Basketball players must spend at least one year in college. For some, it’s a stupid rule that
means one less year of making millions. For others, it makes for a nice transition from high school to the NBA.
In an interview with ESPN, San Antonio Spurs rookie guard Cory Joseph says he likes the rule, and would keep it the same.
“I think the one year in college really helped me out … The weight room in college is much different than high school. Just learning different game speeds, coming from high school to college. You just gotta be ready for that next leap — try to get a step ahead.”
For the most part, I hate the rule. I can see a lot of the upside of it because I doubt that most kids straight out of high school are ready to be making seven- or eight-figure salaries. It does ease the transition, but it sucks if you’re a fan of a big college basketball program.
Take me for example. I’m a University of Texas graduate, and a die-hard UT basketball fan. Texas can pull in some of the greatest talent in the country, but they can never seem to get that NCAA championship. Why? Because all the talent leaves after one year. For the past decade, Texas basketball has been a halfway house, helping players get one year of experience before heading to the NBA. You watch those players excel for one year but fall short in March. You hope they’ll come back and make a better run next year, but instead, they jump ship and the team starts from scratch.
As you can see, this issue strikes a nerve with me. I like the rule, I just think it should be longer. Bump it up to two years. Maybe then UT could win me a championship.
