While I am not sure what the Jennings experiment will bring, I believe that the possible influx of high school Americans into the European game will do nothing but HELP the American game.

Talking to my friends, many of whom are hardcore basketball fans like myself, a lot of them are disappointed at the quality of the game in America as it stands now. The NCAA refuses to modernize and update its game for the faster, more talented players coming out of high school now. The NBA, with its emphasis on stars, has deemphasized the need for team work in one of the few games that really thrives on, and requires, it.

The idea of talented high-school players moving into the European game offers many alluring possibilities. The most primary of which is the ability to actually get up to NBA speed in a timely manner. They will play under a 24 second clock, in a larger offensive area with a further three-point line and a wider lane. All of this isn't available in the NCAA who refuses to make rule changes for aesthetic reasons.

Additionally, playing in Europe will break many of the habits they developed from being the only good player on their team and watching highlights of the NBA on sportscenter; they will realize that they cannot succeed without the other four members of their team. This is not a skill that can be developed in the NCAA where some players like Michael Beasley are still the best player on their team and are forced to carry the team night after night.

As everyone else has noted, the move to Europe will also help in the development of the players as men. They will learn that they are not BMOC on the world stage; they are just a rookie and have to earn stripes, they will not be given. They will learn how to deal with what they will face in the NBA, assuming they make it that far, which brings me to my last point.

Raising young kids up in the European leagues will help us to bridge the gap between American ball and world ball. The world already is into American ball. Americans think our style is superior, and it kind of isn't as proven by some of our last international tournament performances. We Americans will be able to see this inferiority and, hopefully, learn how to improve our game from it. Also, bridging this gap will allow for Europe and America to play against each other. It will be a tournament style deal most likely, something like the World Cup or Champions League in soccer. In-season travel is unfeasible, but cutting down the American basketball season (are 82 games really necessary? No.) and installing a month of the best teams playing the best European teams for something meaningful (trophies, cash, and pride all count) could be to the benefit of all parties involved.

In the end, I hope that the Jennings experiment will help America and Europe to bridge the style gap and give the game a more universal flavor. I think that, if it goes well, it most certainly can do this very thing. Everyone wins here. The stagnant American game gets a shakeup, and the European game gets a new fanbase because people will like world ball once they get a feel for it, which is what the influx of high schoolers will provide for the American audience. The only loser here is the NCAA, but they forced their own obsolescence to be totally honest by refusing to adapt and refusing to chip players a little bit of money from the millions the school makes whoring them out to ESPN, FSN, ABC, and CBS.