G league

[albanycuse]

I don’t understand the logic of skipping college to go there. Is it really worth it, they pay peanuts and are players really going to get better there? What kind of coaches are there? Seems like a bad move just to get paid and skip college.

 

[asj410]

The G League may pay peanuts, but AFAIK, we have no idea how big of a bag was slipped to Bazley to convince him to go that route, despite it supposedly just being a loan.

 

[UnknownOrange]

I don’t understand the logic of skipping college to go there. Is it really worth it, they pay peanuts and are players really going to get better there? What kind of coaches are there? Seems like a bad move just to get paid and skip college.

Is it worth it? TBD.

The most Bazley can make is $26,000 but I've seen he may start at $19,000.

Are players really going to get better there? He will be playing against stronger and more advanced players but it depends how many minutes he plays and such. Competition is for sure better though.

Coaches? No Hall of Famers if that's what you're wondering - NBA G League Head Coaches - NBA G League

It's an unprecedented move for sure - can't say it's bad yet. Certainly stings Syracuse but we move on.

 

[Alsacs]

Pros:
You don’t have to go classes.
You get paid to play basketball.
You play against men instead of college kids.
You can get money from an agent or company.

Cons:
You don’t get to workout with someone for free till G League season starts in November.
You are going to be playing a pick and roll style where everyone is trying to get theirs.
You don’t get the publicity of playing on national TV as the main guy.
You don’t get to play in the tournament and increase your brand.

It’s all about the player. If kids don’t want to go to school they shouldn’t.

 

[RF2044]

I don’t understand the logic of skipping college to go there. Is it really worth it, they pay peanuts and are players really going to get better there? What kind of coaches are there? Seems like a bad move just to get paid and skip college.

Forget the salary -- it is about him being able to receive other forms of compensation without restriction. If he goes to college, then he doesn't get paid until he declares / leaves college to go pro. In other words, no $$$ until April 2019, per NCAA rules.

By doing this, he can get endorsement money, he can sign sneaker contracts, he can receive loans from agents -- all without restriction. Not life altering money, by any means, but enough to float him through the year and elevate his family's circumstances in the short term until he cashes in with an NBA contract. So, in the big scheme of things, the G league salary is irrelevant -- it was likely more about removing the restrictions the NCAA imposes on getting paid, and getting access to $$$ faster in the short term.

 

[UnknownOrange]

Pros:
You don’t have to go classes.
You get paid to play basketball.
You play against men instead of college kids.
You can get money from an agent or company.

Cons:
You don’t get to workout with someone for free till G League season starts in November.
You are going to be playing a pick and roll style where everyone is trying to get theirs.
You don’t get the publicity of playing on national TV as the main guy.
You don’t get to play in the tournament and increase your brand.

It’s all about the player. If kids don’t want to go to school they shouldn’t.

Two sides to this - tougher to create your own brand without going to college/being an absolute HS phenom. The other side is the NBA will know who you are and have better input on you (can be good or bad) so exposure doesn't matter as much

 

[asj410]

The thing I'm most curious about is if this decision to go to the G League will cause his draft stock to rise or drop from where it likely could have been had he gone to SU. We'll never really know, but it seems to me like it's much more likely to drop unless he somehow manages to dominate despite his thin frame.

 

[SUFan44]

From a strictly basketball standpoint & a draft positioning standpoint, I think it's a terrible move. No G-League team is going to care about developing him, and none of his teammates are going to care about him. They all want to be called up, and it's not possible for him to be called up. Therefore, how is this going to benefit him?

People can say practice and individual workouts, no school, etc., but scouts & executives are going to be watching the G-League games and if he doesn't perform there then why will he be a good investment?

From a financial standpoint, he's going to get more money for him up front now. So obviously that's a win. But in a day and age where people are all about the now and present, I don't believe this is a good investment for his future. He didn't even start or outshine everyone in the McDonald's All-American game, for crying out loud. What makes him think he's better off doing this?

 

[SoBeCuse]

From a strictly basketball standpoint & a draft positioning standpoint, I think it's a terrible move. No G-League team is going to care about developing him, and none of his teammates are going to care about him. They all want to be called up, and it's not possible for him to be called up. Therefore, how is this going to benefit him?

People can say practice and individual workouts, no school, etc., but scouts & executives are going to be watching the G-League games and if he doesn't perform there then why will he be a good investment?

