Age Limit...?

[ItalianStallion]

So the NBA adopted that 19 year old age limit. With all the calls of racism and that stuff, I'd like to know what you guys think.

Stephen Jackson brought up a good point when he said that you can go fight for your country when you're 18 and not even know how to work a gun, so how can the NBA not let them come support their family? I totally agree with that. But I also think the NBA had to adopt a program because there's guys like LeBron... but then there's tons of guys that go undrafted out of high school and lose their NCAA eligibility so they can't play in college, and for some of them that means not even going to college. So there's just an 18 year old with a high school diploma out on the streets. Even for the ones that do get drafted, if they get hurt they at least have a college degree to fall back on.

That being said, I don't think 19 was the age to set it at. If you're going to have an age limit, I'd set it at 21 so that they've already got 3 years under their belt, you'll see a lot more kids stay and finish out college than will declare immediately.

I know most of you know about this, and I'd like to hear your opinions.

[Esimorp]

my thoughts are this:

there should be no age limit but being a form of entertainment the nba has the right to do so....the problem with the nba is that it is not set up to run with a minor league system to develop players at mid level compeition. college, d league or foreign leagues would be those mid level comp leaguee....football basicall yuses college as a minor league system and baseball has the most developed with three levels and/or 3 years of college before you reach the big stage.....pheonoms excluded of course......

but the 19 yr old limit is just a formality for those wanting to come out straight from high school wait one year and go.....

however the commish could be on to something here. one year in college and a guy has to show he can handle and dominate that level of competition. this could easiley weed out a few guys who need development and force them to stay in school to develop rather than come out as a second round pick....

for those who go to prep school and whip up on high schoolers for another year maybe after a few top guys go into college and don't dominate and these guys start getting looked at as having copped out....

it seems to me that iall these high school guys are getting drafted. It doesn't seem to that the problem is so much about lost eligability because anybody not projected in the top 20 went to college which mean they are 1st rounders or not in the draft.....the issue seems to be the teams who are taking these players are are not able to play them to get the experience and develop them because at the pro level there are very few teachers.....so these guys are forced to develop on their own..... those who have the desire to develop within them would have same desire with a base set of skills to build on with at at least a few years of college training at a top notch program....

speaking as a fan i think it is lowering the quality of play in the game and would like to see ithis solved however this is done.....if i were a player with the opportunity to be drafted in the first round of the nba draft i would jump at the opportunity and even as a fani can't hate on those who do . so quality control comes down to the commish and he has decided to attack the issue with an age limit. so be it...

[ItalianStallion]

I agree with almost all of what you've said, but see another problem was the GM's having to take a guess at whether or not these high school guys could come out and compete right away. For every LeBron there's 3 Kwames... but no one wants to pass on the next big thing. This lets the NBA GM's see the guys compete at the collegiate level with other future NBAers, gets the pro scouts out of the high school gyms, and eliminates a lot of the guesswork of the GMs.

[SlickRick1382]

Touchy subject. I for one have no real opinon on this matter. Although I think setting an age restriction will benefit the league and the teams, I have no real quarrel with any high schooler being offered millions of dollars to declare, do so. It does take away from the game because alot of theses kids never live up to expectations, but that happens in all sports, Ryan Leaf, etc.

-----------------------------madden 2006--------------------------------

Instead of no real opinion I should of said I'm indifferent.

[Dlove]

My take on the subject is this. From a fan,s prospective I feel it was a great move. I don't want to see players who still have everything and it's mama to learn about the game. Go to school and learn what U are trying to learn in the league. Not saying that all players that come out of college suceed but they have a better chance.

Now from the Players point of view. I would be pissed. I have a chance to make some good money. Money most people won't see ever. Now I can't take it because of this age limit. I might be a bust in school. I might not prove myself in school and miss out on all this money. This is my big chance. Damn David Stern.

Either way it goes everybody has a point. It'll take a few years to see how all this works. Was it a good move who knows but I don't disagree with it. I really think it should have been higher, something like 21 which was stated before.

