I read a very interesting article on ESPN today regarding the Senior Class of 2004 and I was wondering what everyone else thinks about it. It has become really clear that the overall level of talent in College Basketball players that are seniors keeps getting weaker and weaker, year by year. Here is some history: This trend started when Kevin Garnett broke into the seen in 1995. In 1995, there were 20 seniors taken in the first round, six of whom were taken in the lottery. In 1998, the number dipped to only 14 seniors taken in the first round, while five went in the lottery. In 1999 the numbers dropped even further. Thirteen went in the first round, 4 of which were taken in the lottery. The 2000 draft was even lower with 11 taken in the first round, just three in the lottery. In 2002, only one senior, Melvin Ely, made it into the lottery out of eight first-round seniors. A highly reputable scout said, "The NBA has been strip-mining the college game for years. It's finally coming back to haunt us. The only guys worth taking in the lottery any more are the young ones. The older players that are left usually don't have enough talent to contribute in a meaningful way. Experience is a great, but if you're not going to be able to come in and average 18 a night, then I'm going with the kid who could turn into Kobe or KG down the road." Just to prove that look at this years numbers. Of the seniors taken in the first round this past year, only Kirt Hinrich ranks in the top 10 among rookies in assists and scoring. Keith Bogans is the only 2003 senior to rank in the top 10 in rookie rebounds. Compare that to the young players like Carmelo Anthony, Lebron James, and Chris Bosh, who are ranked considerably higher in all of those categories. Here are the top 10 college seniors that NBA scouts will be looking at in terms of drafting in this years draft: Rickey Paulding, SG, Missouri Jameer Nelson, PG, St. Joseph's Marcus Moore, PG, Washington State Darius Rice, SF, Miami Romain Sato, SG, Xavier Arthur Johnson, PF, Missouri Chris Duhon, PG, Duke Rafael Araujo, C, BYU Herve Lamizana, F, Rutgers Chris Garnett, C, Indiana Southeast (NAIA) Scouts say, that only one senior this year, Missouri's Rickey Paulding, has a shot of being drafted in the lottery. College Basketball is my favorite sport to watch on television. I love the rivalry, tradition and passion that comes when you have two good college teams go at it. As a college basketball fan, I have noticed a serious drop in the amount of senior talent present at the college level. I think something needs to be done to keep players in college a bit longer, so they will be prepared for when they reach the pro level. If you notice most of the "busts" are underclassmen or high school seniors, and not the college seniors. Many players know this is the case, yet they leave early for the NBA. If a rule, like the one above was inforced, here would be your potential class of 2004. Zach Randolph, Caron Butler, Dwyane Wade, Jared Jeffries, Chris Wilcox, Eddie Griffin, Darius Miles, DeShawn Stevenson, Rodney White, Chris Kaman, Qyntel Woods, Michael Sweetney, Jarvis Hayes and Luke Ridnour I think something must be done to help restore college basketball to what it should be. It should be the seniors leaders of each team going against each other in the latter brackets of the NCAA Tournament instead of having juniors, sophomores, and freshman lead their teams deep into the tournament. What do you think about the lack of quality seniors in College Basketball today?
I think the NBA should adopt MLB's rule, go pro after highschool or commit to play at least 2 years in college. Paulding lottery?!! what position would he play in the NBA. I really like Darius Rice. I'm surprised scouts aren't more high on this guy.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting dexter:</div><div class="quote_post">Rafael Araujo, C, BYU</div> Woohoo!!!! It's great to see one of our players on the list! I went to our season opener yesterday, and we owned! Won by 34, one guy went 8/11 from three!! But anyway, if Rafael is on the list then the Sr. class if WEAK! Great player, but I never would have guessed he's in the top 10. Coming from BYU, he's prone to play like Sean Bradley . He's more dominant, but like Bradley he is scared to touch the rim, and would rather lay it up. Top 10? Naw.... GO COUGARS!
I think Darius Rice will be in the lottery. Carl English and Marquise Estill both could of went back to College for 1 more year. I think English might have been a late first round pick and Estill would of atleast been drafted in the mid-second round.
Depending what sites you look on none of those guys are projected to go in the lottery. I think its really sad, I would love to see everyone stay 4 years, it would jus be insane to watch and I think there would be some greater rivalries with some guys going at each other 4 years in a row. It might even help the NBA if guys stayed in college longer. I can understand where some of the guys that jump ship early are coming from though since a lot of them grew up having very little, to have the chance to make millions would be very hard to pass up.
I think when evaluating college sports, especially basketball, you have to take the junior and senior classes for the older talent level. I think it's safe to say that staying for three years then leaving isn't bad, that happens in football a lot, doesn't it, with no complaints? If you take in the junior and senior classes I think there is some really good talent to be had. The senior class is a step down from the other classes though and I guess that's a detriment to sports. However, I think I'd rather concentrate on how those guys are getting their degrees instead of saying how less of an impact they will have on the other level.
the article pretty much answered why the senior class is deteriorating...the freaks of basketball nature (KG,Bron) are in the NBA
As long as players can go straight to the NBA from HS the senior class will never be good. I would like to see a rule similar to the NFL which forces you to play 3 years of college ball. For most of the players, especially the euro players (who could attend college in Europe and have that count). If the NCAA and NBA would just force players to go to college it would be better off for all parties involved. Imagine how much of an impact LeBron James could've made somewhere or Carmelo back at Syracuse for another season.
