CBS Sportsline's Garry Parrish writes that "John Wall must try to enter the NBA Draft." Thought provoking. But not really. It's just some people in college athletics have diverted our attention from reality to truthiness (a word invented Stephen Colbert or perhaps one of his writers), rather than the truth. Thankfully Parrish applies some sense and sensibility to John Wall's situation. Wall, one of the best high school basketball players in the country, may or not may be eligible for the 2009 NBA Draft. Parrish writes:
"Despite what some uninformed people try to tell you, there is no evidence that suggests prospects develop at a better rate in college than they do in the NBA. In fact, history suggests prospects like Wall (i.e., high school players good enough to be lottery picks) are virtually guaranteed success -- proof being how the high school players who were selected in the lottery from 1995 until the age limit was implemented became some of the best players in the world with almost no busts among them."
"What I don't get is that, at least publicly, I have never heard a coach stick up for a college degree when a player is good enough to go early. Just once, it would be nice to hear a coach say, 'You know, he should stay in college because getting his degree is the right thing to do and because you signed up for four years.' Just doesn't happen anymore. Thirty years ago, if Digger Phelps had helped his best player, who was still a junior, find a job in the NBA, the priests that run the place would've spit up their cereal."
Actually, college coaches telling players to do what is in their own best interest is not a new thing. Flashback to 1972. The Marquette Warriors are 21-0 and ranked #1 team in the country. The ABA’s New York Nets offered Marquette's star center, Jim Chones, $1.5 million in cash…right in the middle of the college season! McGuire advised Chones to “take the money and run.”
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