THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 16, 1995 TAG: 9504160188
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BOB MOLINARO
LENGTH: Long : 121 lines
The impact Joe Smith's departure will have on college basketball is a subject worth discussing, although maybe not on ESPN, where Dick Vitale and others would have you believe that a ``Diaper Dandy'' or two is coming along to fill the void.
It won't happen like that. You cannot take for granted that another player with Smith's unique blend of talent, determination and character will emerge overnight to take his place.
More likely, the effect of Smith's decision will be felt in places beyond the University of Maryland.
The ACC, the finest basketball conference in the land, is suddenly poorer. It will not recover in one season from Joe's absence, if for no other reason than that the Terps will not be as dangerous.
Hurt, too, is the national presence of big-time college basketball. Like other entertainment, undergrad hoops depends on star attractions for credibility.
No question, the college game will miss Joe, just as it has missed Chris Webber and Jason Kidd, who also went pro after their sophomore seasons.
As it missed Glenn Robinson and Juwan Howard, who left college after three years.
As it missed Shawn Bradley, Donyell Marshall and Jalen Rose, who left school early.
From among those names could have come a fine 1995 All-American team: Webber, Kidd, Robinson, Howard, Marshall.
The trend, of course, is not toward senior All-Americans. They are becoming as rare as good free-throw shooters.
Just when the best athletes should be blooming into consummate college performers, they become very rich NBA rookies. Their places are taken by younger, less-polished players or veterans who were second-string. Under the circumstances, how can the caliber of play on the highest levels of the college game not be weakened?
True, the lack of mature stars does not necessarily damage the precious parity of the sport, much less the TV ratings. People who love their college hoops are not always the best talent scouts.
But next season, Smith will be joined in the NBA by fellow underclassmen Corliss Williamson of Arkansas, Mario Bennett of Arizona State and Ohio U.'s Gary Trent. UMass sophomore center Marcus Camby could come out, along with North Carolina sophomores Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse. In any case, they'll be gone after next season.
How many more of these hits can college basketball absorb before people catch on to the fact that the game isn't all that it should be?
Last summer, four of the five top NBA draft picks were underclassmen. Those are four players who would have been competing this season for player-of-the-year honors, won by Smith.
Joe - a first-team All-American as a sophomore - benefited from the watered-down crop of college superstars. As did Wallace and Stackhouse and even seniors like Bryant ``Big Country'' Reeves, Lou Roe and Ed O'Bannon.
Now, others will benefit from Smith's absence. And from Corliss Williamson's. And so on and so on.
When players leave school early (sometimes too early), it skews the evaluation process for the talent that's left behind.
Imagine if all or most of the players who cashed in their junior and senior seasons for NBA gold had remained in school just one year more. How high would the quality of play be then?
How much is the college game diminished when they don't stay?
The impact Joe Smith's departure will have on college basketball is a subject worth discussing, although maybe not on ESPN, where Dick Vitale and others would have you believe that a ``Diaper Dandy'' or two is coming along to fill the void.
It won't happen like that. You cannot take for granted that another player with Smith's unique blend of talent, determination and character will emerge overnight to take his place.
More likely, the effect of Smith's decision will be felt in places beyond the University of Maryland.
The ACC, the finest basketball conference in the land, is suddenly poorer. It will not recover in one season from Joe's absence, if for no other reason than that the Terps will not be as dangerous.
Hurt, too, is the national presence of big-time college basketball. Like other entertainment, undergrad hoops depends on star attractions for credibility.
No question, the college game will miss Joe, just as it has missed Chris Webber and Jason Kidd, who also went pro after their sophomore seasons.
As it missed Glenn Robinson and Juwan Howard, who left college after three years.
As it missed Shawn Bradley, Donyell Marshall and Jalen Rose, who left school early.
From among those names could have come a fine 1995 All-American team: Webber, Kidd, Robinson, Howard, Marshall.
The trend, of course, is not toward senior All-Americans. They are becoming as rare as good free-throw shooters.
Just when the best athletes should be blooming into consummate college performers, they become very rich NBA rookies. Their places are taken by younger, less-polished players or veterans who were second-string.
Under the circumstances, how can the caliber of play on the highest levels of the college game not be weakened?
True, the lack of mature stars does not necessarily damage the precious parity of the sport, much less the TV ratings. People who love their college hoops are not always the best talent scouts.
But next season, Smith will be joined in the NBA by fellow underclassmen Corliss Williamson of Arkansas, Mario Bennett of Arizona State and Ohio U.'s Gary Trent. UMass sophomore center Marcus Camby could come out, along with North Carolina sophomores Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse. In any case, they'll be gone after next season.
How many more of these hits can college basketball absorb before people catch on to the fact that the game isn't all that it should be?
Last summer, four of the five top NBA draft picks were underclassmen. Those are four players who would have been competing this season for player-of-the-year honors, won by Smith.
Joe - a first-team All-American as a sophomore - benefited from the watered-down crop of college superstars. As did Wallace and Stackhouse and even seniors like Bryant ``Big Country'' Reeves, Lou Roe and Ed O'Bannon.
Now, others will benefit from Smith's absence. And from Corliss Williamson's. And so on and so on.
When players leave school early (sometimes too early), it skews the evaluation process for the talent that's left behind.
Imagine if all or most of the players who cashed in their junior and senior seasons for NBA gold had remained in school just one year more. How high would the quality of play be then?
How much is the college game diminished when they don't stay? by CNB