In a feeble attempt to make sense of it all, we must wonder where things started to go awry in the sport created by our very own Dr. James Naismith. I for one though, won’t be speaking of our self-inflicted problems like the NBA image, how “Hip-Hop ruined it all”, ‘gangsta’ shoot-outs, and domestic violence arrests. Though they are causing the league considerable ulcers, those are not the problems I’ll be referring to today.

The NBA has had a recent infusion of amazing talent from all corners of the world. Just to make my point, though I’m sure you all know what I’m talking about, here are some statistics that anyone could dig up, but I’ll post them anyway. Just for fun.

Three of the last five number one picks were foreign: Yao, PR of China (2002), Bogut, Australia (2005) and Bargnani, Italy (2006).

The MVP award has gone to a Canadian player two years running and Nash threatens for a 3rd consecutive consideration. Even if he won’t get to join the elite group of “three”, there’s still no light at the end of the tunnel for our American players, since a 7-foot shooting man from Germany is sure to be among the top two candidates for this seasons MVP award.

In no particular order, Steve Nash (CAN), Tony Parker (FRA), Mehmet Okur (TUR), Yao Ming (CHI), Dirk Nowitzki (GER), Zydrunas Ilgauskas (LIT), Manu Ginobili (ARG), Andrei Kirilenko (RUS), Peja Stojakovic (Serbia) and Pao Gasol (ESP) are ten international players that have graced our All-star teams since 2004.

Just to mention few other foreign players that didn’t get all-star nods but have contributed greatly to their respective teams are Leandro Barbosa (BRA), Jose Calderon (ESP), Andris Biedrins (LAT), Carlos Delfino (ARG), Dikembe Mutombo (Zaire) and lastly, once we figure out what planet he came from, we can add Sam Cassell to this list.

All joking aside however, how can I forget the most telling sign that “they” are taking the reigns in basketball? Remember the dismal outings of the past couple of supposed Dream Teams? That’s right, beating us at our own game they are. One might want to argue that FIBA rules are different. If so, how come these players come here and dominate in the NBA? “Dominate” might be a strong word, but you know what I mean.

Of course our game has changed a lot since the times of MJ. Today’s young players are more concerned with the alley-hoop dunk and the highlight than playing team oriented ball, but I’m not here to talk about the deficiencies of the game. I’m here to suggest a solution:

It is not in our power to change a mans’ character of playing a game, but we can teach him how to play the game correctly, right? I think US sports in general can take a good example from how European clubs treat their potential players and upcoming stars.

I grew up in a small ice hockey town in Switzerland where we had our home team playing in Switzerland’s premier league, the NLA. School children who wanted to play hockey went to an age-appropriate team under that teams program. By the time we reached high school, the best of our players were developed enough to be called up to play for the #1 team once in a while, either to fill in for an injury or to test his capabilities on the top level. So from 7 years old up to 18, they were under the tutelage and coaching from staff that was directly connected to the 1st team.

Another example are the European soccer teams. The Tottenham Hotspurs have a school of excellence for children who want to play soccer and have an obvious talent. It’s not a soccer school per se, but a school with a soccer program that will hone the child/teen-agers’ skill to prepare him for the big game.

They will be taught the fundamentals of the game at a very young age, under constant supervision by experts rather than the occasional underpaid, middle-school coach or the volunteer dad who wishes his son can fulfill those hoop dreams he had failed to achieve.

The school could be a regular elementary-/middle-/or high school that collaborates with a professional team in the area. I am not an expert on how these establishments function, nor have I done much research on them. I believe there will always be the issue of who funds the school, who has control over their executive decisions and all the politics that go along with such a huge project. My humble opinion is, Mr. Stern should send out his minions to schedule an appointment with Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger or any other soccer guru over there and have a brain-storming session to further understand the intricacies of such an institution.

Let’s face it, the competition has learned how to play our game, has mastered it by Beating us in its fundamentals, and is now running away with it, while our so-called Dream Team is stuck with what 10 years ago was the unheard of task of trying to qualify for a berth in the Olympics. Weren’t we a dead-on lock to be pre-qualified?

Maybe the time has come where we can’t let the park or AND1 tapes be the 1st teachers our future ballers have. Maybe time has come for a more elaborate, more concise and specific training ground for the next generation of players. And maybe, just maybe will we re-gain supremacy on the court and turn the nightmare that is, back into the Dream team that was.

Authors note:

My apologies to Mr. Stern however, if such a plan is already in motion, there was no intent to undermine your efforts, I’m just surprised that neither you, nor one of your highly paid people has come up with such an idea yet. Where do I send my resume?

I’m not going to take anything away from Gil as a player. My goodness, he’s as prolific a scorer as we’ve seen in a long time. Gil is, with exception of those two free-throws in last years play-offs, clutch as a any Ford is sure to be outlasted by my arthritic dog. He is a cold-blooded shooter who will pull the trigger no matter how distant his target – and hit it on many occasions. Arenas has the swagger of a champ, walking away before the crowd hears the swish of his buzzer-beating game-winner that he jacked up from 4 feet behind the three-point line, screaming HIBACHI when he is feeling his game is on fire that night.

Yes, he has a swagger, he is a winner, he is a second rounder turned all-star, and he lives in a “high altitude” home. He has made a name for himself and fought the odds. However, am I the only one starting to think he’s just full of himself?

