We never knew how good we had it. A generation ago, the pond of college
basketball was fully stocked. Graduating high school seniors were
fresh-faced freshmen-to-be, not brace-faced number one picks. Old school
sophomores and juniors were not considered too old for school. Case in
point: The 1994 NBA Draft consisted of 41 seniors and zero high schoolers. Ten years later, that same pond is
depleted. The first round gave eight pro contracts to prepsters and just
four to collegiate seniors.
Blame the influx of early entrants on
the three-year rookie cap. Tell Kobe Bryant, Tracy McGrady, and Kevin
Garnett they are collectively at fault. But regardless of why more high
school kids and college non-seniors make the jump than audition for
American Idol, declaring for the Draft is now one big empty net and
almost everyone is trying to score.
The parity in today’s game is often
celebrated, but it merely disguises the current lack of talent, which
stacked up like pancakes on early 90’s NCAA rosters. Under contemporary
standards, none of the yesteryear’s teams would have been memorable.
UNLV’s Rebels would never have run together. Laettner, Hill, and Hurley
would be names symbolizing disappointing pro careers, not the nucleus of
a Durham dynasty. The only member of the Fab Five who would have stepped
on campus for his sophomore year was Ray Jackson. At best.
But… what if no one left early? What
if, no matter how incredibly tall or immensely gifted, every
student-athlete literally committed for four years? All the potential
maximized. Youth development would be evidenced by fans in Chapel Hill
and Storrs, not just by NBA assistant coaches hovering over a 12th
man in practice.
Just
for a single moment, can you imagine the schools of talent we would see
swimming together simply by restocking our favorite pond? I can…
THE “WHAT IF” PREVIEW
OF THE 2004-2005 NCAA SEASON
The
top of the ACC is a three-headed monster. Duke’s starting line-up of
Daniel Ewing, J.J. Redick, Luol Deng, Shelden Williams, and incoming
freshman sensation Shaun Livingston might be their best ever. Each one
of them will one day don an NBA uniform.
A
short walk down Tobacco Road, the UNC faithful won’t give the Blue
Devils a conference title without a bloody fight. Raymond Felton, Rashad
McCants, and Sean May bring leadership, intensity, and about 60 points
to each game they sweat for. Phenomenal freshman J.R. Smith adds an
element of explosiveness to the already potent triumvirate.
Georgia Tech will also do more than make noise in this room full of
shouters; they are the favorites to win the league. Junior Chris Bosh,
the returning ACC Player of the Year, will continue to share the low
blocks with the rapidly-improving Luke Schenscher. Plus, high school
Player of the Year, Dwight Howard, will make a formidable frontcourt
completely unstoppable. Swingman Isma’il Muhammad and the backcourt of
Jarrett Jack, Will Bynum, and B.J. Elder, round out a terrific swarm of
Yellow Jackets.
Back-to-back National Championships
would leave most teams feeling overstuffed and content, but Jim Boeheim
swears Syracuse is still hungry.
“What can I say,” asks Boeheim, “other
than Carmelo Anthony wants a three-peat?”
If Anthony, the Wooden Award runner-up,
is the engine for the Orange, point guard Gerry McNamara is behind the
wheel. And Hakim Warrick provides the high flying hydraulics.
UConn might still be looking up at the
‘Cuse, but they aren’t straining their necks in the process. Sizzling
seniors Ben Gordon and Emeka Okafor have more chemistry than any
teammates since Maverick and Goose. Stir in the future of the Huskies,
Adam Boone and Charlie Villanueva, and the best dish in the Big East
might move from New York to Connecticut.
Of course, Lenny Cooke, the
All-American from St. John’s, will ensure the Red Storm are a dark horse
contender regardless of the odds stacked against them.
While Anthony and Cooke are the stars
of the Big East, LeBron James is the star of college basketball. Ever
since his surprise signing with Cal head coach Ben Braun (who is a
friend of James’ former high school coach) a year ago, the Legend of
LeBron has evolved into a full-blown fairy tale. A trip to the Final
Four, averaging a triple-double, and the distinction of becoming the
first frosh to win the Wooden Award, are just a few of the remarkable
accolades James achieved in just one season as a Golden Bear. Now James,
along with outstanding big man Jamal Sampson, would like to bring an
NCAA title to Berkley.
