Would you go pro after one year of college?

[Trell]

This is a topic we are currently on in sociology and its a very interesting one. Now say you are attending Tulane, best player on the team and is projected to go top 5, would you enter the draft or stay to get an degree and become a better player? Alot of NBA players get bashed in general about not being mentally talented as some law students, engineers and others with top degrees. Most say without basketball some would be working min wage jobs and probably not attend college because 1.) Most aren't smart enough 2.) Some wouldn't be-able to afford it because of their parents did not attend college(working min wage or no scholarships where awarded) 3.) Some simply won't atttend or plan to attend because they are not interested and would rather an easy way out by being an athlete. This is what I read after doing some research. If I was in college and had to choose, I would get my degree to prove haters wrong. Its no losing when staying in college considering you will have a fall back to prove you are just as smart as an average worker, its shown when staying in college even if you are projected as a top draft pick you will become a better athlete while having an fall back(Looka Jordan). I will like to see more youmg athletes take this approach to college and follow through with it years laters, because alot of people look at athletes as entertainers instead of being useful to the world. Whats you guys thoughts? I didn't have anywhere to post this question sorry if many are disinterested.

[Inner_GI]

I take the guaranteed money. You never know what freak injury can turn you into a normal student and graduate.

The people that bash athletes coming out to get paid are jealous, in my opinion. They are making the smart decision for themselves and their families. A top 5 pick can earn like 15 million dollars on their first deal.

[Kibner]

Take the guaranteed money. And get better quicker by joining the NBA at an earlier age. Athletes are entertainers. It wouldn't be a debate for me, personally. The key thing is to invest/save that money through a professional that you can trust. Then you will have enough money to go back to school whenever you like, no matter how your professional career pans out.

[nolaslim213]

If you can say yes to these 3 questions, I'd say go for it:

1) Is your game ready to make the jump? A guy like Davis is obviously ready to make the jump as a freshman, but a lot of guys think they are ready, make the jump, and are out of the league in 3-4 years (Hassan Whiteside).

2) Are you projected in the lottery? I'd say the late lottery is the absolute bottom for where you have to be projected in order to come out. Top-10 is way better, top-5 is a no-brainer IMO.

3) Are you ready to step into the real world? College is fun. Basketball is a game, and if you do poorly, you still get an education for free. However, if you are in the NBA, basketball is a job, and if you do poorly, you are fired, and then you have no education, no income from a job, and now you are effed. The NBA game takes discipline, and if you aren't ready for that big of a commitment yet, then don't make the jump.

[BallSoHard]

Money now is worth more than money latter or hypothetical money. Basic financial principle You leave always always always if your top 5

[nolaslim213]

Money now is worth more than money latter or hypothetical money. Basic financial principle You leave always always always if your top 5

Disagree. Again, if you are ready to make the jump, then do it, but if you are projected top-5 just based on potential, but you aren't ready to make the jump, then take another year to develop your game. Tyrus Thomas is a great example of a guy who was projected as a top-5 pick, chased the money, and now he is one of the biggest losers in the league.

Money now isn't sound logic (if you aren't ready) when you can double or triple or quadruple your investment down the line if you take another year or so to develop your game.

[BallSoHard]

Disagree. Again, if you are ready to make the jump, then do it, but if you are projected top-5 just based on potential, but you aren't ready to make the jump, then take another year to develop your game. Tyrus Thomas is a great example of a guy who was projected as a top-5 pick, chased the money, and now he is one of the biggest losers in the league.

Money now isn't sound logic (if you aren't ready) when you can double or triple or quadruple your investment down the line if you take another year or so to develop your game.

Have you taken finance classes? It's perfectly sound logic. You may not agree but it's sound logic sir.

[BallSoHard]

Disagree. Again, if you are ready to make the jump, then do it, but if you are projected top-5 just based on potential, but you aren't ready to make the jump, then take another year to develop your game. Tyrus Thomas is a great example of a guy who was projected as a top-5 pick, chased the money, and now he is one of the biggest losers in the league.

