Who thinks the minimum age will change eventually?

[cornbreadsmart]

     The quality of play in college is so much worse than years ago. It seems like if they added another year or even two to get into the pros it would benefit both leagues.I was curious what people thought the future will hold.   

[cornbreadsmart]

    I wish the nba would contract 7 teams and make you have to play 3 years of college ball.I think the quality of play in that league would blow away the 1980's which is always referred to as the best. See ya later to the Kings,Hawks,Bobcats,Clippers, Raptors,Nets,and T-wolves.

[greenpride32]

In truth I don't think the NBA really cares a whole lot about the state of NCAA basketball.  The NCCA tournament is always going to be huge so I don't see the NCAA really hurting.  The traditional powerhouse schools still get the top recruits, they just don't stay as long.

I think the NBA is sort of in a pickle here.  They want the can't miss high school players to jump directly to the NBA (like Lebron and D12).  But I don't think they want the marginal guys who show enough promise to get drafted to be there as 17 and 18 year olds and give the league a bad image.  If you think about it, it's really the NBA vs the NBPA; and it's the player's association that wants the player signed earlier to maximize career earning potential.

[birdwatcher]

I wish they would raise it to 21, in hopes that it would encourage them to stay in college--it would make the college game/drafts much more interesting IMO. The problem is, there would be a good portion of them that I believe would bail overseas. We need to figure out how to keep our talent in school & stateside.

[samantha28]

I wish they would raise it to 21, in hopes that it would encourage them to stay in college--it would make the college game/drafts much more interesting IMO. The problem is, there would be a good portion of them that I believe would bail overseas. We need to figure out how to keep our talent in school & stateside.

Make it mandatory for an American born player (except in certain circumstances) to have attended an American college for at least two years.

[pearljammer10]

Mandatory 4 years. Our society is dumb enough as it is, keep the kids in school for four years. You need a degree to make 30,000 dollars a year as a teacher, NBA should need a degree to make millions.

[samantha28]

Mandatory 4 years. Our society is dumb enough as it is, keep the kids in school for four years. You need a degree to make 30,000 dollars a year as a teacher, NBA should need a degree to make millions.

you know what, good point. i agree. i think college should be mandatory. i hope david stern fights for this issue.

[StarzNBarz]

The only reason kids go to college for one year and then enter the draft is beacuse........

you cant come out of high school anymore.


Kids used to come out of high school because they were ready to play in the NBA. Now when they feel they are ready to enter the draft they must play at least 1 year. When you could come out of high school the kids that were ready did go to the nba. The kids that were not ready knew it so they went to college for 2 or more years.

I think they should go back to that. I mean we have a guy that came right outta high school. (KG)

[wdleehi]

Yes, I think the age will go up.


1)  They want more time to scout kids.

2)  They want kids to learn how to play before they make it to the NBA.

3)  They want the kids to be more well known when the enter the league.



What the NBA does not care about.

1)  Them getting an education outside of basketball and media relations.

[BASS_THUMPER]

Mandatory 4 years. Our society is dumb enough as it is, keep the kids in school for four years. You need a degree to make 30,000 dollars a year as a teacher, NBA should need a degree to make millions.

you know what, good point. i agree. i think college should be mandatory. i hope david stern fights for this issue.

agree to a point

we are still waiting for the next lebron or kobe..

what happens if a very talented balla decides after 4 years he wanted to continue his skoolin and become a doctor...nba misses out

get that talent soon as possible before they make the wrong choice~

*sippin 24 oz steel*

[CelticsGuy34]

i think you should be able to come out straight from HS

if you do decide to go to college, madatory 2 years though

[OsirusCeltics]

Honestly, I hope they make the age the age requirement 2 years of college. Theres so many players that are underdeveloped, and need even more help on their game

Plus it makes the players more emotionally mature. Look at Lebron. Spoiled, narcissistic, etc. College would have humbled him. Known what it was like to sit on the bench, not be the focal point of the team. I think it would help all players

[GranTur]

No way. People are seriously wanting these kids to get degrees to play basketball?

These degrees would be in random fields and college stars don't even do their own work. These degrees would be meaningless for so many reasons. Derrick Rose had someone else take his SATs for goodness' sake. Who the heck cares if they have degrees? Basketball players are not academic types.

As for the rule: it's about money. Forcing kids to spend a year in college boosts the NCAA tournament ridiculously...by several millions...enough to pay off the NBA. There are tens of millions of dollars of untracked spent money for the NCAA. They have been trying to hide it for years.

The NBA pockets the extra cash from the NCAA and loses nothing. It doesn't hurt the NBA brand because it adds maturity and star value to their players.

It hypes up a lot of the stars and it hypes up the draft as well.

[JT11]

Derrick Rose had someone else take his SATs for goodness' sake.

I think I'm the last one on Earth to find out about that. Welp, there goes all my respect for Derrick Rose.

[feckless]

No right answer  to this but players are often making colleges big money --March madness is a huge payday for everyone but the players -- only a few emerge and are drafted and get a payday for all those hours of work--not to mention the league tournaments leading up to the selection-- I will never forget Bobby Knight being angry because most of his players parents couldn't afford to go to the tournament and under the NCAA rules he couldn't help them get there, yet the school (look at the payout to a school from the NCAA tournament) the league, television were all making lots of money--  just needs to be perspective and fairness for those who should come out, those who shouldn't come out and are mislead, those who are injured and jeopardize a pro career playing for room and board due to an insufficient academic background to succeed --  no real prospect for a degree.  It is very complex and is seldom about a degree--and certainly should not be treated as a minor league for the NBA--it is  about money. Schools gain prestige, name recognition so that students are drawn to a big name school..  landing the right player can make coaches millions--arguments pros and  cons abound --Perkins drafted out of HS handled properly--same draft Reece Gaines, Troy Bell went to college --where are they now?