good education. If a young guy is going to get picked in the first round, why take the risk of going to college? He will make $500k minimum for 2 or 3 years, which goes a long way to paying for tuition if he decides that it was all a big mistake. The best way to assist these guys who are not "mentally ready" for adult life is to introduce some sort of mentoring program - maybe even hold some of their money in a trust account until they reach a certain age. The presence of young players has nothing to do with the so called decline of the NBA. I agree that it is overblown, fed by the media. I find basketball today much more entertaining than 5 or 10 years back - look at the spectacular players doing spectacular things night in night out. Everyone searching for the next Jordan is a joke - the league doesn't have an MJ anymore - it has half a dozen. Players like KG, Kobe, McGrady, Marion, Carter, Francis and Iverson are capable of anything on any given night. Every night I turn on the TV during these players I am excited about seing someone play or some matchup. The NBA, ratings wise, is on a decline, but I believe it is just part of a cycle and I won't take any notice until we start seeing earnings decline. Of course, that may occur next year when the TV contract is up for renewal, but we'll see. ------------------ ..as a man danced so the drums were beaten for him. Current Rocket's Salary & Contract Info
It's a very different looking game next year, anyway...welcome to the Zone! Passing and jump shooting will come back strong if the league sticks with that.... ------------------ "Considering Mobley for His First Son's Name"
ummm...no. Try looking in the newspaper someday....see how many of the jobs in there require 2 years or more of college. Whoa...some of them even require more than 4 years of college...imagine that. Here's another one for ya. Why don't we just throw all the rules out and let doctors go from high school to residency? Think about it. ------------------
Maybe people aren't as turned off by the NBA as first thought. http://www.nba.com/playoffs2001/news/attendance_010503.html?nav=ArticleList ------------------
