Straight To The Pros
Sorry to all of you Arizona Wildcat fans out there, but Brandon Jennings made the decision to opt out of playing NCAA ball for a year at Arizona and go pro in Europe. He'll play for a season over there and come back to the U.S. afterward when he's NBA eligible. I'm not sure if Jennings' inability, or unwillingness as the case may be, to get the necessary scores to become NCAA eligible had any weight on his decision but I'm glad someone finally stuck it to the NBA and NCAA for exploiting these guys. For the record, I'm for the NFL's age requirement because the 18-20 year old guys who would turn pro are far too underdeveloped physically to avoid serious injury in the NFL. The NBA on the other hand, with all of the anti-contact rules, is plenty fine for a guy like Kevin Durant who's about 6'10'' but can't bench more than my sister's weight.
I always get into arguments with people because I don't blame any of these kids who turn pro as soon as they're eligible. I'm defending 18 year olds' decisions to forego college and head straight to the pros even though I come from a family and a frame of mind that values education above all else. However, unless a kid comes from money, and a lot of money at that, why on Earth would he risk going to college if he could turn pro as a first round pick? Here's a link to the NBA rookie salary scale: http://www.mynbadraft.com/nba-rookie-salary-scale-2008/101. Even if you're the 30th pick, you get just over $1.5M guaranteed for only two years of service. If you don't spend your money like an idiot, you can take that money, invest it, work a regular job the rest of your life and live more than comfortably. Of course we're ignoring the fact that most of these guys don't spend their money wisely, but believe me, you can waste $30M just as easily as you can waste $1.5M. Just ask MC Hammer or Mike Tyson. Last I heard, Tyson is thinking about fighting those lions I saw at the MGM last weekend for $30k. I'm attributing that piece of information to an anonymous source. By the way, don't you love anonymous sources? I could write anything and attribute it to an anonymous source and you'd probably believe it for a half second or so at a minimum. Here, watch. An anonymous source told me that the Vikings have expressed interest in Michael Vick after he finishes up his federal prison term next year. Sounds believable right? They took chances on Cris Carter, Randy Moss, Daunte Culpepper, etc. Why not Vick? It's not like PETA wants to spend a winter in Minnesota complaining. It's too cold. Wait, scratch that, PETA people have nothing better to do. Minnesota's probably right up their alley. Let's try another one. An anonymous source revealed to me that the Dodgers are attempting to trade Matt Kemp or Andre Ethier to the Blue Jays for Roy Halladay. How about, inside sources have revealed to me that Charles Barkley was seen in Las Vegas gambling at the Wynn for $20k per hand last weekend. Ok, one last one, White House sources who must remain anonymous have told me that the U.S. has 1.5 million troops in place waiting to invade Iran should Tehran decide upon a missile strike at a U.S. ally. See how easy that was? Ridiculous rumor becomes possibly credible. Translation: I made up all of those rumors and please don't blindly trust "anonymous sources" or "inside sources who must remain anonymous because they are not allowed to comment publicly."
Anyway, back to the 18 year olds turning pro. Another knock against these kids turning pro is that they're not ready for the adjustment to the life of a professional athlete, you know, having a bunch of kids idolizing you, going to countless parties, being treated like royalty, all of that awful stuff. So, to summarize that for you, it's ok for a 14 year old to be in the Olympics. 18 year olds can make the adjustment from high school to dodging bullets in Iraq. And by dodging bullets, I mean making the life and death determination that the person approaching them is a harmless civilian versus an armed suicide bomber. But, 18 year olds can't make the money that the consumer is willing to pay to watch them play basketball because they might go to a club and get drunk. Makes perfect sense to me. They're much better off risking injury and their lifetime of financial wellness because they might make some mistakes that a bunch of non-famous people make in college anyway.
I value education and in today's world, a college degree is the equivalent of what a high school diploma was for my parents' generation. You're not getting any decent job without working your way up from the mailroom if you don't have a college diploma. Honestly, you probably need a graduate degree of some sort absent a decent connection or some good fortune. At least that's what I keep telling myself as I enter my third year of grad school next month. However, what kind of education are these kids really getting if they spend a year in college? What happens if they don't go to class? You really think Tim Floyd would have benched O.J. Mayo for skipping class? And even if coaches have kids that they think will get in trouble, they just hire "tutors" to walk the kids to class, make sure they go in and then wait for the kids to exit the class so they can walk the "student-athletes" to the next class. And don't get me started on the "tutor notes." If you ever became friends with college football or basketball players at a big Division I school, I sincerely hope you took a couple of classes with them to utilize those "tutor notes." They should just label the notes "Here's what's going to be on the exam. Please take the hour necessary to memorize this. Kisses, The Athletic Department."
