College basketball fans live in the era of the “one-and-dones,” and whether they like it or not, it doesn’t appear that anything is going to change in the near future.
For those who don’t know, “one-and-done” is the name given to college basketball players who play their freshman seasons at their respective universities, then leave for the NBA Draft following the season. The topic is debated every year as there are arguments for and against one-and-done players in college basketball.
The generating of revenue is the main reason the NCAA forces a high school basketball player to attend one year of college. The schools know they’ll be gaining money while not having to pay these student-athletes.
The media comes down hardest on the players who come to school for one year, just to head to the NBA.
Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill took to Twitter after the 2015 NCAA Men’s Basketball National Championship game to condemn the Duke Blue Devils basketball players who were sure to enter the 2015 NBA draft after just a year with the team.
McCaskill tweeted, “Congrats to Duke, but I was rooting for a team who had stars that are actually going to college & not just doing semester tryouts.”
McCaskill clearly understands these players bring a great deal of revenue to each state and surrounding areas. Any person who is making money off these student-athletes would sure hate to give that paycheck up.
Basketball is the only major sport where it has been proven that an 18-year-old can compete with the league of superstars and veterans. An 18-year-old cannot step foot on an NFL football field and expect to perform at a high level, the player would be physically and mentally immature. No 18-year-old has stepped on an MLB field and performed at a high level — it takes time.
The Cleveland Cavaliers selected LeBron James first overall in the 2003 NBA draft. He came straight out of St. Vincent St. Mary’s High School at the age of 18.
In his rookie campaign, the Akron, Ohio, product averaged 20.9 points, 5.9 assists and 5.5 rebounds per game. This, along with other examples such as Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and Kevin Garnett prove that high schoolers can bolt to the NBA and perform at a high level immediately.
Not only do these players miss out on getting paid, they also don’t care to be fully interested in the team for which they play. It’s hard to be committed when you know where you should be.
The Wolfpack has only a single one-and-done player in its history — JJ Hickson. But with the addition of the former No. 1 point guard in the 2016 ESPN Top 100, Dennis Smith Jr., there is talk of another one-and-done player putting on a Wolfpack jersey next season.
Smith played his high school career in Fayetteville and suffered a torn ACL before his senior season. Smith enrolled early starting in the spring semester this season.
With the incredible talent and potential that Smith has, heading to the NBA after a single season seems to be the best option. If it weren’t for the NCAA, Smith could head straight to the NBA without any college and do just fine.
But because the NCAA believes it knows what is best for each person, players must serve a one-year sentence.
Since 2007, on average, only eight college freshmen have been drafted per year, making it a 0.7 percent chance that a player leaves. The real problem with players leaving seems to be transfer behavior.
According to Extra Point on NCAA.org, 20 percent of all freshmen basketball players leave their school after just one year, and 40 percent in total are gone by the end of year two. Such is the case with former Wolfpack players Caleb and Cody Martin and Kyle Washington, who transferred after their sophomore seasons.
While these transfers are still staying in school, it appears they aren’t in school for the education, but instead to see their playing time increase, clearly showing the desire to simply play basketball.
The transfer behavior isn’t highly criticized in the media, even though the numbers show it is a greater problem. And although it isn’t publicized, once again the NCAA chooses to interfere in student-athletes’ life as it forces them to sit out an academic year before playing for that team.
The NCAA looks at themselves as either a government or a bad business model in putting holds and limits on student-athlete’s careers. They seem to believe they know what is best for each teenager coming into college.
While an education is highly valued and incredibly important, playing basketball is the career these student-athletes have chosen. If players are talented enough to make it to the big stage and make the money they need, there should be no limitations holding them back from doing so.
