It has been reported today that Kevin Durant will leave college after just one year and declare for the NBA Draft. This is hardly a shock as Durant finished what is probably the most impressive individual freshman season we’ve seen and is sure to be one of the top two selection in the draft; receiving a multimillion dollar contract as well as additional millions in endorsements.
That is the culture of sports today and basketball is no exception. Talented players use college as a spring board to the pros. Without a recent rule change by the league we may never have seen Durant play for the Longhorns. No reasonable person can fault Durant, or any other player, for making this decision. There is no outcry over young prodigies in tennis or golf. So why is there even a debate on the subject when it comes to team sports? Is it Race? Is it Jealousy? Maybe but I don’t think that’s it.
Some argue these players are too young to handle the celebrity and money that comes with this decision; and there is ample evidence to support this. Some say that these players are being exploited and used by the universities who make millions off of them and they have the right to make money; hard to argue with that as this is America. While there are reasonable arguments on both sides I think it’s something more that is digging at people. It’s the possibilities left unfulfilled by all parties involved.
Ultimately they all, the player, the college and the pro team, suffer from the same thing; shortsightedness. Much like me scooping fingers full of fresh cookie dough into my mouth, I’m missing out on what might have been for gratification now. Cookie dough is great, it’s delicious but it’s not all it could be if you take the time to place it on a cookie sheet and apply heat for the requisite amount of time. Let me see if I can illustrate this point.
What do 15 of the last 18 Defensive Players of the Year have in common? They have all attended four years of college. Okay that’s nice, so what? Well let’s look at the last 18 Rookie’s of the Year. What do 15 of the last 18 ROY’s have is common? They have never even been selected to the All NBA Defensive Team (1st or 2nd). Bare with me I’m going somewhere with this. Only three of the last eighteen ROY’s attended four years of college; Tim Duncan (one of the three to have been selected to the All NBA Defensive team), Damon Stoudamire, and Grant Hill. Of that same group only Duncan and Shaq have championships (Shaq played three years at LSU). In the 40 years they’ve selected All Defensive teams in the NBA there has never been a league champion without at least one player on their roster to have earned 1st or 2nd team honors.
Players are jumping to the NBA as soon as they can. Teams are drafting these players high and giving them millions because of what they could become not what they are. So while the players are good (cookie dough) and the product enjoyed, they miss a step by skipping out on what college (the oven) has to offer them. They aren’t becoming all they could be.
Can you play great defense without college? Sure, just look at Kobe. Can you win a championship without four years of college? Again, see Kobe. But he’s the exception not the rule. I use defense and championships to show just a couple of things that get missed in the early leap to the pros. Lots of other things are missed. Just so I don’t pick on Kobe, because I do that a lot, I’ll look at one of my favorites; Amare Stoudemire.
He’s a great player but he is not a complete player. His defense is atrocious, just ask Tim Duncan. He never learned to make the necessary pass rather than the extraordinary one, meaning he doesn’t pass unless it directly leads to an assist. In most cases this hurts his team; at the very least they are missing opportunities. Whether or not anyone will admit it, he is selfish to a degree and looks to “get his” (also see Kobe, sorry I couldn’t resist). This grates on a team that otherwise has good chemistry. Amare could have definitely benefited from college tutelage and he and the Suns would be better for it.
Players can have long and productive careers but they won’t necessarily be remembered. Champions get remembered. Don’t believe me? Okay, quick name the last three NBA champions without looking. Alright, now name the last three scoring champions. Yeah I didn’t think so. You see scorers are a dime a dozen. These kids have the talent to come into the league and score almost at will. They’ll put up big numbers and we’ll enjoy the highlights and probably won’t even realize we’ve missed out on something better...a delicious cookie.
Is there anything that can be done? Not unless the oven starts paying the cookie dough, but that’s a different topic.
I think that you will find any excuse to talk about cookies, fattie. Good point though. Durant will be another T-Mac. Defense rarely makes Sportscenter and that is why these High school to pro players are substandard defenders. The NBA perpetuates the problem by paying one dimensional scorers much more than one dimensional defenders. College players will never get paid.