From: gary@ccs.northeastern.edu (Gary Duhaney)
Newsgroups: rec.sport.basketball.pro
Subject: Re: Debunking the standard myth was Re: Couple of thoughts..
Date: 20 Aug 92 03:01:42 GMT
Article-I.D.: random.1992Aug20.030142.20284
Organization: Comp. Sci. @ NU

In article <M1WCC00.92Aug19112309@mcfss2.fed.frb.gov> m1wcc00@fed.frb.gov (Wayne C. Cook) writes:
>In article <55727@olivea.atc.olivetti.com> rsmith@strobe.ATC.Olivetti.Com (Russ Smith) writes:
>
>   >/   leapers. There aren't too many Len Biases who can skywalk, and shoot
>   >/   the lights out(yes I know there aren't any Len Biases). The question is
>   >/   why is this the case, genentics or development?
>   >
>WC:   >Genetics.
>
>Russ:
>   So its just preordained you're either a leaper or a shooter, but you can't
>   be both? It sounds a little fishy to me. 
>
>WC: Didn't say that.  It's preordained with regard to leaping and preordained
>    what kind of touch you have and it's preordained what kind of rythm you
>    have and on and on.  You can be born with the ability to do all of these
>    things well. 

Even if that is true, one still has to work hard to develop the ability.
It's like when you first started playing ball if someone touched you
it messed up your shot completely.  After a while you were able to
take a hit from a stronger player and still be able to put something up.
Look at most of the best scorers and shooter, they still get a fairly
good shot off after being hacked.  You also don't wake up and one day
use the ability to it's max.
>
>Russ:
>   Sounds a lot more like a process
>   of development where you spend more time doing one thing than you do the
>   other. I learned to play on the playgrounds, I never played in a gym
>   until I was in 8th grade. I'm not a great shooter, my whole game is off
>   the dribble take the ball to the hole. This is how we play on the playground
>   and its precisely why I'm not a great shooter. I also had a 30" vertical
>   jump as a sophomore in highschool before I developed jumpers knee(patellar
>   tendinitis) and lost a fair bit of spring.
>
>WC: Did you become a better shooter as your vertical declined?  That's your
>    theory right?

Seemed to be yours.  He's saying he that going to the hole is what he
worked on.

[stuff deleted]

>Russ:
>   Look do me a small favor, spend 2 hours playing 2 on 2 volleyball in
>   the sand. then wake up the next day and feel the burn in your calves
>   and thighs. Now do this 6 months out of the year all through jumior
>   high and highschool. You seriously think it won't increase your leap?
>   Thats why there's a lot of skywalkers in So Cal volleyball, there are
>   at least 3 white guys now on the pro tour with 38" or better jumps,
>   and 38 is flying, there's not that many in the NBA better than that.
			^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>
>WC: 3 guys.  Well that supports my statement that their are a few white guys
>    that can jump.

No it doesn't, read what the guy said.  Major-leapers are few and far
between, and as far as I've seen and anyone has proven, no "race" has
a monopoly.

>Just like there are some blacks that can't.  And, as I

Make that just like there are few blacks that can.
>    said before, no, I don't think a million years of jumping around in the
>    sand will help anyone jump significantly better.  Nope.
>
>