Money now isn't sound logic (if you aren't ready) when you can double or triple or quadruple your investment down the line if you take another year or so to develop your game.

What's tyrus Thomas lifetime earnings in the nba ?

[nolaslim213]

Have you taken finance classes? It's perfectly sound logic. You may not agree but it's sound logic sir.

I have, and it depends on your line of thinking. I'm a long-term thinker, so if I know that I can make the jump to the NBA my freshman year, and I'll get a good rookie deal, but that will be the last NBA contract I ever sign (and I might not even play it out ala Wes Johnson), then I'm waiting another year.

Would you rather a good rookie deal a year early and never get another contract? Or would you rather wait a year, get the same (or better) rookie deal, then get a 2nd deal, then get a 3rd deal, and maybe even a 4th deal after that? That's logic.

[nolaslim213]

What's tyrus Thomas lifetime earnings in the nba ?

Tyrus Thomas lucked into a moron GM who was desperate enough to give him a good contract. He sucks as a player, though, and they have been trying to trade him ever since they gave him that stupid contract. He is the exception, not the standard. Look at Hassan Whiteside and Wes Johnson. There are tons of guys like this, but I'm not going to take the time to look it up. The fact is that if you aren't ready, you shouldn't make the jump. Wait until your game is ready, and then make the jump. If you go too early, you will have to live on your rookie deal + your Burger King salary for the rest of your life, and that sucks.

If Tyrus Thomas would have stayed another year or so and developed his game, he could have been a premier PF in this league. He has all the gifts in the world, but he jumped too early, and he was never able to refine his game. If he had developed, he would be making 2x the money he is making right now.

[Inner_GI]

What happens if you have a career ending injury in the second "better for you" year?

[Nola3]

Why is everyone ignoring the fact that anyone can go back to college whenever they want? Jump when you have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and if that doesn't pan out, go back and get a degree.

[nolaslim213]

What happens if you have a career ending injury in the second "better for you" year?

What happens if you have a career ending injury in the 1st year of your rookie deal? They don't pick up your option, that's what. You can talk about injuries all you want, but I stand by my premise that it is only wise to jump when you are ready. Jumping when you aren't ready usually leads to poor results (not always, but usually).

Besides, with modern day medicine, even the worst injuries are almost never career-ending. You look at Noel, and he is still probably going in the top-3 (he should, anyway).

[nolaslim213]

Why is everyone ignoring the fact that anyone can go back to college whenever they want? Jump when you have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and if that doesn't pan out, go back and get a degree.

Again, jump a year early and have a poor career, or jump a year later and have a great career. Choice is yours. If you aren't ready, you aren't ready, even if you are projected top-5.

I wholeheartedly believe in making the jump as a freshman if you are ready. It would have been colossally stupid if Davis had waited another year to make the jump, but that's only because he was ready.

[Kibner]

Tyrus Thomas lucked into a moron GM who was desperate enough to give him a good contract. He sucks as a player, though, and they have been trying to trade him ever since they gave him that stupid contract. He is the exception, not the standard. Look at Hassan Whiteside and Wes Johnson. There are tons of guys like this, but I'm not going to take the time to look it up. The fact is that if you aren't ready, you shouldn't make the jump. Wait until your game is ready, and then make the jump. If you go too early, you will have to live on your rookie deal + your Burger King salary for the rest of your life, and that sucks.

If Tyrus Thomas would have stayed another year or so and developed his game, he could have been a premier PF in this league. He has all the gifts in the world, but he jumped too early, and he was never able to refine his game. If he had developed, he would be making 2x the money he is making right now.

No. Thomas got plenty of minutes in the NBA to prove his worth. If you can get consistent minutes in the NBA, you go. You will get paid and improve as a player a lot quicker. Staying in college is only worth it if that is where you can get the most minutes or you are not good enough for a professional league.

The money you earn professionally can always be used to go back to school.

