Philadelphia hoops not what it once was

Dime Magazine's Tyler Tynes wrote an interesting piece on the rich history of the Philadelphia basketball circuit and its recent decline when it comes to players reaching the professional level.

The city's hoops culture has always been known for being tough and ferocious.

There are the all-time greats in Wilt Chamberlain and Kobe Bryant. Other memorable players like Earl Monroe, Rasheed Wallace and Cuttino Mobley had respectable NBA careers.

A few young guns from the City of Brothery Love have recently found homes on the professional level. Guys like Dion Waiters, Kyle Lowry, Tyreke Evans, and the Morris twins, Marcus and Markieff, are all on NBA rosters.

Since 2006, however, a lot of the area's best-known players have had trouble making it in the NBA.

From Tynes:

Players like Reggie Redding that played at St. Joseph's Prep and went on to Villanova landed overseas. Maalik Wayns, who played at Roman Catholic and also took the Villanova route, played one season in the NBA and is currently a free agent.

Dionte Christmas, Mark Tinsdale, Eric Thomas and majority of the heavy hitters from the Temple Owls regime over the last half decade have also taken a tumble.

The same can be said about Zach Rosen from Penn's 2012 team who's now overseas. Scottie Reynolds, Villanova's All-American that led the Wildcats to a Final Four in 2009, had several stints in Europe.

There is some impressive Philly talent on the college level in Amile Jefferson (Duke), Rysheed Jordan (St. John's), and Brandon Austin (Providence) to name a few.

Neumann-Goretti senior Ja'Quan Newton, the 67th-best player in the nation according to ESPN, recently committed to Miami.

So, as Tynes writes, while "competition hasn't been at its peak in what seems like a century, there is hope for the future."

Click here read Tynes' full piece "Philly Basketball: Where Only The Strong Survive"