Love the NBA playoffs.
Particularly as a Cavs fan from a city that hasn’t won a championship in my lifetime (last title was ‘64 Browns pre-Super Bowl).
I’m rather old, and while reasonably strong for my age I couldn’t even bear to watch HS basketball. Neither of my kids played (6’3 and 6’5). One was football/baseball the other pure baseball. Most days I can beat them and I’m only 6’0-1/2. I like to say 6’1 but that’s just in shoes. They are 19 and 21 and often could outplay peers who played basketball.
The problem is the emphasis on playing, playing, playing. It should be noted that Dell Curry kept Steph off of the AAU circuit which is one reason he was only recruited to a lower tier D1 school (Davidson). However I am guessing Mr. Curry had his son working on his ball handling. I don’t think it’s any mistake the two best players on the Warriors are sons of NBA players.
Like the NFL there can be at times an over-emphasis on athleticism. How often do we see the freak combine athlete, not pan-out in the NFL. However GMs are more likely to take the better athlete because they feel that player will be coached up, as opposed to taking the guy who was just a great college player.
Sometimes taking “athlete” over “college production” works out, sometimes it doesn’t. In the NBA you are seeing the same situation as the NFL. Athletes with a 41-inch vertical shooting up the draft charts despite zero evidence the guy can shoot the basketball, box out correctly, rotate on defense etc.
I lived in Milwaukee when the Bucks and the Marquette Warriors were the champs. Kareem was my neighbor and friend. Then I moved back to Cleveland. Went to two Cavs games, and gave up on basketball! My goodness! They really sucked back then!