In Division 1 men’s basketball, a premium is placed on winning because it is a revenue generating sport. A key to success is recruiting players who have “A” talent.
Are the universities in the PAC-12 bringing in “hired guns” to make their basketball programs successful? If so are they bringing in players from out-of-state or from other countries? Do PAC-12 players come from all over the U.S. or are they primarily from the Western United States? Are teams more successful if they have a higher percentage of in-state players?
This brief analysis evaluated rosters of men’s PAC-12 basketball teams published on their athletic websites in March 2014. Players were included in the sample if their average playing time per game for the season was greater than 15 minutes.
The states with the leading number of players were California (30), Texas (5), Arizona (4), Oregon (4), and Washington (4). About 55% of the players indicated their residence was in these 5 states.
Of the 86 players listed in the sample, 20 players, or 23.3%, were in-state players. Only Cal had more than half its players from in-state. Two schools didn’t have any in-state players, OSU and Washington.
There were 53 out-of-state players from the U.S., 61.6%, and 13 foreign players, 15.1%. Overall, 76.7% of the players were out-of-state. Six of the foreign players come from Canada, more than any state except California.
Five schools didn’t have any foreign players (Arizona, Cal, Washington, UCLA, and Colorado).
Individually, the top 7 teams in the conference had winning records. Collectively, they won 61% of their games. As a group the residence of their players follows:
- 31% in-state.
- 55% out-of-state U.S.
- 14% out-of-state foreign.
The bottom 5 teams had losing records. As a group they won 35% of their games. Collectively, the residence of their players follows:
- 14% in-state.
- 70% out-of-state U.S.
- 16% out-of-state foreign.
Clearly, most men’s programs (at least in the PAC 12) look outside their state to find players to construct winning teams. This limited sample size shows that recruitment of out-of-state players may not guarantee a winning season. In addition it may be a questionable tactic for programs that need to build their fan base or generate alumni support.
For more details see the report Residence of Top Players 2013-2014 PAC 12 Basketball Teams. This report identifies the home state or country of the top PAC 12 basketball players and compares differences between the men and women teams.