The NCAA and a New Step by the NBA
This is, um, not surprising:Brian Bowen’s dad testified Thursday in the federal criminal trial of agent Christian Dawkins, Adidas executive James Gatto, and former Adidas operative Merl Code, who are accused of committing felony wire fraud as part of the FBI’s massive investigation of corruption in basketball recruiting. Bowen Sr. described being offered tens of thousands of dollars by various D1 basketball programs to influence the commitments of top AAU players, including his son.
According to Bowen Sr., Dawkins told him that Arizona assistant coach Joe Pasternack offered $50,000; Oklahoma State assistant coach Lamont Evans offered $150,000 cash, $8,000 for a car and additional money to buy a house; Texas assistant coach Mike Morrell offered to “help me with housing”; and Creighton assistant coach Preston Murphy offered $100,000 and a “good job, a lucrative job.”
Actually, the amounts are surprising, at least to me. The payments, however, are not. And they are happening all up and down college basketball (college football as well).
If you have a labor market making billions of dollars for the owners and controllers of that labor market, but no money going to the labor, you have a situation. If the quality of the labor affects the profits, then there will be some kind of secret bidding market for the best labor.
Good god, that's obvious, isn't it?
If you're a D-1 college basketball player, you have a full-time job. You have the responsibilities of a professional athlete, but you're working for free. The idea that these employees (because that's what they are) should go without payment is utterly ludicrous (see The NCAA Is Gaslighting You), but that's what we have.
Until now: NBA Developmental League To Offer $125,000 Contracts To Top High School Prospects.
Hey, compensation for work performed!
Details:
The NBA’s developmental league has unveiled a program that could greatly loosen the NCAA’s grip on top high school basketball prospects. The league will begin offering what it calls “Select Contracts” that pay $125,000 for one year to just-graduated high school players who would rather forgo a one-and-done year at the college level.
There are still details that need to be worked out, such as how the league will go about determining which players are worthy of having a Select Contract offered to them, but here’s how the plan looks right now:
--Contracts will only be available to players who are at least 18 years old and have not yet committed to a college program.
--Players who sign will be able to hire agents, profit from their likeness, and sign various endorsement deals.
--Players will only be allowed to play one season on a Select Contract, at which point they will be automatically entered into the next NBA draft.
--Players will have access to various personal and professional development programs, including professional coaches and training staffs and academic scholarship opportunities.
For a kid who was going to play one year and turn pro, that's a much, much better deal, both financially and professionally. Job training, with resources.
The domino effect here is that it will also entice kids to play professionally for one year abroad if they don't quality for this program. Why play for free when you can get paid?
It will be interesting to see how long it takes the NCAA to respond to this, and what they'll do. Whatever it is, just watch the contortions they go through to maintain that coveted "amateur" designation.
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