[titansrule]

Gotta agree with most of what has been said.

If I was a player I would be pissed. However...if this player is not smart enough tto realise its for his own good that this age limit is in place, as he will hone his skills moreso, then maybe he shouldnt be in the league at all. If he lacks the patience of but a year...then hmmm

When the success ratio is so low on this high school guys, this is probably a good idea.

[holyjabroni73]

I agree with alot of what has been said in here as well. I agree the age should have been at least 20. I think it will help players that dominate at high school, prove they can do it against tougher opponents. High School and NBA do have a big difference in competition last time i checked.

The thing I think it will help teams determine too is these young guys character and such. It might help weed out some of the bad apples that have such a bad mojo about them that they wont succeed anyway. It will give the teams an extra scouting avenue. I think that to be eligible for the draft you should have that one year in college too not some darn prep school. Im not huge on the NBA but this was a smart move for them.

[cashpath]

The NBA is a private organization and has the right to set whatever rules they want.. as long as it doesn't violate any constitutional rights which of course age limits don't otherwise we would all be able to drink before 21

I was a Marine before I was old enough to legally SMOKE (yeah I was 17)..

Having said that...

Someone explain all this to Martha Burk

[scudgod31]

The age Limit should be 21 simply because most basketbal, footbal, etc. players don't have the rquired intelligence to think about what might happen if something goes wrong. They DON'T think about their future they'd rather buy a mansion and stuff they cant afford then have security in their future...this is why most all-stars end up filing for bankruptcy. Just look at Derrick Thomas although he was one of the greatest players and could have gone down as the best LB in NFL history he prbly wouldnt have been very successful finacially. He had like 7 kids with 3 different women and was dealing out child support for all 7..plus the charity he created he trusted his gangster/hoodlum buddies to run it who of course stole all of the money. This man had a dim future financially. The fact that he was dumb enough to drive on a snowy/icy day in Kansas City( my hometown) without his seatbelt on and not paying attention to driving ended his life and career so i guess thats a prime example of stupidity in athletes.

[SenorMatt24]

Derrick Thomas was 22 his rookie year. So I'm not sure what he has to do with an age limit... And I gather from what your saying that if he stayed in college, he wouldn't have had 7 kids with 5 wives... Am I wrong?

Is it not possible to go to college and still have kids with different wives?

[ItalianStallion]

Originally Posted by scudgod31

The fact that he was dumb enough to drive on a snowy/icy day in Kansas City( my hometown) without his seatbelt on and not paying attention to driving ended his life and career so i guess thats a prime example of stupidity in athletes.

Come on dude... this is kind of off-topic but I mean let's be easy on DT. The man was a beast. Plus, I know people that aren't athletes that don't wear seatbelts when they drive...

But yeah back to the age-limit thing, I know a couple guys were saying that the players would be pissed. Watching some of these guys talk, Martell Webster and Gerald Green both said that if the 19 year old age-limit was in place, they would've just gone to college and it wouldn't have been a big deal. So I really don't think most of them would be pissed, although there will be some that won't like it.

[SlickRick1382]

**** i sometimes dont' wear a seatbelt when I drive, its a bad habit, but I've been in college for 4 years, that doesnt' mean I'm stupid. I definitly would of put it on in the snow, but still doesn't mean I'm stupid because I happen to not always use it.

Actually if I really think of it it kind of does mean I'm stupid since I'm risking my life apparently, but I'm not stupid. I'm sure I'm not the only one. and I'm rambling on without a clear thesis here.

[cashpath]

I always wear a seatbelt..

Age does not define maturity but its the best way to get a higher percentage.

For example.. therea re plenty of 30+40+ year old idiots that drink and drive. But the percentage of people over 30 that drink and drive is a lot lower than that of people 29 and under. And then there are some people who never would drink and drive even when they were 17 years old.

