New class of one-and-dones sparking NCAA hoops interest

Published 11:13 pm Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Last week’s Champions Classic was one of college basketball’s most noted regular-season nights in years. Average followers likely hadn’t been that involved — this early in the season, at least — since the Kevin Durant and Greg Oden days.

Seeing Kansas’ Andrew Wiggins, Duke’s Jabari Parker and Kentucky’s Fab Five on the same floor on the same night generated so much buzz that they became a popular sports radio topic. And the chatter wasn’t only about how the game has become unwatchable because fans — thanks to one-and-dones — can’t identify with teams and with players anymore.

Instead, college basketball received tons of positive feedback and guys such as Wiggins and Parker will continue blossoming into superstars during the season and into March Madness. That will continue through the NBA draft and to next October, when they’ll return to the pack of the irrelevant so that we can focus solely on LeBron and the Lakers.

Because, turns out, that’s all we care about.

This week presented another showcase opportunity as Wiggins, Parker, Kentucky’s Fab Five and Arizona’s Aaron Gordon were in action Tuesday night. Though on different courts and against lesser competition this time, college basketball was again able to put its stars on display and will again be a topic at water coolers today.

Is Wiggins the next LeBron? Is Parker better than Wiggins? Is Kentucky’s Julius Randle better than Parker and Wiggins? Is Kentucky’s Fab Five better than Michigan’s original Fab Five? Is this the best freshmen class college basketball has ever seen?

But the most important question folks might be asking: “When do they play again?”

Since the one-and-dones took over, I’ve become one who doesn’t invest too much into college basketball until tournament time. But having been a huge fan growing up, I’m backing away from my “players should either have to play at least two seasons or be able to go straight to the NBA” position.

For this year, at least, the regular-season games seem to matter more. Let’s just enjoy these one-and-dones the short time they’re in college basketball.