As i was watching the nbdl and reading about the the pending ncaa rules changes about player draft status, i believe the nba is not doing its best effort to improve the state of the game. Although i agree that they are taking steps in the right direction, but they're are not swift enough to really improve the game. The largest problem facing the nba is the youth factor. The ongoing debate is boys competing against grown men. No matter how physically gifted the young guys are, they can't handle the play with the grown men. Of course their are a few instances when some players are able to compete right away, mostly guards, but moreso the big guys can't. I have no problem and noone else should deny a person the right to make a living for him or his family, but the nba should take urgent steps to ensure the product is good on the floor. Here's a couple of my ideas, although they may not be new, just my thoughts. All players who graduate or quit scholl over the age of 17 should be elgible for the nba draft. Some people will hiss and whine about this, but baseball has been doing it for yrs. This way we can eliviate the so called painful decions some of these players or people make. I'm not talking about some or a few but all. The same should be done for college players every yr. It used to be done in the early nba, thats how Boston got Bird. Players drafted in the first round are bound to the rookie contract until the time they actually accept and join the team. The player can be paid, just like the baseball players are paid when they play summer ball. The nba just needs to work with the ncaa on how the money and amatuer status is handled. With this rule passed, it seems the league would be flooded with the Jordan wannabees which brings me to the next step. Expand and affiliate the nbdl with teams and make it a true minor league system. Every nba team should have their own coaches own management and everything. What this does is gives these young players and some of the other player a chnace to learn the system and play against physical nba type players. Its just like pro league over seas, but the teams get a chance to watch the players play and learn instead of sitting on the bench. Players like Collier,Langhi and some of the other players on the Rockets that didn't recieve mauch playing time could benefit from this experience. This is one of the reason the European players are progressing faster than our college players. Guys like Peja,Dirk, and Tony Parker have been playing against men since they were 16 yrs old. Of course the money situation would have to be resolved , but thats minor. Even some of the guys thats may not make it or is drafted in the 2nd round would be better to play and progress under the eye of the team than going overseas. Chime in and give + and - of this type of setup.
+. Sounds great! Overpaid scrubs would also get to actually earn their money from somewhere other than the bench.
