How I would fix basketball

[Tim_T]

If I were in charge, here are a few things I think would make the game better.

#1 make the NBA adopt the same rules about the draft that baseball has. Every high school player is eligible for the draft. If you are drafted, you negotiate with your team. If at the deadline to decide you are not satisfied with your contract, you can go to college. If you skip the pro's you are not eligible for the draft for three years.

#2 Summer camps and the summer AAU circuit would be a dead period. You are not able to evealuate prospects at this time. This would eliminate some of the unscrupulous people in the game like the Myron Piggie's and the World Wide Wes' of the world. This also puts the recruitment more in the hands of the high school coaches, who are normally also school teachers.

#3 Do away with shoe contracts. Bottom line, UK, U of L, UNC, IU and the others make enough money of their basketball programs that the team can buy their own shoes! Doing away with the shoe contracts also takes away more control of the folks involved in #2.

#4 Not so many games. If these kids are supposed to be student athletes, lets prove it, by eliminating 10 games. Instead of playing 35, lets play 25. Gives the kids more time for class and school work and not as much travel and missing class.

#5 related to #4, raise the minimum GPA to a 2.5. With less travel and games, and the huge number of tutors and academic advisers that are available to these kids, there is no reason any of them should not be able to achieve this.

#6 Pay these kids a small stipend, say $200-300 per month. They are bringing in millions to the University, the least that could be done is to give them a few dollars to take a date out or something.

These are things I would like to see done, but I doubt any of them will ever happen.

[mhall]

Really good stuff Tim. It will never happen though because the root of all Evil is involved, the almighty dollar.

[DJD]

I like it...all except for paying them. I know they bring in Millions but they get the opportunity of a life time plus if they got paid the big school recruits would want more than the small school recruits. I see a labor war with this option.
I agree with Mark, the last thing they will do is hurt their money train.

[fisheater]

In the nba,only pay the winning team.

[Tim_T]

I like it...all except for paying them. I know they bring in Millions but they get the opportunity of a life time plus if they got paid the big school recruits would want more than the small school recruits. I see a labor war with this option.
I agree with Mark, the last thing they will do is hurt their money train.

I agree with you and Mark, but when I am talking about paying, I mean there is a set pay scale and all schools have to abide by it. The schools could send the money to the NCAA and they could pay the checks to make sure everyone is getting the same amount.

[mhall]

I agree with you and Mark, but when I am talking about paying, I mean there is a set pay scale and all schools have to abide by it. The schools could send the money to the NCAA and they could pay the checks to make sure everyone is getting the same amount.

Vitale has been saying this for several years now, he's a big fan of this idea.

[DJD]

Just seems like once the door is open of athletes getting paid things will change. What about the other sports? Women sports will demand the same treatment or it's discrimination. I would think football and the other sports would want in on this as well.....

The thought of paying college athletes makes me think of how we pay taxes for a new social program....the best intentions end up being corrupt and never seem to work the way they thought and then your on the hook. Wonder if they would get bonuses? I can see tutions going up, parents and staff who are not on board with college athletics going off. JMHO.

[Tim_T]

I think only revenue producing sports should get the stipend. Football and basketball already foot the bill for the other sports on campus.

[DJD]

I think only revenue producing sports should get the stipend. Football and basketball already foot the bill for the other sports on campus.

I agree 100% Tim but if I was paying to send my kid or kids to school and they started that I would be pissed. Prolly influence what school they would attend. I totally see both sides (i think) but I'm not for it. Do you see any down sides to it?

What was that mandate that came down to support women athletics in college? That's kind of what I see happening here if things ever moved forward.

[Tim_T]

Oh you are correct in that it will not happen Don, I am just saying how I would run things if I was the Basketball Czar. Title 9 is the fairness in sports act, that makes there be an equal number of athletic opportunities for women as men. I am not against Title 9, but I would like to see them take football out of the equation, since there are like 95 athletes in football.

My whole point of this is that I would like to see the Student put back in student athlete.

[DJD]

Oh you are correct in that it will not happen Don, I am just saying how I would run things if I was the Basketball Czar. Title 9 is the fairness in sports act, that makes there be an equal number of athletic opportunities for women as men. I am not against Title 9, but I would like to see them take football out of the equation, since there are like 95 athletes in football.

My whole point of this is that I would like to see the Student put back in student athlete.

Man you are right there. College sports is such a huge business/machine that it needs to be fed constantly.
The practice of winning at all costs leaves a huge trail of under educated ex athletes.

Wasn't John Thompson Sr. (I think thats his name) od Georgetown one of the first that went after the black players from the hood for their basketball skills and size?

[eddie_m]

You're right. Thompson did it. So did Schnellenberger when he was at Miami. I guess you could argue that Wooden went into the pot dens of San Francisco to get Bill Walton!lol!

I like your ideas, Tim. I must confess that I gulped hard about the required 2.5 GPA. After all, I studied non-stop and barely escaped college with a 2.4!