In a politicised South African sports landscape, unifying performances like Temba Bavuma's historic century at Newlands last week are precious and worthy of the joyful celebrations they inspire. Bavuma now finds himself a flagbearer for transformation, in the same way that Makhaya Ntini became its emblem in 1998.I am sure both are enormously grateful for the opportunity, accolades and responsibilities this entails.Neither, however, had or has much influence over whether it happens or not. All Bavuma can do is pull, hook and drive his way to a stellar Test career.The responsibility for leveraging his success into future generations lies not with him, but with those managing the sport.History has shown that a passive approach that relies exclusively on aspiration ("I want to be like Temba") is not good enough - proactive steps need to be taken, or Bavuma's name may stand alone in South African cricket annals.Bavuma's story is instructive in this regard. Most people heard part of it in the aftermath of the Newlands Test.He grew up in Langa, a few blocks away from the Langa Cricket Club, part of a community that was immersed in cricket.His own family reinforced a cricket culture, with a grandfather and three uncles who played at various levels.And while Bavuma is undoubtedly a product of his family and close community, there is more to it than that. He was educated at SACS in Cape Town, and then St David's in Johannesburg.These are among the top private schools in the country, and they have produced dozens of international sportsmen.This is not a unique story either - Makhaya Ntini was discovered through a mini-cricket programme but was produced by Dale College.Monde Zondeki followed Ntini through the school a generation later, and current fast-bowling star Kagiso Rabada graduated from St Stithian's College.It must be acknowledged that others - Mfuneko Ngam, Thami Tsolokile and Lonwabo Tsotsobe - have come through non-traditional cricketing schools, so there is reason to believe that all pathways are possible.They're just not as likely.Scan the names and schools of the players who have represented South Africa since 1992 and you discover an enormous over-representation from a handful of historically strong cricket schools.They see perhaps 1% of the cricket-playing population but combine to produce one in six South African cricketers. It means that these schools are at least 15 times more likely to produce your Proteas than other schools.That's hardly surprising. They are the strongest cricket schools thanks to their investment in finding and then developing the best talent in South Africa .It's much easier to discover gold when you have spent money to build a gold mine.The point is that producing champion sportsmen and women is costly, just as it is expensive to produce heart surgeons or lawyers (something South Africans are only too well aware of, after a volatile 2015 on the education front).It requires the spending of scarce resources, which most crucially includes people to identify and support young talent, on the best young players.When we talk about discovering the next Temba Bavuma, there is an economic reality that must be acknowledged, or we will reinforce already unrealistic expectations around transformation.From a purely economic standpoint the most effective way for Cricket SA to spend resources would be to identify the best young black cricketers aged 10 to 16 and then facilitate scholarships to the traditional cricket schools, where a) the cost of producing world-class players can be passed on to the schools, and b) the infrastructure and expertise already exist.Politically, we want to believe a narrative that says anyone can succeed from any starting point, by any pathway. Stories like Ngam's support this possibility.However, I think a balance must be sought between what is prudent (drive the best talent to those gold mines) and what is admirable - but perhaps a little naïve.There is no doubt that if one Bavuma exists then perhaps hundreds of others do. He may be the catalyst for them to emerge, but they are not low-hanging fruit. Yet.Only if we can formulate a strategy that capitalises on our current strengths, and proactively leverages examples like Bavuma, can we expect to see more opposition bowlers suffering in the future...