The 1979 National Championship game between Indiana State and Michigan State took place years before many of us were born. But it defined a generation of basketball for many young fans in the years that came.
Led by Larry Bird, Indiana State surprised the college basketball landscape by defeating traditional powerhouses such as Arkansas and DePaul to earn a spot in the championship game.
The only thing standing in the way of the Sycamores earning the program's first title was the Magic Johnson-led Michigan State Spartans. In a game that pitted two future Hall of Famers against one another, Johnson and Michigan State came out on top 75-64.
Over the next decade, Bird and Johnson would combine to win eight NBA titles, meeting in the Finals twice during that span.
It really was the last greatest NBA rivalry.
Fast forward some 36 years, and there's a chance we could be privy to a new rivalry between two of the best young basketball players on the planet.
Led by nine McDonald's All-Americans, including Karl-Anthony Towns, the Kentucky Wildcats are looking to become the first college basketball team to run the table since the 1976 Indiana Hoosiers. They will take on a tough Wisconsin team in one of the two Final Four games this upcoming weekend.
Meanwhile, fellow freshman Jahlil Okafor led Duke to the program's 16th Final Four appearance following a win over Gonzaga on Sunday. Duke will take on a surprising Michigan State squad for the right to play in the title game next Monday.
Towns and Okafor were the two most publicized freshman coming into the 2014-2015 season, and both are now considered top prospects heading into the draft in June.
And while we have no firm announcement from either player, it's safe to assume both will declare for the draft.
Towns, a 6'11", 250-pound monster of a man, is averaging 10.1 points and 6.6 rebounds per game this season. Not the sexiest of numbers, but anyone who has watched him play as of late knows full well the domination he can display with a bit more seasoning.
On the other hand, Okafor had a much more seamless transition from high school ball to the ACC. He's averaging 17.7 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. At 6'11" and 270 pounds, his ability to physically dominate opposing defenders has been stunning.
Depending on who you ask, one of these two will be the first player off the board in the upcoming draft with the other likely going second overall. They will also line up directly opposite one another in the National Championship game should their respective teams win on Saturday. This would set into motion one of the most intriguing title game matchups in recent college basketball history.
Just imagine these two young men, at a combined 520 pounds, going at it in Indianapolis on Monday night with a championship and long-term bragging rights on the line.
We mentioned Kentucky's nine McDonald's All-Americans, but Duke is no slouch in that category either. The Blue Devils currently have eight on their roster, including four freshman. In reality, this would be a matchup of two titans unlike anything we have seen in recent NCAA Tournament history.
In fact, the last time two top seeds played in the title game was back in 2008 when Kansas beat Memphis. Prior to that, Florida beat Ohio State in the 2007 title game.
Though, it's important to note that neither of those bouts included two sure-fire top picks. The 2008 Memphis Tigers were led by future NBA MVP Derrick Rose, but they were going up against a Kansas Jayhawk squad that didn't necessarily have one true star. In the previous year's title game, Florida was led by Joakim Noah and Al Horford, while the runner-up Buckeyes had Greg Oden.
You would have to go all the way back to the 1999 Tournament when these Blue Devils took on the Connecticut Huskies for the championship for any type of comparison here. That game included future lottery picks Elton Brand, Shane Battier, Corey Maggette and Richard Hamilton. Even then, we didn't have two players at the same position going up against one another just months before they were to vie to be the top pick in the NBA draft.
That could all change if Duke and Kentucky come out victorious Saturday in the Final Four.
Adding even more intrigue to this scenario is who could very well be picking atop the NBA draft in June. As of right now, the New York Knicks have the best odds to earn the top pick. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers currently have the fourth-best odds to earn that coveted pick. Common logic seems to suggest that there's a good chance these will be the two teams selecting atop the draft.
You don't need to be a basketball genius to understand what this would mean.
Just imagine Towns and Okafor going up against one another for the next decade while playing for two downtrodden but historical franchises in the nation's two largest media markets.
It might not be Bird vs Johnson, but it could very well create the next great NBA rivalry—a rivalry that would only be magnified if they meet in the title game next Monday.
The Finances
The Kentucky-Notre Dame Elite Eight matchup from Saturday was the most-viewed college basketball game in cable television history. If Duke and Kentucky were to meet up in the National Championship game, it would likely become the most-viewed college basketball game in television history.
That wouldn't only be a boon for the NCAA, it would create even more intrigue heading into the NBA draft. And if the ping-pong balls were to bounce the right way this spring, it could set us up for these two monsters—Okafor and Towns—playing in the nation's two largest media markets.
For the players, this would be an ideal scenario. It doesn't take a maretking genius to realize that the endorsement deals that come with playing in New York and Los Angeles are plentiful compared to some of the other options in the lottery, Minnesota and Orlando included.
