College Basketball is going down a bad path...

[Bulldog Bruce]

This year might be an anomaly but this tournament has gotten so big that the regular season seems insignificant. I don't see how they can reverse that trend. If they put more teams in the field it will be even worse.

There are no stars anymore. Almost every player who makes a name is gone after they do. A few have stayed, but most go one to disappear in the NBA for a few years. They need to make it easy for the players to test the draft. Get rid of the declaration. Let them get drafted, like in Baseball, and if they do not sign, they can come back. Maybe the NBA will bump it another year also, but they need to let as many good players stay in school as they can.

They might need to force more matchups early in the season. Stop allowing teams, like our Bulldogs, to schedule all the worst teams they can find. Force more interconference tournaments at the start of the year so you get some events for people to get excited about early. This way you can get these new players introduced to the public quicker.

Not sure what else they can do, but they have to sustain more than this 3 or 4 week spike.

 

[RebelBruiser]

The AAU circuit has ruined fundamental basketball.

I actually think the one and done rules have less to do with the dumbing down of basketball than the AAU circuit's growth.

The size of the tournament seems worse now because there are so few good teams anymore, and that's because most coaches just play the AAU style of basketball rather than trying to fix all the problems that really plague teams fundamentally. They've given up on trying to fix the issue, and they've decided to live with it and try to use it as a recruiting tool.

That said, I don't disagree with you about the NBA rule. I don't know who is in charge of the rules, but I wish basketball could have a rule like baseball, where if you want, you can go out of high school. If you go to a D-1 school though, you have to stay 3 years before you are draft eligible. If you go to a Juco, you can be draft eligible immediately. I think that would help some, because players that did show up to school wouldn't have the singular mindset of being concerned with how many touches they get to try to impress scouts. They'd have 3 years before they had to worry about that, and in the meantime, they could work on their fundamentals and learning how to actually play the game rather than trying to fill a stat sheet.

 

[EAVdog]

The NBA is now far more focused on marketing individuals and thus allows preferential treatment of the 'stars'. The NBA sets the tone all the way down from the top to even little kids basketball. The style of play has changed dramatically, every kid thinks he's going to be the next Kobe, LeBron, or Dirk. The AAU system just reinforces it before they havethe mandatory 1 year in college.
I can't stomach watching the NBA much anymore. The only interest I seldomly have this year is when the Miami Heat play the Lakers or Celtics. With so many stars on the floor spread among the two teams there seems to be a little fairness metted out. There are some teams that I can't even tell you who the players are but the media will let you know when LeBron picks his nose.

 

[dawgs.sixpack]

That said, I don't disagree with you about the NBA rule. I don't know who is in charge of the rules, but I wish basketball could have a rule like baseball, where if you want, you can go out of high school. If you go to a D-1 school though, you have to stay 3 years before you are draft eligible. If you go to a Juco, you can be draft eligible immediately. I think that would help some, because players that did show up to school wouldn't have the singular mindset of being concerned with how many touches they get to try to impress scouts. They'd have 3 years before they had to worry about that, and in the meantime, they could work on their fundamentals and learning how to actually play the game rather than trying to fill a stat sheet.

this is exactly what i wish would happen. even kids who might get drafted out of HS but are 2nd round players should be able to decline their offer and go to school 3 years.

 

[tenureplan]

Any lower classmen would just play another year in college.

 

[RebelBruiser]

Any lower classmen would just play another year in college.

Money is money. You only have so many years to play. If you get drafted high, you go play for your crappy team to get to your second contract quicker, and then when you become a free agent, you play the game Lebron and everyone else is playing, if you're that good.

I don't think players are that worried where they start their careers.

 

[TroutBum.sixpack]

Duke plays fundamental basketball...UNC will get there after Roy Williams gets his recruiting in line with Dukes.