Will Cal have another dominant team at Kentucky?

[Joneslab]

Is this true outside of March madness?

I think I read that a regular season Duke game (probably Duke/Carolina, but it may have been Duke/Virginia) from a couple years ago outperformed every NBA game.

It's mostly March Madness games...but the highest-rated NBA games are mostly playoff games.

The thing about viewership is that outside the NFL and SEC football, the eyeballs on screens are all about the same.

[Joneslab]

I think you’re vastly overestimating how many people give a rip outside of Kentucky and a few other places.

This isn't entirely true because there are intense fanbases around places you would never expect. When I lived in New York I was amazed at how many New Yorkers followed St. John's. We think of St. John's as almost a midmajor but at that time (late '90s) they had a passionate group of fans who could fill up Madison Square Garden.

But regardless, basketball itself is kind of a niche sport. Outside Kentucky/Duke/Kansas etc. it doesn't have that intense, widespread intensity you see with football. Part of this is that basketball isn't as good of a TV sport; not as many pauses, game moves faster, it's played by almost all black players, etc.

This is true at any level of basketball (though the NBA does have fans of individual players). It's definitely going to be true with the G-League, because here's the thing about that: in any given year you're going to only have a handful of players who can compete with pros. This year the number is three, maybe four: Cunningham, Mobley, Suggs, and maybe Cooper. That's it. So it's not like you're going to have a fleet of guys coming out every year who are G-League ready.

The model I think they're going with in the G-League is one where these young players team up on a "select" team and play together, including overseas. People might tune in to that just on curiosity. They will never, ever watch the G-League as a whole. Never. It is not in the same stratosphere as college basketball.

[Joneslab]

completely agree'with this. Even if every so called elite player goes pro the college game will take on it's own personality. To be honest it would probably get better. We need to remember college and pro don't have to be so interconnected. They didn't used to be. You start keeping kids around four 3 and 4'years and you will see a better game all around if you ask me. Even now I would rather pull for a team I know. The last few years has felt like watching mercenaries.

Well, college basketball tried this and it did take a hit...but so did the NBA. You had players who weren't ready jumping in, which diluted the product up there. (Robert Swift comes immediately to mind.)

As I said, there really aren't that many "elite" players out of high school who are ready for the G-League. Sometimes that number can be as small as one or two. This idea that the entire top 20 could go and play in the pros isn't the case.

I've watched one G-League game ever and what you realize about it is that those teams aren't built with younger players. Most of the guys who play on those teams are older guys who've been around for a long time. It's not a good watch.

[Joneslab]

Going back to the above conversation about college basketball, I noticed when I lived up north that Syracuse and UCONN have crazy passionate fanbases. I have a friend who follows Syracuse like we follow UK.

The farther north you go the more you get into basketball hotbeds. Which makes sense: urban game.

[Dwight Schrute]

Going back to the above conversation about college basketball, I noticed when I lived up north that Syracuse and UCONN have crazy passionate fanbases. I have a friend who follows Syracuse like we follow UK.

The farther north you go the more you get into basketball hotbeds. Which makes sense: urban game.

I worry if Cal stays here much longer we’ll turn into Syracuse.

I know there are fans of other programs, but they’re not as rabid as we are and the number of people who care are much fewer. Oddly I’d bet in those urban areas there’s more NBA fans.

The NBAs problem is that it doesn’t have the cable deals that college sports has.

[Dwight Schrute]

Well, college basketball tried this and it did take a hit...but so did the NBA. You had players who weren't ready jumping in, which diluted the product up there. (Robert Swift comes immediately to mind.)

As I said, there really aren't that many "elite" players out of high school who are ready for the G-League. Sometimes that number can be as small as one or two. This idea that the entire top 20 could go and play in the pros isn't the case.

I've watched one G-League game ever and what you realize about it is that those teams aren't built with younger players. Most of the guys who play on those teams are older guys who've been around for a long time. It's not a good watch.

No, but if the NBA starts making it more young star oriented and marketing it as the league of tomorrow and giving players you’ll start seeing more guys go that route.

