"Young Korleone Young..." (April 30, 1998)

Antawn Jamieson is turning pro. He is one of the top players in the country. He is a guaranteed top 5 pick, if not first pick overall. So why did he turn pro? His college team, UNC, is young, has a chance to win the NCAA Championships, and could be guaranteed first overall pick, not to mention honing his outside game. I wish I could answer that question. Here you have an intelligent man making a well thought out decision. He was voted the best player in the land, so we know he turned pro because he has game. He has repeatedly said that he likes school, so I assume the money was just too great. In the instance of Shaquille O'Neal, back at LSU, he turned pro because he was getting hacked hard too often and the zone defenses were collapsing on him. He was worried about being injured, as is most super-star underclassmen. I think this was another reason for him going pro. You know what? I don't blame him. He spent three years in college. He only needs a few credits to graduate and can do that in the summer and through correspondence. He has proven he is the best player in college. Although I don't applaud the decision to turn pro, I can truly understand it.

On the other hand, there are a few players who have turned pro this year, with the idea that they'll make a splash in the NBA. Korleone Young is an example. Here is a 6'8", 220 pound high schooler who dominated at his last level because he was the biggest, strongest and fastest. There are not too many people taller than him and heavier than him who play high school basketball. If he was to go to college, he'd see that he would still be exceptional, but not to the extent that he dominated in high school. He almost needs that kick in the butt to say: "Hey, dude, you're not that good. Sure you can do damage at the prep level, but do you really think you can do the same at the next level?" He's been in an environment where he was the best player and he's been told since he was a toddler that he's the best player. After a while, you start believing what you're told. And he did. I read that he consulted his family and friends before turning pro. I'm sure what they said was: "You're at least as good as Tracy McGrady and way better than Jermaine O'Neal. You probably won't make the impact of KG, because he's seven feet, but you could do what Kobe did." But let me say that Kobe was everyone's All-American, as was McGrady. Jermaine O'Neal was an idiot for turning pro because he's the 12th man on the bench and plays behind ancient Alton Lister and if Carlos Rogers was healthy, behind him as well. My guess is that the consultation with the family revolved around how much money young Korleone will make. Let's do some idiot math, in the eyes of the Korleone family. "He'll be a mid-first round pick (according to most scouts, which means he'll drop to 20th). That's about $1 million per season. Since he's young (and therefore marketable) he'll get a $10 million contract from Nike, Reebok or Adidas. He'll get a Gatorade ad, since Jordan is retiring and some other local contracts." Well, that's just great. I know money is important. And this is a whole lot of bread. But do we know he'll get all this? Did Jermaine O'Neal get all this? Nope. O'Neal will be lucky is he's in the NBA next year. I think Young might be on a similar path. I think this is the path many youngsters take. Money good now. The problem is, with the way the rookie salary cap is set up, a three year deal doesn't give the rookie much security. So if he sucks, he's gone early. And if he doesn't play within his first two years, he won't get that big extension like Kevin Garnett or Bryant Reeves. He'll end up like Jermaine O'Neal, a player who has not played in two years, progressing slowly, and will not get the huge extension. In fact, I would seriously doubt if he's in the NBA after next year. Most NBA teams don't like to let a player grow because of the cap. They want results now. They want someone who can step in and play. The days of grooming talent are over. With the rookie cap and free agency, players have to make contributions now, especially rookies who make $1 million a season, or they're gone and replaced by a hungry CBA player who works for minimum wage. That's why Tracy McGrady was being played so much in the second half of the season, the Raptors needed to know if he could play, because you've got to prove yourself, and if you don't you're out. Return to the 1998 edition of Hoop-LA

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