Should They Stay or Should They Go?

I would like to take this opportunity to announce my intentions to enter the NBA draft. While I have enjoyed my time here at Incongruent-Affair, I feel that I have accomplished everything that can be accomplished at this level. I have already hired an agent and have begun negotiations with the major shoe companies. I would like to thank all those who have supported me during my stay and hope that you will continue to support me in my new station in life.
That was pretty good, right? Isn’t that the same speech that all these kids give when they decide to go to the NBA early? How many times a year do we, the sports fans, hear this same speech? Nowadays it seems that mostly high school kids are giving this speech. Whoever is giving this speech, most of the time the player who does go to the NBA early has a strong belief that he will be drafted and is ready for the NBA grind.
I will tell you ahead of time, I am a huge UK fan. There isn’t any team, college or pro, that I follow with more passion than the Wildcats. As are some of you, I was somewhat surprised by the decision of Kelenna Azubuike to enter the NBA draft. The reason I was only somewhat surprised was because his father was just sent to prison and I wondered if the financial welfare of his mother and sister would cause a rash decision to be made. Azubuike claims that his father’s troubles had no bearing on his decision, but we all know something like this will mess with a young man’s mind. He is very talented, but he will not be a first round pick and will be lucky to be drafted at all. I know less about the NBA than anyone in the world, but the one thing I do know is that 6’5 swingmen are a dime a dozen in the NBA. Azubuike, unfortunately at this stage of his basketball career, is no more talented than any starter his size on any NBA team at this time.
With that being said, I sure hope Randolph Morris has access to a Whizzinator, preferably The Original Whizzinator, because it is obvious to everyone in the state of Kentucky that he is on something. Morris has made himself eligible for the NBA Draft, not the Italian league draft, but the NBA draft. I don’t know why a 6’10 player who averages more fouls per game than rebounds would declare himself eligible for the draft other than having ingested huge amounts of psychotropic drugs. Not only did Morris announce his plans to enter the NBA draft, but apparently the public found out about his plans before Coach Tubby Smith. Can you do that? I’m serious, check this guy out, he is obviously suffering from dementia.
The good news in the Morris situation is that supposedly he has not and will not hire an agent. He is just testing the waters, I assume. Would you like more bad news? He has allegedly left the campus. I am not sure what to believe, but I hope that Morris doesn’t believe that he can bluff his way into the first round. He needs to come back to UK to learn how to play, basically. He showed many flashes of greatness and potential, he just couldn’t string two halves of greatness together.
If Morris were to come back for one or two more years, I have no doubt that he will have a career in the NBA. Look at two perfect examples of Tubby taking a somewhat borderline talent and getting him prepared for the NBA. If anyone thought that Jamaal Magloire would go to the NBA and not only become a starter but a top 5 center, than you need to be a scout for the NBA. He is the only player of consequence on the New Orleans Hornets. If he could get off that sinking ship, he could really help a team go from playoff team to NBA championship contender. Speaking of NBA championship contender, Tayshaun Prince has quietly become a top player in the NBA.
Don’t believe me? Ask those in the know about the NBA, they will tell you about how he has become a shut down defender. Ask Lebron James how good a defender Prince has become; ask Reggie Miller how good a defender Prince has become. Prince has also added some offense to his game and he is really becoming a complete player and he will make a pretty penny in the next couple of years. That is something all young players would love to be able to say about their careers.
In defense of some of these players who leave early, I would probably make the same decision they did, IF I knew I would be a top pick and make a top salary. If you can’t get huge money it can’t hurt to stay and learn the game and get better. Unfortunately most young players do not have the patience or they believe there is no time to waste in getting to the NBA. Sometimes those players do get better and become NBA all-stars, while others become Kwame Brown, a former number one pick in the draft who has pretty much been told by his team, who were in the playoffs against a Shaqless Miami Heat, that they would rather lose without him than try to win with him. Very rarely do you find a young player who has the maturity of a Lebron James, a player who is truly ready to play and be a star in the NBA. Most kids need time, need coaching, and need to grow up. For this reason, I hope that Randolph Morris realizes that sacrificing his future earnings in the NBA is not worth it just so he can get there a year or two early. In fact, most young players would benefit from this advice; unfortunately most of them are too busy dreaming about dollar signs to listen to reason.