[Joneslab]

No, but if the NBA starts making it more young star oriented and marketing it as the league of tomorrow and giving players you’ll start seeing more guys go that route.

Maybe so but that’s not what you said above. You’re talking supplanting college basketball. That will never, ever happen.

The NBA wants those guys as soon as they become stars. The G-League is just a layover...and again, there aren’t a whole lot of young stars. The idea that there’s this fleet of can’t-miss players who could bring eyeballs to TV screens every year isn’t the case.

Think about this class. Who would you sit down with a beverage to watch out of this group? Cade Cunningham playing for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants?

[Dwight Schrute]

Maybe so but that’s not what you said above. You’re talking supplanting college basketball. That will never, ever happen.

The NBA wants those guys as soon as they become stars. The G-League is just a layover...and again, there aren’t a whole lot of young stars. The idea that there’s this fleet of can’t-miss players who could bring eyeballs to TV screens every year isn’t the case.

Think about this class. Who would you sit down with a beverage to watch out of this group? Cade Cunningham playing for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants?

I think the end result of what I said above would be obvious. And again, I’m not saying tomorrow or in 5 years.

But when my son is a teenager in 10-15 years? Yeah, I can absolutely see college basketball being supplanted by the H league of it starts poaching all its stars.

[DA#23]

I worry if Cal stays here much longer we’ll turn into Syracuse.

Nope, he currently is untouchable with his contract (unless he provides cause for) but the amount of time where that is the case shouldn't allow for it.

I also think that another supremely poor year like this will cause some people to start giving him heck around Lexington. He'll get some of the Tubby treatment and he won't take that for very long.

[Dwight Schrute]

Nope, he currently is untouchable with his contract (unless he provides cause for) but the amount of time where that is the case shouldn't allow for it.

I also think that another supremely poor year like this will cause some people to start giving him heck around Lexington. He'll get some of the Tubby treatment and he won't take that for very long.

I don’t think he’ll stick around either. But I worry he’ll turn us
into Syracuse where we’re just mediocre.

[DA#23]

I don't think the amount of time left on the contract before we would be able to fire without cause is enough for us to change that drastically. If that's becoming the case, then I would hope UK would fire somebody being paid ~8.5 million per year.

It might not mean that they ace the next hire (they probably won't), but I doubt they would sit on Cal with the program getting back to late Tubby level where we are no longer elite and are the 8/9 seed getting beaten in round 2 each year.

[Blue Heaven]

Make no mistake about it. A lot of passionate 'Cuse fans want Boeheim gone.

[Blue Heaven]

I don't think the amount of time left on the contract before we would be able to fire without cause is enough for us to change that drastically. If that's becoming the case, then I would hope UK would fire somebody being paid ~8.5 million per year.

It might not mean that they ace the next hire (they probably won't), but I doubt they would sit on Cal with the program getting back to late Tubby level where we are no longer elite and are the 8/9 seed getting beaten in round 2 each year.

In Colvin's UF game vid, tell me you wouldn't kill for THAT basketball now. I know I would.

[DA#23]

Well, I would love to have that level of chemistry and team buy-in. I would also LOVE to have a return to that level of fan participation and program importance versus the declining level of interest we are seeing lately.

I would be a hypocrite if I didn't admit/remind to being a person that whined about "ball line defense" and flex-motion offense that somehow lacked much in the way of motion.

The similarities have become surprising, as we see that a lack in talent and effective coaching can combine for a lot of "dribbling out front then force a shot". Unfortunately both coaches have seen a shift to the latter.

Yes, though, the 2003 team (and the two thereafter) was a great time for the program. I really enjoyed it .

[Joneslab]

Make no mistake about it. A lot of passionate 'Cuse fans want Boeheim gone.

My friend hates Boeheim. He wanted him gone when we first met...in 2006.

These coaches can really drain a program if they land these bizarre, horrible contracts and just linger around producing mediocre teams. Cal isn’t in that boat yet (last year was, let’s remember, very fun) but a season just like this one is definitely possible if we have another mass exodus this spring and he has to start over again.