[quote="Beast of the East" post=347175][quote="Room112" post=347160][quote="Beast of the East" post=347064]While I totally get the concept of making money somewhere playing basketball, it's too bad what is left out of the decision or at least minimized is the dollar value of the year in college.
In one year Simon as a grad student could go a long way towards completing an MBA at zero cost to him. Let's put that value at $55000, although at many schools that number would be $70,000 plus. Ponds would have post playing years career opportunities jump immeasurably by having a degree.
I dont know what the average career length is bangingvaroubd the world but along the way the $100k or so wont go very far in supporting a wife and kids.
For an extended period I dealt with Kevin Mawae's wife. Kevin was at the tail end of a stellar NFL career, yet was working on a post grad degree at Hofstra. He was already looking forward to the next chapter of his life, was making think $5 million per season, yet was paying tuition out of pocket because he knew it would help him.
Unfortunately college kids are surrounded by handlers who undervalue education because many of them don't have one.
We all live by our choices and ponds and Simon are more than free to make theirs. Should be vcd with our blessing because they ate living their lives as they see fit.
Felipe stayed in school largely because a degree was immensely important to his family. It was part of attaining the American dream for a family of immigrants. It probably helped him land the NBA job he has today.
Rysheed Jordan quit school essentially the day he decided his next stop would be the NBA. Imagine how simply going to class and being allowed to change his mind altered his life instead of how it unfolded.
So many of our alums have had great post basketball careers. I thing John farmer became a lawyer and CEO, Frank Gilroy's successful on wall street. Diakite a pharmacy grad. Mckoy a hs principal, Carter a high school vice principal.
School.isn't for everyone but simply getting your degree changes your life[/quote]
Beast, very well put. The only thing I'll add is I've heard of players coming back to finish their degree once their playing career is over. From what I understand, the school allows them to complete it at no cost. Maybe one day they will take advantage.[/quote]
I'm going to check if that's the case when I get the chance. If so, it's very generous of the school to go above and beyond what they are required to do. Even to be on the coaching staff at a high school or college often requires a college degree.
To that extent I don't really dive a damn about the values of these kids to our basketball team. It's what's in their long term best interest, and while I fully support their ability to make their own decisions as they see fit, just think the long view would favor sticking around and getting a degree.
Back in the day, Curtis Redding took a Kansas St. team to the Final Four (I believe as a freshman). He was so popular someone wrote him in as Student body president and he almost won. Sophomore jinx got him, and he was run out of town, where he ended up at SJU. We were thrilled to get a talent like that, but he played just as badly for us, eventually replaced in the starting lineup by Gilroy I believe. The story goes that Redding was so pissed, he openly started rooting for an opponent on the day he was benched. Left school shortly after. I remember him being spotted a couple of years later without a degree, working as a security guard in a store. Basketball isn't forever. A degree is.[/quote]
True about him sitting on the bench rooting for the other team only it was Goodwin who replaced him joining a starting five of Mckoy, Gilroy, Russell and Washington (who had taken over for Garrison).
