There are a lot of small rule differences that I like in the NCAA: most importantly, fewer timeouts, which leads to a better pace, particularly late in games. No sport kills any feeling of urgency in a close game as much as the NBA basketball. In the NBA, defenses tend to be man-on-man with situational doubling, and occasionally a team will drop a zone; the man-on-man focus is perfect for a game that hypes its superstars. Full-court pressure and half court pressure are rarities. But in the NCAA, defenses are much more complex and varied, and it feels a little like a football game, with coaches working hard to get the match-ups they want. At the same time, a much longer shot-clock allows a team to work hard to exploit potential weaknesses. NCAA players are allowed only five fouls before they foul out, one less than the NBA. This may sound like a small difference, but applied across the whole team, this means a team with sloppy defense can get into foul trouble much sooner in the NCAA, again forcing an emphasis on smart D.
And then there are the issues that others have pointed out: the relative parity, the lack of superstars, the fact that a lot of these guys will never play on a higher stage than the NCAA tournament.
All that said, I do like NBA basketball. But there are so many things that NCAA does better.
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