[luckyman]

To say athletes are dumb or come from a poor backround is nothing more than a old, played out stereotype that will never die if the current sport demographics remain the same. There are countless ex professional athletes that had mediocre to poor careers that went back to school to become CPAs, Financial Advisors, franchise owners, high ranking policeman, pilots, mid to upper level executives and so forth. Yet, the only ones that make the big news stories are the relatively few that lose it all.

Secondly, if you are a freshman attending school to be an accountant, and Pricewaterhouse tells you they will not only hire you right now, but train you along the way, tell me you will tell them "screw you" and stay in school to be an.....accountant?

Is that sound logic?

[Nola3]

To say athletes are dumb or come from a poor backround is nothing more than a old, played out stereotype that will never die if the current sport demographics remain the same. There are countless ex professional athletes that had mediocre to poor careers that went back to school to become CPAs, Financial Advisors, franchise owners, high ranking policeman, pilots, mid to upper level executives and so forth. Yet, the only ones that make the big news stories are the relatively few that lose it all.

Secondly, if you are a freshman attending school to be an accountant, and Pricewaterhouse tells you they will not only hire you right now, but train you along the way, tell me you will tell them "screw you" and stay in school to be an.....accountant?

Is that sound logic?

I think you win

[luckyman]

I think you win

I'll take chocolate chip.

[nolaslim213]

No. Thomas got plenty of minutes in the NBA to prove his worth. If you can get consistent minutes in the NBA, you go. You will get paid and improve as a player a lot quicker. Staying in college is only worth it if that is where you can get the most minutes or you are not good enough for a professional league.

The money you earn professionally can always be used to go back to school.

1) Thomas is garbage.

2) You can't count on a player to save his money. Check out the NFL and all the lawsuits by former players who basically blew their money and now need to sue the NFL to recoup some of their losses. Vince Young is bankrupt. The list goes on and on.

To say athletes are dumb or come from a poor backround is nothing more than a old, played out stereotype that will never die if the current sport demographics remain the same. There are countless ex professional athletes that had mediocre to poor careers that went back to school to become CPAs, Financial Advisors, franchise owners, high ranking policeman, pilots, mid to upper level executives and so forth. Yet, the only ones that make the big news stories are the relatively few that lose it all.

Secondly, if you are a freshman attending school to be an accountant, and Pricewaterhouse tells you they will not only hire you right now, but train you along the way, tell me you will tell them "screw you" and stay in school to be an.....accountant?

Is that sound logic?

You are comparing apples and oranges. Accounting and basketball are totally different fields where the applied skill set is totally different. If you get an offer from Pricewaterhouse, and they offer to train you, you go in a heartbeat because they are training you for their system where you will be set for life. Once you learn it, you are set. It isn't an "are you ready, or are you not ready" thing. It's a, "hey, I'll offer you a job you aren't ready to do, but I'll train you so that you can do it" thing. It doesn't work that way in the NBA. Things in the NBA are too fluid, and the NBA usually doesn't develop players like college ball does. Not every team has a Monty Williams who can really develop players. You enter the NBA, and you sink or swim. They aren't going to hold your hand like your example would. In accounting, you learn the necessary skills, and you apply them. It's really simple. In basketball, skills are MUCH harder to both develop and apply. Apples and Oranges.

And you are completely ignoring my premise. I have not once said it's a bad idea to make the jump if you are ready. I only think you should stay in college if you aren't ready. It's really a simple concept.

And for the last time, those players that "had poor careers that went back to school to become CPAs, Financial Advisors, franchise owners, high ranking policeman, pilots, mid to upper level executives and so forth," if they would have stayed in school, then they probably would have had better/longer careers, and thus, more money. Why can't you just wait a year, then make a butt ton of money, and THEN return to college and become "CPAs, Financial Advisors, franchise owners, high ranking policeman, pilots, mid to upper level executives and so forth"???? That sounds like a much better plan to me than, "hey, let me make the jump even though I'm not ready, be out of the league in 4 years, and return to college to become a police man." Yeah! That's how you win at life! No. I'm waiting a year, developing my game, getting drafted even higher, playing the game even longer, getting paid even more $$$$, and THEN I'm returning to college to be whatever it is I want to be after the game is over.

