The_Mad Hatter

February 19th, 2015 at 12:45 PM ^

Early 80's Michigan player (any fan of the era would know his name) left a year early for the NBA.  He was drafted but ended up playing overseas for the most part.

He now wishes that he would have waited until graduation. 

LeBron James

February 19th, 2015 at 12:48 PM ^

For selfish reasons (mainly for my entertainment), I think players should be required to graduate to enter professional sports. I mean, come on. Can you imagine if we had a senior Burke, juniors McGary (the weed, I know, but just imagine), Stauskas, and Robinson? I think we would clearly be in the top-five right now and a few games ahead in the Big Ten race. They would definitely be a Final Four team, too.

Mr. Yost

February 19th, 2015 at 12:49 PM ^

Why should it penalize anyone?

Just let players enter the draft and if they do not sign an agent they can return to school. If they are drafted - in any round, they are automatically ineligible to return back to school.

If you want, make a rule that says you can only enter twice...but I really don't see what the big deal is.

As long as no agent in involved, no endorsement deals have been signed, etc. - who gives a damn?

HS seniors can go, college freshman, sophomore, juniors, or seniors. Don't sign an agent, don't sign any endorsements, don't take any free trips/gifts, and you have to pay your own way to attend the scouting combines.

If you're drafted, you're gone. Don't care if you're disappointed where you went or to which team...if you're drafted, you're out of college. If you're not, go on back to school as long as you didn't receive any type of benefit.

Make it simple, NCAA/NBA. Make it simple.

bmacjr11

February 19th, 2015 at 2:04 PM ^

I have to believe that the common denominator here is the NCAA and their lack of uniformed rules.  It places all of the pressure on the league to create certain rules about when and if students should be able to declare. 

Obviously all sports and the maturation of the human body differ, but the NCAA really puts the handcuffs on domestic players (not really an issue in the NFL, but MLB and NBA for sure.)

To me, its not ALL on the NCAA, but they certainly love to create non-uniformed rules out of nowhere and put the onus on the respective leagues to take the hit.

Anyway, agree with the above notion that agents and advisors (although a shady business) should at least be made available to these kids who may be going through all of these important life decisions for the first and only time.

Analogy Alert: When a person gets arrested, they have the right to an attorney, I feel that the prospects should have the 'right' to exhaust all possible resources in making these decisions.

Tater

February 19th, 2015 at 1:16 PM ^

Let players take money from wherever they want.  Let them all put their names in the draft without penalty.  If they get a guaranteed contract, great.  If they don't, let them finish their eligibility.

The only way players should be ineligible is if they actually sign with an NBA team.  Otherwise, let them play.

snarling wolverine

February 19th, 2015 at 1:41 PM ^

At one time the rule was like that.  Actually, Voshon Leonard (HS teammate of Jalen Rose) was allowed to go back to Minnesota even though he was drafted, in the second round.  But for whatever reason, the NBA has been nibbling away at the rule a bit each year.  The deadline for pulling out of the draft was moved to mid-June, then mid-May, and now mid-April, where it's now pointless.  If the league could previously function with guys having until June to decide, I don't know why it couldn't now.

 

 

Mr. Yost

February 19th, 2015 at 11:32 PM ^

And if they don't...then rule them ineligible for college like you would any other student. But they still could get back in, they'd just have to go to CC, take classes over the summer, whatever it would take anyone else. And once they're back in academic good standing...they can play the following semester.

 

Auerbach

February 19th, 2015 at 12:50 PM ^

Counterpoint: many highly-touted high school prospects who project to the NBA then stay in school all 4 years never get drafted and are lucky if they get to play pro ball in Greece. See, e.g., Michigan State University; see also Tom Izzo. 

