Seniors are hard to come by on a Kentucky Wildcats basketball team. There is only one this year, a forward named Josh Harrellson, who is far from a household name.
Why is this? Like many of the other big-time schools, players at Kentucky leave early for the NBA. A prime example is last season, when UK lost four freshman to the NBA: DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, Daniel Orton, and John Wall. This was likely because of the fairly recent NBA rule that states in order to be eligible for the NBA, a player must have at least a year of college experience (or professionally in other countries).
With these four players, it seems all coach John Calipari and Kentucky did in the 2009-10 season was prepare these players for the NBA. A national championship would be nice for them, but not their prime focus.
This is the argument against the one-year college rule: that the players play in college simply because they have to, rather than going to the NBA straight from high school, devaluing the college game.
And let's face it: with the exception of John Wall, these players all left too early in the first place. All prized draft picks, only one is playing especially successful basketball, and one has not played at all. They certainly could have benefited from more time at Kentucky under Calipari's tutelage.
Take a look at Daniel Orton. He hardly played last year at Kentucky as a freshman, and was a first round draft pick simply because of potential. He was stuck in the rotation all year behind Cousins and Patrick Patterson. This year, he'd have started. Instead, he's riding the pine on the Orlando Magic, not having seen a minute of court time in the NBA.
Eric Bledsoe was hidden in John Wall's shadows last season at UK, but started alongside him and showed NBA-caliber skills. The starring role would've been his this year, and he, like Orton, would have greatly benefited at Kentucky had he stayed. Instead, he's backing up Baron Davis on the Clippers, but his situation is far better than Orton's: he's getting some PT, putting up decent rookie numbers, and looks like the apparent heir to Davis at PG.
DeMarcus Cousins is starting to look solid in the NBA, and it seems as if he will be for years to come. The one thing separating him from immediate stardom is the fact he left so early.
John Wall was said to be NBA-ready the second he joined UK's roster. He would have been a guy who, like Kobe and LeBron, took the leap from high school to the pros. With a little more maturity in his game, he could be an all-time great.
But the question is, did all four of these guys come to Kentucky simply because it's the required gateway to the pros? Or because of the desire to play college basketball that many of the other guys at that level have? Most likely the former. Which is why the one-year college rule needs to be reconsidered.
