European players

[Douglas342@xxxxxxx]

    Interesting piece on Bryant Gumbel's "Real Sports" show on HBO about the 
rise of Euro hoops.  He projected that 12 of this year's draftees might be 
Euros.  The piece was taped a couple of weeks ago.  Players in Europe spend time 
in training centers doing practices and drills as opposed to the US system of 
having them play games.  The downside (many would say) is that kids go off to 
these centers at a young age, like under 10, and school goes by the wayside as 
the kids rise through the ranks of "cadet" teams to junior teams to pro 
teams.  They not only learn basketball at these centers, they live there.
    And some of the coaches say that US players are falling into severe 
disfavor among the elite European leagues because they come out of college so 
attuned to the "star game" and unskilled in the fundamentals.
    The same show had a piece on the controversy surrounding Ted Williams 
being cryogenically preserved.  Very unfortunate story.  Throw in a disturbing 
story about a spate of deaths in recent years among pro wrestlers and it was an 
interesting hour of TV.