After I watched Marquette’s star point guard, Markus Howard, hit 11 three-point shots in an overtime win against Providence on January 3, I started thinking…

If we changed the NCAA’s three-point line (arc radius of 20 feet 9 inches), which is also known as the giant ring that surrounds the hoop for anyone not familiar with basketball court specifications or design, to have the same dimensions as the NBA’s three-point line (arc radius of 23 feet 9 inches), would it make the collegiate level more competitive?

Well, for starters, the NCAA having the same court dimensions as the pros will be beneficial for the players and for the amazing fans who support this great sport. Players would have a better chance of succeeding at the next level and will be already used to the same shooting distance of the NBA.

Unfortunately, today’s college basketball player simply can’t just step onto the NBA court and be fully settled in. They first have to get used to the rule changes, court size, higher competitiveness, the limelight, and so on. The important task of overcoming these obstacles is very difficult for most current student-athletes. For example, an old college basketball legend named Jimmer Fredette, former BYU guard (2007-2011), blew up the college scene with an impressive senior year that was filled with stunning buzzer beaters and long distance threes. Once his senior year ended, every sports media outlet saw him being an NBA star; even before the start NBA draft that year.

After being selected as the 10th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, and then immediately being traded to Sacramento Kings, Fredette had a somewhat slow start at the professional level. He did, however, increase the King’s merchandise sales by 540 percent that first year. But, his performance, especially his shooting ability on the court, didn’t seem to match the ticket sales. Then, after he left the Kings, his career turned into a downward spiral. His NBA value went down immensely due to his lack of starting appearances and poor statistics. No NBA team wanted him.

You wanna know why?

He couldn’t do the same kind of three-point shooting that he was doing in college. The distance, not to mention the shorter shot clock (NCAA 30 seconds to NBA 24 seconds), was messing with his shot-making talent. Fredette just simply couldn’t adjust to the NBA court size. This made him look like a player that no team owner would ever want.

After the NBA, Fredette went on to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) and became an MVP. He also earned the nickname “Lonely Master”. The CBA ironically has a three-point line that is only 22 feet; one foot shorter than the NBA.

If many college basketball teams today had the experience of playing on a professional sized court during their regular season games, the players on the team, including the “one and done” players, would then have an easier time adjusting to the NBA level.

At the end of the day, this is simply just my opinion. You can take this as you may, but be ready for future NCAA court changes. The NCAA is going to have to adjust the court sizes at some point in order to compete with the NBA.

The game of basketball is changing every day, with new freakishly huge athletes being introduced, shooters who don’t miss shots, and of course new technology to help support and speed up the development process with players training sessions.

So be prepared college basketball world, because the world is changing… oh is the world changing.