Gilbert Arenas has become a one-man wrecking crew for all the wrong reasons. First off, his personal grudge against Duke’s Coack K (like that’s ever going to happen), Coach d’Antoni and Coach McMillan, creating nothing but unnecessary pressure for him and his teammates. Next up is his giving himself names. C’mon, HIBACHI? Surely one can be on fire and a great player, at least wait till someone gives you your nick. Naming yourself is just another sign how it’s all about YOU YOU YOU. Wait till one of the games Greats gives you your nickname. It will actually mean something, and stick. (Ever wonder why Shaq’s Big Fundamental stuck with Tim while Brent Barry’s El Contusion for Manu was never heard of after that interview?) Saying that you’ll stand next to your 8-storey high poster in Vegas pointing at it and saying: “Yeah, that’s me” spells ego-centrism that I haven’t heard of since Narcissus joined that circle on Mt. Olympus.

We’re not here to bring down his character, are we? So enough of that and let’s talk about his game: as mentioned previously, Gilbert Arenas is a prolific offensive weapon. But selfish play has hurt his team badly. I don’t blame Edie Jordan for saying that he’s not a leader, not their captain. Gilbert’s game might be about winning, whatever he describes as winning. Maybe he did take solace that “at least he tried” when he went for 9 points in a loss against Portland. Which brings me to only one conclusion: Gilbert’s game is about Gilbert. Gilbert’s game is one-on-one/two or even three, often resulting in a forced shot. Oh yes, he gets placed on a pedestal when he manages to put the crazy, impossible shot down, but what about those times where the shot doesn’t drop? He leaves his teammates out to dry every single time and only contributes to an already shaky locker-room situation.

And it’s exactly that what is wrong with the NBA today. It’s about your stat. Your highlight. Your vendetta. Your game. Oh, they say all the right things in the interviews, but the game doesn’t lie. And while Arenas might think that that those of us who know and watch the game for its beauty “were fooled”, there are only a few players that believe that it does, actually, “take five”.

This post actually originated from a series of thoughts i had after reading Dusty's blog...

After the All-Star game in Houston, Tim Duncan and T-mac were in the post-game interview together where T-mac boldly pronounced that a guards’ play is more exciting than that of a power forwards, or a center, upon which Duncan didn’t even answer. He grabbed his water bottle and left the podium. Was the stoic Duncan offended by T-macs words? We will never really know. But what I can say is that Duncans basketball is among the best in the league. He is a solid player with great fundamentals and awesome footwork like you only get by hours and hours of endless drills spent in the gym. But to any average basketball fan, The Big Fundamental is boring.

Todays NBA is riddled with the spectacular. The dunk, the 3-point shot form 4 feet beyond the arc, the no-look pass, the guards play that doesn’t allow to be guarded anymore. No wonder the guards lead the NBA in scoring, and the only big in the top ten last year was Dirk. Even he isn’t a traditional big, hitting three’s and playing less than hard knack defense. The first traditional big comes in at 11th spot, surrounded by more guards. Today, if you breathe on a guard on the perimeter, it’s a foul.

The NBA has been watered-down to a guards game, PF’s and C’s stepping out to hit 3’s, (almost) rendering the traditional center obsolete in today’s run and gun game. No more hand checking, no more hard core defense, no more Detroit Bad Boys. The NBA is not what it used to be. Here’s the catch though: times change, and sometimes while the one’s that really understand the basic fundamentals of basketball can still reminisce about the old days, we just have to accept the change with open arms and enjoy nevertheless.

There was  a point in the history of the NBA when money was just tight. Not tight as we know it today, when a team struggles to stay under 64 million salary cap. Tight as in we wont have a league if we don’t do something to attract investors. A decision had to be made, and Mr. Stern asked himself this question: Would investors really want to invest in a “financially” boring league?

Yes, all these decisions were based on one factor: to bring the public and financial interest back to the NBA. Money. And let us face it, to the dismay of us purists, it couldn’t be done w/ the half-court offense, traditional hard-nosed defensive game which wasn’t capable of producing scores that were deemed “exciting” enough for the general public and sponsoring companies.

True, this is what the NBA has come down to. That’s why Lebron James is such a hyped player. The NBA posterizes Lebron for his market value and will gladly and conveniently over-look his defensive short-comings.

The NBA craves for the public figure that MJ was. He did wonders for the NBA’s value. He won championships. He won slam dunk contests. He led the league in scoring in many years. He won multiple MVP awards and finals MVP awards. No to mention he was charismatic, well-versed, had a great sense in fashion and was generally seen as Mr. NBA.

Us purists will never forget what MJ really brought to the game: while being such a dominant scorer with a killer instinct rivaling that of a trained pit-bull, MJ played defense, being named all defensive first team 9 times. Without taking away from his offensive talents and ability, Lebron has neither won a championship (which doesn’t mean that he wont ever), nor does he possess the killer instinct to win games during crunch time (as he admitted himself). Add the fact that he constantly gets dominated when on defense, while the man he guards scores just as many points as he does, I am left with this to say:

Lebron is nowhere close to being the next MJ. But he does spell sponsors and therefore money for the NBA. In todays gasta generation which presents the league with strip club shootings, White House arrests and vehicular accidents caused by NBA players paying more attention to the DVD screen in their dash than on the road (content of DVD not to mention), Lebron behaves himself off the court leaving us hoping that his mother would come to her senses as well and stop being an embarrassment to her son.

However, after all is said and done, we have to ask ourselves one question: Mr. Stern is a businessman first and foremost. Had he not done those changes for the sad reason of money and money alone and made the NBA to what it is now…  would the NBA have ceased to exist? 

In conclusion, I’d rather have the watered down version and see the flashes of brilliance I see from a Tim Duncan, a Kobe Bryant or a Steve Nash on a daily basis, and ignore the deficiencies of the league, than not having the NBA at all.