Video highlights, drills, camps, statistics ... there are pretty good mechanisms in place to catch the next Kobe Bryant or Kevin Garnett. They are freaks of nature who can almost anything they want on the basketball court. Their excellence can be easily demonstrated.

But, for instance, at the pre-draft camp in Orlando going on right now, there are no players like that. What teams are shopping for are complementary players. Role players. Guys who can fit in to the team's larger goals, while contributing very specific things. Playing really good perimeter defense and hitting the occasional three, for instance. Rebounding and blocking shots without getting the ball much. Players who can shine without the spotlight, and who will not be a disturbance in the locker room if they don't get a lot of minutes.

These are guys who might play 15 years without scoring 30 points, or faking someone out of their socks.

The teams that win titles every year all have fat supplies of highly effective role players. Consider that the Spurs just waltzed to the NBA Finals getting long minutes from the likes of Bruce Bowen, Robert Horry, Fabricio Oberto, Jacque Vaughn, and Francisco Elson.

I talked to ESPN's David Thorpe, who is in Orlando, and he points out that you could stick any of those Spurs I just mentioned in the pre-draft camp, and no one watching would be certain that they were sure-fire NBA players. Because they just do not have the skills to thrive in this hyper, ball-hog, show-your-moves environment.

But they are, in all likelihood, about to be key players on a championship team.

Weird, huh? You practically have to be a star to make the NBA. But then once you get there, the star jobs are almost all filled, so in most cases you then have to learn to be a role player. (No wonder so many NBA players are grumpy.)

Wouldn't it be smarter to develop, nurture, and evaluate who will make the best role players?

Or, to put it another way, isn't it time to stop thinking of role players as failed stars? To me that's like calling a nurse a failed doctor, or an elementary school teacher a failed college professor. It's ridiculous. They're different jobs. The people who are the best in the world at teaching elementary school kids, nurturing patients to health, or playing perimeter defense ... they're not lacking at all. They're the best in the world at something very important. They're champions. And despite the millions spent on recruiting, only the smartest teams know how to find good role players consistently.

UPDATE: Coach, trainer, and blogger Brian McCormick was inspired to write a whole blog post in response, and concludes:

Role players are basically players who have one NBA skill. The stars are players who have the whole package. Rather than trying to show NBA personnel that they have all-around game, these players need to illustrate that they definitely have one NBA skill.

If you shoot like Jason Kapono or Kyle Korver, you can make a team. If you defend like Raja Bell or Bruce Bowen, you can make a team. If you rebound like Ben Wallace, you can make a team. Once you get the chance, then you worry about expanding your game to earn more playing time: Bell and Bowen perfected their stand-still shooting ability to earn starter minutes. Once Strawberry or Afflalo make a roster, that is their next step to earn significant playing time. But, they will make a team because of their on-ball defense, not their well-roundedness.