Taking up the same position as Geno Auriemma on many issues can be a dicey proposition. After all, this is the guy who basically engaged in a holy war with legendary Tennessee coach Pat Summitt, culminating in the Vols and UConn discontinuing their annual rivalry game. But despite his occasionally defensive and often combative nature, Geno absolutely nailed it: men’s college basketball sucks.
In case you somehow missed it, here are the highlights of what he said on Wednesday when talking about men’s college basketball on a conference call that was supposed to be about the Women’s Final Four:
“I think the game's a joke. It really is. I don't coach it, I don't play it, so I don't understand all the ins and outs of it, but as a spectator—forget that I’m a coach—as a spectator, watching it, it's a joke.
There's only like 10 teams in the top 25 that play the kind of basketball that you like to watch. And every coach will tell you there's 90 million reasons for it. And the bottom line is, that nobody can score. They'll tell you that it's because of great defense, great scouting, a lot of film work…nonsense. Nonsense.
College men's basketball is so far behind the times, it's unbelievable. I mean, women's basketball is behind the times. Men's basketball is even further behind the times. Every other major sport in the world has taken steps to help people be better on the offensive end of the floor.
This is entertainment, we're talking about. People have to decide: 'Do I want to pay 25 bucks, 30 bucks to go see a college scrum where everybody misses six out of every 10 shots they take, or do I want to go to a movie?'”
Your first response should be this:
1.
It’s OK to be entertained by the first couple rounds of the NCAA Tournament, what with the buzzer beaters and all. It’s a novelty, everything is going 100 MPH, the crowds get into it…it makes sense why those first rounds are some of the most fun days on the sports calendar. But when the frantic pace slows down and all that’s left to do is sit down and actually be able to concentrate on one game, the on-court product gets decidedly less palatable.
The traditional arguments about why college basketball is a vastly inferior have never been more valid. With rare exceptions, the quality of offense is difficult to watch. Watching teams attempt to score can be downright painful, and they often fail to execute simple offensive sets. It’s not that these guys are bad basketball players, it’s just that they’re not as good as their NBA counterparts. Measuring them on the same scale is unfair to both, and as a fan you shouldn’t have to lower your expectations when tuning in or attending a game.
Many will point to the idea that “college players want it more” or “college players always try hard” when pointing out the merits of college hoops. Sure, it’s wonderful that most of these guys won’t go on to be pros, and that they play for the name on the front of the jersey and not the back. But saying it’s worth watching because guys are seemingly playing hard? The product is the product, and Sean Connery’s views on trying your best are all that matter.
The last No. 1 pick to stay more than one year in college? Blake Griffin (2009). The last one to stay all four years? You have to go all the way back to Mr. Kenyon Martin...in 2000.
And let’s not discount the whole “talent” thing. Some NBA players don’t look like they’re trying hard because they’re so smooth. For every balls to the wall dynamo like Russell Westbrook, there’s a smooth assassin like his teammate and reigning MVP Kevin Durant. Just because you’re not hollering, sprinting, and diving doesn’t mean you aren’t giving 100 percent. The NBA guys are pros, and with few exceptions don’t set foot on the court intending to take it easy. Their livelihoods depend on it.
Defenders of college basketball have built the foundation of their argument on intangibles. How very convenient for them. It’s pretty hard to refute things like “grit,” “effort,” and “will to win.” But how is that a legitimate argument? In what other universe could you pluck words and ideas out of the air, use them to say your side is right, and actually have people take you seriously? It’s utterly ridiculous, but it’s the card college basketball fans have been playing for the last decade-plus when the NBA clearly passed college hoops in all aspects.
There is no bigger beneficiary of this college basketball mystique than the Final Four. Granted, the first two rounds (or whatever the hell they call the rounds of 64 and 32 now) are a hit 100 percent of the time, but then you get down to just four teams and suddenly realize that you’re left with nothing but overhyped games that have virtually no chance to live up to expectations. Ask a casual fan to recall their favorite Final Four game from the last five years. Could they do it? For every Duke-Butler championship game, there are dozens of duds like the UConn-Butler final from the very next season.
2.
It’s easy—but also perfectly reasonable—to blame the lack of continuity in college basketball for some of this too. Gone are the days where you can obsess for years about how much you hate Christian Laettner, and Laettner can develop on-court chemistry with teammates like Bobby Hurley and Grant Hill. These days, almost anybody who’s a legit NBA prospect is gone within two years (and often less). The last No. 1 pick to stay more than one year in college? Blake Griffin (2009). The last one to stay all four years? You have to go all the way back to Mr. Kenyon Martin, drafted out of Cincinnati by the Nets in 2000.
While stars have always left college early, the trend has reached epidemic proportions in the last decade. The result has been that the raw, unpolished underclassmen are the stars while the more savvy but far less talented upperclassmen fill out the roster, and the play on the court often reflects the teams’ disjointed roster makeup. And while it may seem enjoyable to watch a young star like Karl-Anthony Towns or Jahlil Okafor do their thing in the NCAA tournament, ask yourself this: Why eat a rock hard avocado when you can wait a couple days, let it get nice and ripe, then turn it into some delicious guacamole?
OK, maybe I’m just hungry.
But the point is that a player who is a star in college is almost certainly going to get better when he gets to the pros. No offense to college Stephen Curry, but the version of Steph who shattered Chris Paul’s ankles (again!) is much more fun to watch. Ditto for another NBA MVP candidate like Anthony Davis, who led Kentucky to a national championship in 2012 but is already miles better and more enjoyable to watch than he ever was in college.
So if you’re looking for me on Saturday night, you’ll find me in the same position as most basketball fans: on the couch watching some hoops. It just won’t be Duke-Michigan State or Wisconsin-Kentucky.
