For starters, the situations of these dudes aren't all desperate and a kid with some athletic potential is gonna have it better than a less talented counterpart. As I said before, it's not like they will never get into the league. You gotta wait years to come up out the hood as a doctor, lawyer, engineer etc. with far less support, access, and opportunities, so we need to stop being so dramatic about this. I'm all for guys being able to capitalize on their likeness in college as well.
The league was actually more competitive in those days because the talent was more condensed on fewer teams. The best 4 year players aren't more successful today because the most talented players don't stay for four years. Talent is indeed talent, that is why such comparisons are silly.
Other sports either have minor league systems to help guys that aren't ready develop or they don't allow guys into until they are more developed. I'm all for the NBA doing either of those two things.
Dude, there is no age limit to being a doctor, a lawyer, etc. . .
The limit is EDUCATION. If you graduate from high-school at 12, theoretically speaking you COULD be a doctor at 19 or whatever. It's not an AGE limit, it's a SKILL limit.
Also, the guys who are doctors, lawyers, engineers, etc. . . aren't generating BILLIONS of dollars while working for free to whoever. The kids need the medical schools more than the medical schools need them.
In sports, the institutions need the athletes more than they need them, which is why nobody else in the world has an absurd system like this.
The 18 year olds have the SKILL to do the job, which is why they allow 18 year olds from Europe to play in the NBA, just not American born ones, duh.
I'm not against a minor league. I thought that's what the NBDL was supposed to be fore?
Why can't kids come straight out of high-school and play 1 or 2 years in the NBDL?
Why do they have to go be exploited by the NCAA.
Also, if talent is talent, then you just destroyed your own argument. LeBron is LeBron and a top 10 player ever. Kobe is Kobe and is a top 10 player ever.
Pervis Ellison, Larue Martin, Michael Olowokandi, etc. . . no matter how long they stayed in college were ever going to be good players, so it really doesn't matter whether or not guys go to college or not, they're going to be great based on their talent level, not on some lame ass "college" shyt. The Foreign players who are professionals at 16 prove that. Tony Parker and Dirk Nowitzki never spent a day in college and nobody accused them of "not being mature".
The difference seems to me that guys just develop earlier today, if anything. Kevin Durant, Derrick Rose, Anthony Davis, Kobe Bryant, and LeBron James were better at 21, then virtually anybody was who ever came into the NBA at 22. Dudes develop earlier.
Age limits don't benefit the players. Period.
There is no logical argument otherwise. I actually find it interesting that with all of the progressive views Silver has on the league, he wants to raise the limit.
LeBron, Kobe, Amare, etc. . . all benefited from being able to start the clock on their careers earlier and get more max contracts.
Guy who's 18 signs 3 year contract and then is able to get a max contract at 21.
Guy who's 21 signs a 3 year contract and won't be able to get a max contract until 24
Why is that hard to understand?