NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Ranking No. 1 prospect Jalen Duren’s final 5 options
By Ian Mumm
NBL – National Basketball League (NZ)
The professional route is seemingly becoming more and more popular in recent seasons as players are finding ways to fully concentrate on their craft prior to traversing the draft process. Recent NBA selections RJ Hampton and LaMelo Ball, the league’s 2021 Rookie of the Year recipient, each made the trek to New Zealand to play in the National Basketball League (NBL) for a season as an alternative to the more traditional college route.
Seeing another top prospect, like Duren, take the time to consider this option is not surprising with the current trends towards skipping college for the professional route. However, the moves of Hampton and Ball to the NBL helped to speed up the establishment of the NBA’s G-League equivalent meant to develop and mentor players prior to the draft. The purpose is also to keep players choosing to forego college on US soil and under trusted staffers that enable better scouting and evaluation by the NBA.
In Duren’s case, the decision to join the NBL will come down to the specifics of the deal. The NBL has proven to help branding with regards to Ball and it could very well do the same for its potential newest addition. The NBA’s G-League pathway has ensured that the players it signs will receive a substantial contract for the duration of the time in the program, thus for Duren to choose the NBL and move overseas the financials will have to drastically exceed those of the deal he could take to stay in the United States.