Quality of Michigan HS basketball???????
Remember growing up in metro Detroit the state was loaded with absolute studs in the PSL,Flint and Pontiac.The surrounding suburbs also.Not gonna list names,too many to count.Has the talent level dropped that much???
March 18th, 2023 at 12:29 PM ^
That was because we had auto factories and blue collar workers who, were picked due to their strength and ability...and the kids were the offspring. Over time the factories went away, and so did many. Now it's a matter of numbers. There will be less, whereas in the states in south still with heavy industry, there will be more.
Good point. But the suburbs have probably improved simultaneously. MI HS POTY used to come from Detroit much more often (+ Flint and Lansing). Now it's from anywhere in the state
I also think the talent around the country has improved so higher competition. Private academies and specialized AAU opportunities makes your location a little less important. Kids are travelling. It's such a different type of youth basketball environment than 25 or 50 years ago.
March 18th, 2023 at 12:30 PM ^
Well, the city of Detroit has about half of the population it used to and our state in general has less folks. Further, people are having less kids.
Some people.
somebody's got to keep the average up...
Work, work, work. Attaboy!
Exactly regarding the population issue.
Also, there are more families from the inner cities of Michigan that can afford to send their kids to privates schools, especially when the private schools offer partial "scholarships". Ergo, more POY candidates from private schools.
Look at The Detroit Catholic League in basketball the last 5 - 10 years, especially this year.
Population issue leads to higher percentages from Catholic League. Hmmnnn??????????????
We have a conundrum.
March 18th, 2023 at 12:33 PM ^
A lot of the top Detroit, Pontiac and Flint public High Schools from the 70’s-90’s have closed. Along with some of the old time premiere Catholic schools like DePorres, Aquinas, Borges, etc.
Michigan is one of the top 5 most moved out of states in the entire country since COVID so that probably doesn’t help in terms of overall numbers.
Mix that with the top kids bolting for IMG, Oak Hill, Montverde, Sunrise once they start making a name for themselves and you get the results we have today. Very sad because to me there is nothing better than a packed MI HS gym with big time talent on the court. So much fun to watch.
Michigan is one of the top 5 most moved out of states in the entire country since COVID
ThatsBaitdotgif
March 18th, 2023 at 12:38 PM ^
Needs more question marks.
Puzzling?
March 18th, 2023 at 12:38 PM ^
????????????????????
March 18th, 2023 at 12:39 PM ^
Is this question feeling urgent for you? I would have expected some exclamation point mixed in if so. Or are you just deeply questioning it, perhaps? Either way please clarify with as much additional punctuation as possible.
Things come and go, ebb and flow. Times change. Of all the things worth concern in this world, I think you are safe to let this one go…qué será será, amigo.
March 18th, 2023 at 12:41 PM ^
I've often wondered about this, even though I don't live there anymore. The number of pros that came out of Michigan in the 80s and 90s was incredible. There were always great races for Mr. Basketball. Now not so much.
March 18th, 2023 at 12:50 PM ^
Quality and quantity of male and female athletes is down in ALL high school sports as the population continues to migrate to other areas of the country.
The MHSAA also follows the NCAA draconian model of being more strict with smaller schools regarding eligibility of transfers, and turns a blind eye to bigger programs who make them more $$ in state playoff events. The bigger programs will remain nameless, although they are occasionally discussed on this site.
I believe Jalen Rose's senior year team at (now closed) Detroit Southwestern had seven players go on to play D! basketball (including former NBA players Howard Eisley (Boston College) and Voshon Leonard (Minnesota) in addition to Rose.
I suspect there are very few high school classes that have 3 NBA players in them (or at least there were few prior to the rise of the basketball academies).
March 18th, 2023 at 12:57 PM ^
The best talent usually heads out of state early on to play at the national powerhouse prep schools/academies.
That was my thought, but I have no idea if it's true.
March 18th, 2023 at 12:58 PM ^
Did you post on MLive back in the day????????????????????????????????????
NYC high school basketball used to be incredible too. My theory is because the top players go to the fancy prep schools and programs now. I'm guessing the big stars aren't going to Lincoln or Christ the King, Archbishop Molloy anymore.
Everyone has touched on the reasons. Detroits loss of population has not only killed our top talent it’s also killed the MAC too.
Add in the popping up of these basketball factories to work on your brand we lose top kids to these too.
I would argue from 80s-mid 00s Michigan especially Detroit could compete with ever other major city in nation and in some years be the top city!
It’s the population shift. That’s why the SEC has risen over the last 20 years. Everyone in the Midwest moved down south or out west.
I’d like to add Detroit Pershing at one point late in year had 0 wins. That should tell you everything
Not picking on you, Astro, as it is common nomenclature, but why do people say "out" west? Out of what/where? Living in CO, and having lived in multiple regions of the U.S., I don't really feel like I am out of anything, but maybe I am just fooling myself???????????? God, I need a hobby.
I'm also curious about that one. You never hear anyone say that someone moved "out east," do you? When I lived in NV, it sounded so strange to hear people talk about someone going "back east" to somewhere in the midwest like Michigan. I assume that those concepts calcified in some pockets of speech back when more cities were established on the east coast and the country was busy spreading westward.
As far as Detroit basketball goes, a lot of the talent has moved out of Detroit schools. Some of the best HS’ this year were outside the city with Detroit players. For example, Warren Lincoln, Warren Michigan Collegiate, and Ferndale (the top 3 teams in Division 2) were all pretty much exclusively Detroit players. Cass, King, and Renaissance (more girls for the latter) still field pretty good to sometimes great teams. The rest of the PSL though has been gutted. Southeastern and Pershing are shells of their former selves (Pershing’s coach who won the state championship in 09 is at Lincoln now).
Pontiac? Look no further than West Bloomfield to find the Pontiac athletes.
Flint has unfortunately lost so much, although Beecher still is a power in the smaller division. Saginaw also is no longer the hub of talent it used to be with Saginaw High and Arthur Hill.
Saginaw High and Arthur Hill are combining schools next year. 15 years ago that was unthinkable.
The same could be said for football. Michigan could field a team of absolute studs from Michigan and Ohio back in the day. Now they have to snag blue chippers out of the south or out west if they hope to compete nationally.