In a surprising turn of event, Jalen Green, the top 2021 high school prospect, has elected to play in the G League over NCAA basketball.
Jalen Green, the top overall 2021 high school basketball prospect, has elected to bypass college and make the move to the NBA G League next season. He will be eligible for the 2021 NBA Draft after one season in the G League.
"[via ESPN]California high school star Jalen Green, the No. 1 prospect in the 2020 ESPN 100, is making the leap to a reshaped NBA professional pathway program — a G League initiative that will pay elite prospects $500,000-plus and provide a one-year development program outside of the minor league’s traditional team structure, sources told ESPN."
While there are many variables and fallouts to this decision, it’s at the very least extremely interesting. Green represents the first big-name high school prospect to make the move to the G League for one season over college basketball.
However, this most likely won’t be the last prospect. In fact, you can make the argument that this will open the door for many more future big-name prospects to do the same. And it didn’t take long. After it was reported that Green was going to join the G League, news broke that another five-star prospect, Isaiah Todd, was following his lead.
Five-star prospect Isaiah Todd, who decommitted from Michigan, is expected to sign an NBA G League deal and join the new Southern California team featuring Jalen Green, sources tell @TheAthleticNBA @Stadium.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 16, 2020
This recent development not only throws a wrench into college recruiting but it could bring about some interesting questions about the G League itself. Will adding prospects straight out of high school change the dynamic of the way the G League is organized and run?
If more top draft prospects are entering the G League portal, it no question could create some sort of bidding war for some of the bigger names. But that’s just one side of it. The bigger repercussions likely fall on the NCAA side of things.
How will this impact recruitment? With the G League being able to bid on high school prospects, it will make everything a lot more difficult for college programs. Not to mention, it could open the door for added lack of transparency at the collegiate level, which is the last thing that it needs.
Jalen Green is helping change the G League and NCAA basketball game. Time will tell how much.