Eh if I were the NCAA I wouldn't be worried about this league.

People watch college sports because they are either alumni or because the college has achieved quasi-professional status in the state (ie Bama/Ohio State).  Broadly they are not drawn to the team because of the name on the back of the jersey, it's the name on the front of the jersey. If all the one-and-dones decided to join this league, I would wager a UNC/Duke comprised entirely of academic walk-ons would still rate higher.

Minor league sports are just not an enticing product in America.  G League basketball does not rate like a run of the mill ACC game.  College Baseball gets way more coverage on ESPN than AA or AAA baseball even though the average AAA team is objectively better than the best college baseball team.  NCAA soccer also gets more coverage than the USL.

What needs to happen is that kids are allowed to make money like any other student who receives financial aid.  Let them work a crappy summer job like most of us did.  Newsflash: GW already can't attract the same talent as schools who can offer better facilities so opening up outside compensation really won't affect us too much.  

Good points GW0509 but I am a bit concerned about the overall quality of play diminishing in the college game.  Many feel this has already started to happen what with the abundance of players who leave the college game early.  Next, I can't help but think that all of this transfer movement can't be good for the quality of play.  So many teams improve by playing together and understanding their teammates tendencies.  While the sport has always been transient (guys graduate every season), there's a big difference between replacing a few guys on a roster vs. over half.  Now, if this league were to take away say 50+ of the better college players and high school prospects from the NCAA game, you'd be looking at a further erosion of the sport.

I don't think the concern is about this league overtaking the NCAA in terms of popularity or television ratings as much as the NCAA losing out on some of the more talented young players in the country who simply want to play for pay.

Gwmayhem wrote:

Good points GW0509 but I am a bit concerned about the overall quality of play diminishing in the college game.  Many feel this has already started to happen what with the abundance of players who leave the college game early. 

Isn't it all relative though?  The rivalries in D2 and D3 are just as intense as D1 even though they are not getting 5 star recruits.  If the top players start skipping college then it becomes who can do the best with the kids that actually want to go to college, like college baseball. In fact, I wonder if moving to the baseball rule of either declaring out of high school or committing to college for 3 years might be the best compromise for this issue?

This is exactly what's called for, especially for the people calling for college athletes to be paid.
If athletes want to get paid, go pro. Period.

Gwmayhem wrote:

Free Quebec wrote:

I don’t see any way this succeeds. Elite prospect s who really want to get paid and not go to school can do that G-League academy.

So who is the target? Non-elite prospects? No one is going on watch that.

And kids who think they are one and done will either go to college to play college hoops AND build their brand (don’t underestimate that - would anyone care about Zion without that year at Duke) or take the G league money.

Plus, why go to college and get that cash? College will cost as much as you get paid. Is this supposed to be a leaguer for rich kids who’s parents can pay for them to go to school while they make money?

I'd say the target are kids who want to receive a college education and want to receive payment for playing basketball.  None of the current options are offering this exact combination.  I agree that this will face long odds of succeeding because the fan interest should be dubious to start and may take more time to develop than the league has to work with.

One other point...it's a bit unclear but I think that the players receive payment ($50K-150K) PLUS a stipend towards their education.  So, I don't think this is a situation where a player receives payment but then has to funnel most or all of this towards their schooling.  That would essentially be the equivalent of a scholarship.

Right now top prospects have a choice - go to that G-league elite team and toil on obscurity for a year and then hope to get drafted and slowly build your name.  Or go to college and build a brand name for yourself (think Zion Williamson, Cade Cunningham, or Jalen Suggs) so that fans are excited and sponsors competing for you.   The downside to the latter is you won’t get paid for a year beyond what Calipari or Will Wade or Sean Miller or whoever arranges for you plus your tuition, room, and board.


No one watches that G-league team now - it’s not a money-maker for the NBA, just a talent development program and a way to not look like they are totally screwing kids by cooperating with the ncaa. 

I don’t see any elite prospects signing up for this league - they would G-league if they care more about getting paid, NCAA if they care about it building their brand, playing on the big stage, and the fun of college and college ball.   Unless, that is, if this is meant as a substitute for that G-League elite program. 

So who is left for this league?  No name players who fans won’t care about - and any kid who goes this route will have to deal with all the challenges of going to college and playing basketball, but without the tutors, flexible teachers, and all the other advantages and help given to college basketball players. 

The only possible players I can think of would be guys who left college to turn pro, only to realize they can’t make it professionally and don’t have a college education to fall back on.  Like maybe a 26 year old SirValient Brown might do this after washing out in the pros as a way to finish school, but virtually no one will watch. 

At best, this would be like independent league baseball, but I doubt it even works anywhere close to that level.

Last edited by Free Quebec (4/28/2021 12:22 pm)