Knudson: Should I Stay or Should I Go?

By Mark Knudson, The Mtn. Insider
April 18, 2011

By all accounts, it sounds like Kawhi Leonard’s decision to leave San Diego State after his sensational sophomore campaign was an easy one. Aztecs head coach Steve Fisher was on board and so was Leonard’s family. The NBA “advisory board” obviously told him what he wanted to hear.

One of the most talented players to ever play in the Mountain West Conference is taking his talents to the next level. Undoubtedly the loudest cheers are coming from places like Albuquerque, Las Vegas, Laramie and Fort Collins as other Conference members now see the depleted Aztecs as beatable next season.

Everyone associated with the Conference wishes him well. Leonard was a great player and ambassador for the Conference for two seasons. Two seasons. Two very good seasons, no doubt. But are two seasons at the college level enough to get any player ready for the NBA?

The whole “one and done” scenario with players spending a single year at the college level before jumping to the NBA has been debated near and far and could be a point of contention in the upcoming NBA labor talks (more on those in a minute). It’s very obvious that the rule is hurting the players – kids that should be getting more seasoning as players and people in college before going pro – along with the college and even professional game. Everyone suffers when the players aren’t yet ready for that next level.

But what exactly is the right amount of time for a kid to stay in college? Two years? Three? All four?

Some have advocated that NCAA basketball adopt the same policy college baseball uses. In baseball, a student-athlete is eligible to be drafted and sign out of high school, although he’s not jumping straight to the big leagues; instead, he’s signed up for a nice five to six year stint in the bush leagues.

However, if he decides to go to college, then he can’t go back into the professional draft until after his junior year or until he turns 21. It’s been that way in baseball for decades. Don’t be shocked if basketball adopts the same policy before too much longer. That would effectively eliminate the “one and done” scenario but would allow the NBA to begin drafting high schoolers again.

Not only will the topic come up again during the on going NBA labor talks, but it’s a good bet that a change to a system like baseball uses would get the endorsement of the NBA Players Association. That seems sort of strange. You would think that the union’s members would be more concerned about its current members than future ones. How many veteran players can be happy about the ridiculous salaries these unproven rookies get right after being drafted, before they set foot on the court? However, the union apparently is against any age limit and rookie salary cap.

A bargaining ploy, perhaps?

It will be a big surprise if the league’s age limit/”one and done” rule is still in place when the ink dries on the next collective bargaining agreement.

But when exactly will that be? Most observers believe a lockout is eminent, and that there’s a decent chance that the start of next season, and maybe more, could be lost to a labor battle.

Which brings us back to Kawhi Leonard.

Leonard and all the underclassmen who elected entered this years draft are running the risk of having no basketball to play next fall. The NBA Summer League has already been cancelled for this summer. Yes, there will be a draft, but if there’s a lockout, players can’t sign, practice or do anything with their new team until a new agreement is in place. If that happens late in the process, how willing is a coach going to be to stick a raw rookie into the mix without having had much time to practice with his new team?

Ironically, if there’s a prolonged work stoppage, young men like Kawhi Leonard might very well wish they had stayed in school for another year.

See all of Mark Knudson' blog entries HERE.