Why NBA’s G League Ignite will shut down
The NBA is shutting down the G League Ignite team at the end of this season, the league has announced.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver suggested during All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis last month that this was a possibility, and it was made official with Thursday’s announcement.
The league owned and operated the Ignite, and the Ignite program was focused on developing young NBA prospects, some of whom were not yet age-eligible for the NBA Draft.
“Launched in April 2020, G League Ignite has provided a first-of-its-kind development pathway for NBA Draft prospects to hone their skills, learn the professional game and receive a salary and endorsement income ahead of their NBA Draft eligibility,” the league said in a statement.
However, a changing environment, especially financially in men’s college basketball, reduced the need for a G League team dedicated to young draft prospects. The Ignite struggled this season and are 2-28 with four games remaining.
Let’s examine the G League Ignite’s demise:
Why is the G League Ignite shutting down?
When the G League Ignite started, it filled a void for young players who sought monetary compensation, weren’t interested in attending college and didn’t want to play overseas like Brandon Jennings and others did before they were age-eligible for the draft.
The financial aspect is no longer a hold-up for those players. “The decision to end the program comes amid the changing basketball landscape, including the NCAA’s Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) policy and the advent of collectives and the transfer portal,” the G League said in a news release.
At All-Star Weekend, Silver said, “The time that we formed Team Ignite, I think I was very public about the fact that I favored going to a minimum age of 18 instead of 19. As we sat down with our players to discuss that and then essentially the college market changed … a lot changed around us, and then we came to a consensus when we sat down with the players and our teams that we were better off staying at 19.
“I’d say also some of the societal concerns that were driving us to move to 18, that there seemed to be an unfairness that these players even at the highest level couldn’t earn a living in college basketball, and we, the league and the Players Association together, were preventing them from doing that. That dissipated because all of a sudden this great economic opportunity presented itself through these various programs at college.”
Did the G League Ignite have success?
The Ignite’s focus youthful roster and inexperience led to losses. But as noted, the program was focused on player development. Success for the Ignite was not measures in victories.
In the previous three drafts, 10 Ignite players were drafted, including four lottery picks.
G League Ignite players drafted
Scoot Henderson, No. 3 pick, 2023 draft
Leonard Miller, No. 33 pick, 2023 draft
Sidy Cissoko, No. 44 pick, 2023 draft Mojave King, No. 47 pick, 2023 draft Dyson Daniels, No. 8 pick, 2022 draft MarJon Beauchamp, No. 24 pick, 2022 draft
Jaden Hardy, No. 37 pick, 2022 draft Jalen Green, No. 2 pick, 2021 draft
Jonathan Kuminga, No. 7 pick, 2021 draft
Isaiah Todd, No. 31 pick, 2021 draft
Will any Ignite players be selected in the 2024 NBA draft?
Ron Holland and Matas Buzelis are projected lottery picks, with Holland slotted at No. 9 and Buzelis at No. 6 in the latest USA TODAY NBA mock draft. Tyler Smith is projected to go No. 18.
Will 18-year-olds still be able to play in the G League?
There is no change to the G League’s eligibility rule, meaning players 18 years old can still play in the G League.
A handful of players that age were drafted before the Ignite began operations.