The NCAA unveiled some new rule changes that caught the sports world completely off guard. The good news is that a few of these rules show a potential change of heart from the NCAA, such as, stronger accountability and penalties for University presidents, coaches, and staff. The bad news is that majority of the rules only sound good. In fact, many of them pose more questions than answers.
Undrafted players are now allowed to return to school, however, this only applies to players that were actually invited to the NBA Combine. Considering that the NBA traditionally only invites 60 to 70 players, this rule only affects less that 1% of all college basketball players.
Another new rules states that high school basketball players can now be represented by an agent beginning on July 1 before their senior year in high school. However, that player has to have been identifies as an “elite” player by USA Basketball. Furthermore; the agent-player agreement must end when the player enrolls in college. The worst part of this rule: it is entirely dependable on the NBA and the NBPA allowing high school students to enter the draft.
The new rules also set the blame of corruption specifically on youth basketball events. Effective in 2019, apparel companies are now required to “make annual disclosures, obtain NCAA certification for all youth basketball activities and report NCAA rule violations.” In other words, the NCAA is attempting to control the influence of apparel-sponsored leagues by Nike, Under Armor and Adidas.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski, both USA Basketball and the NBA were completely blindsided by the NCAA’s press release, more specifically, with USA Basketball’s involvement. With this information, the NCAA rule changes are definitely an illusion. As usual, the NCAA continues to prove that they are all about the money.
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