So, here is a quick test to see if you like college hoops a little too much. Simply ask yourself this question…
Did you pay FloHoops $30 so you could watch the teams that are on foreign tours this month??
If you answered yes, then you may have a problem.
I answered yes.
Okay, so foreign tours basically work like this. Each school is allowed to go on one every four years. I forget all of the specifics and am too lazy to look it up (fortunately this lack of motivation is not frowned upon at Hoops HD), but players are not allowed to miss any classes, which is why virtually all foreign tours take place in the summer. Other rules are that they’re allowed ten days of full practice prior to leaving, incoming freshmen and transfers are allowed to travel and play with the team, and although I don’t know this for sure I believe they’re allowed to play up to five games. Some of these foreign teams that schools have played are REALLY good. Others have featured players that probably wouldn’t have been able to make a high school varsity team. So, it’s not hard to find really tough games or really easy games depending on what a coach’s philosophy is. Now, I don’t think a scout or an analyst could look at any of these games and really get anything out of them, but that’s not really what they are for. It’s a chance for a team to get some extra practices in as well as some actual game experience, bond as a team, and see a part of the world that most of the players probably haven’t. And, that’s what West Virginia, Seton Hall, Xavier, Georgia Tech, Delaware, Wright State, Georgetown, Syracuse, Washington, and Texas Tech are going to be up to this month. I do think it gives them a competitive advantage, and it’s a great option for any school to take advantage of every four years when they’re allowed to do so.
But, why stop there?? Most people reading this probably don’t realize this, but men’s and women’s basketball are basically two of the only college sports that don’t compete in the offseason, or ‘non-championship season’ as it’s called. In men’s and women’s soccer they play five or six games in the spring. In baseball and softball I believe they can play up to 13 games in the fall. Men’s and women’s golf has tournaments in the fall. LaCrosse plays games in the fall. But for basketball, they get nothing in the summer and fall.
So, here is my brilliant rule change for the day….
From the start of the athletic new year (July 1st) up until the official start of practice in late September, allow teams to have 18 full days of practice and six additional games against other college teams, including other div1 teams. If they want to have all their practices and games over the summer, that’s fine. If they want to play a few over the summer and a few more after classes start, that’s fine. If they don’t want to play in all six games and only want to play in three or four, that’s fine. If they don’t want to play in any, that’s fine. But make it an option. Have the rules be consistent with all other college sports that play games in the ‘non-championship season,’ most importantly that they cannot miss any class. But, give teams that option so they can grow as a team and get some extra games in. That way when the season starts there hopefully won’t be so much rust. And once every four years, they can do a foreign tour.