Lanknows

February 19th, 2015 at 6:31 PM ^

Nobody can make a proveable argument about causality here or know the outcome of an alternative reality.  It is unclear if player development is superior in the NCAA or in the NBDL.  Clearly the NBDL is a superior basketball league, so for most guys who can hang there, it is better there, presumably  It's really up to the individual situation.  If you need the ball, you'll probably get it more in the NCAA.  If you're an all-conference player you probably need more challenge.  Same deal off the court -- some guys would gain a lot more form a college degree and building networks for a future off the court.  Others are wasting their time and the university's resources by going through the charade of being a student-athlete in order to play NCAA ball.

I don't see much sadness inherent to NBDL or Europe league professional basketball players.  Maybe they aren't rich and maybe they didn't quite fulfill their dreams but it's still a priveleage to be able to play a game for a living.

Darrius Morris and Manny Harris are not NBA all-stars. They probably wouldn't have been if they stayed at Michigan for 4 years either.  It's impossible to know if they are 'better off' for having left early, but there is a very good chance that they are.

Prince Lover

February 19th, 2015 at 1:06 PM ^

You don't think they think about these possibilities? I'm curious and I definitely don't know either. But I would imagine most of these guys do weigh the pros and cons. Just means the believe in themselves more than others do. And it might mean they don't like college and classes.
But I think if they read this it won't automatically make kids decide to stay for 4 years. Chances are the majority will still end up in the d league.

DCGrad

February 19th, 2015 at 1:19 PM ^

but obviously these kids are sold by someone on being able to make it to the league, when many don't. The reality of playing for 12-24K and having to live three to an apartment is something I doubt gets discussed much.  I look at it as at least if the player in question stays for 4 years he will at least have a degree to fall back on when he decides to hang it up.  The guy who left after 2 or years and doesn't make it doesn't have much.

PurpleStuff

February 19th, 2015 at 1:08 PM ^

As pointed out, some guys stay four years and still are close but not quite good enough to play in the NBA (Daniel Horton comes to mind as a UM guy, who has played in the D-League and overseas, despite being Freshman of the Year and an all-conference player multiple times).

There just aren't that many spots in the league, and a lot of them are taken by veteran guys.  I don't see eligibility rules changing how the story ends for these sorts of guys. 

JamieH

February 19th, 2015 at 1:20 PM ^

I remember hearing from people over and over again last spring during the GRIII debate about how it would be "better" for a player to develop their game for the NBA in the D-League than in college because they would have access to "NBA Resources" and be "Getting Paid".

 

Yeah, right.  As this article rightly identifies, the D-League is a wasteland that almost no one escapes from.

PurpleStuff

February 19th, 2015 at 1:36 PM ^

This also seems like a bit of a straw man argument since Robinson is not in the D-League and has a guaranteed contract (i.e. he's got access to NBA resources and is getting paid).

If he doesn't stick in the league it will be because he's an athletic 3 who doesn't shoot or handle the ball very well (at least by NBA standards).  Coming out too early or (in his opinion, probably) too late won't have anything to do with the end result.  In the meantime he'll have a million bucks in the bank and a year of NBA experience (even if it is with the T-Wolves).

JamieH

February 19th, 2015 at 3:12 PM ^

the argument was that even if he didn't stick on a roster (which he did) he could just go to the D-League and be better off developing his game and getting paid than being in college.  Which is just ridiculous. 



Now, obviously he managed to get that last roster spot and the 500K or whatever he got paid for it, so it kinda worked out for him sorta, other than the fact that he is glued to the bench and hasn't even logged 100 total minutes all season.  At least he got one small (for the NBA) contract.   



But the idea that somehow developing your game in the D-League is a "good plan" for anyone is just silly.

Lanknows

February 19th, 2015 at 6:43 PM ^

Clearly the NBDL is a better league.  Typically better competition makes you a better player. 

The idea of developing in the NCAA as a good idea us just as silly. The probability of making it from out of the NCAA to the NBA is far less than from the NBDL, especially if you excise the one-and-dones who feel forced into a 6 month 'internship' due to the NBA's rules.