From a financial standpoint, he's going to get more money for him up front now. So obviously that's a win. But in a day and age where people are all about the now and present, I don't believe this is a good investment for his future. He didn't even start or outshine everyone in the McDonald's All-American game, for crying out loud. What makes him think he's better off doing this?

I just don’t get the why not play in college for one year. Wait for one year! Something else soured him and his camp. Why else would he be the ONLY dude doing this? Not that he played poorly in the McD game but I would think it would’ve been somewhat of a humbling experience getting clearly outshined by guys like Little, Barrett, Reid, Langford, etc. Those guys are going to college. Is there even time for him to work on his game and body?

 

[andyw715]

So once he's "in" ie. has a G League team, what resources does he receive to help him grown into a better NBA player? Why would a team do that since he'd go to the draft in 2019. Doesn't make sense.

Also I don't think he's such a superstar player out of highschool that these companies are flocking to him with endorsement money. It's not like he is #1,2,3 recruit like the kids going to Duke, they will be flooded at the end of next season with the money.

 

[Toga]

There are many pros and cons but the biggest risk is a greater likelihood of being exposed in the G league than college and thus negatively impact his first NBA contract.

 

[UnknownOrange]

So once he's "in" ie. has a G League team, what resources does he receive to help him grown into a better NBA player? Why would a team do that since he'd go to the draft in 2019. Doesn't make sense.

Also I don't think he's such a superstar player out of highschool that these companies are flocking to him with endorsement money. It's not like he is #1,2,3 recruit like the kids going to Duke, they will be flooded at the end of next season with the money.

But imagine you're a G League team and your NBA affiliate is likely to be in the lottery the next year. You get a nice long audition for a kid you may take or not - due to your close interactions all year long

 

[Alsacs]

I just don’t get the why not play in college for one year. Wait for one year! Something else soured him and his camp. Why else would he be the ONLY dude doing this? Not that he played poorly in the McD game but I would think it would’ve been somewhat of a humbling experience getting clearly outshined by guys like Little, Barrett, Reid, Langford. Those guys are going to college. Is there even time for him to work on his game and body?

I honestly don’t think this kid bailed because of our program or playing style after all the air has played out.
That hypothesis right after the decommit was legit IMO because we as fans were in shock.
I said something to effect this shows there is something wrong with the program I was wr-wr-wrong.
The kid didn’t want to go to college.

It’s just that simple. We got the kid who really didn’t want to even fake going to class. The G-League probably isn’t the right spot but he doesn’t want to go overseas.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I honestly don’t think this kid bailed because of our program or playing style after all the air has played out.
That hypothesis right after the decommit was legit IMO because we as fans were in shock.
I said something to effect this shows there is something wrong with the program I was wr-wr-wrong.
The kid didn’t want to go to college.

It’s just that simple. We got the kid who really didn’t want to even fake going to class. The G-League probably isn’t the right spot but he doesn’t want to go overseas.

I also think he does legitimately view himself as a professional pioneer being the first to venture into the unknown.

Honestly, if he thinks the NCAA stuff is dumb and just didn't want to participate, I respect it.

Some people just can't be shackled by the rules of society.

 

[SoBeCuse]

I honestly don’t think this kid bailed because of our program or playing style after all the air has played out.
That hypothesis right after the decommit was legit IMO because we as fans were in shock.
I said something to effect this shows there is something wrong with the program I was wr-wr-wrong.
The kid didn’t want to go to college.

It’s just that simple. We got the kid who really didn’t want to even fake going to class. The G-League probably isn’t the right spot but he doesn’t want to go overseas.

You’re probably right but just playing Devil’s Advocate; I’m sure Langford, Nassir Little, and co., probably ideally don’t want to be in college either.

 

[RandygoCuse]

No G-League team is going to care about developing him,

This is an important point. If he were drafted onto a G-League team by a parent team that was truly interested in him, there would be a lot more incentive to develop him. But now he needs a little more luck - namely selecting (or being selected for) a team that wants to and will be in position to draft him. He may still do just fine. As others have said, the jury is out on this whether the G-League is a viable alternative to the NCAA in developing talent. But we do know that it's less likely a team will be interested in developing him.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

This is an important point. If he were drafted onto a G-League team by a parent team that was truly interested in him, there would be a lot more incentive to develop him. But now he needs a little more luck - namely selecting (or being selected for) a team that wants to and will be in position to draft him. He may still do just fine. As others have said, the jury is out on this whether the G-League is a viable alternative to the NCAA in developing talent. But we do know that it's less likely a team will be interested in developing him.