Before Cal wins it all, however, they
must first face a daunting Pac-10 schedule. Each of Arizona’s starters
is capable of taking over a game. Mustafa Shakur and Salim Stoudamire
are quick (driving) and slick (shooting). And to say Ndudi Ebi, Andre
Iguodala, Hassan Adams, and Channing Frye are ridiculously athletic is a
massive understatement. They can all get higher than the Portland
Trailblazers at a “Legalize It” party.
Looking for a Pac-10 shocker?
“It has to be USC,” says UCLA head
coach Ben Howland, “they have quietly collected some nice talent.”
The Stewart twins, Rodrick and Lodrick,
and the Craven twins, Derrick and Errick, make the Trojans one big,
happy family. Robert Swift, a 7-foot shot-swatting freshman center, is
the adopted kin perfectly suited to protect the hoop.
Alabama is on a mission to win two SEC
titles in a row. Point guard Mo Williams scores easily and leads
efficiently. Williams was a third team All-American partly because he
could write a modern-day play: The Importance of Feeding Earnest… and
Kennedy. As in Earnest Shelton, one of the league’s most underrated
shooters, and Kennedy Winston, a guard/forward who consistently torches
opposing defenses. Of course, the strength of the Crimson Tide can be
found on the low post. Senior Ousmane Cisse, who was on track to claim
All-American honors before a foot injury ended his season in late
December, combines a rare skill set with relentless energy. If he is
healthy all year, Alabama could be a Final Four team and Cisse will be
the school’s all-time leading scorer.
Florida senior power forward Kwame
Brown won the SEC Player of the Year for the second consecutive year in
2003-2004, but he is still dreaming of winning a conference title.
Swingman Matt Walsh, point guard Anthony Roberson, and forward David Lee
need to wake up and help Brown smell the SEC crown.
Two compulsively scoring forwards,
Travis Outlaw and Lawrence Roberts, combined for over 40 points a game
for the Mississippi State. They should put up even more this season. Any
time your frontcourt scores more than Colin Farrell, you have a chance
to win a lot of games. If Tennessee center Jackie Butler, the SEC
Newcomer of the Year, had come to Starkville as originally planned, the
frontcourt would have scored more than Hugh Heffner. Regardless, the
Bulldogs will still be clawing at the Gators and Crimson Tide all year
long.
The Big 12 could easily be referred to
as the Jayhawks and the 11 dwarfs. Even though Oklahoma, Oklahoma, and
the T.J. Ford-led Texas Longhorns have sprinklings of talent, Kansas is
covered in it. Guard-wise Aaron Miles is finally understanding how to
lead and Keith Langford is finally ready to score with the country’s
elite. Plus, Wayne Simien is a complete power forward who could quietly
steal conference Player of the Year honors from Ford.
In the WAC, only one team received a
tournament invite last season and only one team this season has a chance
to get noticed on the national scene. However, that single entity,
Fresno State, is foaming at the mouth and will seemingly be more than
just noticed. Advancing all the way to the Elite Eight, point guard Tito
Maddox and power forward DeAngelo Collins could once again take the
Bulldogs deep into the bracket. The Batman and Robin combo shared WAC
Player of the Year honors because they consistently find ways to “wham”
and “pow” the competition.
Stars in the Big 10 are as bright and
shiny as Omarosa’s incisors. Wisconsin senior point guard Devin Harris
is a brilliant scorer for a lead guard and even better on the defensive
end. With Harris dunking and distributing, the Badgers are serious
contenders in the conference.
Minnesota’s towering twosome, Kris
Humphries and Rick Rickert, joins Harris on the pre-season All-Big 10
team. Like the split personalities inherent within Edward Norton in
“Fight Club,” Humphries and Rickert utilize different abilities to
complement each other perfectly. Rickert is a soft-spoken center who can
step outside to shoot or find a backdoor cutter. Humphries is the brash
college version of Tyler Durden, bumping and bruising opponents for
forty minutes a night.
Junior guard Bracey Wright of Indiana
is another of the Big 10’s elite who shall soon have some big names
surrounding him. D.J. White and Josh Smith, two of the nation’s finest
prep forwards, are good enough to help Wright lead the Hoosers to a
season on the brink of contention.
With all of the individual gems
bouncing like protons and electrons around the Big 10, Michigan is the
only school that atomically fuses their talent together. Even though
Daniel Horton and Dion Harris are fine guards who can score and
create, Coach Tommy Amaker knows the only reason the Wolverines have won
back-to-back Big 10 titles is Tyson Chandler. Ann Arbor was the only
place the do-it-all center visited out of high school and he must have
known then that he was the missing part of a chemical equation.
