The fact that kids are basically forced to attend college 1 year before declaring for the NBA draft is criminal. (or...a year removed from High School) I have always been of the mindset that if a player is talented enough to test the NBA waters, the league should not roadblock them. Of course most kids aren’t ready in terms of maturity but do Golf & Tennis have these issues? Teens that play Golf & Tennis can make millions before the age of 21. We all know that Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Tracey McGrady and Lebron James are special cases. A generation before these guys, Darryl Dawkins went straight to the league out of high school and had a pretty successful 14 year career. That said, the NCAA does not want to see millions of dollars taken from major universities if these teens are allowed to skip school. We know that large coaching salaries, shoe deals and “Friends Of The Program” all love that good old apple pie. People in the NCAA eat off the talent of our kids and I find it ridiculous that these rules are still in place. So, my questions are below:
1. Do you believe in the current rules prohibiting players from going to the NBA straight out of High School?
2. Do you feel the NBA and the NCAA are working behind closed doors and passing money along to each other?
3. Has College Basketball suffered with kids who go for a year but minds are on the NBA draft? I mean, that one year in school is really a “Showcase of Talent” and not Team collaboration in many cases.
4. Do you believe that if the rule is lifted a lot of young players would declare for the draft and destroy their own careers?
My Verdict: I don’t respect this ruling and players should be allowed to enter the draft. Yes, some family members and friends will influence decisions that will often times not benefit the player but I do believe in “Choice”. If we are being honest, does one year in college really help the player more than it generates cash flow for the Universities?
Lots of good questions. I believe that the real challenge is that it's an in-exact science of picking talent. With all the guys who made it from high school to the NBA there are about 10 "sure things" that did not. I mean everybody thought Lebron James was ready - but some doubted still. Of course he showed everybody the truth by his performance but what about those guys who don't make it like Korleon Young, Jonathan Bender, etc etc... If you take basketball out of the equation for those who did not make it what do they have to fall back on? I mean they really don't have any education in some cases (no disrespect to those guys) and what's a black man in this country that has no education???? I mean the studies show a huge disparity in comparison to their peers with the same education. For example a black man with a masters degree is the equivalent of a white man with like a bachelors degree in the job market. A case could be made that they'd be more employable if they at least got a year vested in a college like Duke, UNC, Kentucky, UCLA etc etc. Not to mention how the alumni base would provide an excellent networking opportunity for those guys. At the end of the day they are young men who need to LIVE, raise a family, and operate in this society.
There's no way to tell if the NCAA and NBA are passing money. I've learned not to put much past anyone...so many shady people/organizations. I do believe that if the rule was lifted more would declare that probably shouldn't. On this issue ultimately I agree in not holding back players IF and only IF they are SURE-THINGS. Of course that's EXTREMELY DIFFICULT to diagnose. The consequences for getting it wrong really hurt the young man - so it's probably best to say 1 year (or possibly 2 years like Magic Johnson says) does make sense. I don't think college basketball has suffered with eligible kids waiting for their year to conclude so they can enter. Those young men are still playing to position themselves so their performance does matter for draft positioning and I think most realize that.