Any one can give examples of people doing things that are stupid at any age, the point is the longer most people live the more they mature and make smarter decisions. So the ideal is to come up with good ages at which you think the MAJORITY of people are going to do the right thing.

Originally Posted by ItalianStallion

So the NBA adopted that 19 year old age limit. With all the calls of racism and that stuff, I'd like to know what you guys think.

Stephen Jackson brought up a good point when he said that you can go fight for your country when you're 18 and not even know how to work a gun, so how can the NBA not let them come support their family? I totally agree with that.

With what Stephen Jackson JUST said, I totally hate his *** now. You know why, cause it's the American Soldiers DYING everyday for **** money we make in the military and they MAKE MILLIONS and want to cry about not being able to feed their family. They go on strike cause they don't get what they want. Soldiers don't cry, Soldiers drive on and defend all the people in the United States of America and abroad, all over the world, all day every day.

He could have said anything else than what he did. The reason they set the limit, was so that the KIDS can go to college and get SOME while they can. How many KIDS that came out of HSand went pro, went back to graduate college?? I know Michael Jordan did, but he already had 3 years of college. Has Kevin Garnett got his college degree? Has Kobe gotten his? Has Tracy McGrady gotten his? Ok, so yeah they make millions, but who cares. Their career could be over in an instant and what would they do then? They won't get endorsements cause they can't do nothing. Or is that the time when they say ok, I'll go back to school and learn my ABC's again.

In the last few years, it's become ridiculously insane of the high school players that go straight to pro. They do it for the money, cause they may get hurt in college and never get to play and get what? the money. Maybe it's smart, maybe it's dumb, but to say that people can join the army at 18 and shoot guns DOES NOT even compare to the ignorance that the KIDS show to skip college all together.

I say RAISE it some more and kiss my *** Stephen Jackson!

Thats The Stupidest Thing Ever

[T.O.F.N.]

Just wondering maddenmaster342... what exactly were you referring to?

[ripperjd]

Why not just require the players to have a college degree? Yes, there are some great players that can come right out of HS and play, but it's also a good way to ruin a great player. If a player goes in from HS, fails and looses his confidence, where is he to go from there? Maybe a byproduct would be; if they required the players to live life a bit more and go to college, we would have more ball players than thugs out on the courts.

[Chaos6]

Originally Posted by maddenmaster342

Thats The Stupidest Thing Ever

I sure hope this comment was not directed at a Mods post. You need to clarify what you are talking about or you could risk being banned.

[titansrule]

I think he was saying it as regards the new rule...tho im not sure...

[T.O.F.N.]

that's what I'm hoping.

But who knows...

[scudgod31]

Ok i was on vacation in minnesota so i didn't get the chance to check up on this topic....so let me go back to the seat belt talk. In Kansas City I believe while we may not get much snow when we do get winter precipitation the upper air is usually warmer then the air that youfeel on the ground. Thus instead of it snowing it rains because the air at 2000 feet is above freezing. So when that rain falls on Kansas City in the winter the ground level temperature could be below freezing thus we get freezing rain. In Kansas City I would say we have far more days of ice then snow...if we have traffic problems its because of ice because we rarely get mopre then 3" of snow. Now to bring this back to the topic. Derrick Thomas had played for 7 seasons with the chiefs and thus had seen KC weather. So today when DT was driving he decided to not wear a seat belt, no big deal right?...WRONG!!! See when i posted about this I said DT wasn't wearing a seat belt on a snowy/icy day in Kansas City. Maybe where u guys live u have never experienced one of these days way suburban streets are so bad some time it takes many hours to get out of your house because your driveway slants upwards. DT was driving without a seatbelt on of THOSE days.... this wasnt a great sunshine day it was an ICY ICY ICY ICY ICY day. Now tell me IS and SlickRick would have worn a seat belt that day???? if not then wtf ru thinking....thus my POINT. O yea and umm....I wasnt trying to show that DT got smarter from college just to show that in general athletes aren't very smart with their money and just decide to go around and **** everything they see. Granted there are a few athletes still around who actually are decent people but it seems that the greatest athletes nemore are dickheads. Yea Brett Farve may be a great guy and some of the other stars but lets face it in general the morals of athletes seem to be on the decline. I think the major problem with the greatest athletes is they have never had to take on any responsibility so they feel they can do whatever they want. O yea and IS im not dogging on DT for his on-the-field play im dogging him for what he did off the field. Yea DT was a great football player but by any means he was not a role model. To sum this up my whole point in my previous post on this topic was to show that athletes arent given enough responsibility and in general dont think about their futures or of any consequences for their actions. That is why i think the age limit should be 21 because that would force the athletes to go to college and get a degree so that if they do blow all of their money away thwey have something to fall back on and we can stop hearing about all these great athletes who blew away their money and our now broke.

