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I always thought this rule was a violation of rights. Props to congress
Congressman questions NBA’s age-minimum rule
By Dan Wetzel
LOS ANGELES – A United States Congressman is demanding that NBA commissioner David Stern and NBA Players Association executive director Billy Hunter explain to Congress the reasoning behind the league’s 19-year-old age minimum for U.S. players to enter the draft.
U.S. Rep Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) wrote both men a letter Wednesday to express his “deep concern” over a rule that “bar(s) athletes from playing in the league on the basis of age” and asked that the “policy be repealed” in the next collective bargaining agreement.
The four-year-old rule sends most U.S. players to the collegiate ranks for at least one season.
“This system does far more to serve the financial interests of the universities at which the students play than the educational interests of the student themselves,” Cohen wrote in a letter obtained by Yahoo! Sports. “I am convinced the (age rule) contributed to the recent spate of scandals involving college athletes.”
Cohen has asked that Stern and Hunter voluntarily open a dialogue with him concerning the rule and discuss “why this rule exists,” according to press secretary Steven Broderick.
If they do not respond, the congressman is “prepared to pursue other avenues to get the answers,” according to Broderick.
Broderick would not speculate on those avenues, but they would presumably include the calling of a hearing that would require under-oath testimony from Stern and Hunter.
Neither the NBA nor the NBPA had immediate responses when contacted by Yahoo! Sports on Wednesday.
The league and its players association jointly put the age limit into their collective bargaining agreement back in 2005. Stern has spoken about possibly extending the age minimum to 20 years old or two years out of high school for U.S. players. European players need only be 18.
“I ask that this policy be repealed when the NBA completes its new collective bargaining agreement (with) the NBA Players Association,” wrote Cohen, who is a member of the powerful committee of the judiciary and the chair of the subcommittee on commercial and administrative law.
Cohen represents Tennessee’s ninth district, which includes the city of Memphis and the University of Memphis, currently involved in an NCAA infractions case involving former Tigers guard Derrick Rose.
Rose is a classic “one-and-done” player who spent time in college basketball only because of the NBA rule. He’s accused by the NCAA of academic fraud for irregularities on his SAT.
Rose denied the claim, according to NCAA do ents. The university has responded by saying the NCAA does not have enough evidence to conclude that Rose used a stand-in on his SAT. University officials will appear before the committee on infractions Saturday in Indianapolis.
I always thought this rule was a violation of rights. Props to congress
Yea. Adults should have the right to work if someone wants to hire them.
I don't wanna see a bunch of 18 year olds play basketball.
You can go and die for oil at 18 but can't shoot a damn basketball in Madison Square Garden... go figure.
I guess now maybe the government will want to own the NBA as they do GovernmentMotors. What about the NFL? This politician doesn't have anything else better to do at this time then worry about 18 year olds waiting until 19 to get thrown to the wolves and collect millions. Oh, I guess then the government can support the kids when they weren't ready .
Let the NBA run their business. This clown must have his pockets greased by someone to be spewing such baloney at this time.
I was going to say something about that in my post above...
gov't is basically trying to control everything these days.
Good point that is hard to argue on the surface, but in reality I don't think its that simple.The point is most 18 year olds aren't ready to shoot baskets in Madison Square Garden and the rare ,rare , few that can will still be able to at 19.
And yet 18 year-olds are ready to shoot people?
Back to the MSG point, the players will essentially be doing the same thing for no pay if they go to North Carolina, Duke, UCLA, Kansas, etc. All the age rule does is cut off $1-$5 million of career income for a player while exposing them to injuries without any fallback.
A list of prep-to-pro players.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...to-pro_players
Looking at the list since 1995, of the 38 players drafted, only 5 had no business being in the NBA (Korleone Young, Leon Smith, Ousmane Cisse, Ndudi Ebi, & James Lang). Of those 5, 3 of them were drafted in the 2nd round so teams knew they were a risk and the other 2 were drafted at 26 and 29 - a crap shoot regardless.
I'm getting tired of seeing congressmen who feel they need to get involved with various professional sports leagues. All these guys want is recognition...they want to see their name in all the papers and all over ESPN.
"If they do not respond, the congressman is 'prepared to pursue other avenues to get the answers, according to Broderick."
