Solutions needed, but boycott not one of them

The details of the NCAA basketball corruption case keep coming.

With each new detail comes a slew of opinions.

Some make a lot of sense and could lead to good solutions. Others, however, are really off the mark.

As they are on a lot of topics, current and former NBA players are very vocal.

One of those former players — Jalen Rose — has started a trend with one of his ideas.

“I wish NCAA players understood the power that they now have,” Rose said on his show “Jalen & Jacoby.” “In a climate of

so many things that are changing, so many discussions that have now come to the forefront that have been closeted for so very long — for a multitude of reasons. I wish NCAA players would exercise that power by boycotting the NCAA Tournament. If they decided and banned together and said, ‘We’re not performing tonight. We want to make a statement.’ Do you think reform would start happening real fast? I do.”

Since that statement, which quickly made its way through the ranks of social media and blog headlines, other basketball analysts and former players have jumped on board.

They also think boycotting the NCAA Tournament is a good plan. It’s not. The sentiment makes sense. Something has to give when it comes to NCAA athletes. While they are finally earning some compensation (through the recent cost of attendance legislation), it’s not enough when you look at the money they make for universities.

That topic has — and should continue to be — discussed heavily.

Rose’s solution not ideal

While players like Rose — a former Michigan Fab Five star — mean well when they make statements like this, it’s a bit misguided.

Rose stood out at Michigan. He was skilled, exciting and it was clear he had a long and successful career in front of him. Rose was always going to end up in the NBA and make money. He has a strong argument that Michigan made a lot off of him, but his future was extremely bright.

That’s just not the case for everyone.

For a lot of NCAA athletes, the NCAA Tournament is the highlight of their basketball-playing careers. Only 60 players are drafted into the NBA each year. As the international game grows, several of those 60 aren’t coming from the NCAA.

Not everyone will have the chance to play in games as exciting as those during the NCAA Tournament.

What we can take from Rose and others, like former Duke standout Jay Williams, who shared his sentiment is players do have more power than they think.

Without the players, March Madness wouldn’t exist. There would be no Cinderella stories, no upsets, no buzzer-beaters without the players behind them.

So, yeah, if players boycotted the biggest moneymaker of the year, it would make an astronomical statement.

But it would also take away the biggest moments of a lot of lives.

The NCAA clearly has a problem.

The exchange of money in college basketball is happening. It’s also happening in other sports — mainly football.

The compensation for student-athletes the NCAA added a few years ago is a start, but it’s not enough. Until the NCAA starts to fairly compensate its athletes, the problems that exist are going to continue.

And basketball players are going to continue to be vocal about it.

Carmelo Anthony, who spent one year at Syracuse, said he believed players should be compensated and if the NCAA doesn’t figure it out, the NBA is going to end up stepping in and eliminating its age rule.

Right now, players can bypass college and play overseas or in the G-League before getting a shot at the next level.

More compensation, please

LeBron James, who went straight from high school to the NBA, called the NCAA “corrupt.”

He said that because colleges benefit financially so much from the athletes’ performances, the cost of an education doesn’t really cover it.

“Obviously, I’ve never been a part of it, so I don’t know all the ins and outs about it,” James said. “I do know what five-star athletes bring to a campus, both in basketball and football. I know how much these college coaches get paid. I know how much these colleges are gaining off these kids. … I’ve always heard the narrative that they get a free education, but you guys are not bringing me on campus to get an education, you guys are bringing me on it to help you get to a Final Four or to a national championship, so it’s just a weird thing.”

The feelings aren’t wrong. But the answers aren’t completely clear. Something has to change. The NCAA can’t keep surviving scandal after scandal, especially when some of them are avoidable.

In the meantime, calling for boycotts isn’t the solution.

College athletes deserve to have their big moments.

They deserve to earn some attention on the biggest stages in sports.

They deserve to represent their schools proudly and the NCAA Tournament allows for all of that.

They also deserve more compensation. The NCAA and its members need to discuss that and work toward solutions.