NAIA Basketball the Lost College Game

In the sports world the stars shine bright from Cameron Indoor in Durham, North Carolina to Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles, California. From coast to coast the eyes of Americans are fixed on collegiate Athletics. The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has been the home of some of the most memorable college sporting events since its foundation hundred years ago. The bright lights and memorable moments have cast a shadow on what could be referred to as the NCAA little brother the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics or NAIA.

The NAIA traces its roots as far back as 1937 when the first tournament was held by the then NAIB (National Association of Intercollegiate Basketball). The tournament held in Kansas City, Missouri in the Municipal Auditorium and was comprised of just a few small schools. Since then the longest running tournament has expanded to include over 360 schools and has grown beyond just basketball to include numerous sports.

NAIA could easily be portrayed as the poor man's NCAA, but that would not be a fair description. While the NCAA attracts more fans hands down, the NAIA attracts fans that are truly drawn to their sport. The NCAA grosses more money each year and regularly enjoys the national and regional broadcast of its games, while NAIA teams are lucky to get mentioned in area papers, but is the quality of the product produced is not all that different?

Now wait, hold on a minute. Don't the majority of professional athletes come from NCAA schools?

Yes they do, but her me out. For our purposes today let us concentrate on college basketball, today players are more athletic than ever and thanks in large part to the AND1 videos dribbling and high flying slam dunks are more popular than ever. This fascination the flashy games has translated its self into college and pro games. Often time the more talented, who find the fundamentals of the game to boring or are easily mastered, turn to tricks and gimmicks. The NCAA is notorious for recruiting talent as a result the quality of the game as a whole suffers. The same can be said with the NBA. If you don't believe it, tell me why is the United States struggling so much in international competition? With big name schools taking all the big name talent the NAIA schools finds themselves with slightly less talented, but more fundamentally sound players which makes room for a better quality game.

Please you are just too blind to see that the game is not played that way any more stop living in the past.

Don't get me wrong I enjoy an electrifying slam dunk as much as the next man. There is most defiantly a place for pure athleticism and creativity in the game of basketball Dr. J, Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan have proved that time and again. Athleticism and creativity should not be the sole foundation of the game of basketball. If all else is equal, fundamentals will win out over pure athleticism ninety-nine out of a hundred times. The little fundamental steps matter.

In the past year I have had the privilege to attend several basketball games between ranked NAIA teams including several at the National Tournament. In that time I have developed a deeper appreciation for playing the game the right way. The athletes in the NAIA are devoted to their art and play to the best of their abilities and that is the most any true sports fan can ask for.