Los Angeles Lakers must be patient if they draft Lonzo Ball

Kevin Garnett

Entering in the 95’ season and discovering quick success, Kevin Garnett created opportunities for other players to bypass college. Garnett played 80 out of 82 games, while averaging ten points and six rebounds. Nick Sugai, who further illustrated Garnett in his thesis The Effect of Early Entry to the NBA stated,

"“Sports journalists jumped on Kevin Garnett’s success story, and standout high school players began to follow his lead after witnessing his immediate impact in the league. During the next decade, early entrance to the NBA accelerated. Some players succeeded, but others struggled with making the jump directly from high school. For every Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, there was a Kwame Brown or Darius Miles whose potential on the court was only surpassed by his difficulty in adapting to professional basketball.”"

As a rookie, Garnett’s points and rebounds are not astounding. Garnett’s abnormality, however, became apparent through the amount of games he played in as a rookie. To be able to sustain a consistent level of professional performance at the age of nineteen is impressive.  In the decade following Garnett, the acceleration of undeveloped talent entering the NBA heightened fans expectations of instant successes, and lowered the chances that rookies would be one.