GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Some of the top high school basketball players in the country are now taking a new path.
Instead of going to college or overseas they are deciding to play in the NBA G League.
Jalen Green out of California is ranked very highly in the 2020 class and Thursday committed to playing next season in the G League.
"Give him an opportunity to stay in the states, be around their family where they are a little more comfortable, less risk in regard to being homesick or not playing as well because you are isolated away from your family," Grand Rapids Drive head coach Donnie Tyndall said. "This gives a guy like this an opportunity to be around his family, make better money or at least equal money to what he would make overseas and play in front of NBA scouts every single night in the G League."
Friday former University of Michigan commit Isaiah Todd announced Friday that he will play in the G League next season as well.
Tyndall said the league is already loaded with excellent players and coaches and expects these new prospects to bring some attention to the league.
"The casual basketball fan, if they hear about a young man like this that's came out early and is going to be a high profile type player there is a natural following or a bigger interest or draw to come watch a guy like that play if he comes to your city," Tyndall said.
Some see this as a major blow to college basketball, Tyndall isn't so sure.
"In the last decade or decade and a half there has been so many one and done players," Tyndall said. "It is not like the old days where Kareem Abdul-Jabar played four years, Tim Duncan played four years or Michael Jordan played three years that is just not the case anymore so I don't think you are necessarily going to hurt the college game by having kids do this because there is not going to be a lot of kids that are able to do this each year maybe four, five, six at the most."
Some of the perks for guys like Green and Todd to come to the G League include a $500,000 salary, the ability to make money off of their likeness and $125,000 in scholarships that they can use in the future to pursue a college degree.
