That is what we have seen with much of New Zealand’s top young basketball talent in recent years.
It was about five years ago that doors opened for Kiwi players to start heading to the United States at an increasing rate.
More than 100 New Zealand men and women are playing college basketball every year, and last year 42 of those were at division one level.
Players had gone before, but that trickle has become a wave.
This year we have started to see that wave return.
It was notable in the National Basketball League, which was littered with players in their first year back.
For the Otago Nuggets, Jordan Hunt and Kane Keil both had outstanding campaigns.
Elsewhere, the likes of Isaac Davidson, Jayden Bezzant, Sam Timmins and Izayah Mauriohooho-Leafa, among others, had strong showings.
It is notable not all went to division one programmes.
Hunt, Keil, Davidson and Bezzant all played at lower level colleges.
But all benefited from their situations.
They got to play as genuine options, developing as scorers and ball players to return as much improved practitioners.
That is a key lesson — there is value in going to a lower level college if it is a good fit.
Meanwhile, a player like Dunedin’s Timmins, who attended a top school in the University of Washington, excelled in the areas that were part of his role at college.
He protected the hoop, set great screens and provided fantastic coverage on screen defence.
His scoring came and went, but that should come with time.
He has not played in a scoring role for the past five years, so he developed in different areas.
He was exposed to a high level of basketball — he played against many NBA players — and learnt to play that core role at that same high level.
That is valuable for New Zealand when it comes to competing internationally.
Those division one players are learning how to play against top players in high pressure environments.
That is key for the Tall Blacks, but also opens opportunities in overseas professional leagues.
It is a path the likes of Tai Webster, Isaac Fotu and NBL Most Valuable Player Tom Vodanovich have already taken.
Having so many players at the next level down adds depth that was not there before.
Finding a good fit is key, though.
There have been other players to go to schools where they find themselves not getting the opportunity and not getting that same development.
The same is true on the women’s side and that can be seen locally.
Zoe Richards left Dunedin as a handy and hard-working player.
After five years in the US — the last three at division two Eckerd College — she returned a Tall Fern and a genuine star.
It is clear she became used to playing against genuine bigs at a faster pace and developed as a scorer through going to a college where she got a great opportunity.
As those players filter back to New Zealand, they help the level here rise, which in turn should boost both the top-end quality and also depth.
It will only be the start of the wave and the longer-term impact will be interesting to watch.
