Apr 09 2008
Too early to speculate?
Alright, so I was poking around on ESPN’s 2008 NBA mock draft calculator. Players included are Michael Beasley, OJ Mayo, and Chicago’s own Derrick Rose.
Pop quiz: As of today, what do these three players have in common?
Answer: That’s right - None of them have declared for the draft. Is it likely that they will? Yes, and it certainly won’t be a shock when it does. But here’s what I can’t understand. The 2008 NBA Draft isn’t even until late June, and the lottery won’t happen for at least an hour or so.
The decision of the NBA to enforce a rule that players have to be out of high school for at least a year before joining the NBA was a monumental decision that has begun a process that will help develop players as people, apart from athletes. While this is true, how many of these guys with dollar signs in their eyes are going to go back and still develop as athletes, and earn that diploma that so many are walking away from prematurely?
Then again, if I was 6′10″, weighed 250, and could dunk like Beasley, I’d probably consider the NBA too.