Here's the point. You can always go back to college. Every now and again guys even do it. Witness Shaq and Vince Carter. But, you can't always secure a contract that will leave you and your family monetarily set for life. Do you know what happens if you blow out your knee in college? You lose your scholarship and likely end up waiting tables at Fridays like a former SDSU player my friend Gavin recognized when we were down in San Diego eating there. Again, I think school is important and I think our country is on a sharp decline because nobody from the White House down recognizes how important education is to our society. And we wonder why China and Japan are passing us in several relevant technological areas. If you really want these ballplayers to go to school and stay there, then make it worth their while. What do I mean exactly? Pay them! The BCS is going to pay out $2.1 billion over the next decade for the Bowl games. And we have the nerve to call the college football players amateurs just because they don't see any of that money. CBS paid $6 billion for 11 years to broadcast March Madness. How much of that is Mario Chalmers seeing for that game-tying shot? Everybody gets paid except the players. Coaches, staff, AD's, the university, the NCAA . . . everybody. It's not like the players get the same college experience I got (although I once got into a huge party by giving my name as "Jason Kapono" to the idiot frat boy with the guest list. He didn't know who Kapono was and foolishly let me in). Nobody asked for my autograph on campus. Nobody gave me a car, free clothing, electronics, bags of money, etc. It is utterly ridiculous to pretend that big time college athletes are amateurs. What is awful is that the guys who give up so much of their time rarely cash in because they're not good enough to go pro. And you know what, the majority of those cash cow players aren't "going pro in something else" like the commercial says. Last I checked, my next doctor's appointment isn't with "Dr. Moose Bailey" and I'm not going to "Ray Young, esq." with any questions about my next public offering. No, those guys generated money for their schools, got token diplomas and were cut loose.
We live in a capitalist society but the NCAA has talked us into abandoning those values in only one area of our lives, college sports, because we want to believe in the purity of the game. We ignore boosters' obvious influence over the universities. We ignore the agents. We ignore the companies waiting to shower endorsements, and by waiting, I mean prematurely giving gifts to entice players to sign. We ignore all of it. And I don't just include fans in that "we." I'm including coaches, AD's, administrators, parents, everyone. It's time to stop the charade and just pay these guys because they generate a ton of money and deserve a cut. If not, give them the college baseball alternative. Either declare pro after high school or you must wait until after your junior year of college. I know that far too many high schoolers will go pro, but does that mean the next Shaun Livingston should be flipping burgers instead of rehabbing with the knowledge that at least he's set financially even if he never plays pro again? I don't think so. So, thank you Brandon Jennings for not passing your boards, going to Europe, and letting me rant about how ridiculous the NCAA is. Oh yeah, and GO BRUINS!!!
I always get into arguments with people because I don't blame any of these kids who turn pro as soon as they're eligible. I'm defending 18 year olds' decisions to forego college and head straight to the pros even though I come from a family and a frame of mind that values education above all else. However, unless a kid comes from money, and a lot of money at that, why on Earth would he risk going to college if he could turn pro as a first round pick? Here's a link to the NBA rookie salary scale: http://www.mynbadraft.com/nba-rookie-salary-scale-2008/101. Even if you're the 30th pick, you get just over $1.5M guaranteed for only two years of service. If you don't spend your money like an idiot, you can take that money, invest it, work a regular job the rest of your life and live more than comfortably. Of course we're ignoring the fact that most of these guys don't spend their money wisely, but believe me, you can waste $30M just as easily as you can waste $1.5M. Just ask MC Hammer or Mike Tyson. Last I heard, Tyson is thinking about fighting those lions I saw at the MGM last weekend for $30k. I'm attributing that piece of information to an anonymous source. By the way, don't you love anonymous sources? I could write anything and attribute it to an anonymous source and you'd probably believe it for a half second or so at a minimum. Here, watch. An anonymous source told me that the Vikings have expressed interest in Michael Vick after he finishes up his federal prison term next year. Sounds believable right? They took chances on Cris Carter, Randy Moss, Daunte Culpepper, etc. Why not Vick? It's not like PETA wants to spend a winter in Minnesota complaining. It's too cold. Wait, scratch that, PETA people have nothing better to do. Minnesota's probably right up their alley. Let's try another one. An anonymous source revealed to me that the Dodgers are attempting to trade Matt Kemp or Andre Ethier to the Blue Jays for Roy Halladay. How about, inside sources have revealed to me that Charles Barkley was seen in Las Vegas gambling at the Wynn for $20k per hand last weekend. Ok, one last one, White House sources who must remain anonymous have told me that the U.S. has 1.5 million troops in place waiting to invade Iran should Tehran decide upon a missile strike at a U.S. ally. See how easy that was? Ridiculous rumor becomes possibly credible. Translation: I made up all of those rumors and please don't blindly trust "anonymous sources" or "inside sources who must remain anonymous because they are not allowed to comment publicly."
