The 1991 Road to Final Four - come along for a retrotour!

[Tripping William]

There is a tie-breaker...who will win the 1992 NCAA championship...

That recruiting class Michigan is putting together looks impressive. But I’ll need to see who among our guys returns. Grant Hill could be OAD.

[MChambers]

Duke has got a couple of pretty talented bigs coming in next year. Here's how I see the playing time:

Laettner 32
Hurley 35
G Hill 26
T Hill 25
McCaffrey 25
Davis 25
Parks 15
Lang 15
Palmer 1
Meek 1

Really think Palmer is going to have a hard time getting minutes with Parks coming in.

[CrazyNotCrazie]

That recruiting class Michigan is putting together looks impressive. But I’ll need to see who among our guys returns. Grant Hill could be OAD.

Let's take a timeout from talking about Chris Webber and the Michigan recruiting class and enjoy this year's fabulous tournament.

[Thurber Whyte]

That recruiting class Michigan is putting together looks impressive. But I’ll need to see who among our guys returns. Grant Hill could be OAD.

Did Chris Webber commit to Michigan? Is that confirmed? I thought we had a real chance to get him. I remember seeing him at a game in Cameron during his recruiting visit. We chanted his name and I thought he looked impressed. I hope he is not going to Michigan. I really, really hope he comes to Duke! He looks like a great player and a classy guy, a great fit for us.

[Tripping William]

Let's take a timeout from talking about Chris Webber and the Michigan recruiting class and enjoy this year's fabulous tournament.

Why? We’re gonna lose to Iowa anyway. That’s a terrible match-up for us, and Dr. Tom can flat-out coach. May as well set our sights on next year.

[robed deity]

Hoping we don't turn it over too much against the Iowa press, and Acie Earl is a load.

[jimsumner]

Let's not get ahead of ourselves. Duke and Iowa have to both win their openers before they meet on Saturday. And we're still two days from the opening of the tournament.

[dukelifer]

Did Chris Webber commit to Michigan? Is that confirmed? I thought we had a real chance to get him. I remember seeing him at a game in Cameron during his recruiting visit. We chanted his name and I thought he looked impressed. I hope he is not going to Michigan. I really, really hope he comes to Duke! He looks like a great player and a classy guy, a great fit for us.

He has not decided. I agree Duke has a good chance. But I am worried. A family friend, Ed Battier, who has a kid who is middle school ball player who will likely go to Country Day- sent me this article in the mail

"Michigan will have the nation's best recruiting class - and perhaps the best ever - if this week's reports that Detroit high school stars Chris Webber and Jalen Rose have decided to commit to the Wolverines prove true. The Detroit News, citing sources close to the players, reported Monday that Webber and Rose will sign with Michigan when the spring signing period begins April 10.

Webber, 6-9, who is averaging 28.6 points for Detroit Country Day, denied the report Tuesday, but sources continue to insist he will enroll at Michigan. Webber still lists Minnesota as one of his five finalists, along with Michigan State, Duke and Detroit. Rose, 6-7, is averaging 25.6 points at Detroit Southwestern.

Bob Gibbons, a Lenoir, N.C., recruiting expert, rates Webber the No. 2 player in the country and Rose No. 9. The Wolverines already have signed 6-10 Juwan Howard (No. 3 in Gibbons' rankings), 6-4 guard Jimmy King (No. 12) and 6-5 guard Ray Jackson (No. 94).

"No one has ever done that (successfully recruit four of the nation's top 12 rated players)," Gibbons said. "That would be a class that all classes in the future will be judged by because it's going to be impossible to match. This will be the silencer for (Michigan coach Steve) Fisher."

[roywhite]

Stick with Koubek as a starter for the tournament?

Love that stroke of Billy the Kid McCaffrey.

[arnie]

Stick with Koubek as a starter for the tournament?

Love that stroke of Billy the Kid McCaffrey.

McCaffery is getting better every day. He’s gonna be a star at Duke next year.

[chrishoke]

McCaffery is getting better every day. He’s gonna be a star at Duke next year.

He would rather shoot with a hand in his face than eat when he is hungry.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

He would rather shoot with a hand in his face than eat when he is hungry.

HAH, every time I hear that - I think c'mon Bob, that's weak....

[Tripping William]

McCaffery is getting better every day. He’s gonna be a star at Duke next year.

