Kentucky basketball has growing competition as a gateway to NBA careers
Competition in college basketball might be extending beyond such noted — perhaps soon to be quaint — rivalries like North Carolina-Duke and Kentucky-Louisville.
College basketball is increasingly being perceived as only one of several viable options for high-profile high school seniors with NBA aspirations. So, programs like Kentucky that sell themselves as gateways to NBA careers face the possibility of stiffer competition for elite players.
LaMelo Ball made playing overseas more plausible. He skipped college — and the last two years of high school — to play in Lithuania and Australia before the Charlotte Hornets made him the third pick in the 2020 NBA Draft.
And the NBA enhanced its G League as a developmental option last year by launching a team called Ignite that is touted as an alternative to college basketball. Player salaries can go well into six figures. Two of its players — Jalen Green and Jonathan Kuminga — are widely projected as lottery picks in this year’s NBA Draft. At least two others — Isaiah Todd and Daishen Nix — were five-star prospects.
And one of this recruiting year’s five-star prospects, Michael Foster Jr., announced on April 23 that he will bypass college and play in the G League.
In a recent Zoom meeting sponsored by the Duke Sports and Entertainment Law Symposium, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver (incidentally a 1984 graduate from Duke with a degree in political science) was asked about the G League threatening college basketball.
“I’m a huge college basketball fan,” he said. “And I’m a huge Duke fan. So, it’s not our goal in any way to compete with college basketball for those elite — call them one-and-done — players.”
Mississippi State Coach Ben Howland suggested that college basketball can best prepare players for the NBA. College basketball offers big game atmospheres, large crowds (in non-COVID seasons), health care, advice on nutrition and — oh yeah — the opportunity for a college education, he said.
ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla pointed out another benefit: the exposure that college basketball provides. One-and-done players can become “brands” in a single season.
“Do you think Jalen Suggs’ and Evan Mobley’s and Cade Cunningham’s marketability skyrocketed because people saw them on TV seemingly two or three times a week?” Fraschilla said of three star freshmen this past season. “My answer is yes.”
Zion Williamson’s one season playing for Duke translated into millions in endorsement deals as an NBA player, Fraschilla said. “Playing on national TV 25 times in your one (season) in college is a good enough argument for me that college basketball is still the most viable route to the NBA, and for your own career.
“But that doesn’t mean there aren’t other roads that can get you there.”
When the Charlotte Hornets played the Milwaukee Bucks in Paris, Rick Bonnell of the Charlotte Observer wrote a story about playing in Europe versus college basketball as preparation for the NBA.
Hornets center Bismack Biyombo, a native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said that Europe might be the better option because the team approach is emphasized there more than individual qualities.
“In the AAU, if your father or somebody else close to you put the team together, then you have to be the one scoring the ball,” Biyombo told Bonnell. “Kids grow up with that mindset.
“Where, in Europe, kids train more together. Winning is more a team thing.”
Before he moved to the United States, UK’s Oscar Tshiebwe participated in a camp run by Biyombo.
Silver acknowledged the debate about the NBA’s current requirement that players be at least 19 years old. That could change back to 18.
That led Silver to point out that about 25 percent of NBA players grew up outside the United States.
“They laugh when we talk of 18 versus 19,” the commissioner said. “Most of them were essentially pros when they were 14. They became part of a club or organization at 13, 14 years old.
“Many of them have advantages now from purely a basketball standpoint because they’ve been so dedicated to their craft and singularly focused from a younger age.”
Exhibit A might be Luka Doncic, a native of Slovenia and now an All-Star with the Dallas Mavericks. At age 13, he signed a five-year contract with Real Madrid.
“When Luka was 12 years old, he was practicing with pros,” Hornets center Willy Hernangomez told the Charlotte Observer. “You can tell that from the way he sees the game, how he reads passes.
“That’s what’s made him such a quick success in the NBA.”
Silver likened the options of playing in the G League or overseas to a musician who devotes herself or himself fully to music.
“People aren’t charting how many electives they took,” the NBA commissioner said. “In fact, it’s celebrated many times how singularly focused they are.”