[donato]

I have, and it depends on your line of thinking. I'm a long-term thinker, so if I know that I can make the jump to the NBA my freshman year, and I'll get a good rookie deal, but that will be the last NBA contract I ever sign (and I might not even play it out ala Wes Johnson), then I'm waiting another year.

Would you rather a good rookie deal a year early and never get another contract? Or would you rather wait a year, get the same (or better) rookie deal, then get a 2nd deal, then get a 3rd deal, and maybe even a 4th deal after that? That's logic.

There's no guarantee that staying somehow develops you into the player people think you have the potential to be. The flip side is that you never become that super elite player and not only do you not get drafted top 5, maybe you aren't even a first rounder or drafted at all. Now you have no or much less NBA $. Now that would be dumb.

[nolaslim213]

There's no guarantee that staying somehow develops you into the player people think you have the potential to be. The flip side is that you never become that super elite player and not only do you not get drafted top 5, maybe you aren't even a first rounder or drafted at all. Now you have no or much less NBA $. Now that would be dumb.

It's a risk, but so is jumping to the NBA. I don't understand your position....

Again, it's up to the type of person you are. Long-term thinking vs Short-term thinking.

[Inner_GI]

What happens if you have a career ending injury in the 1st year of your rookie deal? They don't pick up your option, that's what. You can talk about injuries all you want, but I stand by my premise that it is only wise to jump when you are ready. Jumping when you aren't ready usually leads to poor results (not always, but usually).

Besides, with modern day medicine, even the worst injuries are almost never career-ending. You look at Noel, and he is still probably going in the top-3 (he should, anyway).

At least I have a couple million in a bank after my injury if I come out, and then I can take that money and go back to school and invest. You on the other hand, would be stuck in school with no money.

[BallSoHard]

Tyrus Thomas lucked into a moron GM who was desperate enough to give him a good contract. He sucks as a player, though, and they have been trying to trade him ever since they gave him that stupid contract. He is the exception, not the standard. Look at Hassan Whiteside and Wes Johnson. There are tons of guys like this, but I'm not going to take the time to look it up. The fact is that if you aren't ready, you shouldn't make the jump. Wait until your game is ready, and then make the jump. If you go too early, you will have to live on your rookie deal + your Burger King salary for the rest of your life, and that sucks.

If Tyrus Thomas would have stayed another year or so and developed his game, he could have been a premier PF in this league. He has all the gifts in the world, but he jumped too early, and he was never able to refine his game. If he had developed, he would be making 2x the money he is making right now.

What's the difference between him developing his game in college versus doing it as a job with the world's best developing your game. Just bc you stay in college doesn't mean you'll be a better player. Tyrus Thomas made TONS more money coming out early rather than staying.

[nolaslim213]

At least I have a couple million in a bank after my injury if I come out, and then I can take that money and go back to school and invest. You on the other hand, would be stuck in school with no money.

The injury premise is a bad one IMO. You brought it up, so I entertained it, but you can't base your decision around an unpredictable injury. What if you don't get injured, and it pays off? See what I did there?

[BallSoHard]

Again, jump a year early and have a poor career, or jump a year later and have a great career. Choice is yours. If you aren't ready, you aren't ready, even if you are projected top-5.

I wholeheartedly believe in making the jump as a freshman if you are ready. It would have been colossally stupid if Davis had waited another year to make the jump, but that's only because he was ready.

I don't agree. This isn't the NFL. Name people that have stayed in the last 5 years that were juniors or seniors that are tearing up the league? Milsaps? If anything leaving early helps you because less of your game has been showcased and there's more allure. I know we're not going to come to a conclusion here, so i'm going to stop now lol.