Hopefully the Returning Gators Start a Trend

Joakim Noah, Corey Brewer, and Al Horford announced that they would be returning for their junior season on Friday night in front of a group of students and fans in Gainsville.  Billy Donovan confirmed this statement afterwards, saying he had talked to the students earlier and they told him they wanted to win a second straight national championship… and if other teams in Division 1 can’t hold on to their prime time players, the Gators might just do so.

It’s been the trend over the past few years for players to leave college early or come straight out of high school to go to the NBA.  College players who dominate at that level for more than one year without entering the draft have become a dying breed.  While there’s always a chance Joakim Noah is going to be the new trend setter, it’s highly unlikely that many more will follow in his footsteps.
Many basketball players who go to the NBA early do it for one reason… money.  Take someone like Carmelo Anthony for instance.  He was in a situation much like Joakim Noah.  `Melo was a freshman and Noah is a sophomore, both coming off national titles, both with draft stocks that couldn’t be higher.  The only difference is that `Melo comes from a poor background.  He basically lived on the streets as a youngster.  However, money is not an issue for Noah.  His dad was a famous tennis player who made enough to set himself and his family for life.  This is a luxury that few are so lucky to have.  While Noah could arguably be taken with the first overall pick, he doesn’t necessarily have to worry about maybe having a bad year next year and possibly getting picked in the tenth spot instead of the first.  Meanwhile, someone like Carmelo Anthony had to capitalize on his success.  He had to go and get the money so he could support his family and himself.  The difference between being picked third in the draft and tenth could mean millions of dollars… money that Carmelo and his family couldn’t afford to lose.

So, how does it really hurt the game or the players if guys leave early?  Well, it makes a difference from a lot of angles.  I believe it’s the college game that gets hurt the worst.  These teams don’t really have a chance to build up and grow together.  Take a team like North Carolina.  The Tar Heels grabbed a 3 seed in the tournament and probably would’ve gone far if it weren’t for the big Cinderella Story, George Mason.  They got back to being that good only one season after losing Sean May, Raymond Felton, Rashad McCants, and Marvin Williams from their championship team of 2005.  Imagine if they had gotten even three of those four back.  Throw in Tyler Hansborough and nobody would’ve stood a chance.  Now take a look at Florida.  I can’t tell you what their recruiting class looks like for next year, but knowing Billy Donovan, I’m sure there are some good new freshmen coming up through the Florida system.  Now add in the big three sophomores with an extra year of maturation and any others that come back to try to defend the title and you have the ingredients of back-to-back national championships.  

While other teams may have the talent to try to take on Florida (Ohio State or North Carolina), chances are, nobody will be able to match the X-factor Florida will have.  Florida’s leadership will be matched by no other team with so many players that have “been there, done that”.  The problem is that Florida is a very rare exception to your typical college basketball team.  Teams don’t have the experience on their roster when it comes down to crunch time.  A prime example of this comes from two Final Four games this year (in the George Mason-Florida game, Mason had more seniors on their roster, but Florida was just so much better talent-wise, they took the game easily).  The UCLA-LSU game involved two very young, inexperienced teams.  The game was sloppy and you could see the inexperience shining through LSU.  The team was lead by a freshman, Tyrus Thomas, and a sophomore, Glen Davis.  Then the national championship game proved to be the same story.  It was two teams full of freshman and sophomores.  The play was sloppy and one-sided.  This was a tremendous let-down after what was being thought of as one of the best tournaments in history.  Unfortunately, this is what’s going to happen with players constantly leaving early for the NBA.

These players leaving early also hurt the NBA game and kids who aren’t as good as they think or as they are told.  A lot of guys come out that just aren’t mature and aren’t ready to be playing on such a big stage at such a big level.  Of course, there are the exceptions, like LeBron, Kobe, T-Mac, `Melo and KG.  However, for every LeBron, Kobe, and Carmelo, there is some other kid who doesn’t make it.  They put their entire lives into making it big in the NBA and it just doesn’t work out.  Either they get hurt, get in trouble, or just can’t adjust to the pro game.  These kids are left with no education, no money, and nothing to lean back on.  This also hurts the NBA as they lose out on these players.  Although someone like Darco Milicic is a slightly different situation as he came from overseas, he has been the most notable bust of late.  Detroit took him with high hopes that he would turn out to be great.  They wasted a 2nd overall pick on the guy when they could’ve had Carmelo Anthony.  Darco never worked out.  He just couldn’t play at such a high level and the Pistons wasted an opportunity to turn into an even better team than they became.  

As much as the NBA is hurt by kids entering early, they are helped by it as well and that’s why it will never stop.  LeBron has become the face of the NBA and the affect likely would not have been the same had LeBron not come straight from high school.  LeBron has become a very rich man through endorsements and at the same time has boosted league revenue as well.  It’s virtually the same story with a guy like Kobe Bryant.  Now every kid with any talent at all thinks they can be the next Kobe or LeBron, when a lot of times it just isn’t realistic.  An age limit in the NBA would be the only way to save the college game and these relentless kids with huge dreams of making it big.  Unfortunately, this has no chance of happening until the day that money isn’t important anymore.  That day is also known as the apocalypse.