When did Boston (the area) become a hotbed for NBA prospects?

[obnoxiousmime]

I don't follow the HS game but it seems like for a long time the Greater Boston area never produced much great NBA talent.

There was Dana Barros, Patrick Ewing (moved to Cambridge at 12 so he counts), and... who else? Rumeal Robinson? I mean guys who actually grew up in Massachusetts, not just kids who came in town to play at some prep school powerhouse for a couple years.

The first one to catch my eye was Nerlens Noel. How often does a guy from Boston (Everett) become the favorite for the top overall pick? Then I noticed Wayne Selden is from Roxbury (Noel's teammate at the Tilton school in NH) and Noah Vonleh is from Haverhill. These are guys who are projected to be in the top 8-20 picks in the 2014 draft! This has to be unprecedented for Boston, right?

I'm not saying these guys will be stars or even productive NBA players, just that it's surprising Boston has had three guys so highly ranked in the span of two years.

Was there a sudden rise in the black population in Boston in the mid-90s? Did the prep schools in the area suddenly up their game in investing in top-level basketball programs? Did the rise of Ubuntu inspire a new generation of Boston-area kids to up their game in their formative years? OK, maybe that last one is a stretch...

It's exciting to think there are some talented young players out there who presumably wouldn't need the hard sell to sign with the Celtics. I know a lot of posters here are already pushing the idea of the Celts drafting Vonleh this year.

[PierceMVP08]

I was with you until you asked about Boston's black population. The mere fact of being black does not make you a great or even good basketball player. FYI Boston proper has had a strong black community for decades.  Today the Black population is over 25% of the entire city, far outpacing the national average.

But to your original point, which was a good one, im not so sure what has caused the uptick. Ive noticed the same thing. Certainly an interesting question. Of course this class could simply be an outlier.

[PhoSita]

I was with you until you asked about Boston's black population. The mere fact of being black does not make you a great or even good basketball player.

certainly not, but the demographics of the NBA (compared to the general population) suggest that there's probably some sort of cultural correlation to be drawn.

[BballTim]

Was there a sudden rise in the black population in Boston in the mid-90s? Did the prep schools in the area suddenly up their game in investing in top-level basketball programs?

  I had a friend in the mid-late 80s from an affluent suburb whose HS had a great basketball team, comprised almost entirely of kids from Boston who were bused out to his town for schooling in some kind of program. Maybe the right kids just ended up in the right programs.

[Mr Green]

Matt Geiger, Vinny Del Negro, and reebmiaL lliB were all born in Boston.

[Jvalin]

Michael Carter-Williams as well. He is from Hamilton.

[Celtics4ever]

Noah Vonleh is from Haverhill, MA.  Isn't Nerlens Noel from MA too?

[clover]

Was there a sudden rise in the black population in Boston in the mid-90s? Did the prep schools in the area suddenly up their game in investing in top-level basketball programs?

  I had a friend in the mid-late 80s from an affluent suburb whose HS had a great basketball team, comprised almost entirely of kids from Boston who were bused out to his town for schooling in some kind of program. Maybe the right kids just ended up in the right programs.

You'd probably be referring to Metco, the voluntary program busing some inner-city kids out to some suburban schools.

[Tnerb02]

Jeff Adrian who plays for the Bobcats is from Brookline.

[shiggins]

Was there a sudden rise in the black population in Boston in the mid-90s? Did the prep schools in the area suddenly up their game in investing in top-level basketball programs?

  I had a friend in the mid-late 80s from an affluent suburb whose HS had a great basketball team, comprised almost entirely of kids from Boston who were bused out to his town for schooling in some kind of program. Maybe the right kids just ended up in the right programs.

Ya.  Its called the METCO program.  They take inner city kids and bus them out to the suburbs to go to the better schools. 

Travis Best was also left off a few peoples lists, Will Blalock if anybody cares.  Shabazz Napier is from Boston too and will probably (should be) drafted as well.

[jayhovaone]

wayne turner, Scoonie penn, Chris Herren and others were also from boston or Massachusetts.  Boston College messed up that pipe line years ago that's why dudes from Massachusetts don't want to play at Bc anymore.  But boston has a lot of talent and its getting better.

[Bosstown]

ur forgetting Michael Carter-Williams is from Hamilton, MA.

[Celtics18]

If you count RI as the greater Boston area, we had two Rhode Islanders drafted into the NBA in the 2013 draft, Erik Murphy and Ricky Ledo. 

[BigAlTheFuture]

Good ole' Travis Best is from Springfield, MA.

[obnoxiousmime]

I was with you until you asked about Boston's black population. The mere fact of being black does not make you a great or even good basketball player. FYI Boston proper has had a strong black community for decades.  Today the Black population is over 25% of the entire city, far outpacing the national average.

But to your original point, which was a good one, im not so sure what has caused the uptick. Ive noticed the same thing. Certainly an interesting question. Of course this class could simply be an outlier.

I never said there wasn't a sizable preexisting black community in Boston. Nor did I suggest being black somehow guarantees that you will be a good NBA player or athlete.

I was merely making a corny joke that a black population INCREASE ("increase" does NOT mean none existed before) in the 90s is a possible explanation for the INCREASE in NBA-level basketball talent in Boston the last two years.

Since the NBA is primarily composed of Black Americans I'm not sure where the controversy is. I think you just misunderstood what I said.

And yeah, I forgot about Michael Carter-Williams. The 76ers stole our team! Don't they also have the Hornets' pick? They could potentially draft Vonleh AND Selden and have a 4/5 Boston-bred starting rotation!

1: MCW
2: Selden
3: Non-Boston guy
4: Vonleh
5: Noel