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Is college really important?
As a child I always dreamed of playing a professional sport, whether it was basketball, baseball, or football. I can only imagine how high school student athletes feel knowing that they’re one of the best in the country, playing the sport they admired as a child. For certain professional sports there’s an age barrier before entering the professional level. The National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Football league (NFL) are two prominent sport associations in the U.S that abide to individual age barriers. Basketball student athletes could stay one year in college before declaring for the draft, and football student athletes can stay three years in college before declaring for the draft. This is a significant topic to address because many collegiate sport athletes feel college is “pointless” to attend. My argument towards this topic is based on the age barrier of student athletes exiting from high school; I feel they should restructure the rules and grant them the opportunity to play professional sports. If outstanding student athletes decide to continue their sporting careers in collegiate sports it may lead to a serious injury. In the past many great basketball players entered the NBA from high school and is currently taking the league by storm with their phenomenal play. A collegiate student athlete and once NBA player provides statements that cause strong points onto why high school student athletes should be given a reason to play as well.
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The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) and Collective Barraging Agreement (CBA) established a new NBA draft rule that was set in 2005 and took place in the 2006 NBA draft. The NBA draft requirement was that all NBA draft hopefuls must be nineteen years of age to become eligible for the NBA draft, and any player who is not
An international player according to the CBA must be a year removed from his high school graduation class. By this rule being set in and established for the 2006 NBA draft and following NBA drafts more players entered division I Universities and Colleges before declaring enrollment in the NBA draft. Former New York Knick player Bill Walker had a few words to say about the new bargaining agreement the league made. In quote he stated, “I’m against it. I don’t see why you have to be 19 to play a game of basketball when you can be 18 and go to war for our country and die. It’s ridiculous.” It is ridiculous; the NBA is putting up yet another hurdle basketball athletes have to pass to play the game they love nationally.
Online journalist Benjamin Mott wrote an article about student athletes and their involvement in college. His exact words were “Part of the reason rules like this are made is so athletes out of high school can grow and develop before handling the rigors of the big leagues.” I truly agree with what Mott has to say, but then again a High school athlete declaring himself into the NBA draft should be prepared for the rigors of the NBA. Veteran NBA players like to joke around and switch the meaning of the acronym NBA to “No Boys Allowed”. Also, what better way to show your basketball talent ability than showing it to a worldwide audience?

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Many high school athletes were drafted out of high school and succeeded in the NBA. Have you ever heard of the names LeBron James and Kobe Bryant? Well each individual basketball player skipped out on college and entered the NBA draft. They’re arguably the two best players in the league today. I’m not implying that if a high school student skips college and joins the NBA will play like the two names I recently
Mentioned, but they will have a head start onto becoming a dominant player in the NBA league over someone else that plays basketball on a collegiate level. The number one ranked college basketball player in the country Nerlens Noel who plays for the Kentucky Wildcats suffered a season ending injury on