All of the these names are players that came straight out of high school and into the league. And of course you know the names of the first sentence more than the latter. That's because the names of the second sentence made terrible decisions and fell victim to the glory of NBA stardom...in other words, they suck(ed)...none of them even play in the league anymore.
And that is just a crying shame because they all (and by all, I mean high school phenoms who pushed their luck into the league) had the potential to be oh so good. But now, they're desperately trying their make some pocket money with their god-given talent in the d-league or overseas when they could've been a) winning NCAA championships b) making the final 4 more exciting c) winning the NCAA's joke of a dunk contest or d) getting an education.
Ndudi Ebi. Former first round draft pick. Now (barely) playing for the Fortworth Flyers .
So, with my intro finished, I would like to thank David Stern for raising the age minimum.
Because now college basketball will be that much better. I must admit, I've never been a HUGE college basketball fan, but I've noticed that its level of excitement has definitely gone down since the 90s (maybe it was just because I was a kid in the 90s, but maybe not too). This year's draft class was easily the worst since the 2000-Kenyon-Martin-1st-even-with-broken-leg-and-Darius-Miles-at-3rd draft. When the best two college players are just 1-demensional shooters, you know you've fallen from the Joe Smith and Tim Duncan dominance days.
Darius Miles. Former 3rd overall pick. Now wanted by Isiah Thomas.
Now we'll see these high-school phenoms that otherwise would've had to play that dumb waiting game after getting drafted in college. After being asked how could he rule out high schoolers when players like Kobe and KG are dominating in the league, David Stern davidsternly said "Right, and think of how much better they could've been."
It made me think of the how great JR Smith wouldve been at UNC, Shaun Livingston at Duke, and Bassy Telfair at Louisville (they all committed to these colleges by the way). They would've been stars that immediately uplifted college basketball rather than in the NBA showing the expected "flashes of greatness" while fans keep on saying "Next season, he'll be great" which is what Im currently doing with Telfair. All these 3rd teir players would have come straight from college already developed and become the sensations they're supposed to be. No waiting time to develop (which really pisses me off), no frustration in the quick adjustment to the pros, no rough humbling experiences by coaches and teammates and no 2-seasons-and-out as a result.
Even when it comes to Kobe and Amare (who actually committed to Memphis), they're GREAT now, but what a road it was. Kobe was the ball hog he was in high school...jacking up 3s in attempts to be the savior. Amare was a little better, but damn, he would've dominated in the tourney.
I hate to say this, but even Lebron...yes the 20-5-5 Rookie of the Year who is probably the only high school player that should be an exception to this argument...would've been so much more awesome to watch playing in Carolina blue like you-know-who.
Of course, this means he probably wouldn't have gone to Cleveland, Kobe wouldn't have gone to LA and all those stories wouldn't have happened. Of course maybe they might've suffered an injury that kept them from being drafted and then next thing you know, their fame never passes high school.
But it's a lot more interesting to think as the glass half full. Maybe Lebron makes some incredible last second full court shot that beats Grant Hill to Laettner. Maybe Shaun Livingston strikes gold with Coach K and becomes the best college player to play the game. Maybe Amare looks a lot like Grandmama (Larry Johnson) and wins the title. And so on with the what-ifs.
So, I guess the past 7 paragraphs are saying...I'm impatient. Drafting high school players is like planting a tree that grows money. You get all happy that you somehow got the seeds to this tree, but then you realize you're gonna have to wait a few years. After a few years your excitement dies down because you realize you could've just spent your time working and would've ended up with more money. You're welcome for that wonderful metaphor. Anyways, I'd rather have these high school studs shine NOW where they can get good, really good at the college level rather than the take the high risk of being some wasted draft pick that never ended up being so good because the tough transition. (Again, exception: Lebron)
Of course, there's the more ethical factor I should be concerned about right now: getting an education. Although I highly doubt these players would actually know their professors' names/go to class at all...hey, its another guy in college and even another shot to find the cure for cancer. Plus this guy has probably been his hometown hero for the past year or two. I don't think it would be a "positive" influence if he decided that getting money now is much more important than going to school. And, (this is going to say prejudice, but its only to prove a point) most of these high school studs are African-American, and there's that statistic that "More black men are in prison than in college." So yeah, maybe this guy would at least bring himself + a few others that follow his lead to maybe change that just a little bit.
And, if school isn't his cup of tea, well then he can just hope for a Marvin Williams UNC story and then get drafted. At least its better to wait 2 years than 3.
So, at last, thank you again David Stern because now I get to watch Greg Oden dominate at Ohio State and now I don't have to wait 2 years before I start hearing OJ Mayo's name again on ESPN. There's also a kid named Kevin Durant that I'm really excited watch play RIGHT NOW too, but that's a different story.
Anyways, moral of the story: be cool, stay in school.
Yay David Stern!
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