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Recap of NBA Age Limit Panel at UNC Chapel Hill Scholarly Conference on College Sports

By Rick Karcher, Michael McCann, Geoffrey Rapp, Greg Skidmore, and Howard Wasserman

Neil Offan of the Durham Herald Sun writes about "fixing" the NBA's one-and-done rule, which was a panel at the 2010 Scholarly Conference on College Sport at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Here's an excerpt from Offan's story:

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. . . [A]ll the panelists agreed that if players really don't want to be students, they shouldn't be on campus.

"If a young man doesn't want to be in college, you shouldn't be forcing that man to," said Shane Lyons, the ACC associate commissioner for compliance and governance. "What we have to do is make sure that one year is valuable for those young men, make sure they're going to class."

The NBA rule strikes a lot of people as unfair, said Vermont law professor Michael McCann, who also serves as a legal analyst for Sports Illustrated.

"The evidence is overwhelming that those who skip school have done very well as professionals, so why not let them all have the choice?" McCann said. "I'm not saying they should all not go to college. I'm saying they should be able to make the choice."

And even if the player makes the wrong choice, [Maryland coach Gary] Williams said he should be given a second chance.

"A player should have the right to make a mistake," he said. "You should be able to go back to college if you don't make it in the NBA. You should be allowed to get out and go back to school, with still having your eligibility."

It's difficult for student-athletes in financial need to stay in college when the NBA offers them multi-million dollar contracts, the Maryland coach said.

"They are frequently among the poorest students on campus," Williams said. "If there was a way to provide a stipend for them, because they're not like the other college students. It's a tough fight to keep people [at school] when there is so much money to be made."

Panelist Darryl Dawkins, the first player to jump directly from high school to the NBA, nevertheless supported the idea of spending at least a year at college.

"One year is getter than none," Dawkins said. "You at least have something to fall back on." But by going pro, Dawkins said, he was able to put six of his brothers and sisters through college.

Other players should have the opportunity Dawkins seized, McCann said. "Why not let them take advantage of that brief moment in their lives when they can make a lot of money?" McCann said. "Who cares about the effect on college basketball? What about the effect on the players?"

For additional commentary on the conference, be sure to see excellent commentary by Megan Kahn, Assistant Commissioner of the Atlantic 10 Conference, over on College Athletics Clips (subscription only).

Full post as published by Sports Law Blog on May 06, 2010 (boomark / email).