NCAA Basketball: Should undrafted underclassmen get to return to school?
The “snowball” effect of allowing undrafted players to come back
The big plan for those who are in favor of guys coming back is for the 100 or so players to be able to rejoin their teams for the following season.
And then what?
These guys aren’t returning to the same team. Coaching staffs have year-round plans for high school recruits. And for the late commits after April and especially May, those decisions are made knowing that guys are leaving for the draft and never coming back. This is all without accounting for the 700+ transfers, who pick their next team based on who’s on the roster for next season.
There already was a similar situation a month ago with Nevada Basketball. Coach Eric Musselman brought in a pair of grad transfers, along with a surprising pickup of a five-star player. They were already at 13 scholarships max before the deadline for players to withdraw from the NBA Draft. Then Cody and Caleb Martin decided to stay around for another season to make them at 15.
Two guys had to leave the Wolf Pack for things to work out. Grad transfer Ehab Amin made the decision to look elsewhere, while wing Josh Hall “transferred”.
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Now imagine nearly 100 schools going through this. And this is where I get confused with those who support underclassmen coming back. I understand the reasoning and the desire to help those guys out, but it has a huge impact on rosters just months before official practices start. The idea that coaches will hold scholarships for players for two months on the chance they’ll come back is laughable. Just look at the saga between Lagerald Vick and Bill Self of Kansas to see that.
By the way, we as fans and analysts have to stop saying some of these guys made mistakes by going pro early. Malik Newman of Kansas would’ve have been in a very crowded backcourt had he return. Trevon Duval would’ve had to share minutes with another five-star point guard and age now plays a huge role in how scouts value prospects. I know because these guys are young it’s easy to say they made dumb decisions. But in reality, the vast majority of the players left with their pro stocks likely never to be higher.
This idea – as goodhearted as it may look could potentially put hundreds of college athletes in limbo in the month of July. Players would “transfer” – a nicer way of saying they’ll get kicked off the teams for better players. Summer classes are starting soon, meaning players will have to sit out a season before playing.
Next: Which 2018 NBA Draftees will have the best career?
Do I feel for the guys that didn’t get drafted? Yes and no. With over 100 underclassmen declared, they know the risk of what they’re doing. Plus, six-figure checks await them in Europe if they’re good enough. Would I love to see them play some more in college? Of course, but not at the expense of the future stars who already are settled into their new homes.