You’re going to be a first round pick?! Me too!!

Now that basketball fans have had a few weeks to catch their breath after a thrilling NCAA tournament, much of the talk about college basketball is now focused on which players will stay in school and which players will be headed to the NBA. The NBA draft is not for another two months, but the deadline for underclassman to declare for the draft is just a week away and the number of underclassman declaring for the draft is rising every day. The latest player to test the NBA waters is Butler University sophomore Gordon Haywood.

Haywood’s stock is soaring after leading Butler to a amazing run in the NCAA tournament that ended with an appearance in the national championship game. Even though Butler would be returning its top four players next season and all but two members of a team that came within two points of a championship, Haywood decided the time was right to leave and jump to the NBA. You cannot blame him. He is a hot prospect right now and even if he stays another year or two, his stock probably will not get any higher than it is right now. While it would be tough to question Haywood’s decision to go pro, there are dozens of underclassman whose decision to leave early for the NBA is very questionable. So why do so many underclassman leave school early for the NBA?

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As of Thursday, fifty-two underclassman have declared themselves eligible for the 2010 NBA Draft. Add to that number another forty senior prospects eligible for the draft and now the total is over ninety. But that’s not all. There are also at least a half dozen to a dozen international players who are also drawing interest from NBA teams in this draft. That’s one hundred players who are eligible for the NBA draft. One hundred players who believe they have what it takes to make it in the NBA. One hundred players who believe they should take the risk and make the leap into the professional ranks. But when you look closely at the facts, the truth is for over a third of these athletes, they won’t hear their name called on draft night.

There are thirty teams in the NBA. There are two rounds of the NBA draft. That is a total of sixty draft picks. So one hundred players, sixty spots, something there isn’t adding up. Why then do so many underclassman try to make the jump to the NBA draft? For a large number of these athletes, the idea of instantly becoming millionaires is too good to pass up. But what many of these athletes don’t understand is that only first round picks are given guaranteed contracts. Second round picks can make the league minimum but their contracts are not guaranteed. And those who don’t get drafted…well they get nothing. So out of the one hundred athletes who dream of being a first round pick and all the NBA riches, that dream will only come true for less than one-third of them.

But still dozens of players who should not be leaving school early are taking the risk. Somewhere these kids are getting bad advice. Whether its family or friends, agents or executives, someone is telling these underclassman that they are not only good enough to play in the NBA, but they most defiantly will be picked in the first or second round. So why wouldn’t they leave after hearing that. But unless they know for sure they will be chosen in the first round, why take that risk?

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A large number of these players should remain in college, gain more experience, work on their game and improve their position. Critics will say that the potential of millions of dollars is too good to pass up. They argue that a kid could stay in school and get hurt or his draft stock could drop. This could potentially cause the player millions of dollars!! But that’s the wrong way to look at it. Look at all the money these athletes are earning. Their scholarships are worth thousand upon thousands of dollars at top universities. They are also working towards a degree which will allow them to earn thousands or potentially millions of dollars over their lifetime. They aren’t losing out on money, they are gaining more in the long run.

But each player has to make their own choice. Every college player should have the right to make their own decision, but hopefully they are getting the right information to make that decision. As the 2010 NBA draft gets closer, more players will have to weigh the option and make a decision that will change their life. Hopefully, more of these athletes will sit down and make the right decision for themselves.

By: David Hyland
Pro Basketball Fans Staff Writer

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