G-League to pay $125k as option to NCAA
The NBA isn’t ready to eliminate the one-and-done rule just yet. But it is preparing to offer select prospects a more lucrative avenue than college.
Starting next summer, the G-League will be offering elite prospects who are 18 years old but not eligible for the NBA draft $125,000 contracts to play in the league’s development arm. In addition to the six-figure deal, they will also be given the benefit of an NBA-like infrastructure for training and other offcourt development programs “geared toward facilitating and accelerating their transition to the pro game,” league president Malcolm Turner said. The players also will be free to hire agents and pursue marketing deals, which are not allowed in the NCAA’s amateurism model.
“We appreciate the NBA’s decision to provide additional opportunities for those who would like to pursue their dream of playing professionally,” NCAA president Mark Emmert said in a statement. “The NCAA recently implemented significant reforms to support student-athlete success, including more flexibility when deciding whether to play professionally.
“Obtaining a college education continues to provide unmatched preparation for success in life for the majority of student-athletes and remains an excellent path to professional sports for many. However, this change provides an- other option for those who would prefer not to attend college but want to directly pursue professional basketball.”
This new rule comes on the heels of the FBI investigation into corruption in college basketball, allegations coaches were working with agents, sneaker company executives from Adidas and financial advisers to steer players to their schools in exchange for large sums of cash and accepting handouts to push those players back to the professional moneymakers when turning pro. In response, the NCAA formed the Commission on College Basketball, a 14-member committee chaired by Condoleezza Rice. New rules were put in place to limit the influence sneaker companies have on high school prospects. But that didn’t include changing the NCAA’s amateurism model or offering athletes monetary gains.
In April, Rice said, “Elite high school players with NBA prospects and no interest in a college degree should not be forced to attend college, often for less than a year. One-and-done has to go, one way or another.”
The one-and-done rule is expected to be eliminated by 2022, allowing players to jump right from high school to the NBA. As of now, players have to be 19 years old or a year removed from high school to be draft eligible. But now there’s another way for them to make money for a year rather than going to school if they so choose.