“We will go as far as Tyson can take
us,” remarked Amaker, “and Tyson can take us anywhere he wants.”
While Chandler has picked conference
crowns and all types of national accolades, his high school rival, Eddy
Curry, has not been as successful as a Midwestern savior. The DePaul
senior center has a chance to break all of the Blue Demons’ scoring,
rebounding, and shot blocking records, but can’t shake the Jenny
McCarthy tag. Despite all the obvious assets, he just can’t seem to
carry a winning program. Guard Drake Diener and Curry make a nice
outside-inside combo to watch, yet they have not advanced past the first
round of the NCAA Tournament. But this could be finally be the year. The
addition of prep treasure Dorrell Wright might be the third scoring
option DePaul has been desperately seeking. If Wright lives up to the
billing, DePaul could finally reach a whole new level and Curry would
prove to be more than a nice body.
DePaul isn’t the only Conference USA
team with weapons and something to prove. Louisville’s highly regarded
backcourt of Taquan Dean and Francisco Garcia is adding even more high
regards with the addition of Sebastian Telfair and Donta Smith. Telfair,
the top high school lead guard in the country, will gel perfectly with
Dean, Garcia, and, the extremely athletic junior college transfer, Smtih.
As Rick Pitino describes his hopes for this season, he sounds like
someone about to see a movie by M. Night Shymylan.
“In the beginning, it may take a while
for our different parts to come together,” says Pitino, “but I can not
wait to see how it all ends.”
Still, the overwhelming favorite in
Conference USA is Memphis, who just happens to be last year’s national
runner-up. Despite the loss to Syracuse in the championship game and the
graduation of guard Antonio Burks and springboard forward Qyntel Woods,
the Tigers are almost everyone’s preseason # 1. Sean Banks was a role
player as a frosh, but the brilliance which sporadically erupted from
his game should be more evident this year. Kendrick Perkins was a first
team all-conference center who is also just beginning to scratch the
surface of his natural gifts. Also, guard DaJuan Wagner and forward
Amare Stoudemire were Conference USA’s co-Players of the Year and each
were first team All-American recipients. Dynamic freshman point guard
Darius Washington may even play alongside Wagner for stretches.
Offensively, the Tigers should produce points easily and yet still
manage to play lockdown defense on the other end of the floor. Since
this is the last year of the conference’s current set-up, ending the
season with a national title would be the perfect storybook ending…
… And the storybook ending for a
college basketball lover fishing for a way to restock this glorious
pond.
2004-05 "What If?"
Pre-Season Rankings
(with Projected
Starters)
1. Memphis
Washington, Darius – G,
Fr.
Wagner, Dajuan – G, Sr.
Banks, Sean – G, So.
Stoudemire, Amare – F,
Jr.
Perkins, Kendrick – C.
So.
2. Syracuse
Wright, Josh – G, Fr.
McNamara, Gerry – G,
Jr.
Anthony, Carmelo – F,
Jr.
Warrick, Hakim – F, Sr.
Forth, Craig – C, Sr.
3. Georgia Tech
Jack, Jarrett – G, Jr.
Muhammad, Isma’il – F,
Sr.
Howard, Dwight – F, Fr.
Bosh, Chris – F, Jr.
Schenscher, Luke – C,
4. Duke
Livingston, Shaun – G,
Fr.
Redick, J.J. – G, Jr.
Ewing, Daniel – G, Sr.
Deng, Luol – F, So.
Williams, Shelden – C,
Jr.
5. UConn
Gordon, Ben – G, Sr.
Anderson, Rashad, G,
Jr.
Villanueva, Charlie –
F, So.
Boone, Adam – F, So.
Okafor, Emeka – C, Sr.
6. Cal
James, LeBron – G, So.
Midgley, Richard – G,
Jr.
Kately, Marquise – F,
So.
Powe, Leon – F, So.
Sampson, Jamal – C, Sr.
7. Michigan
Horton, Daniel – G, Jr.
Abram, Lester – G, Jr.
Harris, Dion – G, So.
Sims, Courtney – F, So.
Chandler, Tyson – C,
Sr.
8. DePaul
Diener, Drake – G, Sr.
Seals, LeVar – G, Sr.
Mejia, Sammy – G, So.
Greer, Quemont – F, Sr.
Curry, Eddy – C, Sr.
9. Louisville
Telfair, Sebastian – G,
Fr.
