2005 was a year that changed basketball as we know it. Former NBA commissioner David Stern won a provision that mandated draft prospects be at least 19 years old and a year removed from college, and with this the one-and-done rule was born.

The rule should be changed so a player must stay a minimum of 2 years in college. It gives them time to mature as players. There is a lot more than just playing ball to deal with when entering the league.

“I am a big fan of the way professional baseball does it. You either go right out of high school or if you decide to go to college you have a minimum amount of time you have to go,” said California Lutheran University men’s basketball Head Coach Geoff Dains.

That is a good alternative to what the current rule is, but the only difference is with baseball you have much more time to prepare because guys straight out of high school are sent to the minors for at least a year.

“There are young men that are ready to play in the NBA right now. If they know they are only going for one year they’re not really doing a service for the university and they’re not necessarily doing a service for themsevels academically,” Dains said.

These kids are going to these universities and are not treated as a person, but as a brand.

John Calipari, the Head Coach at the University of Kentucky, supported the change in a Denver Post interview.

“It would be great for players because then they would be one and a half years or so away from a college degree,” Calipari said.

Although high schools and colleges have brought us many young stars such as LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, there are those who make the jump such as Robert Swift and Kwame Brown who don’t amount to anything in the league.

One-and-done has allowed NBA-ready players to get into the league fast, but ultimately for every player that succeeds there is another that goes unnoticed because there is always a new crop of youngsters that make the jump.

Gabriel Naudin
Staff Writer