Sharing the news around to the boards I read the most.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/04/overtime...-nba-.html

Quote:Overtime announced on Thursday that it plans to start a basketball league for 16-to-18-year-olds allowing them to earn at least $100,000 per year.

The Overtime Elite league will let players bypass traditional high school and collegiate levels while building their brand before becoming eligible for the NBA. It will start in September with 30 players, and will be based in a single location, which is still under discussion.

There's more info in the article if you are interested. I found this from a different article talking about the NBA commissioner's support for the new league. Looks like recruiting is about to change sooner than expected.

Its a good way to keep some of the riff raff out of colleges and stop them from taking up seats from those who actually want an education. And it should save colleges money on tutoring and special programs to help the illiterate losers who need to have a whole network of staff to help keep them eligible.

Maybe the time is right for something like this, as younger fans seem to follow players rather than teams. I know the article criticizes the NCAA schools for making millions off of top players while giving them "only" a free education in return, but that's an oversimplification. The schools have built-in fan bases and provide a platform for these kids to launch their brand before turning pro. Maybe this is no longer necessary and the OTE will be a success, or maybe it will be a disaster - like a real-life Entertainment 720.

Hell I don't watch NBA basketball, I am quite sure this league will flourish.

I haven’t read the article so forgive me if it’s addressed but I wonder if the revenue model might be geared more towards developing players and selling their contracts or else earning a commission when they sign with an NBA team rather than viewership and advertising dollars.

The colleges may like this if they can pull it off. Essentially it would remove all the potential one and done's from the recruiting market before anyone has invested much time with them. In fact, it might discourage coaches from even getting involved with the top talent until their junior year (by which time they will have already passed on this new league), which would be good for everybody.

But I'll bet AAU coaches who have been making a living off these kids won't be too thrilled if this happens. It would certainly be a game changer for the college game.

One thing I would wonder about. Would there be a path back to the college game for players who don't pan out in the pros? Not all of these kids are going to be the stereotypical dumb jocks, and some might want to resume their education.

Another thing I wonder about but didn't see addressed in the article. Is there some provision for requiring (and helping) these kids to complete the requirements for their high school diploma while they're making all this money?

Thirty seems to me an odd number of players. The article didn't say how (or if) they would be organized into teams. Just that they would all play at the same location. Would this league become their new high school, or would they all enroll in some school local to wherever they are based?

Ideally, you would want all these kids to get as much playing time as possible, so you wouldn't want large rosters. Even ten might be too many. Sounds like these kids could start as early as their sophomore year and stay in the league for three years or until they get their diploma. Since the NBA's CBA requires that rookies be one year removed from their high school class graduation, presumably most of these kids would progress first to the G League before being eligible for the draft.

I'm not sure if the 27-30th kids within this concept will really get better as opposed to staying in HS and attending any college program. In addition, the idea of relocating 30 families to a European city seems full of issues, primarily getting the parents eligibility to have a job. It appears that the league will try to make money more from NBA Top Shot-like highlights than from gate and rights to the games themselves.

At least Lavar Ball's failed barnstorming attempt had a viable NBA player in LaMelo. Whose going to choose this when the G League has the Ignite team already set up?

(03-08-2021 10:25 AM)Renandpat Wrote:  I'm not sure if the 27-30th kids within this concept will really get better as opposed to staying in HS and attending any college program. In addition, the idea of relocating 30 families to a European city seems full of issues, primarily getting the parents eligibility to have a job. It appears that the league will try to make money more from NBA Top Shot-like highlights than from gate and rights to the games themselves.

At least Lavar Ball's failed barnstorming attempt had a viable NBA player in LaMelo. Whose going to choose this when the G League has the Ignite team already set up?

I saw nothing in that article about locating this league in Europe. Have you seen this somewhere else?

They might be able to make something like this work with say 4-6 teams of 10 players apiece. I don’t think staying stationary is the way to go. I think they need to barnstorm like the Big3 league does.

16-18 years old is high school sophomores and juniors. Think a 6'4" 190 lb kid at center.

No amount of TV or ticket revenue will get them anywhere close to a million dollars a team, plus travel and coaching salaries.

Why would they pay at least $100K a year? Why not up to $100K? How many Kobe Bryants or LeBron James are out there in any given year?

The shame is that some of these kids will have demonstrated before they even make it to the G League that they weren't as good as they looked when they were 16. That may be as good as they ever get.

