Wanted: Basketball Players in the NBA

The "Basketball for Thought" is a commentary by Kris Gardner.

June 2002

Since I decided to focus more time on high school / AAU basketball, I've observed a few things: one, summer league hoops is BIG business and two, the young players lack fundamentals: shooting, passing, moving without the ball, etc..

I know watching SportsCenter is the "In" thing right now because kids love to see highlights of players flying through the air and throwing down vicious dunks. However, dunking is all many of today's American players know how to do well. Since today's high school age players lack fundamentals, they enter college (or the pros) with the same lack of fundamentals which, ultimately, has a negative impact on the game on the court.

Detroit Pistons' international scout Tony Ronzone, who grew up on the West Coast, recently toured playgrounds in both Oakland and in Europe, summed up the state of basketball beautifully: "The rims in Oakland were all bent," he said. "The rims on European playgrounds were straight. Their kids are shooting. Our kids are dunking."

"This isn't going to change, and college kids and college coaches better start understanding that," said Ronzone. "The next wave of European players coming in the next four years is just unbelievable. "There might be five to eight foreign players taken early in the draft this season. Next year, there will be six to 10. Every year there will be more and more.

"With the European kids, you are getting players who are more polished," Ronzone said. "They have been playing professionally against players who are 25 to 30 years old. They are mature. They are coached. They play in the EuroLeague system where they have experience with travel similar to the NBA. They are just a lot better prepared."

Ronzone blames the AAU programs and the NCAA for hindering the development of the American players.

"There is no question the European kids are more coachable. The discipline factor is huge," he said. "The AAU programs are hurting our system, and the NCAA rules are hurting our system. You go to Yugoslavia or any other country, and players are with their clubs every day. They still go to school, but they work out with their clubs every day. They aren't out with different shoe companies all summer. There is structure to the Euro system, and I think it has a huge affect."

As for the NCAA?

"They restrict the hours a player can spend with the coach in the off-season," Ronzone said. "If a kid signs with a university, he should be allowed to work out all summer. Make the system so the players can get better."

Let me be clear: a player who possesses great fundamentals is not necessarily a great player; a great player combines those great fundamentals with great basketball skills. Michael Jordan was a spectacular athlete when he entered North Carolina and the NBA; however, he didn't become the "greatest player in the NBA" until he improved his outside shooting; developed his low post moves; improved his defense; etc. In other words: MJ improved his fundamentals. Shaquille O'Neal is another example of a player who has improved his fundamentals: Shaq has improved his footwork; he's developed a turnaround jump shot; his passing from the low post; and, late in the NBA Playoffs he finally started making his foul shots.

The sooner kids in America realize the importance and the value of combining fundamental basketball skills with athleticism, the sooner basketball in America will improve, and the sooner the players will become effective in the NBA.

"Teams have found out these (European) players have tremendous training programs, and they can shoot the ball, a skill many American players have lost," said Chicago attorney Herb Rudoy, who has represented international players such as Toni Kukoc and Arvydas Sabonis. "In European leagues, these guys go 11 months a year, two-a-days. College players go for five months. The NCAA limits them to 20 hours a week. These Europeans always have been highly skilled. Now they're more athletic, have been coached well and work hard."

American kids need to realize one basic premise: NBA superstars aren't superstars simply because they can dunk better than the rest of the league, they're superstars because they are the best "basketball" players in the league.