Big changes to NCAA B-ball
15 official visits instead of 5 (and starting in Junior Year)
Can hire an agent and return to school
Can return to school if not drafted
All good things in my opinion.
August 8th, 2018 at 12:35 PM ^
https://www.ncaa.org/about/flexibility-going-pro-and-getting-degree
Here is the link to specifics from the NCAA.
August 8th, 2018 at 12:41 PM ^
Is this just hoops or all sports? Hard to tell specifically from the twitter feed.
Edit: link above clarified it.
August 8th, 2018 at 12:42 PM ^
The NCAA.org link specifies basketball.
August 8th, 2018 at 12:44 PM ^
That's fantastic news for players. Now they can test the draft waters and get representation without sacrificing their eligibility.
Good for the NCAA. It's about time.
Now, what would be a nice feature for the NBA to add to their draft: Allow players to withdraw their name after the 1st round, or a certain pick #.
If that was allowed, the player should announce that prior to the draft. Just so that the NBA teams to spin too much effort on a player they won't be able to draft and develop.
That was my intent. Otherwise there could be the equivalent of "I won't play for the Browns" in the NBA and a player could just say he didn't want to get drafted that low.
Too late, there was that already in this draft. A few players refused to work out for the Kings.
It's really not, though. They lose all leverage.
The NBA actually prohibits teams from drafting players with remaining college eligibility. The rule, like most NBA rules, goes back to Larry Bird, who held the Celtics over a barrel for money after he was drafted as a junior in '78. He played the entire '79 season, including the Magic vs. Bird championship game, with a contract offer on the table from Boston, and finally signed it in April '79; if they hadn't come to an agreement, he would have been eligible to reenter the draft (like baseball).
That's also why Bird went at #6 overall; he was widely considered the best player in the draft, but there were signability concerns due to his willingness to return to Indiana State.
The NCAA plan looks good on the surface, but by restricting it to combine invitees, and then only granting restoring eligibility to people who didn't get drafted, it's essentially defanged.
Allowing drafted players to retain their eligibility, on the other hand, would have been a major step in the right direction. Doing that in tandem with removing the total cap on scholarship players, and moving to a "(4/5) new scholarships per year" system so that college teams wouldn't be penalized by these decisions, and then we're starting to talk. This is just lipstick on a pig.
BTW: Apparently the NCAA will require that you fire your agent in order to retain your eligibility. So, you can have an agent for a couple of months, but then you have to fire that guy, who presumably has invested actual cash in getting you prepared for the draft. I wonder how agents are going to feel about this..
August 8th, 2018 at 12:49 PM ^
Will the ability to return to school matter much at the top programs where slots will fill?
It affects NBA teams also. Now they don't know if their 22nd round pick will sign.
On draft night, they should call a guy like they do when they draft a player, ask if he is going to sign. If not, tell him you have 5 minutes to make as many phone calls as you can to find someone who will sign.
"College basketball players who request an Undergraduate Advisory Committee evaluation, participate in the NBA combine and aren’t drafted can return to school as long as they notify their athletics director of their intent by 5 p.m. the Monday after the draft."
Sounds to me like if a player is drafted, he can't go back to college bb. So, how does this change things for NBA teams wrt their ability to sign players?
August 8th, 2018 at 12:53 PM ^
This is good.
August 8th, 2018 at 12:54 PM ^
The way it appears to be worded is that “elite” players can hire an agent. Who decides who is elite and who is not?
I don’t disagree with the rule changes, but really just curious who makes that distinction and how they do it.
USA Basketball decides this. Which imo, is not a good idea, since some elite kids choose not to play for them.
And that's where I envision a problem coming in. If you're going to institute a rule like this, then why not allow anyone to hire an agent if they so choose?
But I thought I read that was only for elite high schoolers.
Pending a decision by the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association, high school basketball players can be represented by an agent beginning July 1 before their senior year in high school, provided they have been identified as an elite senior prospect by USA Basketball.
For college players, they can hire an agent if they ask for an evaluation.
College basketball players can be represented by an agent beginning after any basketball season if they request an evaluation from the NBA Undergraduate Advisory Committee.
This rule change is effective immediately.
August 8th, 2018 at 12:54 PM ^
The ability for undrafted players to return to college is interesting. It sounds great from a player perspective (get as much information as possible before deciding to forego a degree), but it could have recruiting ramifications that are difficult for coaches.
Consider the case of Matthews this year: His decision would have been drawn out even longer (most likely), so the scholarship availability for next year's recruiting class would be undetermined for a longer period of time. Given Beilein's preference not to oversign (even with relatively sure bets to leave for the NBA), it will be interesting to see how he approaches such situations in the future.
My understanding is that the ability to return to school will only apply to undrafted players who were invited to the combine, so this would not have applied to Matthews (and would apply to very few players in a given year, as most underclass combine invitees who remain in the draft are drafted).
It’s an improvement to the system, but the NCAA is relying on the NBA’s combine evaluation process to make sure it only applies to a very small number of kids who are right on the edge of being draftable. It wouldn’t be surprising for some of those players to stay pro anyway. They’re unlikely to suddenly become first round picks with another year in school, and the difference between a late-2nd and an UDFA is marginal in terms of contracts (late 2nds sign 2-way deals or deal with low guarantees, the same as UDFAs.)
