The debate over whether college athletes should get paid rages on. And it won’t go away until there are some major institutional changes to the way the NCAA operates from a financial standpoint. Many critics see rampant hypocrisy in the massive amounts of revenue that collegiate athletes generate for their schools relative to how they are compensated, which is very little.
The coaches, likewise, benefit tremendously from this as the higher profile among them rake in seven-to-eight figure salaries. Yet anytime the topic of paying athletes comes up, some remain staunchly opposed to such an idea. Some even seem opposed to the idea of them making money elsewhere.
That seemed to be the takeaway from Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim, who apparently feels jilted that one of his former recruits, Darius Bazley, has decided to skip college entirely and instead take a highly lucrative internship – reportedly worth $1 million – with the sneaker company New Balance.
Jim Boeheim on former Syracuse signee Darius Bazley getting guaranteed $1 million deal with New Balance:
“LeBron did a nice job helping his client. It is LeBron’s client, right?”
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) October 24, 2018
It was indeed LeBron‘s agent, Rich Paul, who helped arrange the deal for Bazley, who he took on as a client earlier this year. LeBron didn’t waste any time responding to Boeheim’s perceived slight.
OH THEY BIG MAD!!!!! 🤣🤣🤣 https://t.co/DP2bGAeWq8
— LeBron James (@KingJames) October 24, 2018
Boeheim tried to backtrack at that point with this rather disingenuous tweet.
https://twitter.com/therealboeheim/status/1055149171454476288
Paul chimed in as well during his appearance on ESPN’s The Jump today, saying that Boeheim had actually called and apologized to him for his remark. Paul then went to make the case for how student athletes are treated and why they should be permitted to generate revenue for themselves when the opportunities arise.
Agent Rich Paul tells us he got an apology phone call from Syracuse Coach Jim Boeheim this morning – we discuss that, why NBA prospect Darius Bazley is skipping college, and what Rich's concern level is over the Lakers as he drops in on #TheJump. pic.twitter.com/Mzij7sFISe
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) October 24, 2018
The NCAA now finds themselves at a watershed moment. Bazley’s situation is unique, but illustrates what could be a growing trend in athletes finding other avenues to the NBA that do not pass through the college basketball ranks. The G-League is already raising salaries significantly, and basketball hopefuls today have more and more incentive to skip the NCAA entirely.
