NBA's communist age limit.

[Tmy]

Colleges keep their slave athletes.

PHILADELPHIA - (KRT) - If the NBA enacts the 20-year age limit, how exactly will it affect college basketball? It would stand to reason that the game would be better if the successors to LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett stopped by for a year or two. One prominent coach thinks the major benefit would be to the players themselves.

"In the last four years, I have noticed such an incredible pressure on players and sometimes even from their own families," Michigan State's Tom Izzo said. "The poor kid, that's all he thinks about. It's not about winning and having fun and meeting people. How fast can I get out? That puts pressure on you."



This story burns me up. How dare they block these guys from earning a living. The schools are so full of crap when they toss out the idea that they want the kids to get an education. The big programs are known for their lousy graduation rates. They just want the good players to stay in school so they team does well and brings the University more $$$.

And why pick on basketball??? In Baseball, Tennis, baseball, skating ect.. its quite common for teens to go pro. I consider athletics to be like the arts. If you can do the job as a teen, why should you be prevented from doing so. What are we commies!!!

 

[Grammatron]

Who's putting pressure on the NBA to enact it?

 

[Tmy]

If i remember right its the NBA's idea. Methinks its more financial pressure. THeyd rather have the schools act as the NBA's minor league. That way the teams wouldnt have to overpay these kids in order to grab them before they can really use them. Right now teams will pick these kids, pay them millions to sit the bench while they develope into players. If they stay in school, they are then ready to play as soon as they get to the NBA. And you didnt have to pay them all that money to sit the bench.

 

[Grammatron]

If i remember right its the NBA's idea. Methinks its more financial pressure. THeyd rather have the schools act as the NBA's minor league. That way the teams wouldnt have to overpay these kids in order to grab them before they can really use them. Right now teams will pick these kids, pay them millions to sit the bench while they develope into players. If they stay in school, they are then ready to play as soon as they get to the NBA. And you didnt have to pay them all that money to sit the bench.

Seems more capitalist than communist.

 

[Rob Lister]

They just want the good players to stay in school so they team does well and brings the University more $$$.

I'm confused. Who is "they". The schools might be for it for the reasons stated but what does that have to do with the NBA? What's in it for them?

Otherwise, I don't care because I don't follow b-ball.

 

[Tmy]

More like anti-trust!!

Imagine the olympics if teens couldnt participate?? Think of the ice skating!!!

Anyhoo, the schools are the real villians. If a player decides to go into the pro draft, and then later changes his mind. He cant come back to play in the school. So much for encouraging education.

 

[Tmy]

Re: Re: NBA's communist age limit.

I'm confused. Who is "they". The schools might be for it for the reasons stated but what does that have to do with the NBA? What's in it for them?

Otherwise, I don't care because I don't follow b-ball.

They have a free minor league to develope their talent. That helps to control the players contracts too.

 

[Rob Lister]

Re: Re: Re: NBA's communist age limit.

They have a free minor league to develope their talent. That helps to control the players contracts too.

Interesting perspective, especially the first part.

Is it effective in controlling player contracts? I'd think, off hand, that it would be somewhat counterproductive in that respect. A more 'mature' (experience, not talent or age) player is going to garner a better deal than one that is not so mature. You could get the younger one dirt cheap compared to what you might have to pay him in two or three years.

 

[Tmy]

Re: Re: Re: Re: NBA's communist age limit.

Interesting perspective, especially the first part.

Is it effective in controlling player contracts? I'd think, off hand, that it would be somewhat counterproductive in that respect. A more 'mature' (experience, not talent or age) player is going to garner a better deal than one that is not so mature. You could get the younger one dirt cheap compared to what you might have to pay him in two or three years.

You hire a 20 yr old at entry pay. At 25 he now has five yrs under him, and youll be paying him the level 5 play. Now if you cant hire until someone is 23, he gets entry pay then. At 25 he is now at level 2. Same 25 yr old, but at less pay.

You really dont get the young guy "dirt cheap." If hes a #1 pick, he gets #1 pick pay regardless of his age.

 

[CBL4]

I think that the lack of a minor league is harming the NBA and the players.

Currently the top high school players have the choice of going to college and learn to play basketball without any income or to get millions of dollars and sit on the bench without enough training to improve. Kwame Brown was the first draft pick a few years ago and this was disastrous for his career (but great for his wallet.) Clearly there are exception such as James but it does not work for most of the highschool players. They tend to lack the maturity, training and conditioning to be millionaire players.

Somehow the NBA needs to come up with a solution that allows the players to get rich, become mature and enhance their talent. A minor league seems like the obvious solution. It works in baseball.

CBL

 

[Rob Lister]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: NBA's communist age limit.

You hire a 20 yr old at entry pay. At 25 he now has five yrs under him, and youll be paying him the level 5 play. Now if you cant hire until someone is 23, he gets entry pay then. At 25 he is now at level 2. Same 25 yr old, but at less pay.

You really dont get the young guy "dirt cheap." If hes a #1 pick, he gets #1 pick pay regardless of his age.

Okay. I don't really get it still. Seems to me you just explained why the NBA instituted the rule (question of value).

I'll just sit back and read how the thread develops. I'm not interested the the sport aspect, just the business aspect.

Please continue.

