March Madness is always a fun time of the year, but has the one year player caused us to view tournament time a little differently....
Unless you have been in the witness protection agency, you know what time of year it is. ESPN has started its "Championship Week," the daily bubble watch is in full swing, and the Central Ohio weather has about as much stability as the stock market. It must be time for another installment of March Madness. I can't help but reflect on many of the fond memories of iconic teams, players, and coaches that have made this time of year so remarkable for myself. I originally began to jot down some of these most memorable icons of March Mayhem down in order to formulate a top ten list of sorts. As I did however, I came to a bit of a revolution, at least for myself. Much of what I remember is prior to the most recent years in which it has become commonplace to play for good 'ole State U for just one measly year. Could it possibly be that one and done players are ruining March Madness?
Okay, so it may be difficult to completely ruin the onslaught of testosterone that is a byproduct of the channel flipping, beverage consuming, and meat product eating that happens amidst so many games. But has the environment created by this phenomenon caused the tournament to lose its luster a bit? Many of the teams that I remember are because they were obviously good, but also because they had players that I could identify with. Why could I identify with them you ask? Because they STAYED around for more than a year.
As much fun as it was to watch Ohio State in 2006-2007 with Oden, Conley, and Cook, I can't help but feel that I may have been robbed of a more dominant run that we saw more frequently in the early and mid 90's.
So what happens when a team stays together? First of all, the team has a chance to develop and become that much better. As much fun as it was to watch Ohio State in 2006-2007 with Oden, Conley, and Cook, I can't help but feel that I may have been robbed of a more dominant run that we saw more frequently in the early and mid 90's. Can you imagine if those three stayed even two years (not to mention three)? They were good already, but that same level of talent as Juniors would have been not only amazing, but downright fun to watch. Alas, it did not happen, and we instead have to watch a team that has been, in my estimation, rather boring to watch the last couple of years as OSU continues to rebuild each time.
When players stay in College Basketball for more than a cup of coffee, fans also get a chance to identify with them. Sure, I hated the Fab Five, but I knew them. I also knew that although we now know that the team was bought (weekly jab at all things Michigan), that they would put together some remarkable plays. I could count on lob dunks, black socks, and pizzash. What I am getting at here is that I WOULD PLAN MY DAY around them playing. With Carolina, you had identifiable players such as Rasheed Wallace, Jerry Stackhouse, and Vince Carter. The same with Kentucky when you think Derek Anderson, Jamal Mashburn, and Ron Mercer. I could also point to UNLV in the early 90's with Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon, and Greg Anthony. Not so long ago, you turned on the tube not only to enjoy the Cinderella stories and almost endless day of basketball, but to also the personalities on each team. That is hard to say anymore isn't it? The couple of exceptions that I can think of to this rule in recent memory is the back to back Florida teams of 2005 and 2006. They all went across the grain of the recent movement and stayed together. Tyler Hansbrough is another. He is identifiable with not only Carolina Basketball, but with College Basketball in general. Just to back up my point, my wife is not an avid fan college basketball, but she knows who "Psycho T" is, and will actually watch and root for him if he is playing.
I have come to the conclusion that I don't like the one and done player being in college basketball. Not only are we seeing a dip in the level of play, but many of these players are only playing because they are forced to do something to bide their time until the NBA rules will allow them to enter the draft. As a result, a lot of the top tier talent puts about as much effort into their schoolwork as Manny Ramirez puts into washing his hair. This is going to result in losses of scholarships soon at certain schools around the country. These early draftees result in a hit against those dreaded Academic Progress Reports that the NCAA has started imposing because they don't graduate and as we have seen often abandon their last semester.
Enough about academics. What I do know is that I am still going to watch the tournament because there will ultimately be story-lines that will be fun to watch, and some pretty good basketball will be played as well. And when it is all said and done, and a champion has been crowned, we will all watch the parade of early draftees declaring for the NBA draft. I don't know if BJ Mullins will be on that list and get a couple of parting shots prior to his early departure, but there is one thing of certainty that I can tell you about my view: March Madness, because of the one and done player, has come in like a lion and is quielty going out like a lamb.