by Andrew Bohardt

Created on: December 12, 2008

The debate between college basketball and the NBA has been raging for years, and it is unlikely to end in the near future. Both college basketball and the NBA have a number of pros and cons, and ultimately, it comes down to a personal choice of which is better. I am here, however, to make the argument that college reigns supreme over the NBA, and there are a number of reasons I feel this way. Here are my top three:

1. The NBA's 82-game regular season is too long and tedious - I am writing this article on Dec. 12, which is roughly a month and a half into the NBA's regular season. Three months from now-when college basketball is about to start March Madness-NBA teams still will have 20-25 games on their schedule before the playoffs. With that many games in a six-month span, it is impossible for NBA players to go out every game night and give the same effort that college players do. NBA players take plays off, take quarters off, even take games off just to stay fresh for the playoffs (Shaquille O'Neal, for example). Once the NBA season reaches mid-April, it becomes much more entertaining, but fans first have to sit through six months of players going through the motions.

2. The NBA is a business - Because professional athletes are making millions of dollars, their desire to win often gets called into question. Elton Brand, for example, left the Los Angeles Clippers last offseason to sign a more lucrative contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. Don't get me wrong, I'm not accusing Brand of being a guy who plays for the money or lacks desire to win, but I think he would have a had a better chance to advance in the playoffs with the Clippers (despite their putrid record this season). There obviously is politicking in college basketball, too, but unless an illegal operation is occuring, college players don't get paid to play. Without money as a motivator, the only reason for college players to play is to win.

3. College's single elimination playoff system - The win-and-advance format of college basketball's postseason makes it the most exciting playoff system in the world. It gives underdogs a chance to achieve some pretty special things, and everyone loves rooting for the underdog. George Mason, for example, advanced to the Final Four in 2006 by beating perennial heavyweights North Carolina and Connecticut. It was an amazing spectacle to watch, but it would never have happened with the NBA's best-of-7 series playoff format. If George Mason had to beat Connecticut four times, there would be no way they could advance to the next round. The NBA's system is designed to eliminate the underdogs, which some would say is a good thing because we get the best teams to match up in the later rounds, but some of the excitement of the early rounds is lost.

Again, it comes down to a personal choice of which is better. Some people will always favor the NBA over college and vice versa, but for me, the above reasons make it no contest.

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