Black Cager Sports Media takes pride in our ability to disseminate important information to the youth, high school and collegiate basketball communities in the Mid-Atlantic Region. We are starting a new series of essays, “Understanding New Rules.” The aim, as always, is to help parents, student-athletes, coaches and other stakeholders make better informed decisions regarding their educational futures.

In the first essay, we delve into one of the most widely publicized aspects of the “New Rules” outlined in the Rice Commission Report submitted to the NCAA.

End of One-and-Done
“Elite high school players with NBA prospects and no interest in a college degree should not be “forced” to attend college, often for less than a year. These uniquely talented players are the focus of agents, apparel companies, investment advisors, college coaches and other seeking to profit from their skills and offering them cash and other benefits in hope of future gain. If they are allowed to turn professional, some of the pressure on the collegiate model will be reduced.”

Rice Commission Report

Those of us of a certain age can understand what the Rice Commission means by “the pressures on the collegiate model.” Like elsewhere, in college basketball, money is at the root of all evil.

What’s important to note is that this ain’t no new shit! The NCAA has been aware of this “pressure” for decades…

This particular “New Rule” only impacts “uniquely talented” players… Not good HS players… Not great HS players… Just “uniquely talented” players…

The jump from scholastic basketball to the NBA is HUGE… Only a select few over the past six decades or so have been able to make the jump successfully…

In the greater Philadelphia area, we tend to produce one of these players every 5-10 years… Wilt Chamberlain, Gene Banks, Rasheed Wallace, Kobe Bryant, Eddie Griffin and Cam Reddish immediately come to mind as guys that would have been high NBA draft picks right after prom. That’s a pretty short list…

Gene Banks, #1 HS Player in the Nation at West Philadelphia HS

But when such a talent emerges, “the pressures” as the NCAA euphemistically calls them are well documented.

Forty-four years ago, “uniquely talented” young man from Petersburg, Virginia put ENORMOUS pressure on the collegiate model.

Shit was out of control!

Moses Malone at Peterburg HS

After his junior year, Moses Malone made the trek to Howard Garfinkel’s Five-Star camp where he dominated… Garfinkel gave Malone 5 full stars and stated that his potential was to “infinity.” As a senior Malone was recruited by more than 200 colleges. Envelopes addressed to his uncle containing $1,000 were commonplace. One day a brand new Chrysler Imperial magically appeared with the keys in from of the Malone home.

1974 Chrysler Imperial

Never really a serious student, Malone received straight A’s as a senior and managed to barley meet the minimum requirements for accepting an athletic scholarship.

Moses put real “pressure” on the collegiate model!

It was commonly understood that Malone required $200 to even consider making a visit to any college campus.

An assistant coach from New Mexico lived at the Petersburg Howard Johnson’s for more than two months while stalking Malone. Maryland’s tab at the Petersburg Holiday Inn surpassed $20,000.

In an extremely poor neighborhood of homes with no paint, no grass on the lawns… The Malones had a new floor model television, new carpeting and new furniture. They were also the only home in the area with an air conditioner in the window.

Moses Malone as an ABA Rookie

Very rare are boys that can play with the best men in the world… Like mythological unicorns…

The NCAA has openly acknowledged that the collegiate model isn’t built to withstand the pressures surrounding these young men.

Darryl Dawkins, Bill Willoughby, Shawn Kemp, Kevin Garnett, Jermaine O’Neal, Tracy McGrady, Amare Stoudemire, LeBron James, Dwight Howard, Sebastian Telfair, J.R. Smith, Monta Ellis and Louis Williams were “uniquely talented.”

While Philly produces an abundance of college basketball prospects, straight to the NBA prospects are seldom seen…

Truth be told… Philly-based AAU/Grassroots Coaches/Directors tend to wage intense, friendship testing battles over low to mid-major D1 prospects…

But just in case another unicorn appears on the horizon, the basketball community should be well-versed in the rules…

The end of the “One-and-Done” era is fast approaching…

How will we know when another unicorn appears? Just look for the sports agents, NBA scouts, apparel companies, investment advisors and HIGH-MAJOR college coaches… They will ALL be at the games…

Putting PRESSURE on the young man and his family…