Adam Silver favors raising the age limit

[Moranis]

I think higher age limits are all around a better deal for the game, and often for the player. This is the highest level of the sport, and having raw kids that need to be incubated for a few years does not help the quality of the sport. More mature, more proven and seasoned players will be better for the game.

or you miss out on 3 years of Lebron James in the NBA.  You miss out on watching a talent like in an 82 game season.  Maybe he develops worse habits in college because he is so much better than everyone else.  Maybe winning goes to his head and his ego gets out of control whereas losing in the NBA motivated him.

Some guys need college, but some guys don't.  The market should establish that. 

[Lucky17]

This wouldn't be up for debate until the current CBA expires, in 2017, right?

If Silver does push for it, I imagine the players will push back, and look to change the structure of rookie contracts -- maybe turning the third and fourth years from team options to player options.

[Roy H.]

This wouldn't be up for debate until the current CBA expires, in 2017, right?

If Silver does push for it, I imagine the players will push back, and look to change the structure of rookie contracts -- maybe turning the third and fourth years from team options to player options.

I think this issue was left to be decided as an open issue under the CBA. It can be negotiated prior to the next CBA.

[D.o.s.]

This wouldn't be up for debate until the current CBA expires, in 2017, right?

If Silver does push for it, I imagine the players will push back, and look to change the structure of rookie contracts -- maybe turning the third and fourth years from team options to player options.

I think this issue was left to be decided as an open issue under the CBA. It can be negotiated prior to the next CBA.

Yeah, it was one of the things that they decided didn't need to be argued about in an effort to speedily end the last lockout.

[fairweatherfan]

This wouldn't be up for debate until the current CBA expires, in 2017, right?

If Silver does push for it, I imagine the players will push back, and look to change the structure of rookie contracts -- maybe turning the third and fourth years from team options to player options.

I think with as badly as the players got taken last time around, there's a very strong chance of a strike next time.  Could make it hard for the league to get concessions, or this could be the kind of thing the players would give on to get more for the guys who are currently in the league.

[wayupnorth]

I think higher age limits are all around a better deal for the game, and often for the player. This is the highest level of the sport, and having raw kids that need to be incubated for a few years does not help the quality of the sport. More mature, more proven and seasoned players will be better for the game.

or you miss out on 3 years of Lebron James in the NBA.  You miss out on watching a talent like in an 82 game season.  Maybe he develops worse habits in college because he is so much better than everyone else.  Maybe winning goes to his head and his ego gets out of control whereas losing in the NBA motivated him.

Some guys need college, but some guys don't.  The market should establish that.

While I agree with your overall point, it is pretty foolish to use James as an example.

[Eja117]

Here is my question, how does letting in players out of high school help the NBA and their teams?



It is not like the best players will not be drafter two or more years later.

They may not be drafted if they get injured in college, thus missing out on a huge payday.

This could be addressed with insurance. Also it's a little like saying accounting firms should have to hire kids out of high school because what if something happens to them in college.  They aren't owed a huge payday in and of itself

[sofutomygaha]

Here is my question, how does letting in players out of high school help the NBA and their teams?



It is not like the best players will not be drafter two or more years later.

They may not be drafted if they get injured in college, thus missing out on a huge payday.

This could be addressed with insurance. Also it's a little like saying accounting firms should have to hire kids out of high school because what if something happens to them in college.  They aren't owed a huge payday in and of itself

I'm sure that someone has pointed this out, but the NBA and the NCAA have more or less legal monopolies on their respective niches of sports entertainment in the United States. You have a point that they aren't owed paydays, but the pretense of a free market economy suggests that they are also legal adults who ought to have the opportunity to compete for a job on merit.

I hope that more "student" athletes go overseas because of this. For a lot of elite athletes in  this world, the window on their prime opens at age 17 or 18. I hope they won't be discriminated against when they are eligible for the NBA, but recent history suggests that they will be.

It may take the best player in the world to play outside of the USA for this to change. I'd be kind of sad if the best player in the world wasn't American. Can you imagine if the next Lebron James was coming up and he decided to go to China because a Chinese team offered him a big paycheck and a fair shot?

