Are the shoe companies to blame for the college stars leaving college early?

Question

OK..first I want to say that Josh McRoberts isnt a college star, so his declaring for the NBA draft today doesnt factor into this question at all..as he will be a bust in the NBA too.
But the likes of Kevin Durant and Greg Oden do factor in.
The shoe companies will offer these guys more money than they will ever make with their team(s), so the question is this.
IF the shoe companies didnt factor into any of this...how many of these guys would actually return for another year?
I personally wish the NCAA would pay the NBA the millions needed each year to make NBA raise their acceptance limit to 21. I think college basketball is much more exciting to watch, and would love to know our favorite players (Hansbrough, Brandon Wright, etc.) would be staying in school for a full 4 years...or at least 3 years.
I think someday the colleges will have to pay these students for a 4 year contract to be able to compete with the big bucks the shoe companies and NBA teams shell out to draw them out.

maybe a boycot of major shoe companies could make a change?...doubt students would stop buying their shoes..but its an interesting thought.

austin, I think it is not the lure of the pros thats too much, its the lure of the money...but things change once you have the money. Many pro players say they wish they would have stayed in college another year or two, because you have the rest of your life to earn money. You only have a few years to experience college.
As a successful businessman that didnt go to college, and instead went to work, I can tell you I regret going to work right out of high school. I had scholorships that I didnt take...but I wish I had the college years to reflect on...The money doesnt mean anything anymore.

CMilli: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=jackson/070322&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab4pos2

Its been known for years that shoe deals are the biggest draw..ill informed and silly..?...hmm

Answer 1

I want to say I agree with you to certain extent. It depends how you define a college "star". Sure, Kevin Durant and Greg Oden will get sneaker deals. And you're probably right, Josh McRoberts probably won't.

I think what you're saying only applies to the biggest of stars.

As much as you chide the other guys who answered who say the lure of millions from the NBA is NOT the primary draw, I say for a majority of the lesser "stars" of the college game are indeed leaving for the NBA green and not shoe deals. How many NBA players really have shoe deals that pay them as much as their NBA contract? Only the best of the best get big, big payouts (the Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, LeBron James). Note I am not saying that lots of lesser players don't have shoe deals-they are just not as lucrative (say Shane Battier), and certainly not as much as their teams could pay them.

As an example, look at Tyrus Thomas of Chicago. The Bulls are paying Thomas $3.2M this year, $3.5M next year, and $3.7M the following year, guaranteed. That's $10M in guaranteed money (see link 1). Now I don't know if he has a sneaker deal or not, but even if he did, I'm pretty sure it doesn't make him at least $3.2M a year.

Think about the underclassmen who are declaring. Why do they declare? It's because they think (or their agents tell them) they can be a first round pick, which means guaranteed millions. When you come from a family that doesn't make millions, that lure is just too strong for young kids. Most of these guys who declare early do it for that reason. For most of them, it's the NBA contract, and not for the lure of a potential sneaker deal.

And when they have that chance, why would they not take it? You never know if you will have a freak accident that takes away that chance at a relatively easy lifestyle. What if Duke's Jason (or Jay) Williams had his motorcycle accident while he was still in college before he got drafted? Who would even guarantee him a contract, much less a multi-million dollar one? Now granted, if he was in college that probably never would have happened, but what I am trying to say is that no one is immune to a freak accident. And if it does, your dream of a millionaire lifestyle that was just within reach disappears right there.

So yes, if your question reads "Are the shoe companies to blame for the college SUPERstars leaving college early?" then my answer is yes. Otherwise, it's no.

Answer 2

no not really. it's not like oden or any big man make that much money from shoe deals, because they can't be used in the same way as guards to sell a signature line. there are a few big time shoe deals that involve millions of dollars handed out each year, but the vast majority of shoe deals are free shoes and maybe a little bit of money. any player good enough to get a shoe deal that's big enough to make a difference is good enough to leave anyways. mcroberts isn't going to make more money from a shoe deal than he will ever make from his team, that's silly and uninformed

Answer 3

it isnt the shoe companies, its more the of the money theyd get for being a pro. how can you turn down millions of dollars especially when most NBA players grew up poor as hell. if anything you blame the people who built the arenas so big, where thousands of fans, throw hard earned money at the owners, which goes to players and america is all about capitalism so players go to who pays more. this trend has increased and the market has become inflated, thus a higher salary cap which means more money for players.

Answer 4

shoe companies only factor if the person is more interested in money but in my mind i think that the little college kids want to be big and go for the NBA like vince young going to the pros instead of getting the heisman trophy his senior year, they just want to play with the big boys because there ego's are way to big but as soon as there first game comes around they'll be like jj for the magic a BENCHWARMER!! but if they want to be ignorant and not become the best they can get let em little college kids suck!!

Answer 5

I disagree, the lure of the pros is just too much. Why would you waste some of your best years in college when you could skip straight to the millions awaiting you in the NBA. No brainer!

Answer 6

not a chance, they would get there money from plenty other sponsors, gatorade, mcdonalds, coke/pepsi, plus, why wouldnt you want to get paid for playing a game? plus, that is wut college is for, training for the NBA, once u pass training/internship, u get a job and get a paid, its just how the world works man, its been like that for years!