August 8th, 2018 at 12:55 PM ^
Wow thats actually really good for the school and student, NCAA does use its head every once in awhile.
August 8th, 2018 at 12:55 PM ^
Interested to see how this goes. Overall these are good changes for players, and thus good changes on the whole IMO, but the being able to return after being undrafted is the one that can really complicate things.
The draft isn't until the mid June when most rosters for the next year are finalized. With this change if a borderline kid declares then coaches won't know until after the draft if they'll return or not. Coaches will have to decide whether they want to risk the kid leaving and be left with an open scholarship or recruit that open spot and deal with being oversigned if the kid returns. If he does go undrafted or return, either he or some other kid is now getting pushed out 2 months before school starts.
Plus if a kid goes undrafted, what's the buffer time to decide if they want to return? Coaches are going to have to re-recruit undrafted kids to get them to stay over signing as an UDFA.
Overall all the changes I like, but that one in particular will be one to watch. Seems like a lot of this is prep for 1 and done removal though.
I wonder if this would almost become a part of the declaration. "I'm putting my name in for the draft, but if I am not drafted I am (or am not) returning to school." So there would be certainty for the coaches/schools no later than draft day (still deeper into the year than today, but not quite as egregious as some open-ended period post-draft.
College basketball players who request an Undergraduate Advisory Committee evaluation, participate in the NBA combine and aren’t drafted can return to school as long as they notify their athletics director of their intent by 5 p.m. the Monday after the draft.
Thank you! I obviously didn't review all the linked source material
Yeah it will be interesting to see how this is implemented! Take Matthews this season upcoming, if he goes and doesn’t get drafted, does he just try his luck in the Summer League hoping for a 2-way contract? Or does he return to Michigan(who might have recruited his replacement) or another school since he would be grad transfer eligible.
August 8th, 2018 at 12:57 PM ^
I'm not sure the official visits thing matters much, but I'm a big fan of the last two items. They're desperately needed in conjunction with the NBA's anticipated killing of the 19 y.o. age limit.
I think it can only help a program that has a great on campus atmosphere. We are much more likely to get official visits from top tier players who might just appreciate all that the campus has to offer.
On the player side, they get the chance to see more schools in person before narrowing their choices or making a final decision.
This is a very positive change and should be applied to all sports.
I'm a little scared of kids hiring agents before going pro. Wouldn't an agent's interest be in the kid going pro regardless of what's best for the kid?
It might take the burden off of their coaches to gather feedback from the NBA for their players though. It sounded like Beilein (& co) spent considerable time doing that for the guys the past couple years.
Pretty sure this happens in hockey. If the player is likely to benefit from another year of college and a higher draft pick, that would benefit the agent as well.
That’s why I think help from the NBAPA will help here. They can oust an agent who is giving kids bad advice for their own pockets. If this is done too often they can ban that agent from repping players in the league.
I think the two rules about being able to return to school should be looked at together. Signing with an agent probably doesn't get passed without allowed undrafted players to return. Going into the draft without an agent probably puts players at a disadvantage.
Agents do have an incentive to give good information. A player that doesn't like how the advice turned out is not going to be a happy client. Going too early probably is a poor outcome for the agent anyway.
Not mentioned, but potentially even more important, the NCAA created two teams focused on enforcement. One team investigates, the other team reviews and decides punishment. Both teams are independent third party and are not allowed to have any school or conference ties. I.e. the only way to influence them would be to bribe or physically threaten them.
They still will not have subpoena power, but they can basically operate like a private investigator. That is a far cry from having to announce their presence, schedule a meeting, and politely ask the school to please hand over any documents they see fit to share.
I'm unsure about adding so many visits. Does that mean it will happen in football too?
The other two changes I've been arguing for. They're just common sense and cost nothing. I figured they would happen someday, but not so soon. I wonder if this arose after talks with the NBA? If so, we may see them make an announcement of changes too.
One and done is the dumbest thing in the history of sports. Should adapt something similar to MLB, can sign out of HS, but if going to college, not re-eligible to enter draft for 3 years. On the same topic, "high school players have more upside and potential!" Really? For every Kobe or KG, you get 5 that suck. Plus based on tix prices, never considered the NBA a "developmental" league.
One and done is the dumbest thing in the history of sports.
Not as bad as the TV timeout, the original sin of North American sports.
WHY does it takes the NCAA so LONG to come to its senses....on anything
The last one is definitely good. On the first, 15 official visits seems like a lot, but whatever.
I don't follow the agent thing though. Do you have to fire the agent before you return, or are you allowed to actually have a business relationship with him the next year? That would seem to open a can of worms.
When I saw the title of this thread the first thing that came to mind was George Carlin's old line about how to make the game fairer when the Globetrotters used to clobber the Washington General's every night: Put a 15 ft. tall wall of flame at half court.
It’s about time, the NCAA looks after their athletes instead of dollar signs.
August 9th, 2018 at 12:07 PM ^
Anything to avoid actually paying players, I see.