How the game has evolved

The NBA has changed quite a lot since my 1984-85 rookie season. Maybe with the exception of better travel - NBA teams charter everywhere today - things just seemed a lot easier when I came into the league. For one thing, there weren't as many expectations placed on the young players as there are now.

It's easy to see why there is so much pressure on a young player to perform, a lot more pressure than I had to deal with when I started out. The No. 1, No. 2 or No. 3 picks today are making $3 million a year, have an endoresment deal with a shoe company, and a variety of other sponsorship opportunities.

In '84-85 I acheived a lot, but none of the accomplishments were planned. Nobody had guidelines for "How To Market A Basketball Player." Today's rookies are coming in with the guidelines already set, and that makes it a lot harder for them because rather than being allowed to be themselves, they have to live up to certain expectations already predetermined.

Another big change in the game is a focus on defense. More and more coaches today realize that defense wins championships. It was different back in the Magic Johnson days with the L.A. Lakers. Even the Boston Celtics were more of an up-tempo, fastbreak team. But look at the last few teams that have won the NBA titles - starting with Detroit - all have been defensive-oriented. Now everybody thinks you have to have that approach to the game.

Statistics show that the NBA scoring average has dropped steadily during the '90s - from 106.3 ppg in '90-91 to 96.9 ppg last season. And it's been around 95 points per game this season.

Scoring is still the highlight for the fans, who like to see players dunking and creating off the dribble. Dennis Rodman's rebounding and Dikembe Mutombo's finger-waving . . . those things are attractive to fans,too. Because of that, I think fans are starting to pick up both phases of a basketball game: defense as well as offense.

Finally, you'll notice there are a lot of undeveloped players - underclassmen - coming in who haven't gone through the process of finding out what they need to work on, it takes its toll on the game. Young players who skip part of their college years haven't fully developed their game. A lot of them aren't ready mentally. Others may have the capability, but they aren't ready physically.

At some point in time, you have to put more structure back into the game. Players with little or no college experience should have to wait a couple of years before they can join the NBA. That's hard because the financial gain is far greater than any of the risks taken. As a result, the NBA is a lot less mature than it used to be. There's a lot of trouble out there that these young kids can't see. They need some kind of guard put in to protect them.

I think you'll start seeing NBA owners, who are investing big dollars in these young kids, come up with a salary structure to protect their investment. This structure would help the kids understand the mental challenge as well as the physical challenge, and make them understand the responsibilities and dedication that comes with it.

How do the owners do that? They can do it with incentives. They can do it with a rookie pay scale. This would set a tone that's saying: "I don't care if you're the No. 1, No. 2, No. 3 pick . . . this is what you're worth. And if you evolve into being a better basketball player, we'll deal with that when it happens."

For far too long, the owners have been paying these athletes on potential, and a lot of times it doesn't pan out. I just think the owners have to be more cautious in how they spend their money.

Where is the NBA headed? In terms of scoring and defense, today's emphasis on defense is good for the game. It gives it credibility. The league already experienced a time when teams scored 110 points playing no defense. Today, defensive athletes are a lot better, and when you have them on both teams,you're going to have scores in the 80s.

I also think there are some major concerns about salaries and expectations. Right now, I think it's a little out of control. You have to have substantial dollars to get into the free-agent market, or to re-sign players on your own team.

Something has to be done for the credibility of the game. In some degree, at some point, it's going to exceed what correctly is the market value. It's been mounting to this point. Someday, some owner is going to make a stand by saying, "We think these salaries are outrageous. It's going to be tough for us to pay this one individual this much money and still put together a championship team." The owners will have to initiate that change, because the players aren't going to demand one.

That, in a nutshell, has determined how the game is starting to evolve. Between the pressures on current players to perform, the focus on defense and the younger, undeveloped players, the game has changed a lot and will continue to do so.