(03-08-2021 08:38 AM)ken d Wrote:  The colleges may like this if they can pull it off. Essentially it would remove all the potential one and done's from the recruiting market before anyone has invested much time with them. In fact, it might discourage coaches from even getting involved with the top talent until their junior year (by which time they will have already passed on this new league), which would be good for everybody.

But I'll bet AAU coaches who have been making a living off these kids won't be too thrilled if this happens. It would certainly be a game changer for the college game.

One thing I would wonder about. Would there be a path back to the college game for players who don't pan out in the pros? Not all of these kids are going to be the stereotypical dumb jocks, and some might want to resume their education.

Another thing I wonder about but didn't see addressed in the article. Is there some provision for requiring (and helping) these kids to complete the requirements for their high school diploma while they're making all this money?

As the rules stand, if they accept the contract, the NCAA eligibility goes up in smoke.

Where is the revenue going to come from though? That is what these minor leagues always miss. The NCAA has built in fanbases that these teams will not.

(03-08-2021 01:51 PM)Gamecock Wrote:  Where is the revenue going to come from though? That is what these minor leagues always miss. The NCAA has built in fanbases that these teams will not.

Streaming and ad sales most likely. I'm more curious as to the opponents the league finds, if any.

Obviously different players progress and improve at different rates. Having said that, look at current younger NBA superstars like LaMelo Ball and Luka Doncic. Their development was accelerated, and their potential made obvious, by playing very well against older players -- Ball in Australia, and Doncic much more so in Europe where he was already one of the best players on the continent at age 19.

This proposed league, if it ever gets off the ground, is not that. What it would be is a glorified version of a few AAU travel teams, getting together to play games or tournaments in Chicago or Orlando or LA. That's nothing new in terms of a pathway for developing future NBA talent.

Where is the money going to come from?

It wont get any more TV viewers than AAU games. Even leagues with money (Australia, the heavily subsidized G-League) don't pay players that much.

But wow can you you do miraculous things with magical money grown on rainbow unicorn trees.

(03-08-2021 11:10 AM)ken d Wrote:  

(03-08-2021 10:25 AM)Renandpat Wrote:  I'm not sure if the 27-30th kids within this concept will really get better as opposed to staying in HS and attending any college program. In addition, the idea of relocating 30 families to a European city seems full of issues, primarily getting the parents eligibility to have a job. It appears that the league will try to make money more from NBA Top Shot-like highlights than from gate and rights to the games themselves.

At least Lavar Ball's failed barnstorming attempt had a viable NBA player in LaMelo. Whose going to choose this when the G League has the Ignite team already set up?

I saw nothing in that article about locating this league in Europe. Have you seen this somewhere else?

Mentioned on the latest Yahoo Sports College podcast

I think it would make more sense for the G-League to simply offer the top 30 high school seniors roster spots for their gap year between high school and NBA draft eligibility. Allot 1 roster spot per G-league team.

(03-08-2021 02:15 PM)Fighting Muskie Wrote:  I think it would make more sense for the G-League to simply offer the top 30 high school seniors roster spots for their gap year between high school and NBA draft eligibility. Allot 1 roster spot per G-league team.

This. It's mind boggling that the NBA requires kids to go to college for one year (age rule). That rule isn't good for the NCAA or the recruits, IMO. Let them play in the G-League and grow that league. I just find it crazy that an afterthought sport (relative NBA/NFL) like hockey has a robust Minor League system, which is for the most part well attended, and the NBA can't seem to find nearly the success (same with NFL).

This new league would be kind of like hockey's version of Canadian Juniors. In hockey, more of the NHL ready talent typically goes Major Junior, and the NCAA typically has players that take a little bit longer to develop (not always, but a broad generalization), but both leagues send a huge percentage of players the the NHL. Some players from both leagues also spend time in the AHL and/or ECHL before making it to the NHL as well. The end result is a better product with better skill in the NHL, as not everyone takes the same amount of time to develop. Maybe hockey is unique in this regard, because the skill set is so much different, but it would be nice to see more options for basketball players with NBA or borderline NBA talent.

Let the one and done guys play in this league, and fill NCAA rosters with guys who are talented, but need some more time to develop.

Would be fun if players could be drafted in college as well, similar to both baseball and hockey. Not sure for baseball, but in hockey the players just wait to sign and they get their signing bonus when they eventually do.