Selection Sunday-NCAA tournament thread

That's a cute post.

 

Tradition is, apparently, a big factor in basketball. But that doesn't mean FGCU shouldn't be able to outrecruit, Butler, Davidson, Gonzaga and other mid-majors in shitty locations that aren't on the beach in Florida.

 

The vibe around the Phoenix-Tempe area has changed a lot in the last 20 or so years, with the exploding population and influx of pro teams. Until the Cardinals came in, ASU's only "competition" was the Suns. Football and baseball seem to be the strongest sports as before, but not as strong as in the days of Kush et al.

 

I'd argue softball is easily a stronger sport than both.

 

Catches your drift.

 

So do these guys.

 

So FGCU is for the kids who can't get into Miami?

 

I've wondered that too. If I was a top recruit, the kind of guy who was almost a sure-fire NBA pick two years after HS, I'd look long at a place like Hawaii, or at least Miami or San Diego State. Then again, maybe these kids either don't think about that, or all the people they've got in their ear steering them don't give them that chance.

 

Or, it's like any other college choice.
If you want to get a good law degree and you're a top student, you look at places like the Ivy League, Michigan or Vanderbilt.
If you want a good journalism degree, Syracuse and Missouri draw the best and brightest.
Top engineering prospects look at Purdue. Top pre-med students head to Duke or Northwestern.
And so on.
If your career path is professional basketball, would you rather get a "degree" from a second-tier school like Miami, USC or North Carolina State, or a more prestigious program like North Carolina, Indiana or Kansas?
Just like in any other profession, a degree from certain places carries more weight than others.

 

Not sure how many NBA teams would be too keen on drafting someone who decided to audition for the job by kicking back on the beach in his athletic prime and avoiding tougher competition.

 

If you're good enough they'll draft you. Kenneth Fareid wasn't passed over for a lack of quality opponent. Neither was Royce White for being crazy.

So if you can only do college for one or two years, why not do it someplace where girls are always in bikinis and you're on the beach?

 

I'm not even sure why I'm bothering to address ND, but...

1.) What makes you think most of the good recruits don't want to win? Wouldn't most athletes at that level be competitive?

2.) Look at how many kids from North Carolina, Kentucky and Kansas have been drafted in the past decade or so and then tell me why a kid who wants to go to NBA wouldn't think one of those places might be good for achieving that goal.

3.) There are much, much worse places to spend a semester or eight than Chapel Hill and Lawrence (I can't really speak for Lexington), particularly if you are going to be treated like a god the entire time you are there.