09-10-2006, 09:06 PM
For some time now, I have felt that the window of opportunity for mid-major teams such as ETSU to succeed on a large scale has gotten a bit bigger.
It seems the run of George Mason last year proves this.
My theory lies in that so many college basketball stars are going to a major program and then perhaps leaving after a year or not going to college at all. This leaves major basketball programs scrambling to change systems and new players.
The game becomes a "me" game. Basketball gives way to thugball. It's all about the individual glory and not the teamwork.
Which defines modern basketball.
The exception to this is the mid-major, which develops around a style of play instituted by the coach and generally keeps their players for four years.
Hence, teamwork is established, therefore allowing a team like George Mason to have success in the NCAAs or perhaps even get a national ranking.
It's still very difficult. The conference only will get one seed and it will be low. The big boys don't want to play you because you're neither an easy win nor a TV or attendance draw.
But I'd like your thoughts on this. Could the next George Mason actually do the impossible and win the whole damn thing instead of just dying in the Final Four, a la Penn in 1979?
It seems the run of George Mason last year proves this.
My theory lies in that so many college basketball stars are going to a major program and then perhaps leaving after a year or not going to college at all. This leaves major basketball programs scrambling to change systems and new players.
The game becomes a "me" game. Basketball gives way to thugball. It's all about the individual glory and not the teamwork.
Which defines modern basketball.
The exception to this is the mid-major, which develops around a style of play instituted by the coach and generally keeps their players for four years.
Hence, teamwork is established, therefore allowing a team like George Mason to have success in the NCAAs or perhaps even get a national ranking.
It's still very difficult. The conference only will get one seed and it will be low. The big boys don't want to play you because you're neither an easy win nor a TV or attendance draw.
But I'd like your thoughts on this. Could the next George Mason actually do the impossible and win the whole damn thing instead of just dying in the Final Four, a la Penn in 1979?