Pros and Cons of College Basketball's One-and-Done

The controversy surrounding the NBA draft has been around for decades and continues to bring up debate within the sports community. The current “one-and-done” trend of top NBA prospects has seemed to skyrocket since the turn of the century, leaving many people looking for changes in the current NBA draft system. The many pros and cons to the trend doesn’t allow for a clear answer on whether or not to change the rule, leaving constant battle between the two sides.

 Recently, the NCAA sports conference, the Big Ten, has released that it is contemplating setting a rule that would force freshmen athletes to sit out their freshmen year to “get ready” for college and the pros. The possible rule stirred up many thoughts from Big Ten coaches that have spoken on the issue with mixed answers on their support for the idea.

"There are people coming out of high school that are more than ready to play in college and get their degree and maintain their academics and all that.”
 -Wisconsin’s head coach Bo Ryan.

"Having that year where you transition to academics and practice will help academically and help socially. There are a lot of positives to that. Everyone around our sport talks about improving our culture, but what actually does improve our culture? This is something that needs to be discussed."
-Purdue’s head coach Matt Painter.

Since the Haywood vs. NBA Supreme Court Case of 1971, college basketball players have been allowed to declare for the NBA draft one year after their high school graduation, if they are in financial hardship. If a player is not a financial hard case and is not an international player, then they are unable to declare for the draft until four years after high school graduation. For international players, they must be a permanent resident of the nation for at least three years and have never attended a college or university within the states to be eligible for the draft.

The NBA is known for their rugged players who are raised in the inner city and want to make it for their family. Many of the players who are talented enough to earn scholarships and attend major schools would not be able to attend college otherwise. These players aren't concerned about earning a degree and getting a 9-5 job. The average first round draft pick earns $1,546,100 their first season. These players were raised in poverty and want nothing more than to earn millions of dollars doing what they did almost everyday for their entire lives. Coming from these poverty homes is why so many players are able to be declared in a financial hardship and choose to leave after one year of college.

The one-and-done can have many pros and cons surrounding the players, schools, and NBA teams. On one side, there are players like Kevin Durrant, who are having tremendous careers following their one-year season in college. On the other hand, there are players like Rodney White, who after being selected ninth in the 2001 draft, only lasted three seasons in the NBA. The players that leave for the NBA draft after only their freshmen year never believe that they will not succeed, which may be one of the biggest problems with this controversy. However, for the ones that are able to succeed, holding them back may be an injustice to them and the teams that draft them.

Like LeBron James, after high school many players already have the talent to compete at the NBA level. These players don't necessarily need a year of college to transition their talent over to a higher competition and can make an impact in the pros immediately. These players can save themselves and NBA teams at least one more season of their careers and give players a chance to earn pro money earlier in their lives.

For colleges that do nail the big high school recruit for themselves, winning can be a lot easier. In cases like Kentucky and Anthony Davis, having the biggest freshmen prospect can lead to national championships. This helps the team because with every tournament win a team earns, the conference  the team is in increases the amount of money they will receive from the NCAA's conference distributions. For the average $35,000 a school gives to a student-athlete in scholarships over one year, the cost is surpassed by the $875,000 the school receives from the tournament wins.

Besides the good that can come out of a one-and-done season, there are also cons.

One problem with players having to go to school but leaving after one season is the risk of being an NBA bust. Many players already know that they are going to enter the draft after their freshmen year before the first time they walk into practice. Once they enter the draft and hire an agent, their NCAA eligibility is gone, and the player is no longer able to play college basketball. For many players, this is no big deal and they go on to have successful careers. But for some, leaving school without a degree may be something that can haunt them. The average length of an NBA career is 4.8 years. Over the past decade, a majority of the players that enter the NBA have not graduated from college and did not make it more than five years in the league. The problem with this is that these athletes usually do not have the grades to get accepted into another school without basketball. The average NCAA basketball player scored 227 points below their average classmate on the SATs. Most division 1 schools only require a minimum SAT score and a cumulative GPA of 2.3 upon graduating high school to obtain an athletic scholarship. These grades are not high enough to be accepted into most colleges, which leaves NBA busts without a job or degree. 

Another concern regarding the one-and-done trend is the unknown of a player's body. Once entering the NBA after one college season, many players obtain serious injuries within the first few years of their career. Players like Derrick Rose, Greg Oden, and Jabari Parker all received injuries within the first four years of their careers after leaving college their freshmen year. The transition from high school to the pros is a huge step and college is the middle ground that many athletes need to well adjust their bodies for the NBA. By only staying one year, players may not realize their bodies aren't ready to perform at such a high level which can lead to injuries.

The controversial topic of the one-and-done player is one that may never be solved. No matter what side you argue, the opposition's argument will always be valid. There may never be a clear-cut choice on what to do with this current trend, and arguments of money and talent can go either way. With the issue of the one-and-done, neither the players, coaches, nor fans can know the right answer.