Quality of Play on the College Level

[UrbanLegendMD]

It's like completely different games now. Players make awful turnovers, cannot drive, cannot guard the perimeter and all you need to beat anybody is three point shooting and a guy to bring the ball up the court against the press. 40 FG% is considered okay and teams spend 30 seconds dribbling around and jacking up a three. I know I am beating a dead horse here but it seems like this year it has been particularly extra special bad. Why would you want NBA prospects spend an extra year playing in systems where they learn nothing but bad habits while dominating embarrassingly weak competition (or in case of Josh Selby not being able to contain a midget named Rodriguez).

[joelafan]

yea when vcu beats kansas you ask yourself wtf..

[shanedude]

That's why I don't watch it.If I stop at a college game when flipping through channels I will only see crappy ball. It might just be me but I have no idea why people watch it.

[Angry Jimmy]

I watched the Championship game between UNC and Michigan the other day on ESPN Classic, and the game play was much closer to pro level then anything we see today.

Not just from the Fab 5, from North Carolina too.

I think players just aren't very good anymore. They don't work hard enough on skills, relying more on athleticism and a 3pt shot.

[candy for lunch]

NCAA basketball is unwatchable.

[joelafan]

NCAA basketball is unwatchable.

And watching nba players get techs over nothing is? College basketball itself and the conecpt is actualy fun to watch. The refs somtimes f it up though.

[DaRooster8]

The quality of play has definitely dropped. You got guys turning the ball over like crazy, missing free throws, bricking shots. I think kids these days are not focused on the fundamentals of the game. It's all about doing a crazy dunk to get on ESPN.

[joelafan]

The quality of play has definitely dropped. You got guys turning the ball over like crazy, missing free throws, bricking shots. I think kids these days are not focused on the fundamentals of the game. It's all about doing a crazy dunk to get on ESPN.

yea... this is bad year for major college sports.

[mefromthefuture]

This is down season overall but everyone has already talked about weak the draft class was so it was already known.

And of course if your a smaller team and your playing the teams that are bigger, quicker, and stronger then you. They will slow the game down and use that clock and take smart threes and slow the game down it's the only chance they have at any level HS, College, Pro.

UNC and Kentucky is even in terms of talent so they play quicker more pro style.

[joelafan]

This is down season overall but everyone has already talked about weak the draft class was so it was already known.

And of course if your a smaller team and your playing the teams that are bigger, quicker, and stronger then you. They will slow the game down and use that clock and take smart threes and slow the game down it's the only chance they have at any level HS, College, Pro.

UNC and Kentucky is even in terms of talent so they play quicker more pro style.

Yea i see alot of the underclass men staying . I would with the uncertiny of the lockcout. I think kemba walker will be big in the nba..

[joelafan]

This is down season overall but everyone has already talked about weak the draft class was so it was already known.

And of course if your a smaller team and your playing the teams that are bigger, quicker, and stronger then you. They will slow the game down and use that clock and take smart threes and slow the game down it's the only chance they have at any level HS, College, Pro.

UNC and Kentucky is even in terms of talent so they play quicker more pro style.

Yea i see alot of the underclass men staying . I would with the uncertiny of the lockcout. I think kemba walker will be big in the nba..

[Jeff23]

I watched the Championship game between UNC and Michigan the other day on ESPN Classic, and the game play was much closer to pro level then anything we see today.

Not just from the Fab 5, from North Carolina too.

I think players just aren't very good anymore. They don't work hard enough on skills, relying more on athleticism and a 3pt shot.

Its because the good players stay for only one year there. Back in the 80's and 90's it was very, very rare to see a freshman start, today freshmans are the best players in the teams.

[mattg]

NCAA is a much more strategic, possession by possession game. College ball is much better coached than NBA basketball, a lot more teaching of fundamentals and concepts. The longer shot clock also allows teams to play many different styles, while in the NBA everyone runs pretty much the same few set actions because you have to go much more quickly. Obviously the skill level of the players is lower than that of the NBA, but what does anyone expect from a feeder league? If you're watching NCAA ball to see great individual players you're watching for the wrong reasons.

[Nett]

I think the one of the problems with college basketball is the 35 second shot clock and short 3-point line. With the long shot clock, we see excessive dribbling and perimeter swings. Something, I see every shots as a 3 pointer. And with the short 3-point line, there's more less space to post up.

[Hoopaholix]

College ball is more athletic, stronger & bigger guys, but less skilled in general. Then again almost all basketball is like that these days. Players are relying on athleticism more than skill.

[jai3000]

I totally agree, athleticism has improved across the board, but the level of intelligence, the ability to "know" the game has decreased. Don't worry, just beacuse The NBA is staying afloat and exciting these days doesn't mean that they are safe. 5-10 years from now, which of these college players can carry the torch that LBJ and DRose and DWade and DHoward have carried? Most of these kids are coming into the League immature, inexperienced, and ineffective and flying by off their athleticism.The NBA is so much more physical and faster than college and I think kids fail to realize this. Remember when we were on the playground and the fly young kid would show up to hoop. An OG would lay him out on the way to the hole, taking care of athleticism and forcing the kid to learn how to beat the OG in other ways, thereby simplyfying his game and making him more effective. The stars will be the young ones that realize this and actually take the steps to learn the nuances of the game, i.e. Harrison Barnes, Kyrie Irving, etc.

[celticsfan34]

I think the quality of play is fine....its just the dumb mistakes at the end of the games in the ncaa tournament is what made it horrible. the national championship game was disgusting in itself and wasn't a good game whatsoever I think next year more of your powerhouse teams (i.e. Duke,North Carolina, Kentucky and etc.) will be a lot better and the tournament will have a few great teams instead of a bunch of really good teams

[BarbaGrizz]

What´s the deal behind the 35s shot clock? It really doesn´t make any sense

[wiff]

I actually don't think the quality of play is all that bad but I watch mostly Gonzaga games. But if you compare the difference between college and pro hoops look at the difference between college and pro baseball. The dudes play with an aluminum bat and their games are 13 to 11 not 3 to 2. Same with football. How many truly elite quarterbacks are there in the NFL? College teams still run the wish bone. And a Tibow college team can win the NCAA championship. Tibow is not going to win a Super Bowl.

If you look at the big picture there are 450 NBA players max. There are 300 college teams. Only 30 college players with recieve a garaunteed contract. Maybe another 15 will find a roster spot and that's not including the Euro's. Some teams like UNC have two or three players who get drafted. So that means there are even less teams with even a single pro.

I perferr to watch NBA ball too, but honestly I think the level of play is where it should be expected. Is it pro? Absolutely not, but is there passion and heart? Yeah I think there is more passion and heart during the college regular season than the NBA regular season.

[vincecarter4pres]

Good post wiff.