[syfy9]

I think higher age limits are all around a better deal for the game, and often for the player. This is the highest level of the sport, and having raw kids that need to be incubated for a few years does not help the quality of the sport. More mature, more proven and seasoned players will be better for the game.

or you miss out on 3 years of Lebron James in the NBA.  You miss out on watching a talent like in an 82 game season.  Maybe he develops worse habits in college because he is so much better than everyone else.  Maybe winning goes to his head and his ego gets out of control whereas losing in the NBA motivated him.

Some guys need college, but some guys don't.  The market should establish that.

This. Once in a decade careers could be lessened.

[wdleehi]

I think higher age limits are all around a better deal for the game, and often for the player. This is the highest level of the sport, and having raw kids that need to be incubated for a few years does not help the quality of the sport. More mature, more proven and seasoned players will be better for the game.

or you miss out on 3 years of Lebron James in the NBA.  You miss out on watching a talent like in an 82 game season.  Maybe he develops worse habits in college because he is so much better than everyone else.  Maybe winning goes to his head and his ego gets out of control whereas losing in the NBA motivated him.

Some guys need college, but some guys don't.  The market should establish that.

This. Once in a decade careers could be lessened.

Was the careers of Bird lessened going to college?

[fairweatherfan]

Here is my question, how does letting in players out of high school help the NBA and their teams?



It is not like the best players will not be drafter two or more years later.

They may not be drafted if they get injured in college, thus missing out on a huge payday.

This could be addressed with insurance. Also it's a little like saying accounting firms should have to hire kids out of high school because what if something happens to them in college.  They aren't owed a huge payday in and of itself

No, it's like saying accounting firms should be able to hire kids out of high school if they want to.

[LooseCannon]

If you're going to have some sort of NBA minor league arrangement, the owners are going to insist on two conditions:

1) players assigned to the D-League don't make as much as NBA players
2) time in the D-League doesn't move the clock to get players closer to unrestricted free agency

The model, once every team has a D-League affiliate, could possibly be to treat roster cuts assigned to the D-League like the NFL practice squad, with the opportunity to earn a bigger salary than other D-Leaguers, but with limits on how long they are eligible.  To compensate teams for investing in these players, other teams would only be allowed to poach them with full contracts and not ten-day contracts.

[D.o.s.]

I think higher age limits are all around a better deal for the game, and often for the player. This is the highest level of the sport, and having raw kids that need to be incubated for a few years does not help the quality of the sport. More mature, more proven and seasoned players will be better for the game.

or you miss out on 3 years of Lebron James in the NBA.  You miss out on watching a talent like in an 82 game season.  Maybe he develops worse habits in college because he is so much better than everyone else.  Maybe winning goes to his head and his ego gets out of control whereas losing in the NBA motivated him.

Some guys need college, but some guys don't.  The market should establish that.

This. Once in a decade careers could be lessened.

Was the careers of Bird lessened going to college?

Was KG's by declaring straight out of high school?

[D.o.s.]

It may take the best player in the world to play outside of the USA for this to change. I'd be kind of sad if the best player in the world wasn't American. Can you imagine if the next Lebron James was coming up and he decided to go to China because a Chinese team offered him a big paycheck and a fair shot?

*shrugged shoulders*

What if the Celtics draft Wiggins and he brings us Banner 18? He's Canadian (which is American, but not USA citizen).

[wdleehi]

I think higher age limits are all around a better deal for the game, and often for the player. This is the highest level of the sport, and having raw kids that need to be incubated for a few years does not help the quality of the sport. More mature, more proven and seasoned players will be better for the game.

or you miss out on 3 years of Lebron James in the NBA.  You miss out on watching a talent like in an 82 game season.  Maybe he develops worse habits in college because he is so much better than everyone else.  Maybe winning goes to his head and his ego gets out of control whereas losing in the NBA motivated him.

Some guys need college, but some guys don't.  The market should establish that.

This. Once in a decade careers could be lessened.

Was the careers of Bird lessened going to college?

Was KG's by declaring straight out of high school?

Would it have hurt his career?