Dean, Taquan – G, Jr.
Garcia, Francisco – G,
Jr.
Smith, Donta – F, Jr.
Myles, Ellis – F, Sr.
10. Alabama
Williams, Maurice – G,
Sr.
Shelton, Earnest – G,
Sr.
Winston, Kennedy – F,
Jr.
Davis, Chuck – F, Jr.
Cisse, Ousmane – F, Sr.
11. North Carolina
Felton, Raymond – G,
Jr.
Smith, J.R. – G, Fr.
McCants, Rashad – G,
Jr.
Williams, Jawad – F,
Sr.
May, Sean – F, Jr.
12. Florida
Roberson, Anthony – G,
Jr.
Walsh, Matt – G, Jr.
Lee, David – F, Sr.
Brown, Kwame – F, Sr.
Moss, Adrian – C, Sr.
13. Kansas
Miles, Aaron – G, Sr.
Langford, Keith – G,
Sr.
Gidden, J.R. – G, So.
Downs, Michah – F, Fr.
Simien, Wayne – F, Sr.
14. Mississippi State
Ervin, Gary – G, So.
Frazier, Winsome – G,
Sr.
Outlaw, Travis – F, So.
Power, Shane – F, Sr.
Roberts, Lawrence – F,
Sr.
15. Texas
Ford, T.J – G, Sr.
Taylor, Kenny – G,
Tucker, P.J. – G, So.
Aldridge, LaMarcus – F,
Fr.
Buckman, Brad – F, Jr.
16. Arizona
Shakur, Mustafa – G,
So.
Stoudamire, Salim – G,
Sr.
Adams, Hassan – F, So.
Iguodala, Andre – F,
Jr.
Frye, Channing – C, Sr.
17. Fresno State
Maddox, Tito – G, Sr.
Pettis, Terry – G, Jr.
West, Marcus, G, Sr.
Al-Sayyad, Mustafa – C,
Sr.
Collins, DeAngelo – F,
Sr.
18. Minnesota
Boone, Adam – G, Sr.
Hargow, Maurice – G,
Sr.
Gaines, Stan – F, Jr.
Humphries, Kris – F,
So.
Rickert, Rick – C, Sr.
19. Wisconsin
Harris, Devin – G, Sr.
Wade, Boo – G, Jr.
Tucker, Alando – F, Jr.
Wilkinson, Mike – F,
Sr.
Morley, Zach – F, Sr.
20. Pittsburgh
Krauser, Carl – G, Jr.
Graves, Antonio – G,
So.
McCarroll, Mark – F,
Sr.
Troutman, Chevon – F,
Sr.
Taft, Chris – C, So.
Pre-Season Wooden
Award Winner
LeBron James, Cal, So.,
PG
Pre-Season
All-American Teams
First Team
Tyson Chandler,
Michigan, Sr., C
Amare Stoudemire,
Memphis, Jr., PF
Carmelo Anthony,
Syracuse, Jr., SF
DaJuan Wagner, Memphis,
Sr., SG
LeBron James, Cal, So.,
PG
Second Team
Emeka Okafor, UConn,
Sr., C
Eddy Curry, DePaul,
Sr., C
Chris Bosh, Georgia
Tech, Jr., PF
Lenny Cooke, St.John’s,
Jr., SG
T.J. Ford, Texas, Sr.,
PG
Third Team
Kwame Brown, Florida,
Sr., PF
Ousmane Cisse, Alabama,
Sr., PF
Luol Deng, Duke, So.,
SF
Ben Gordon, UConn, Sr.,
SG
Maurice Williams,
Alabama, Sr., PG
Fourth Team
Wayne Simien, Kansas,
Jr., PF
Julius Hodge, Sr., SF
Bracey Wright, Indiana,
Jr., SG
Devin Harris,
Wisconsin, Sr., PG
Raymond Felton, North
Carolina, Jr., PG
Fifth Team
DeAngelo Collins,
Fresno State, Jr., PF
Lawrence Roberts,
Mississippi State, Sr., PF
Hakim Warrick,
Syracuse, Sr., PF
Kris Humphries,
Minnesota, So., PF
Tito Maddox, Fresno
State, Sr., PG
Sixth Team
Kendrick Perkins,
Memphis, So., C
Ryan Gomes, Sr., SF
Travis Outlaw,
Mississippi State, So., SF
Matt Walsh, Florida,
Jr., SF
Francisco Garcia,
Louisville, Jr., SG