-----------------------------madden 2006--------------------------------

whoa i think i got a little out of hand in that last post there...ummm if u find nething offensive disregard it seeing as how i cant edit it sorry if i was offensive in advance ><

[cashpath]

Hmm... thats funny you contradict yourself first you say that athletes are stupid morons even if they go to college (How old was DT when he didn't where a seatbelt on a icy day?)

Then you say the age limit should be 21.... why does it matter if they are going to be stupid anyway?

And nobody has to hear about anything.. just turn the TV or radio off if you don't want to hear it.

Sports should only require a high school diploma or GED with a waiver just like the military, but they have a right to set whatever employment guidlines they want.....

[scudgod31]

Cash dont you think it would be a good idea for all athletes to go throurgh college first so they can get a degreee just in case something happens??? If athletes are stupid, which I have already addressed then we should make them go to school.
O yea and what I meant when I said "hear" is that there would be some kind of an end to athletes becoming broke because they would have a college education to fall back on. So they could get a decent job in case something happens.
I think DT was 29 btw..

[cashpath]

Did you know that the hardest profession to transition out of is not a sport? Its the USMC infantry. And its not like a marine corps grunt makes a lot of money, unlike football players who in 3 years make about a million dollars if they are a bottom feeder (minimum pay).

So if we should require an athlete to attend college and get a degree then we should require all people who join the military for a profession that there is no equivalent of in the civilian world then they should require them to goto college also.

No I don't think an athlete should be required to go to college. I think being an athlete is a profession, I think athletes make enough money to goto college and support themselves and thier families for 4 years once they no longer are playing thier sport. I think once a person is 18 they are an adult and we shouldn't tell them what they have to do. Whether they goto work at Mcdonalds or as a football player, or basketball player.

Now, an employer has the right to require things that are constatutional for employment and obvioulsy an age requirement is constitutional so thats what sports do.

But, if you think for 1 second that the reasoning behind sports like football and basketball are requiring age limits is because they give a rats *** whether or not an athlete gets an education first you are naive. They want to be able to evaluate the athletes against thier minor league competition for at least a year (or three in footballs case) before they shell out the big bucks to gamble how well they will play against the pros. That is the only reason, there is no other.

[scudgod31]

While I realize cash that the reason the NBA put on the age limit was for scouting purposes I also realize that if u dont have a college education its almost impossible to get a decent job
Another thing most people enter the army at 18 so they will pay for them to go to college. But i guess all in all we should let athletes make their own mistakes just like everyone else...so in a way u r correct.

[cashpath]

I also realize that if u dont have a college education its almost impossible to get a decent job...

SO, when they are dont making millions playing pro ball, they can then goto college... but they might as well play pro ball when they are young and thier bodies can handle it..

Another thing most people enter the army at 18 so they will pay for them to go to college

hmmm.. I never said Army ..... and the USMC has a GI bill which you have to pay $100 a month for the first year you are in to get and then in return you get like $900 a month for 36 months.... That barely pays tuiton... if it even does that..

But i guess all in all we should let athletes make their own mistakes just like everyone else...so in a way u r correct

Thats my whole point, what just because they are athletes we should coddle them, or make thier decisions for them? I don't think we, or anyone should do that......