Everyone here has made some really great points, I agree it is a broken system. Do I think it is a racial thing yes, do I think it is a social thing as well yes. There are no quick fixes to this problem.

Saying the nba is an employer is a nice analogy for your statement but is not exactly true. Teams employ players not the NBA per se, the nba is the organisation that controls the the management of the sport as a whole.
EVEN IF IT WERE A DIRECT EMPLOYER, then it is in an absolute monopoly position, which in every country is absolutely illegal for good reasons. One being the fact that workers and consumers both will get shortchanged in such a system…. so maybe you are right…. Also, If you were a lawyer who was more than qualified and a law firm gave you some dumbass requirements, then YOU WOULD GO TO ANOTHER FIRM WHO HAD THE COMMON SENSE TO EMPLOY QUALITY, AND YOU WOULD GET FUCKIN PAID UP.(read as: go to europe)
To say “fuck you” to players or fans who complain about a broken system is ignorant and simply propagates the problem. If you are a fan of the game surely you should care about your players and the games development more than how good of a business the nba is??
If they changed to a truly ethical system they wouldn’t make quite as much profit, for sure, but they still would make profit. but more IMPORTANTLY, more people would get paid and the game would be much greater and develop quicker, leading to much larger future development. See soccer for example, which i think is equal to basketball in many ways as far as being a great, easily translatable sport but has become much more global. (the world cup is probably the only real and also the highest level “World” sporting competition there is. What the fuck is the world series about?….) Also look at how the US is so quickly being caught up by international ballers, despite their great headstart and inability to market the game well outside its borders.

It makes the college game harder to watch because I can’t remember who all the players are (they change so quickly) and players become stars in the NBA instead of college. Subsequently, it takes forever to see what type of player a player is.

This is a profession that happens to generate billions of dollars. And this particular employer requires what they think is the right amount of education and training to be employed by them under this profession. If you do not agree with it, go apply for with another Employer.

If I want to be a Lawyer. I can not go to a law firm and complain that they want me to go to college for 4 years, then back to school for another 4 years after i’ve already graduated college. Even if I am a natural and don’t feel like i need to go to Harvard to get a Law degree, that doesn’t FORCE them into having to take me. I still have a BAR exam I have to pass and I also have an internship I must go through.

Bottom Line: It’s a profession that has job requirements.

Do I agree with the requirements… not personally. And if it was up to me or my son, I’d make sure he got a 4 year education, but these parents/kids are mostly thinking about the money and endorsement deals.

Student athletes in the nba are treated like commodities/slaves under ridiculous rules that no other professional sports seem to have to follow. This also seems to be linked to the idea of black players being naturlly better. that is a fucking joke. the reason the nba is so black is a direct result of the usa’s social and “econo-comical” organisation. the poorer you are and the farther you are from a good education and reasonable job prospects, the more likely you are to pursue sports as a living. (People are tlking bout how the issue of education is in college. You really think that problem started for these kids in college? Really?) This is a simple fact and the nba but more importantly the NCAA business has capitalised on this. unfortunately in the us, the largest population that fits that category is african-american.

nba is money based and that is their excuse for many of the stupid things they do. however you would think that america would have realised after this huge fucking recession that maximising profits year after year by shortchanging the system will only result in a worse product over time. and it will catch up. the economy is based on having balance within all commercial systems, this is a basic/fundamental economic principle, and good economics means managing your product well in both the short but MORE importantly the long term.

players, i think, will certainly start going to europe more. You will get paid and you will get much better coaching on the game of basketball, away from hype and media bullshit. You will return less selfish and more knowledgeable about the game and how to handle yourself as a professional. You will because if you do not you have shit-all chance of playing there and less chance of making the transition to here afterwards. its that simple. They treat you like a professional and you will not succeed if you do not behave like one.

The system as it is now manages full grown men into kids. they refer to these men as kids on a regular basis to justify the rules placed on them. If you want mature players you have to treat them as such. Do not constantly accuse and deride them publicly for maturity issues, which helps absolutely no-one. Instead deal with them properly and in private, with the respect they DESERVE to truly help them grow. These 18 year old “kids” can got to fucking war and often do to die for america, how dare you refer to them as such. Some men are great and others are not. but they are all men, simple and true. It is any teachers job to help them become great.

if the rules say you must be at least 19yrs old to enter the nba draft, and after 1yr of college bball, a player is 19yrs old and age eligible — whats the problem?

If I am strictly looking at it from a business stand point, it makes more business for the NBA to evaluate the talent on a bigger and better stage. The NBA is a business period. There is nothing the law can do to the NBA. A company has the right to place any type of requirement on a position held in their company that they want as long as it doesn’t discriminate based on race, religion, sexual orientation, etc. As far as business is concerned I have every right to pick the best product that I possibly can. Going to college for 4 years doesn’t guarantee but they have much more of an opportunity to evaluate the player.

Now from a social standpoint is it a double standard? Yes. The other sports that are dominated by white players don’t necessarily have an age rule. I am an ex-African-American college athlete. I know the ridiculous rules that the NCAA places on athletes… it is sick. The reason that they have this stupid crap is because of the leeches that have gotten there way into college sports and attempted to suck the life out of it.

I am the father of 3 children who loves sports. I tell my kids to prepare for the job u want. If you have to be a good student to get to college to play in the NBA… then do that. If you have to be a good student to be lawyer, doctor, dog-catcher, whatever. Do what it takes to maximize your chances and make your road easier.

The Europe thing is never going to be that popular despite what B. Jennings did. Many of these kids don’t want to get exposed and overseas will do that quicker then college will.

if carmelo stayed at syracuse and played out is eligibility, he’d have graduated and been in the nba now anyway. 1yr or 4yrs. not much of a big difference.

the one-and-done loophole, which the nba didnt prepare for, doesnt hurt college bball too much. i mean shit, players would be leaving every year anyway (to graduation, turning pro and playing out their eligibility). so the game doesnt get hurt that much.

the ncaa is crying because they dont have the same amount of time to exploit these student athletes.

and that is exactly what the ncaa does…..EXPLOIT college athletic players