Isn't Rubio 6'4 and Jennings 6'1? They look the same size in that slam photo.

Posted by newyorknewyork:

Isn't Rubio 6'4 and Jennings 6'1? They look the same size in that slam photo.

i'm pretty sure the pics were merged for print....

age limits can go away with a true minor league system (and bring back the old school 10+ rounds in the draft!!!!). thats a reason why the nhl/mlb dont have the higher age limits like nfl/nba.

...didn't Rubio school Jennings with essentially one hand?...

Is there a Rubio thread around here? His clips are amazing. Unless I'm missing something, he's one of the few players I've seen recently that, if the Knicks suddenly reach out and ask a random fan to run their draft, I'd consider giving up serious assets to be in a position to draft. And, this year, I'd risk taking him first--a young Nash with serious hops is more valuable than Elton Brand II.

I like Jennings even though I think Curry would school him right now. I agree, he has serious upside. I'd be happy to see the Knicks draft Jennings at 8. (And I'm not sure Curry's going to hanging around at the 8th spot if he has nice workouts.)

I honestly don't think a minor league system is necessary.

In my opinion, the best thing the NBA could do right now is up the age limit another 2 years so that players need 3 years of college (or 3 years removed from high school) before they can enter the NBA.

I propose this for several reasons. First, it will allow these young players to further develop their skills and be more prepared for the big stage (aka the NBA). Second, think about the salary cap structure that currently exists in the NBA. When standard rookie contracts were created, it effectively took money away from the veterans and transferred is to the younger players. You essentially only have 2 seasons to judge a young player before you make an extension in an effort to keep him for the long term. Consequently, teams don't have enough time to judge how good their young talent will be and they are forced to overpay in an effort to keep them. By giving these young players more time in college though (or more playing time in Europe), you get players that are more developed and more reflective of the types of players they will ultimately be. This allows front offices across the league to better estimate their talent and probably makes the max contract more valuable than it is today.

A player's window in the NBA is short, so why give younger players so much of the pie when the veterans are more skilled and deserve more money than the young guys? The way NBA front offices value players is screwed up and it needs to be changed. David Lee is a good player and I want to keep him as much as anyone, but lets be realistic, he should not be getting $10 million a year. We might be forced to pay him somewhere in that neighborhood though because of the way the current rookie salary structure exists.

Third, from a marketing and business standpoint, it would be much better for the NBA if the consumer knows all about these prospects before they enter the NBA. For example, think about the Bird-Magic era. Before those two even entered the NBA, fans knew about them and that only got them more excited when they got to see the two go at each other again in the NBA. David Falk brings up a good example in his book about Kevin Durant. How many people would have known about Durant if he went to the NBA straight out of high school (which he did want to do at one point) instead of going to Texas for a year and becoming a national figure. Ultimately, if the fans know these players better, their will be more business for the NBA.


[Edited by - s3231 on 05-15-2009 1:34 PM]

they should just go pro whenever they want, go pro at 14 if you're good enough, who cares? i dont know the point of forcing kids to do stuff they can't or don't feel like doing anyway. it is not the nba's job to try to better men, real men better themselves.