Anyway, back to the 18 year olds turning pro. Another knock against these kids turning pro is that they're not ready for the adjustment to the life of a professional athlete, you know, having a bunch of kids idolizing you, going to countless parties, being treated like royalty, all of that awful stuff. So, to summarize that for you, it's ok for a 14 year old to be in the Olympics. 18 year olds can make the adjustment from high school to dodging bullets in Iraq. And by dodging bullets, I mean making the life and death determination that the person approaching them is a harmless civilian versus an armed suicide bomber. But, 18 year olds can't make the money that the consumer is willing to pay to watch them play basketball because they might go to a club and get drunk. Makes perfect sense to me. They're much better off risking injury and their lifetime of financial wellness because they might make some mistakes that a bunch of non-famous people make in college anyway.
I value education and in today's world, a college degree is the equivalent of what a high school diploma was for my parents' generation. You're not getting any decent job without working your way up from the mailroom if you don't have a college diploma. Honestly, you probably need a graduate degree of some sort absent a decent connection or some good fortune. At least that's what I keep telling myself as I enter my third year of grad school next month. However, what kind of education are these kids really getting if they spend a year in college? What happens if they don't go to class? You really think Tim Floyd would have benched O.J. Mayo for skipping class? And even if coaches have kids that they think will get in trouble, they just hire "tutors" to walk the kids to class, make sure they go in and then wait for the kids to exit the class so they can walk the "student-athletes" to the next class. And don't get me started on the "tutor notes." If you ever became friends with college football or basketball players at a big Division I school, I sincerely hope you took a couple of classes with them to utilize those "tutor notes." They should just label the notes "Here's what's going to be on the exam. Please take the hour necessary to memorize this. Kisses, The Athletic Department."
Here's the point. You can always go back to college. Every now and again guys even do it. Witness Shaq and Vince Carter. But, you can't always secure a contract that will leave you and your family monetarily set for life. Do you know what happens if you blow out your knee in college? You lose your scholarship and likely end up waiting tables at Fridays like a former SDSU player my friend Gavin recognized when we were down in San Diego eating there. Again, I think school is important and I think our country is on a sharp decline because nobody from the White House down recognizes how important education is to our society. And we wonder why China and Japan are passing us in several relevant technological areas. If you really want these ballplayers to go to school and stay there, then make it worth their while. What do I mean exactly? Pay them! The BCS is going to pay out $2.1 billion over the next decade for the Bowl games. And we have the nerve to call the college football players amateurs just because they don't see any of that money. CBS paid $6 billion for 11 years to broadcast March Madness. How much of that is Mario Chalmers seeing for that game-tying shot? Everybody gets paid except the players. Coaches, staff, AD's, the university, the NCAA . . . everybody. It's not like the players get the same college experience I got (although I once got into a huge party by giving my name as "Jason Kapono" to the idiot frat boy with the guest list. He didn't know who Kapono was and foolishly let me in). Nobody asked for my autograph on campus. Nobody gave me a car, free clothing, electronics, bags of money, etc. It is utterly ridiculous to pretend that big time college athletes are amateurs. What is awful is that the guys who give up so much of their time rarely cash in because they're not good enough to go pro. And you know what, the majority of those cash cow players aren't "going pro in something else" like the commercial says. Last I checked, my next doctor's appointment isn't with "Dr. Moose Bailey" and I'm not going to "Ray Young, esq." with any questions about my next public offering. No, those guys generated money for their schools, got token diplomas and were cut loose.
We live in a capitalist society but the NCAA has talked us into abandoning those values in only one area of our lives, college sports, because we want to believe in the purity of the game. We ignore boosters' obvious influence over the universities. We ignore the agents. We ignore the companies waiting to shower endorsements, and by waiting, I mean prematurely giving gifts to entice players to sign. We ignore all of it. And I don't just include fans in that "we." I'm including coaches, AD's, administrators, parents, everyone. It's time to stop the charade and just pay these guys because they generate a ton of money and deserve a cut. If not, give them the college baseball alternative. Either declare pro after high school or you must wait until after your junior year of college. I know that far too many high schoolers will go pro, but does that mean the next Shaun Livingston should be flipping burgers instead of rehabbing with the knowledge that at least he's set financially even if he never plays pro again? I don't think so. So, thank you Brandon Jennings for not passing your boards, going to Europe, and letting me rant about how ridiculous the NCAA is. Oh yeah, and GO BRUINS!!!
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