It’s basketball season and that means a lot of attention to the ballers out there. Not only are they impressively tall, but they’ve got some moves too. It’s certainly no easy feat to accomplish the ideal hook shot or perfect the lay-up. Those skills take a lot of work and talent. But do they take a college degree?

No, sir.

Some seriously good basketball players skipped college all together for the pros and their game didn’t seem to suffer for the loss. I’m not sure Rocks for Jocks 101 really would have made that jump shot any more accurate and, let’s be honest, that’s all we really care about.

Of course, playing in college is a great way to hone your abilities and enter the NBA even more prepared. But somehow I don’t think Kobe Bryant is bemoaning his lack of school spirit or sad that there isn’t a college degree hanging in his locker. Though perhaps he should be disappointed in missing the frat parties and hot girls looking to experiment… because there’s nothing nearly as good as that in the NBA, I’m sure.

Here are ten damn good basketball players who missed out on the collegiate experience:

Andrew Bynum: Drafted right out of high school, Bynum became the youngest player ever drafted (17 years and 244 days old) and the youngest player ever to play in the NBA (at age 18 years, 6 days) beating Jermaine O’Neals records. In his first season, the Lakers hired Hall of Famer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to work with him. Not bad for a kid.

Amar’e Stoudemire: Stoudemire only played two years of high school-level basketball, but when you’re 6’10” it doesn’t take long to stand out. He committed to play at the University of Memphis, but instead entered the draft and was picked by the Phoenix Suns.

Dwight Howard: Accolades were certainly not lacking for high schooler Dwight Howard. Considered the best American high school basketball player his senior year, Howard won the Naismith Prep Player of the Year Award, the Morgan Wootten High School Player of the Year Award, Gatorade National Player of the Year and the McDonald's National High School Player of the Year honor to name a few. He was then drafted as the first overall pick to the Orlando Magic.

LeBron James: James was only a sophomore in high school when the press began calling him a future NBA superstar. He was even named Ohio’s Mr. Basketball three times in his high school career. Then, in 2003, James was the first overall pick in the NBA draft and since then has set multiple “youngest player” records.

Rashard Lewis: Lewis was a much buzzed about high school player in Texas. As such, he decided to bypass college and was drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics.

Al Harrington: After playing high school basketball in New Jersey, Harrington was named player of the year by USA Today. Then, in 1998, Harrington graduated and headed straight to the Pacers where he spent six seasons.

Tracy McGrady: McGrady was also named the best by USA Today after an amazing performance in the Adidas ABCD Camp. Is it any wonder then that the all-star skipped a few measly years of college?

Kobe Bryant: A fun fact about high-school-aged Kobe Bryant – He took singer Brandy to his senior prom. If Bryant hadn’t gone basically straight from prom to the NBA, he says he probably would have attended Duke University.

Kevin Garnett: In 1995, Garnett became the first player drafted from high school since Moses Malone in 1974. The move was controversial since, at the time, high school graduates were not considered emotionally or physically prepared for the NBA.

Shawn Kemp: He may have skipped playing in college, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. After high school, Kemp signed a letter of intent with the University of Kentucky but when he was kicked off the team for pawning a teammate’s necklace and transferred to community college then signed up for the draft before playing a single game.