‘A cool thing’
As of Friday, the number of Division I players looking to transfer neared 1,500.
“I honestly don’t like it,” Mississippi State Coach Ben Howland said recently. “You’re seeing kids transferring who were starters averaging 17 (points) and eight (rebounds). I mean, you’re seeing guys transfer because it’s, like, a cool thing to do now.”
Players in the transfer portal who were regular contributors for the teams last season include Xavier Pinson (Missouri), Dylan Disu (Vanderbilt), Noah Locke (Florida) and, perhaps the most glaring example, Sahvir Wheeler (Georgia).
The NCAA move to allow a one-time transfer without having to sit out a season is seen as fueling this flood of players looking for a change. You hear a variety of possible reasons for transfers including not liking the coach, wanting to be closer to home, seeking a bigger role or moving to a higher level.
“It was made primarily so kids who were not playing in a program could have a chance to go elsewhere,” Howland said of the rule change. “That I understand.”
Unintended consequences
While there are those who support freedom of movement for college players, ESPN analyst Fran Fraschilla offered a cautionary thought.
“I’m not necessarily against transfers,” he said, “but I think the level that we’re seeing will certainly have unintended consequences for college basketball.”
Fraschilla wondered if the effort to bring in transfers who have proven to be productive on the college level elsewhere might cost a still-developing player near the end of the bench his scholarship.
Such players could be “collateral damage,” the ESPN analyst said. “… There’s no more waiting for a kid to become a sophomore or junior. It’s going to be what have you done for me lately.”
‘Shangri-La’
Although the college basketball landscape is changing, Fran Fraschilla sees programs like Kentucky and Duke remaining elite.
“Because they are still going to attract the one-and-done kids who have a reasonably good chance of being NBA players after a year,” he said. “But they can also supplement their programs with experienced upperclassmen who want to play in a Shangri-La like Lexington.”
Transition game
There’s transfers. And then there’s Kevin Marfo. In the 2021-22 season, he will be a newcomer on a college team for a fourth time.
As a freshman, Marfo came off the bench for George Washington in the 2016-17 season.
He then transferred to Quinnipiac where he sat out the 2017-18 season before playing in the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons.
He then played for Texas A&M as a grad transfer this past season. He averaged 2.6 points, 3.7 rebounds and 12.7 minutes.
Taking advantage of the NCAA allowing 2020-21 seniors another season of eligibility, Marfo plans to transfer back to Quinnipiac for next season.
Quote to remember
With metaphorical explosion of transfers and the NBA making its G League a more attractive option, the lure of being a one-and-done player is seemingly expanding.
Here’s how Fran Fraschilla summarized the state of the game: “In college basketball now, everybody is a mercenary.”
Congrats
To former UK player Nate Sestina. His team won the Balkan International Basketball League title Thursday. In the title game, he scored 14 points and grabbed five rebounds in 23 minutes.
Sestina will continue to play for the Hapoel Holon Basketball Club in the Israeli Basketball Premier League.
Prior to signing with Hapoel Holon on March 15, Sestina played 15 games with the Long Island Nets of the G League. He averaged 7.7 points and 2.7 rebounds.
Clarke remembered
In a podcast appearance, Hall of Fame sportswriter Bob Ryan recalled how Terrence Clarke took pride in being from Boston.
“He viewed himself as an ambassador of Boston basketball,” Ryan told host Jeff Goodman. “And he wanted to spread a gospel that there were good basketball players in Boston.”
Ryan and Goodman lamented that driving at excessive speed and running a red light, according to police, led to the accident that killed Clarke on April 22. A day earlier, Clarke signed with the Klutch Sports Group.
“It’s so sad because he had so much to offer …,” Ryan said. “It just drives me crazy to think it was all so needless.”
Happy birthday
To Rhyne Howard. She turned 21 on Thursday. … To Chris Harrison. He turned 48 on Saturday. … To ESPN analyst (and former UK assistant coach) Jimmy Dykes. He turns 60 on Monday. … To Anthony Epps. He turns 46 on Tuesday. … To South Carolina Coach Dawn Staley. She turns 51 on Tuesday. … To Larry Steele. He turns 72 on Wednesday.
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