"Charles Barkley, who I’m not saying is a bad citizen, but he did throw somebody through a window" - Chris Broussard rips NBA draft eligibility rules apart for preventing 18-year-old kids from turning pro

The NBA hasn’t allowed the drafting of players straight out of high school since 2005. The league wanted players to have at least a year of college because of the perceived lack of emotional stability. On “The Odd Couple” podcast, Chris Broussard criticized the rule as hypocrisy:

“They always say they need the socialization of college. LeBron James has been a model player. Tracy McGrady was fine, Jermaine O’Neal was fine, Kevin Garnett was fine. These are some of the best citizens the league has seen!”

“Charles Barkley, who I’m not saying is a bad citizen, but he did throw somebody through a window. … He went to college! Allen Iverson didn’t wanna practice. He went to college! Some guys who’ve gone to college have made big mistakes and [some] guys that come out of high school didn’t. So, that’s not it! ... It was hypocrisy on so many levels.”

Generally, the players that came out of high school to play in the NBA have been on the same emotional level as those who hooped in college. LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett, the prep-to-pro group, have been just as stable as anybody in the league.

Tracy McGrady, Rashard Lewis, Kendrick Perkins, Al Harrington, Tyson Chandler, Amar’e Stoudemire, Al Jefferson and many others were good NBA citizens. Chris Broussard has had trouble reconciling the league’s reasoning with what he has seen over the years.

Rob Parker, the co-host of the podcast, agreed with Broussard’s point and added:

“And then they say, ‘Well, the kids aren’t ready! They shouldn’t be going pro.’ That’s not on the kids, that’s on the general managers and the owners who decided to go out because they were trying to get the next Kobe Bryant or they were trying to get the next LeBron James.

"That’s on them. They’ve made mistakes, but the kids should have the right to earn a living and get a job after they finish high school.”

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NBA players who came out of high school have had relatively solid careers

From 1995 to 2005, 39 players were drafted by an NBA team from high school. Out of the 39, only Ousmane Cisse didn’t play a single game after the Denver Nuggets drafted him in 2001.

An additional three more, James Lang, Korleone Young and Leon Smith, played only one season in the NBA. Smith played two seasons, one with the Atlanta Hawks and one with the Seattle Supersonics, but he played only one game for the Sonics.

Of the 39 players that jumped from high school to the NBA, 35 have played at least three years in the league. If the reason for not letting them play was a lack of emotional and physical maturity, then the figures don’t back up the ruling.

Additionally, two out of the 39, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, have pushed themselves into the top ten of all time.

Several basketball analysts see loopholes in the current draft eligibility rules, which is why the next CBA could resolve the issue.