Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

I'm a huge fan of the NBA and in the past decade there has been a bunch of talent coming into the league from all over the world including European countries like France, Germany, and a whole host of others especially Eastern European nations. However I can't recall a single UK basketball player coming over to the NBA or at least not one on the star level.

Leading to me to believe that basketball just isn't played as much in the UK. Is there just a lack of infrastructure and/or interest for this sport? I realize basketball takes a backseat to futbol in Europe but one would think that there would've been a UK star by now given the international nature of the sport.

And for the hell of it, here's a very young Michael Jordan putting on a show:

No one in the UK is over 5' 3", true story. It's kinda creepy actually.

Well there was 1 Englishman that played NBA, John Ameachi. He retired a few years back though.

GG

At 6'6" I take up a good portion of the UK's BBall talent.
Watch, in awe, as I palm a full sized ball over my Apocalypse army.
Any mistakes would have been costly and time consuming!

Tyyr wrote:No one in the UK is over 5' 3", true story. It's kinda creepy actually.

I have a freind in m year whose 5' 7".


Anyway, I haven't heard of any major league uk BBall talent either-maybe it's just not our sport.

Little lord Fauntleroy wrote:I have a freind in m year whose 5' 7".

That ear splitting sonic boom was the point blowing right over your head at a high rate of speed.

I'll resist a facepalm.
The true matter is that we don't get taught it is school.
We spend too much of the summer defending our shins from infinitely solid spheres clad in red leather that are being hurled at ridiculous speeds.

Alex Kolodotschko wrote:I'll resist a facepalm.
The true matter is that we don't get taught it is school.
We spend too much of the summer defending our shins from infinitely solid spheres clad in red leather that are being hurled at ridiculous speeds.

Ah interesting stuff. In the UK are young teenagers allowed to participate in professional leagues? Tony Parker started playing professionally in France at the age of 16 for example. Nice palming over your army; if I tried that my Guardsmen would've been in pieces.

Tyyr wrote:No one in the UK is over 5' 3", true story. It's kinda creepy actually.

The average height of a UK male is 5'9" and I'm 6'4". As to the basketball, apart from a growing school league interest, there is little interest in a televised professional league, seeing as we can get the NBA over here. Just like ice hockey and America football there is a slowly growing interest in the sport at ameteur level. The reason why alot of European players come from the eastern block is due to the effect of communism (the old is the Americans can do it, we can do it better).

Basketball? What strange sport is this?

Here we have three sports, Rugby, Football, and Cricket. Anything else is clearly unnecessary and surplus to requirements.

Never ceases to fail, the more ridiculous the comment the more people will rush to try and refute it.

Tyyr wrote:

Little lord Fauntleroy wrote:I have a freind in m year whose 5' 7".

That ear splitting sonic boom was the point blowing right over your head at a high rate of speed.

If you honestly think I'm that stupid, maybe we won't get along .

Ketara wrote:Here we have three sports, Rugby, Football, and Cricket. Anything else is clearly unnecessary and surplus to requirements.

How true.

Seriously though, you asking why the UK has no beasketball players is about the same as I asking why the US has no rugby players, almost no body plays it here. And it's certainly not infrastructure, maybe you could give that as an excuse for ice hockey, it's interest or rather lack of it. Basketball probably out of all US sports makes the most ground outside of the US, but attracting athletes in the UK will be hard when the three major sports football, rugby and cricket are home grown, have been around for aeons, the base sports taught in schools and one of which is the most popular sport on earth.

To add to that there is barely any television coverage unless you are nocturnal and can bare chanel 5. So the chances of a kid wanting to grow up to be a Michael Jordan and not a David Beckham are miniscule.

I played a bit in Secondary School, and I'm fairly tall (6'3")...

But here in the UK, there's just no money in it - at least not to the degree of Football. Why else would Peter Crouch be a footballer? Any half decent athletes seem to become footballers here.

Plus, wasn't that giant chinese player a British Citizen? I heard he was - can't remember where though...

EDIT: No, he wasn't.

I'm 6' (with shoes!) and I play basketball where I can in PE. I also know three people in my year who are set to go very far in basketball. So "UK: Where are your basketball stars?" In the making dear sir!!!

The OC-D

What is the point in a ballgame where you can't kick the ball.

Isn't basketball largely an american phenomenon?

whatwhat wrote:

Ketara wrote:Here we have three sports, Rugby, Football, and Cricket. Anything else is clearly unnecessary and surplus to requirements.

How true.

Seriously though, you asking why the UK has no beasketball players is about the same as I asking why the US has no rugby players, almost no body plays it here. And it's certainly not infrastructure, maybe you could give that as an excuse for ice hockey, it's interest or rather lack of it. Basketball probably out of all US sports makes the most ground outside of the US, but attracting athletes in the UK will be hard when the three major sports football, rugby and cricket are home grown, have been around for aeons, the base sports taught in schools and one of which is the most popular sport on earth.

To add to that there is barely any television coverage unless you are nocturnal and can bare chanel 5. So the chances of a kid wanting to grow up to be a Michael Jordan and not a David Beckham are miniscule.

Basketball is one of the key sports taught in UK schools now, go check a school gym it has a basketball nets and markings, our school had 5 courts with 2 indoor ones, and ice hockey is a growing sport in the UK with 12-13 national teams in the league, it does require an ice rink but most major cities have one. The problem is that for basketball is that no matter how good you are at basketball in school you get stone walled as there is no professional or semi-professional league.