NBA vs. College Basketball

I love the NBA.

I love the game for the set plays, incomparable talent, freakish athleticism, and fast pace. There are few things in life better than witnessing a perfectly executed backdoor cut or pick and roll.

You don’t get this type of stuff on a nightly basis anywhere else.

I always find myself in conversations (or arguments) about which is better, college or pro. People blast the NBA and its players because they don’t think that the players work hard enough and are just earning a paycheck.

If you think that is true, YouTube old footage of Allen Iverson on the 76ers or watch Steve Nash or Amare Stoudemire in any Phoenix Suns game. Try telling me that they aren’t giving it their all.

Or watch the next Oklahoma City Thunder game to see Kevin Durant, a 21-year-old, go the length of the court and pop a mid-range jumper. It is truly amazing to think that somebody my age could do such things with such ease.

Put on a Lakers or Cavaliers game and watch Kobe or Lebron get all of his teammates involved, doing whatever they have to in order to lead their teams to victory. These players can seemingly drive to the hole at will or make big shots whenever it is necessary.

While some players might seem lackadaisical on the court, there are plenty of players who leave it all out there and work their butts off.

For insight on the game of basketball, listen to Hubie Brown break down every single thing occurring on the court. He knows why everyone, both coaches and players, do everything and tells you what they are doing right or wrong. The man is a wizard of the game of basketball and a complete pleasure to listen to. The NBA’s John Madden, if you will.

There is nobody in the game of college basketball like Hubie.

The main point that I try to make whenever I am comparing NBA to college is that the NBA consists of the BEST PLAYERS IN THE WORLD. That should be the end of the conversation right there. If you love the game of basketball, why wouldn’t you want to see the best players in the world play the game on a nightly basis?

Some say that the game isn’t played the right way. That there are too many ball hogs and all of the players’ egos get in the way of the game. This might be true to some extent, but their egos give the game personality. It isn’t like watching boring college players with little personality chucking up threes and turning the ball over.

When I watch basketball, a game I admire so much, I want to see the best players in the world showing off their talents and entertaining me.

That is why I love the NBA.