No one owes this guy anything, who the eff is he? The NBA does what's best for the NBA...this has absolutely nothing to do with the U.S. government.
Let the teams decide which ones are ready.
There's racism in the age-minimum rule; lots of people act as if black men need college more than say, white women who can go pro playing tennis in their mid teens.
They are fighting for me to play basketball at 18. I can die for my country but not drink a beer.
The NBA ins uted the age requirement to help clean up their image. They feel it's in the better interest of the company...it's their prerogative.
There's "racism" in everything.
Are you ignoring the Euro players (white) that have to wait?
Yeah, the NBA should totally change the rule:
Minimum NBA Requirement: 2-year Associates degree.
Then it isn't racist, ageist, or politically incorrect. It is just a minimum education requirement that just happens to usually coincide with being at least 19 years old-ish.
[/sarcasm]
I am not arguing your point on principle. You could say the same about old enough to shoot but not old enough to buy a beer. Certainly 18 year old kids are not ready to kill in war, but neither are almost all of the 18 year olds ready to step in and play in the NBA .Being a private run business the NBA should have the right to run their business. If the NBA wants to let 18 year olds play , its their money and their call.
We will probably just disagree on this and thats OK. i must go back to work in my yard. I just took a break to see if there was anything worth reading here.
People want employment. Employers want those potential employees. A 3rd party, other than the government, is telling them they can't. It smells of corruption.
Racism ,a whole new tact. Whatever it is ,it is not racism. What will it be called when these kids who aren't emotionally, physically , or basketball ready fail. That could be considered exploitation and if you count colors which you must be doing a form of your word. So either way the NBA loses.
Once again, the NBA is a private run business, spends millions of dollars on these players and they can make their own rules. They are not going to purposely harm their product. But honestly , I don't see it as racism.
Wrong. The NBA ins uted the rule, because the players association wanted it. They were tired of veterans in their 30s being pushed out by the newest high school phenom coming in. It had nothing to do with league image or whatnot.The NBA ins uted the age requirement to help clean up their image. They feel it's in the better interest of the company...it's their prerogative.
And I also don't buy the "they are not ready" crap that a lot of people spew. Just because a player isn't the finished article right off the bat, doesn't mean drafting them and teaching them the pro game for your team isn't the right move.
Most players in general aren't ready for the pro game, whether they are coming right out of high school, or right after finishing 4 years at an ACC school. Its perfectly Ok for a player to come off the bench early, or not be a star early.
Look at Kobe Bryant, as an example.
How did the Williams sisters break the white girl circle in tennis?
The racism aspect of this debate comes from the proponents of the age limit rule (outside of the NBA that ins uted the rule). A lot of the same people who say that 18 yr old basketball players shouldn't be allowed to turn pro don't seem to have the same opinion about tennis players or baseball players (who are mostly non-black).
Now having said what I have I will say this. Baseline Bum , I agree with you in principle, but I also think that in the end the NBA should run their business.
I do also agree that he player union also wanted it for the reason above. But then again, that's the NBA taking care of its own business.
What I believe could solve any "they aren't ready " issue is if more of the teams would own their D league teams and run them as MLB runs its farm system. This would in my view make it a situation more easily managed.
But no, maybe I am naive , but I do not think it is part of some racist plot.
All have a good day.Must go back to work.
How many kobe or Lebron's are there? If 18 year olds are allowed there has to be an established team controlled minor league system to give the non KObe's of the world a chance to develop. I belive what the Spurs and a few others have done with owning their D league teams is could help remove this argument.
Last edited by rogcl1; 06-03-2009 at 04:25 PM.
Which in effect would make them minor league teams.What I believe could solve any "they aren't ready " issue is if more of the teams would own their D league teams and run tem as MLB runs its farm system. This would in my view make it a situation more easily managed.
The NBA has no need to do that, because college basketball suffices that need. Why pay all of that money to run minor league teams, when a system already exists that nurtures talent for them for free?
The age rule isn't to protect players, it is there to protect owners from drafting high-schoolers who haven't proved themselves. Its less of a gamble for the owners to see a kid play a season in college than to draft sight unseen. The age rule is in the owners interest.
The payers union, mostly controlled by vets, doesn't want their salaries impacted by unproved high-school players either. Both have self interest in keeping the young ones out of the league for a year two
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