If you don't want to consider Plan B and your one and only goal is to be a professional basketball player it's very logical to conclude that the NBDL is a better place for you than the NCAA.  Sharing a room and making less than 50K is something you would experience in both cases. Low liklihood of making the NBA is another commonality.

Would GR3 be better off at Michigan? It's very doubtful.  Given who his father is, I imagine he can come back to college anytime he desires to do so, if the NBA doesn't work out.  He had nothing left to learn or accomplish after two seasons at Michigan that he isn't better off doing in the NBA (or NBDL) instead.  It is difficult to argue that he did anything other than make the right choice.

 

taistreetsmyhero

February 19th, 2015 at 1:51 PM ^

should be forced to give out their preliminary draft board anonymously, and if you're name isn't on a certain percentage of 1st round draft boards, then you shouldn't be allowed to declare early.

TheLastHarbaugh

February 19th, 2015 at 1:52 PM ^

There's not much you can really do. The NBA values youth and potential highly, so most 4 year players are going to get marked down simply due to age.

The NBA is also the most difficult league to get into. There are only 12-15 spots per team for all of those thousands and thousands of college ballers. The explosion in popularity of basketball around the world has led to an extremely strong foreign presence as well (20% of the league).

It's just so incredibly difficult, because there are plenty of extremely talented guys who excel at the college level but didn't win the genetic lottery, so they can't play in the NBA. Guys who had no difficulty getting their shot off in college, can't deal with the size, length, speed, strength, and athleticism of the pro game.

You can see it firsthand watching someone like Trey Burke, who was getting to the freetrow line 4 times a game for his collegiate career (in a 40 minute game mind you), and he goes pro and suddenly he can't get to the line at all (1.7 fta per game for his career). It's because he can't get inside, and when he gets inside he can't score inside. (Trey shoots 51.3% at the rim. The average NBA player shoots 64.6%)

Also, a lot of guys who were excellent college 3 point shooters are hurt by the fact that the NBA 3 point line is longer. 

It's just an entirely different world, and being a college star is in no way indicative of long term NBA success.

If you have a shot at getting drafted in the 1st round you almost have to go pro. It's just too difficult, and opportunities are extremely limited relative to other sports. You might only get one crack at making a 15 man team, and even then there's no guarantee you'll make the active 12 man roster, and even then most NBA rotations are only 8 guys.

ak47

February 19th, 2015 at 2:06 PM ^

Yeah this is more a story of guys getting bad advice more than anything else.  Pretty much everyone advocates if you can get drafted in the first round and get a gauranteed contract you should go, if not you are taking a big risk.  All the guys on Michigan seem to have mad the right call, except for darius they all have gauranteed contracts.  That article is also wrong.  Mitch spent time playing in the d league this year and has made the jumb back to the NBA.  

Not to mention you don't know why those guys left early.  Maybe they were tired of school, maybe they were going to be academically ineligible.  Maybe they didn't think they were getting coached up and the d league had better coaches even if it has empty gyms.   Yeah being a professional athlete is hard but if you get a first round grade, it still makes sense to go.

rainingmaize

February 19th, 2015 at 2:26 PM ^

I can't help but think that the NHL draft/youth system would be perfect for the NBA, and would solve many of these issues. 



In case your unfamiliar with how the NHL does things, basically teams draft the rights to an 18 year old (or older) player, which means only that team can sign a player for a designated amount of time. These teams decide when they actually want the player to sign a contract, meaning the prospect can  still play in college, overseas, or in Juniors. The NHL team offers a contract, sending them down to the AHL or big league club whenever they feel like the player is ready to play professionally.



If the NBA were to adopt this system, all these NBDL players that left school early, would have a better idea of if they can play in the NBA and when. Teams could leave a player to develop in college for four years, giving them the chance to earn a degree, or could immediatly sign and start a once-in-a-blue-moon 18 year old stud, like Lebron James, whose ready to play now. 



This system would effectively solve two major issues in college basketball. Both the one-and-done system, and players leaving early.