Skipping School and Skirting the Rules: Jeremy Tyler Goes to Europe

From the NY Times:

Jeremy Tyler, a 6-foot-11 high school junior whom some consider the best American big man since Greg Oden, says he will be taking a new path to the N.B.A. He has left San Diego High School and said this week that he would skip his senior year to play professionally in Europe.

...“Nowadays people look to college for more off-the-court stuff versus being in the gym and getting better,” Tyler said. “If you’re really focused on getting better, you go play pro somewhere. Pro guys will get you way better than playing against college guys.”

If you don't know, the NBA has a minimum age rule in the draft:  players younger than 19 years of age cannot be drafted.  This has forced kids to spend a year in college who would otherwise be earning millions in the NBA. 

Kudos for Mr. Tyler (and Brandon Jennings before him) for testing these waters.  If he doesn't want to be in college, he shouldn't go to college.  If he can make 7 figures without finishing high school, more power to him.  I'm sure some who see taking more years of schooling getting an education as the end all be all will be in a tizzy, but I'm not.  Not at all.  He can always get a GED whenever he feels he's ready.

And there was this comment at TSE (link below):

One has to wonder if the kid will learn more playing overseas than he would getting the jock treatment from the U.S. educational system.

If he's successful, we'll see a lot more of this in the future.  Keep in mind that the draft in any sport exists to limit competition for players just coming into the sport (in economics we call this practice monopsonistic exploitation).  It is not there to promote competitive balance.  It's there to promote the pocketbooks of owners.  The minimum age rule is there solely to take some of the risk associated with signing young men straight out of high school.  I doubt that the NBA would institute more draft rules because I don't see how this would affect them in their pocketbook.  Heck, it might even save them from having to have players play in the NBADL.

HT to Dennis Coates at TSE.