NBA: Why Mark Cuban's latest statement is wrong

American players understand and learn the game just fine

The 2011 ESPY Awards - Show

To accept Mark Cuban’s statement is to acknowledge that there is talent around the world, in particular, Slovenia that’s better than what’s in the NBA. Cuban would be wrong. First, Kobe Bryant, Jermaine O’Neal, Kevin Garnett, and LeBron James are examples of some of the greatest NBA players to ever play in the NBA.

Another thing they have in common is they all got drafted to the NBA right out of high school. They learned to play at an elite level in the best basketball league in the world as teenagers.

James may be the highest scoring NBA superstar ever in less than three seasons and has three NBA Championships. Kobe Bryant is 3rd on the scoring list and is a 5 time NBA Champion.

Kevin Garnett ranks 20th among the highest scorers in the game all-time and is an NBA Champion as well. Further, none of these players can be simply called a taunter or a dunker. We are invoking the names of some of the most complete and dominant players of the last 20-25 years.

Cuban has seen these players up close and personal as the owner of the Mavericks. This group of players was never basketball never deficient in skills anyway. They had to learn as the years went by but they were talented. Further one can compile a list of European talent that failed in their aspirations to succeed in the NBA equally as North American players have too.

What Mark Cuban needs to separate out is that there are physical skills and intangible skills. A player can have all the physical gifts but lack the intangibles of heart, desire, and passion to be the best like a Kwame Brown. Without these intangibles, a good player will not improve like Michael Jordan did and it’s a guessing game which players will have the drive to be the best and execute it at the highest levels of excellence.