Basketball from a fans perspective
We can only guess
Mitchell Robinson was the number eight prospect in the Class of 2017. Western Kentucky had quite the coup acquiring the talent of the 7 foot center; he signed a LOI in late June. Robinson is now out, the news is reporting he attended summer school but has decided he wants to attend another school. The assistant coach who is Robinson’s godfather is no longer on the head coaches’ staff. Less than a month till school begins Robinson must request a release if he intends to enroll elsewhere. Not really unusual for student/athletes to go this route but prior to school beginning is certainly strange.
Jayhawks in the NBA
Nobody (including me) can complain if someone manages an income above that of an average wage earner. We could certainly make that statement regarding many of the Kansas Jayhawks who play in the NBA past and present. Take into consideration the NBA is not as mature as other professional sports. 1946 witnessed the birth of the Basketball Association of America, in 1948-1949 the BAA merged with the National Basketball League to form the NBA of today.
In 71 years of NBA play you might question how many players gained their skill at Kansas; you might find this number a little surprising. Please note the players profiled the years of NBA play and concludes with the number of All Star appearances. 4 of the 6 you see below are in the Hall of Fame, Paul Pierce retired at the conclusion of the 2017 season is not yet eligible. Wiggins has what appears at the beginning of play a career that might eventually lead him into the HOF.
Clyde Lovellette NBA 1952-1964, 4X NBA All Star, Naismith HOF
Wilt Chambelain NBA 1959-1973, 13X NBA All Star, Naismith & College HOF
Jo Jo White NBA 1969-1981, 7X NBA All Star, Naismth HOF
Danny Manning NBA 1988-2003, 2X NBA All Star, Naismth HOF
Paul Pierce NBA 1998-2017, 10X NBA All Star
Andrew Wiggins NBA 2014-present, NBA Rookie of the Year
Before Kansas fans begin tossing rocks in my direction I excluded active players who one day could be included. They include Joel Embiid if he can remain healthy, Kelly Oubre Jr. and the Morris twins Markieff and Marcus. 5 All Pros and 1 on the cusp, it should be of note Chamberlain is the HOF at Naismith and College.
Best of the Best
I read a story which prompted this account. Once upon a time the “off-season” meant just that, athletes in all sports would take the summer (or winter) as an opportunity to relax. Few athletes of the ‘50’s and ‘60’ exercised in the off season. For that era of athlete training camp meant reporting out of shape and “playing yourself into condition.”
This era is different, there is no specific year or date but there was a change. Basketball players’ vacation in the off season however they return prepared to begin their off-season conditioning. As example LeBron James might be one of the best conditioned athletes of this period. Wilt Chamberlain was one of the best of his era, he and several others could play in this time-period strictly on their skill level and condition.
Injury
He’s got two NBA Championship rings to Charles Barkley’s 0; I speak of Adam Morrison who “shot the lights out” while at Gonzaga. As for the rings he was a reserve for the Lakers for the 2009 and 2010 championship. Morrison was all everything while in college, drafted by the Bobcats (Hornets) he had a fair rookie year in 2007 making the All Rookie Second Team.
In his second year he tore an anterior cruciate ligament and the injury sidelined him for most of the season. He and another player were traded to the Lakers were he saw little action; in 2010 the Lakers released Morrison. He journeyed a few more years in Europe finally retiring from the game in 2012. The question might be how much did the injury impact his career and would he have been successful. We have no method to determine the answer to that question.
