Wisconsin (NCAA)
09/04/2015
David Hein's Eye on the Future
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Why I was rooting for Wisconsin at the Final Four

REGENSBURG (David Hein's Eye on the Future) - The 2015 Final Four was a tale of two different types of teams - and two different philosophies of putting together a Final Four caliber team. 

Wisconsin and Michigan State worked to develop experienced players who stayed with the program beyond the lure of one-and-done. The two Big Ten teams both had a significant upperclassmen presence with leaders who were seniors and juniors.

Kentucky and Duke meanwhile relied predominantly on their ability to recruit the elite of the elite talent around the United States - many of those players likely to leave college for the NBA usually after one year, certainly after two.

Many basketball fans were rooting against Kentucky winning the title because of the idea of what one-and-done meant and because UK coach John Calipari was collecting so many elite players. 

Fewer people spoke in that accord about eventual winners Duke, though half of their team was freshmen and at least two of those players will quite likely bolt for the NBA in a couple of months (Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow).

Of course, just like any time a team loses a number of players and replaces them with young experienced players, the jobs facing Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and Calipari going into the season were difficult. 

Krzyzewski knew he would need his freshmen - Tyus Jones and Grayson Allen included - to step up with the departures of so many players from the 2013-14 team (mainly Jabari Parker and Rodney Hood). And Calipari saw Julius Randle and James Young go off to the NBA and he may have been expecting the Harrison twins Andrew and Aaron to leave as well. 

As it turned out Calipari had enough talent for two teams and he did a great job of getting the elite players to buy in to the team concept. But it was difficult to institute a sophisticated offense with so many players to incorporate. And the Wildcats relied on their defensive dominance and a lot of one-on-one play offensively.

Coach K had the advantage of having a smaller roster - in the end it was just eight players - and the fact that three of his players - Okafor, Jones and Winslow - knew each other well from playing the last couple of summers for the United States youth teams.

It's not that I was rooting against Kentucky or Duke, but it would have been nice to see a school like Wisconsin be rewarded for their great work over the past couple of years. 

After getting bounced by Mississippi in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in 2013, Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker stepped up and guided Wisconsin - along with Ben Brust and Traevon Jackson - to the 2014 Final Four, losing by one point to Kentucky in the national semi-finals. 

Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan had constructed his roster so that he would only lose one or two pieces but that the framework for success was there. Brust was the only main departure and the Badgers returned to the Final Four - and another match-up with Kentucky. 

This time, there was the motivation of making good on your mistakes - something one-and-dones do not usually have - and another year of improvement and Wisconsin knocked off Kentucky to reach the NCAA title game. 

It would have been great to see Kaminsky - voted as college basketball's Player of the Year - get the job done in his final collegiate game. But Jones, Okafor, Winslow and Allen were too good and gave Duke NCAA title number five.

Wisconsin will look quite different next year as Kaminsky leaves along with fellow seniors Jackson, Duje Dukan and Josh Gasser. Dekker has one more year of eligibility left though the all-around ace is being projected close to the lottery in the 2015 NBA Draft.

Dekker staying on would be a huge help for Ryan and the Badgers, who will have Nigel Hayes back while other current sophomores and freshmen will be chomping at the bit to get their shots at becoming the next Kaminsky and Dekkers. 

And get their opportunity at facing the top one-and-dones around the game. 

David Hein

FIBA

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David Hein

David Hein

Walk into the media tribune of any major basketball event and there's a good chance you will come across David Hein. Having covered dozens of FIBA events, including numerous women's and youth events, there are few players Dave doesn't know about, and few players who don't know him. His sporting curiosity means he is always looking to unearth something new and a little bit special. David Hein's Eye on the Future is a weekly column digging out the freshest basketball talent worldwide and assessing what the basketball landscape will look like a couple of years down the line.