Another perspective on college athletes leaving school early

27 April, 2008

Mitch Albom article

I was catching up on reading Mitch Albom and thought this was significant:

And yet colleges are amazingly silent about their coaches spending countless hours and significant funds to sign up kids who have no intention of sticking around. And how come the NCAA jumps all over players for taking a dollar, but looks the other way at the mercenary concept of using a college as a tryout for the NBA?

How else could that money be spent? Even if it didn't go to academics, how much could that benefit the program as a whole instead of getting one player?

Doesn't it seem like like administrations, even at schools that very much want to win, would find more value in a player who will stick around? It seems like a player could help draw in so much more publicity for the school in a full career than a player with no intentions of staying. (At least the whole fab 5 stayed at michigan for 2 years!) That can't help recruiting, because it's so obvious that the school was inconsequential to the end result.

And anyways, I for one, would love to see a (real) developmental league for the NBA, say a 2 level minor league system, about the equivalent of AA and AAA for baseball, one league for more developmental reasons and a higher league where League caliber athletes can get playing time instead of dying on the bench. And, as a bonus, it would make a ton of money if it was done well.