I doubt this move will improve his stock or that the experience will benefit him. I really don't see him playing next year any better than he played this year.
Though I usually agree with you BC, I'm not quite on the same bead with you here. I think the extra experience is
almost always a plus. Sure, there have been many to come straight from high school who have had amazing careers, (like KG, Kobe, LeBron, etc.), but I've also always wondered what they would have been like with some college experience.
Maybe I should rephrase it to say that it's different for different players: I'm sure there are those who may actually benefit from going straight into the draft, and whose personalities might not mesh with the whole college thing, and I guess only the players themselves can make that decision. But there's so much more to college than just the playing experience, and having the maturity, (not just physically, but emotionally and psychologically as well), that develops in college, when going into the NBA, I feel is priceless.
I just feel the overall product is much more
complete ... stronger in every aspect, and more able to adapt to interacting with other players and creating positive bonds, as well as dealing with being subordinate to a coach, which are things that many who skip college sometimes have trouble acclimating to. I could name examples, and comparisons to those who have made the college trip, but I think most here are aware of the differences.
As much as I love the guy, even KG has not had a smooth journey in some of these areas, and I think the whole college experience helps with those things, (though not with
everyone, obviously). There's no clear-cut answer, but to say that staying in college makes no difference to the quality of the player, is not correct, I feel.
I also think most coaches and managements see the value in the experience and maturation process of higher education, and therefor find the value of these players to sometimes be much higher than it may have been otherwise. Please don't say that I'm making a blanket statement here about
everyone, as I don't feel it always applies, but it certainly does in many cases, and I think Hansbrough's is one of those.