People keep saying this.

I promise you, whatever team he ends up on - they're going to make sure he develops.

Silver's not a moron. He learned from the best.

 

[721Comstock]

People keep saying this.

I promise you, whatever team he ends up on - they're going to make sure he develops.

Why? What's in it for them?

Let's say that he develops REALLY well - then ALL the other NBA teams have a shot at drafting him, with no extra protection or rights to the parent organization of the G-League team he ends up playing for.

 

[FRANKIEFAN]

I wonder if Lavar Ball can flip him to the Big Baller League? He'd get the 100k Lavar is throwing around and likely play against Community College level competition. Probably tough to play well in those shoes though.

 

[SmilinBob]

Let's just say Bazley got $100K from an agent as a loan and is getting 20K from the G League. My questions are: What happens if he is hurt and can no longer play, how does he pay that back? How does the IRS define "loan"? Questions regarding his G League salary: Who pays for food and lodging? Rehab?

It's his life and he's over 18 but I hope he has thought of these things.

 

[newmexicuse]

Let us hypothetically say that if Baz came to the Cuse and starred that he would have been drafted as a late lottery pick - approx # 10 overall. So, in terms of draft status, that would represent his potential upside.

Now lets say that he goes to the G-League getting drafted by a team whose NBA owner is a non-lottery team. Let us say drafting somewhere around 20 give or take. The G league team is now incentivized to underdevelop Baz so that he would be available when they select. So, in this scenerio, Baz will get his G league coffee $$$ plus some spiffs, but when time for the big payout comes it might be very costly. The #10 pick over three years will earn approx $ 9M. the # 20 pick approximately $ 5.5M over three seasons. No way will Baz earn $ 3.5 M all in playing in the g league next season.

Let's say Baz even gets selected by a G league team whose NBA team is likely to be in the late lottery, say that same 10 spot. Let's further say that with full development, Baz might have risen to the # 7 slot, just three better. Again, no incentive by the # 10 to develop him.However, had he risen to get drafted at # 7 he would earn approx $ 11.3 M over three seasons. Just getting drafted three slots lower in the lottery would cost him approx $ 2.3M.

So, bottom line, it is hard to envision a scnerio where the G league team will have incentive to fully develop Baz. That team will want to hide his talents if there is any possibility they might be in position to draft him. Also, if the NBA team would definitely not be in aposition to draft Baz, then why develop him at all vs say some undrafted FA who might improve enuf to get called up sometime during the season...not to mention as compared to the two way dudes.

Would other teams then waste say a # 7 draft pick on a kid based upon what they saw of him in HS if he is not doing much in the g league ??? probably not.

I think Baz just did the penny wise pound foolish thing. Time will tell.

 

[Jasoncuse]

I don’t understand the logic of skipping college to go there. Is it really worth it, they pay peanuts and are players really going to get better there? What kind of coaches are there? Seems like a bad move just to get paid and skip college.

The G-League salary is probably barely top 10 on his list of reasons for making the move...

 

[Jasoncuse]

Let's just say Bazley got $100K from an agent as a loan and is getting 20K from the G League. My questions are: What happens if he is hurt and can no longer play, how does he pay that back? How does the IRS define "loan"? Questions regarding his G League salary: Who pays for food and lodging? Rehab?

It's his life and he's over 18 but I hope he has thought of these things.

He'll do what some college kids do...get an insurance policy that protects against a devastating injury's ramifications...

 

[andyw715]

One thing the G league does that is interesting is a single elim playoff with a best of 3 final.

 

[OrangeDW]

Forget the salary -- it is about him being able to receive other forms of compensation without restriction. If he goes to college, then he doesn't get paid until he declares / leaves college to go pro. In other words, no $$$ until April 2019, per NCAA rules.

By doing this, he can get endorsement money, he can sign sneaker contracts, he can receive loans from agents -- all without restriction. Not life altering money, by any means, but enough to float him through the year and elevate his family's circumstances in the short term until he cashes in with an NBA contract. So, in the big scheme of things, the G league salary is irrelevant -- it was likely more about removing the restrictions the NCAA imposes on getting paid, and getting access to $$$ faster in the short term.

If the NCAA wasn’t stupid about things, he’d probably be in college and more players would stick around. And this isn’t even a “pay the players” argument. But not allowing them to make any money from anywhere? Dumb.