From the moment Lavar Ball took his son LiAngelo out of school at UCLA, he has grumbled about the NCAA and vowed to create a suitable alternative for NBA prospects. Now, it appears Lavar has turned those grumblings into a tangible, albeit bold, solution. In a recent episode of the Ball's Facebook show "Ball in the Family", Lavar and Big Baller Brand announced plans to create the JBA (Junior Basketball Association).
The JBA is intended to be a league for high school graduates which would pay them $3,000 to $10,000 per month and would serve as an alternative to college for prospects who wish to circumvent the NCAA and focus solely on the draft. Lavar's proposal includes eight teams in four major cities and would use NBA rules such as four 12 minute quarters and the deeper three point line, meant to streamline development. Currently, the only options players have immediately after high school are:
1. Go to college, which provides the most exposure and the best completion, but offers no financial reimbursement and requires class attendance, of which most elite prospects are disinterested. The NCAA's argument has always been that players are rewarded with a free education, but two semesters of trivial coursework generally nothing for players who are essentially guaranteed they will be making millions in a very short time. Many of these players come from low-income backgrounds and jump at the chance of making any money.
2. Play overseas, which LiAngelo and LaMelo are currently doing. This can be profitable, but offers very little exposure (for players who aren't Lavar Ball's sons). Prospects who are elite may benefit from this, but players with something to prove prior to the NBA often have little chance to show their talents in one year in a foreign league. Additionally, not every high school graduate has a high profile family and a father who can travel with them around the world. Packing up and moving to a foreign country, with a different culture and language can be hard for anybody, let alone a 19 year-old kid.
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3. Play in the NBA G-League. This is probably the most similar to Lavar's proposed league. Players can stay in the United States and be compensated. The biggest problem lies in the fact that as it stands, the rosters are mostly veterans who are fighting every day to make it to the NBA. These teams and players, right now, would do very little to develop and showcase the younger talent on their roster.
Lavar is not the first to complain about the NCAA and the one and done rule, nor will he be the last. He is however the first to propose a somewhat feasible alternative to the current system. Lavar's proposal also includes combating one of the biggest problems facing young players in the league, financial illiteracy. Lavar says he plans to teach the future millionaires how to manage their money, among other useful life skills that will help them quickly adapt to the lifestyle of professional basketball. As it stands, Lavar has had some trouble recruiting top level players to his league, but with this kind of radical change, it should not be expected to happen overnight and may only take one high profile commitment to start a trend. The league would offer the exposure that comes with the Lavar Ball circus as well as financial compensation. What is yet to be seen is if they can provide the level of competition and development that the NCAA and other leagues provide. Lavar may not have the perfect formula yet but it seems he has tapped a market with considerable interest.
What do you think Lavar and the JBA could do to attract top level stars to join the league?
I think this league has both positives and negatives. Of course some of the greatest players of all-time came straight out of high school but many players who were tremendous high school athletes turned out to be average to below average players who struggled with their professional lives. I think this is a good alternative for athletes who want to be compensated and streamline their journey to the league. People say if you can go pro, do it because you can always go back to school. However, I think it is difficult to scout these players when they are not playing against the top caliber NCAA athlete. NBA teams look for individuals to perform against the highest competition and although these high-school athletes are good, they are unproven and have only played against other high-school teams with lesser skilled players. Also, it is difficult to maintain the same collegiate opportunities after turning them down originally to go to this league.
ReplyDelete-Ryan Fincher
I personally think that this is a fantastic alternative for athletes who want to continue their career in the competitive environment. The best way to get better or keep up with others is to practice everyday and if one is trying to get to the leagues then I think this is the perfect transition. It is something to think about when it comes to practice and actual game time. Game time and the intense competition is what the NBA requires. Athletes will of course look like "the best" until they come across someone better and tougher.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that the current situation with the NCAA is broken; they benefit off of the work of young students who get very little in return. I completely agree that the key is to create a new organization that is separate from the NCAA; however, I don't believe that Lavar Ball or anyone else could lead this change. I think that it would have to be internal and be led by actual colleges/ teams who have the history, recruiting, and infrastructure to pave the way. If for example, the ACC were to try and break off their college basketball program from the NCAA it would create real change because until colleges make the move athletes will continue to go there as opposed to abroad or development leagues due to the unrivaled media attention, development, and history of producing NBA players.
ReplyDeleteI would have to take a different approach than most people on this situation. While I agree that there are definitely faults in the NCAA system, every system has its flaws and the JBA would mostly develop some of their own as well. I think that creating this league encourages high school players to skip college and jump right into their career of playing basketball. While for many this might be their long time dream, you can only play basketball for so long before you need to retire from being too old to play the game. When this happens, these players will be limited in the spectrum of other careers that they can pursue or even know that they have interest in because they went right from high school and currently have no kind of college degree. Again, while I can see the benefits the JBA presents for the NBA and professional basketball, I think there are some long term consequences that the young high school player might not consider right off the bat.
ReplyDeleteAs I see the benefits as an alternative path, I do not think this is a good idea. Many things Lavar does is for press and himself. Although this appears to be beneficial to the shelters, there is most defiantly a hidden angle for Lavar. Also as you look at how he treats his sons, I think lavars influence could be bad on up and coming players.
ReplyDeleteAlthough the NCAA has issues, it seems to be working on them. The nba has stated about changing the one and done rule and some other issues with college basketball. The nba is also working on expanding the g-league so I think there is an optimistic future for young players.
-alison
COREY RIGGENBACH: The JBA could solve the paying collegiate athlete debates, but the only way they'd be able to get paid is if the JBA is making money, and I don't see that happening. NCAA basketball is way too competitive and has such a large fanbase that won't switch to a become a fan of a league that is run by a man most NCAA-fans hate. I think it'd be a disaster in the U.S., but maybe abroad it could work. It could act as a combine for the Euro teams (almost like mini-acadmies), and also help for the talent of the Euro league.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a very interesting idea. In the wake of all the NCAA scandals involving players getting payed, I believe this is going to become a more legitimate option for some players. I think this is going to make the NCAA very nervous because if this gains more popularity they will loose out on some important players. Thats not to say that college basketball is finished but in this day and age good players only play for one year and they are not in school to get an educations so I could see some guys seeing this as a better opportunity as long as the level of play is competitive.
ReplyDeleteMichael Strode
Lavar truly is an outstanding member of the basketball world. Providing an alternative league for athletes to play in would open up many doors for players who wish to continue their careers. The NCAA sometimes can be proven to be an unfair system. However, it would take a lot of effort to compete with the NCAA. A Ball League could be a fun idea, but I think it would be tricky for someone to choose the JBA over college ball if they wanted to go pro. The JBA would be a lot less competitive seeing that the NCAA already has the monopoly on pre-pro players. Also, changing some rules seems a bit drastic. I would love to see how this league develops in the future but if I had a child playing basketball competitively at that age and level, i’d want them to actually go to school, and compete in an already established league.
ReplyDelete