No doubt. Elite athletic ability runs in that Christian McCaffrey family.

[Reddevil]

That recruiting class Michigan is putting together looks impressive. But I’ll need to see who among our guys returns. Grant Hill could be OAD.

Hmmm, what does OAD mean?

[Tripping William]

Hmmm, what does OAD mean?

It’s what these slackers of my generation are using as shorthand for “one and done”: leaving for the pros after just one year of college. I don’t think it will ever be something significant in college basketball, though.

[House P]

That recruiting class Michigan is putting together looks impressive. But I’ll need to see who among our guys returns. Grant Hill could be OAD.

C'mon, Coach K has never had a player go pro early and you think the first might be Grant Hill? Are you crazy?

Grant is a promising Freshman, but he is 5th on the team in scoring and is playing less than 25 mpg. What makes you think an NBA GM would take a chance on drafting a guy who didn't even make 3rd team All-ACC?

Take a look at the 1991 All-ACC teams below. Now way an NBA GM would take a risk on an unproven guy like Grant over standout upperclass performers like Rodney Monroe, Chris Corchiani, Bryant Stith, John Crotty and Pete Chilcutt.

1st Team All-ACC
Rick Fox
Bryant Stith
Rodney Monroe
Christian Laettner
Kenny Anderson

2nd Team All-ACC
Malcolm Mackey
Tom Gugliotta
Rodney Rogers
Dale Davis
Chris Corchiani

3rd Team All-ACC
Thomas Hill
Matt Roe
Bobby Hurley
Pete Chilcutt
John Crotty

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

It’s what these slackers of my generation are using as shorthand for “one and done”: leaving for the pros after just one year of college. I don’t think it will ever be something significant in college basketball, though.

No one is physically ready for the NBA at 19. That's absurd.

[dukelifer]

It’s what these slackers of my generation are using as shorthand for “one and done”: leaving for the pros after just one year of college. I don’t think it will ever be something significant in college basketball, though.

Why would anyone go one and done? Just go pro like Darryl Dawkins. This is crazy talk. I mean Kemp enrolled but then dropped out- but these guys were athletic freaks. But high schoolers or freshman going to the NBA and playing against men? Maybe if there was ever an 6' 6" 280 lb player who could jump out of the gym- but what are the chances of that!

[Tripping William]

Why would anyone go one and done? Just go pro like Darryl Dawkins. This is crazy talk. I mean Kemp enrolled but then dropped out- but these guys were athletic freaks. But high schoolers or freshman going to the NBA and playing against men? Maybe if there was ever an 6' 6" 280 lb player who could jump out of the gym- but what are the chances of that!

You're absolutely right. I was premature. I'll bet a pie -- or, better yet, a lifetime supply of Jelly Beans -- that no 6'6" guard ever tries this. It's insanity.

[House P]

You're absolutely right. I was premature. I'll bet a pie -- or, better yet, a lifetime supply of Jelly Beans -- that no 6'6" guard ever tries this. It's insanity.

Another thing to consider is that, in 1991, there is no NBA rookie salary scale. Therefore, a player projected to go in the mid- to late-first round can dramatically improve his financial prospects by coming back to improve his draft stock.

I got a call from some guy named Gene Wojciechowski who claims that the Charlotte Hornets are prepared to offer potential #1 pick Larry Johnson an $84 million contact. Woj told me that the Sonics are only prepared to offer $2.7M for whoever they select 14th in the draft (Woj says that they really like Rich King from Nebraska). Some late round picks this year (Mark Randall?, LaRon Ellis?) might end up signing one year contract worth a couple hundred thousand dollars.

So even, if someone would take a gamble on Grant with a mid- to late-first round pick, Grant is much better off sticking around and improving his draft stock. If Grant keeps getting better, I could imaging a scenario where he gets drafted in the top 3 and ends up with a $45 million dollar contract. If he went after the 1991 season, he would likely end up with far less than that.



Note from the future: Perhaps this should go in the "Who Stays-Who Goes" thread, but the current rookie salary scale reduces the incentive for players to return to school and improve their financial prospects. As indicated above, it used to be that a player could increase the value of their rookie contract by 50-100 times if they came back and improved their draft stock. These days, the salary difference between the #1 pick and the last pick of the 1st round is about 5x. Also, nearly every players drafted in the first half of the second round gets a guaranteed contract worth about $2M (or more).