Is 19 is the new 23?

Just today, my dad and I decided to watch the 2014 NBA Combine (that is here in Chicago) that was being covered on ESPN2 to see just who was there, who were some of the unknown favorites coming out, and who might the Chicago Bulls want to consider taking with their two first round picks from this year's strong draft class. As we watched, we saw that Michigan State's senior forward Adrian Payne was there. They then went to the so called "experts" at the table so that they could each give their take on what Payne could do in the NBA. Some said that Payne had one of the best bodies of work already for the NBA, but one of the experts made a comment that just made my eye twitch and head hurt. Although I'm paraphrasing here and cannot remember the guy's name (He's the bald headed one on the right if you watch the NBA Combine), but he said that if Adrian Payne were 19 years old, then he would be a guaranteed Top 3 draft pick. Now I ask you, the readers of this articles, to just think about that statement. Now, Adrian Payne is a 23 year old senior coming out of MSU which according to the "expert" that made the comment, puts him between picks No. 10 and 20 of the NBA Draft. I bold the age numbers and draft places because I think it is just unbelievably ridiculous to say that because a man like Payne is much more matured than say a kid like Kansas' freshman guard Andrew Wiggins (who is 19 years old), then that means he is not worth a Top 5 draft pick. Now, even those of you who know every aspect of the game of basketball have to agree that there seems to be something wrong with that picture. Now, I am not saying that Adrian Payne should or should not be the No. 1 overall pick in 2014, but it seems so insane to say that he would not be there because of his age. However, as surprised as I felt to hear someone actually say that, I have to be honest and say that I did see this kind of thinking coming in sports.

For basketball, it all stems from the roots of the "one-and-done" rule which allows players to qualify for the NBA Draft after being removed from high school for at least one year and/or are 19 years of age by the time of the draft. Since 2006 (the year the rule was implemented), the NBA Draft has seen a number of college freshmen come out of the draft and be tabbed by experts as the next "great" NBA players. For example, does anyone remember a young man named Michael Beasley? If you don't remember or know who he is, understand that Beasley was once considered one of basketball's greatest young forwards. He was named the No. 1 recruit in the country coming out of high school in 2007 and eventually committed to Kansas State. After one season of averaging 26.2 PPG (points per game) and 12.4 rebounds a game, Beasley declared for the 2008 NBA Draft and was considered one of the possibilities to be the No. 1 pick. Once draft day came, Beasley was taken No. 2 by the Miami Heat after the Chicago Bulls selected Memphis' freshmen guard Derrick Rose. Since then, Michael Beasley has played for the Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Phoenix Suns while averaging just 13.2 PPG and about 5 rebounds per game in six seasons in the NBA. I now I'm no "expert", but that does not sound like any All-Star numbers. Now yes, there are players in the NBA that declared for the draft after their freshman year of college that have become All-Stars, but that number is microscopic compared to the numerous amount of players that declared for the draft after one year of college basketball and did not make it or were not drafted.

Believe it or not, the original seeds for the rule were actually planted some time ago. So lets all think back even farther. So far, that I was about 2 or 3 years old. It was 1995 and the NBA Draft was on its way to being the the breaking point for players to come out early. And who broke this ground you may wonder? Incredibly, it was a younger, slimmer, and more dominate Kevin Garnett. That's right! The former Boston Celtics and current Brooklyn Nets' forward was originally drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the 5th overall pick in the '95 NBA Draft, making him the first player to be drafted out of high school since Bill Willoughby was in 1975. Once Garnett had been drafted, the NBA watched as it sparked a number of high school players enter the draft very year. Two of those high school players were Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. What's scary about this is that they are the two most notable players to ever been drafted out of high school when you considered that before the "one-and-done" rule, god only knows how many kids declared for the draft coming out of high school and were either not drafted or did not make it at all. And it's not just basketball who have had trouble with this, as the games of baseball and soccer have long histories of signing and drafting young men that are just out of high school and even younger. So just imagine if you were told that you were good enough to play professionally out of high school, so you declare yourself for the draft, and you either do get picked and don't make the roster or don't get drafted at all. Now what? Ultimately, the ability to allow such young athletes into the draft is creating a heck of a lot of unemployment in sports. But for now, we are going to stay focused on the NBA.

Whether you may or may not know, the NBA is currently at a crossroads about what to do with the "one-and-done" rule. The request that has been made by coaches, GMs, and owners is to eliminate the rule and replace it with one that requires players to have two years of college basketball before they are eligible to enter the draft. Now if it were up to me to make the rules, I would scrap that plan and make it like the NFL, in which players must be at least three years removed from high school. But again, I am just the man that expresses how he feels about this. So why is it GMs, coaches, and owners think that two years of college basketball would best for players before they are eligible? Well if you think back to the 1980s or look back at those highlights, kings of the court like Patrick Ewing, Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Isaiah Thomas, Julius "The Doctor" Erving, Wilt Chamberlain, and Bill Russell all went to college for four years before being entering the NBA Draft. And just look how they all turned out. Honestly, it is just that simple: the longer you stay and play, the better you will become and more ready you will be for the next level. This year, college stars like Jabari Parker, Andrew Wiggins, Aaron Gordon, Julius Randle, Marcus Smart and countless more are coming out for the chance to become 1 of the 60 names that will be called June 26th. I ask all of you who read this to think about if those players stayed in college just one, two, or even three more years. We would probably be looking at one the NBA's greatest draft classes in history. But since most of these players are coming out so young nowadays, only time will tell how "great" these players really are.

Even today, I can't seem to get that comment out of my mind. I mean seriously, does that seem to be right anyone at all? I used the words MATURE, MAN, and KID to describe the difference between Adrian Payne and Andrew Wiggins because Payne made the decision to stay in school all four years in order to not only perfect his style of play, but also get his education so if the NBA does not work out in his favor (I think it absolutely will), he has something to be able to fall back on. As for Wiggins, he'll be able to go back to school and finish his education at Kansas I'm sure, but more than likely, he'll just stick to the money that he makes off of whatever team drafts him and probably spend it frivolously on things that he does not even need. And that's the problem that they never understand: what happens when all the money's gone, you're out of the NBA, sponsorships are gone, and you have no college degree to be able to use to get a real job? For some, they have to take whatever job they can. For others, they may take the opportunity to go back to school and get their degree. Whatever the situation at hand, I guess we'll just have to sit tight and wait to see what happens this summer on the night of June 26th, 2014. And I want to let my Chicago Bulls' fans know that if teams do pass on Payne because of such a stupid reason like his age and he does go to the middle of the draft, we have picks No. 16 and 19. Just a little "food for thought" if you will.