Jalen Green skipping college for NBA/G League pathway shows NCAA needs to adapt to survive

Jalen Green, the No. 2 recruit in the Class of 2020 is skipping college basketball to play for the G-League where he’ll receive $500,000 and free college tuition. among other perks that more top recruits are likely to pick over playing for free in college.

Ever since the Memphis Tigers hired Penny Hardaway to replace Tubby Smith as the university’s men’s college basketball coach, there has been one player that the school and staff put all of their time and resources into recruiting. Today, that player — Jalen Green of Fresno, CA — announced where he would be playing during the 2020-21 season.

Recruiting services noted that the Auburn Tigers had made a strong late push for Green as well. Bruce Pearl’s fast-paced offense and the chance to play with his good friend Sharife Cooper seemed like tantalizing options for a player who was destined to only spend a few months on a college campus before heading off to the 2021 NBA Draft.

However, there were also whispers of Green pursuing the professional route. After seeing the success that LaMelo Ball and R.J. Hampton had while in Australia’s National Basketball League (NBL) some thought that Green could choose that route as well. Given the global pandemic of COVID-19, it became increasingly less likely that an overseas option would even be available if he wanted to take it.

Then, another choice presented itself. ESPN’s Jonathan Givony broke the news Thursday morning that Green would be signing with the NBA Gatorade League (G League) and become part of a new “Select Team”. Green announced his decision on Instagram Live. The team that he’ll be a part of will operate outside of the league’s traditional structure and will play games against foreign national teams, NBA academies around the world, along with exhibitions against current G League teams totaling 20 games.

At a minimum, he will earn $500,000 and has incentives built into his deal that could easily push that number higher — don’t count out the endorsement money that will surely come from Green being perceived as a pioneer. The Athletic‘s Shams Charania reported that Green could earn over $1 million through this route.

NBA agent Aaron Goodwin has been advising Green and his family and is believed to be Green’s choice for representation when he does hire an agent. Goodwin has repped NBA superstars LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Dwight Howard in the past.

This new developmental program will be based out of Southern California, which means the Central Valley native will get to stay relatively close to home.

The yearlong stint will feature oversight from the G League including professional coaching, other top prospects (recent Michigan de-commit Isaiah Todd likely among them) and G League veterans. Should the current epidemic continue to restrict professional sports from being played Green will receive direct training from members within the NBA family nonetheless. Green told Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, “I wanted to get better overall and prepare myself for the NBA because that’s my ultimate goal.”

On top of that, the G League will provide Green — and other prep-to-pro prospects –with the opportunity to get a free college education according to Haynes. Green said, “I’m still going to be able to go back to college and finish school. So it’s not really that I’m missing out on college because I can go back and finish whenever I need to.”

That last part is the kicker. During the endless debate about amateurism in college sports and whether or not student-athletes should be paid or compensated in any way, the full-ride that a scholarship gives kids has been touted as payment in and of itself by those who feel the current system is good enough.

While legislation throughout the country is being created that will allow for players in some states (currently California and Florida have bills in government) to receive compensation off of their name and likeness, it is unlikely that they would be making anything close to the money that Green will see from his time in the G League.

Back when the Condoleezza Rice-led Commission on College Basketball gave its recommendation that the NBA get rid of the “One-And-Done” rule and the NCAA “Provide student-athletes more freedom and flexibility to decide about going pro and pay for scholarships for those who want to finish their degree later” it was viewed as a whiff on their behalf.

The NCAA’s inaction on this front has allowed for the NBA to create a pathway where the nation’s top teenagers no longer have to decide between staying in their home country and accepting pennies on the dollar under the table from one of the top college programs or venture to a foreign land on their own for a shot at receiving market value.

All eyes will be on Green and the success or failure of his decision could have an immediate impact on college basketball. The rising high school seniors contain some of the most talented recruits in recent memory and players like Jonathan Kuminga, Patrick Baldwin Jr., Paolo Banchero and Jaden Hardy could all conceivably be players who are determined by G League Shareef Abdur-Rahim as worthy of receiving financial compensation in the same range as Green.

Abdur-Rahim told ESPN, “The NBA is the best development system in the world, and those players shouldn’t have to go somewhere else to develop for a year. They should be in our development system.”

We won’t get to see Green suit up for the Tigers this upcoming season — for the record, he says he would’ve chosen Memphis if he went to college — and it’s a loss for the entire college basketball world. It also represents the beginning of the end. The more top players choose the professional routes available to them the less talent that enters the NCAA. At the end of the day, it’s the players that drive the sport.

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