 

[WildCat]

Of course, the player can skip college and the NBA and play pro ball in Europe. The NBA isn't the only show in town!

 

[WildCat]

"The poor kid, that's all he thinks about. It's not about winning and having fun and meeting people. How fast can I get out? That puts pressure on you."

Funny, Izzo didn't mention getting an education there, did he?

 

[CBL4]

Of course, the player can skip college and the NBA and play pro ball in Europe. The NBA isn't the only show in town!

Financially it is. Kwame Brown got paid abouit $17,000,000 for 4 years of incompetent work. No European team could pay this well.

CBL

 

[Number Six]

I think that the lack of a minor league is harming the NBA and the players.

Currently the top high school players have the choice of going to college and learn to play basketball without any income or to get millions of dollars and sit on the bench without enough training to improve. Kwame Brown was the first draft pick a few years ago and this was disastrous for his career (but great for his wallet.) Clearly there are exception such as James but it does not work for most of the highschool players. They tend to lack the maturity, training and conditioning to be millionaire players.

Somehow the NBA needs to come up with a solution that allows the players to get rich, become mature and enhance their talent. A minor league seems like the obvious solution. It works in baseball.

CBL

Colleges essentially are the minor league for the NBA. They develop talent and generate huge publicity for future NBA players and they do it all at no cost to the NBA. The NBA (and NFL) love the colleges serving as their minor leagues and I imagine MLB would love such an arrangement too if it were feasible.

I wouldn't be surprised if the 20 year age limit goes through. It will hurt the NBA in a very few cases, like LeBron James, where the kid really is ready at 18, but it'll help them in many more. And it takes some uncertainty out of the equation.

The players that want to go straight to the pros will just have to wait a year or two and develop their game in college. For the kids that have no academic credentials, well that won't be relevant because schools already will take virtually anyone as long as they can play at a high level.

It's not at all fair but realistically the NBA and the colleges call the shots in the world of US basketball and people have no choice but to obey. As someone said, a player could go to Europe but I doubt many will do that at age 18. I think more likely they'll go to college to prep for the NBA and then when they hit 20 if they can't make the NBA some of them then may go to Europe or elsewhere to play professionally. (BTW, I'm still not clear why college players in the US aren't considered professinals...realistically they're playing in exchange for compensation so I'd say that fits the spirit of professionalisim).

 

[DavidJames]

I started to lose interest in the NBA when they replaced the, two step rule with tracks "hop skip and jump".

I'd always liked college ball and have satisfied my basketball jones with it since. As it's become norm now for good college players to leave before they graduate along with more and more high school kids bypassing college completely, I'm enjoying the college game less.

I can't think of a really good reason why the NBA shouldn't pluck kids right out of their mothers wombs if they can dunk or hit a 3. All I can offer is it's lowering the quality of the college game and while in some minds college is just a free minor league, it hasn't yet become completely polluted by the ego's, attitudes and selfish ways of the NBA.

 

[CBL4]

Originally posted by Number Six
The players that want to go straight to the pros will just have to wait a year or two and develop their game in college.

I have also heard some discussion about forming leagues for these teenagers. The pay would be much less than pro (e.g. $50,000 -$100,000) but this is still a lot of money for an 18 year old.) If you throw in some good insurance policies for injury, this sounds like a good idea to me.

CBL

 

[IllegalArgument]

I have also heard some discussion about forming leagues for these teenagers. The pay would be much less than pro (e.g. $50,000 -$100,000) but this is still a lot of money for an 18 year old.) If you throw in some good insurance policies for injury, this sounds like a good idea to me.

CBL

I think the development league, I forget what the exact name , was supposed to do this. Unfortuately, Isiah Thomas run it into the ground.

Not sure what state it's in now.

 

[CBL4]

I think the development league, I forget what the exact name , was supposed to do this. Unfortuately, Isiah Thomas run it into the ground

I guess it exists and is associated with the NBA. Here a link to its home page:
http://www.nba.com/nbdl/
It claims that 13 player from the league are on the NBA rosters. I guess it is has not been marketed very well.

I would allow the players to make a lot more money and be associated with a specific NBA team in the same way the baseball minor leagues work.

CBL

 

[cbish]

Colleges and Professional ranks have been at odds over these issues for decades. In sports where younger players are eligible to sign professionally, colleges villainize the pro game as being opportunistic vultures treating the player as nothing more than a piece of meat. In baseball for example, the chances of "making it" are very slim, even for high draft picks. Most of the time, a player signs, plays a few years in the minors and is let go. Let go with nothing. Colleges say, come play with us, get a diploma, then do whatever you want. As mentioned earlier, in reality, this is a joke.

As far as the business side goes, with all things being equal, a younger player will garner more money. 1) they'll be in the system longer. 2) they have a bargaining tool to play (ironically, college) Again, back to baseball. Any player who can 'threaten' to not sign will always receive a higher bonus than a player who is "stuck". High school players will be paid "not to go" over a college senior who has no options. College seniors receive about 1/10th the bonus they would have received had they signed a year earlier.

As far as the NBA goes, it would be in their interest to have these top ranked kids go right out of high school. Personally, I think it's a PR move. Whether it's real or not, the perception of taking high school players is that the league is anti-education, exploitive, craddle robbers looking to make a buck. It's politically correct and a 'feel good' move to remove that image.