John Calipari has made a fortune and built a college hoops paradise finessing the NBA and college basketballs one-and-done rule. The past few years, however, hes been beaten on some top one-and-doners and ironically, in a complete change of heart, Calipari now feels the system is oppressive to young players coming up through the AAU and prep ranks.
Far more players fail to make it to the pros than make it and many of them are left uneducated and unprepared to deal with life after hoops. Calipari is totally correct and high school kids should be allowed to go straight to the pros — if they are ready. As Charles Barkleywho feels high school players should have to play three years in college, once told me, “the NBA is not a babysitting service.”
Calipari says he has met with the National Basketball Players Association representatives and continues to push for new rules that would ultimately end the one-and-done system in college basketball.
Bleacher Report on Twitter
John Calipari met with NBPA to discuss ending one-and-done rule and creating a combine for high school juniors, per @MacEngelProf https://t.co/dmHEDhYjUt
Its a strange take coming from a coach who twice sent a record 6 players to the NBA in one draft season (2012, 2015). Caliparis Kentucky program dominated the college game by utilizing the one-and-done rule to perfection. Then again, Coach Cal hasnt reached a Final Four since 2014-15 and he may have maxed out his effectiveness with the rule and now sees the long-term damage it can cost a program.
According to ESPN, Calipari told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram on Friday that he wants the NBPA to help develop a combine for high school juniors to help them prepare for a potential jump to the NBA from high school. He said the combine could include 100 juniors and identify 12 to 15 NBA-ready players. The rest would be told, “You need to go to school.”
“The players and the families need to know. Here are the ones who should be thinking about the NBA and here are the ones who should not,” Calipari said. “That’s why you need a combine.”
The problem with combines for high school kids is that youre futher corporarizing ameteur sports and encouraging wide scale corruption and opening the league up to attack from the many people who are against these forms of player analysis as it bears offensive similarities to slavery auction blocks and exploitation of kids of color.
Calipari also suggested that agents should be allowed to work with high schoolers to help them gauge their readiness for the NBA.
The Rise of John Calipari’s NBA Empire at the University of Kentucky
John Calipari and the University of Kentucky have produced an outlandish amount of NBA talent over the last several years, but the foundation of their “NBA empire” began back in 2009, when Calipari put together one of the most talented teams of all time.
Whenever you hear the words agent and high school kids in the same sentence its just never good, but I feel where Coach Cal is going with this. Some changes are needed because it is time for everyone to face some of the harsh realities about amateur and youth sports. While the players cant get paid legally, its a big business for the adults who control and coach these kids and the universities that look to capitalize and generate revenue using their talents.
ESPN says Calipari, echoing previous comments, expressed concern that not enough is being done to ensure those players have a backup plan for education if their NBA hopes don’t pan out.
“There are unintended consequences here for these kids and their families,” Calipari told the Star-Telegram. “Don’t encourage 8th-, 9th- and 10th-graders to forgo education just to go to the G League.
“…What do we do if they are not academically ready at all, because they didn’t plan on it? Who wants to take care of those thousands of kids whose family, many times, are dealing with generational poverty and their chance was maybe to get him an education?”
Calipari’s suggestion also includes college education funds also being given to players who go straight to the G League, a model Major League Baseball already uses.
John Calipari: Players should have to stay 2 years
While he wishes players would stay in school longer, John Calipari says he won’t hold them back from the NBA Want to see more? SUBSCRIBE to watch the latest interviews: http://bit.ly/1R1Fd6w Watch full episodes each week on TV stations across the country.
“If they choose to do that, that’s fine, but why don’t we make sure if they don’t make it in, they at least have a chance at a guaranteed education,” he said.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Friday that he believes the rules surrounding the NBA draft age limit will be changed.
“It’s clear that the college community doesn’t seem to want the one-and-done players any more,” Silver said in an appearance on ESPN’s Get Up! “Putting aside the self-interest of the NBA, we have to be responsive to the larger basketball community.”
If so, you’ll undoubtedly have a rush of high school kids foregoing college to try and enter the NBA Draft and in that case, some kind of combine would be needed to decipher the real from the fake. The real issue is the future of these players beyond basketball and that’s something that’s at least being addressed. It’s still a slippery slope.
