G League

[Brooky03]

The NIL numbers for transfers go me thinking… is the G League dead now? With the money that’s getting tossed around in college, what are the perks of leaving before your eligibility runs out if you’re not an NBA roster lock?

- Less money, by a lot
- Actual contracts where you have to agree to stuff in exchange for the money
- Less notoriety
- Fewer women (or men. Whatever you’re into)
- Worse work-life balance
- Crappier travel schedule

Is the G League now just 24yo future journeymen who don’t want to play overseas?

I’m not complaining, just curious how it will survive.

 

[Hopkins16]

It could make the G League better as the guys who stays in school to max out NIL money at the same time should get better and stronger as players over time. They will still want to go to the NBA and will be better prepared for the G League where most of them will go.

 

[RandygoCuse]

The G-League is in a tough spot. They're not exactly a fan's league. No one outside of Maine, is going to care about the Maine Celtics. The main goal is to develop players. It's going to be hard to do if the most talented ones can do better in college. If the NBA let players get drafted right after high school, maybe it leads to an influx of kids that would benefit from a developmental league. Otherwise, it's going to be tough to attract talent. NIL and the transfer portal have made college BBall much more attractive than in the past. I don't think the G-League will go away, but don't think it will ever be as strong a developmental league as baseball or hockey have.

 

[blue&orange]

The league is odd in that it doesn’t care much about fan bases and games frequently have under 1000 fans. After watching some of it this year most guys fit into one of these categories…

-Fringe draft pick guys who have a shot at NBA but may need another year to grow, they sign 2 way contract for 600k, think Jesse Edwards

-P4 guys who are good but aren’t really going to make the NBA. Exhibit 10 deal can be around 115k with the signing bonus. Judah Mintz

-Small school guys who didn’t get enough college exposure but can make it at a minor league level

-Sometimes you get Journeyman or a guy who played 2-5 years in the league and failed to get a new NBA deal, they are trying to claw back to the NBA level.

 

[DomeHolmes]

Believe it or not, the average G league player is 25 years old. So obviously, that includes 19-year-olds who left early and did not make the NBA. Plenty of people in The G league in their late 20s.

There are still the same amount of NBA roster spots and still the same amount of college roster spots.

So everyone in between, regardless of when they graduate, will go to the G league or overseas just like they always have. most of the borderline players like Judah will still wind up there. It will just be delayed by a few years.

 

[miamicuse]

One advantage of the G-league is for those who really hate to even pretend to go to class.

 

[Brooky03]

Believe it or not, the average G league player is 25 years old. So obviously, that includes 19-year-olds who left early and did not make the NBA. Plenty of people in The G league in their late 20s.

There are still the same amount of NBA roster spots and still the same amount of college roster spots.

So everyone in between, regardless of when they graduate, will go to the G league or overseas just like they always have. most of the borderline players like Judah will still wind up there. It will just be delayed by a few years.

The delay is my point, I suppose. It’s not economical to jump early anymore and make a paycheck in the G League while you try to earn an NBA roster spot. You’re taking a big pay cut doing that. That average age is going to creep higher and a lot of guys are considered close to done with their careers around 30 (if you’re 26/27 in the G League you’re basically done). The window to find success in the G League seems like it will be narrower and it has lost its sales pitch for younger guys.

 

[jncuse]

I think there was a time a handful of years ago, where for a disciplined kid in the 2nd/undrafted area that was wanted an NBA career that a G League path was just as good (or better for some), It really depended on the kid's maturity - for some the NCAA was better.

But at this point, with NIL, that level of player would be crazy to leave the NCAA assuming they are not sickened by the academic side.

If there is one positive, a player out of the NCAA for 4 years will now have decent coin, and they may be much more open to staying in the G-League rather than Europe. The G-League is still the probably the best minor league path to the NBA for an American player... many 10 days contracts get offered at this point giving you a chance to impress that way.

 

[Hopkins16]

I think there was a time a handful of years ago, where for a disciplined kid in the 2nd/undrafted area that was wanted an NBA career that a G League path was just as good (or better for some), It really depended on the kid's maturity - for some the NCAA was better.

But at this point, with NIL, that level of player would be crazy to leave the NCAA assuming they are not sickened by the academic side.

If there is one positive, a player out of the NCAA for 4 years will now have decent coin, and they may be much more open to staying in the G-League rather than Europe. The G-League is still the probably the best minor league path to the NBA for an American player... many 10 days contracts get offered at this point giving you a chance to impress that way.

The dream now for young kids looking to make money from playing basketball is now attainable as they no longer have to fight to be the small handful of players each year to reach the NBA. Today, solid college guys like B Triche, Fair, Devo, Christmas, Nichols would have been able to graduate with a degree and potentially over a million dollars in their pocket. The only problem is that they were good enough to be targets of deep pocket schools so most likely those guys would go elsewhere after year 1 or 2.