DETROIT _ A few of the top high school basketball players in the country are forging a new route.
Instead of attending college or traveling overseas, five-star prospects Jalen Green, Isaiah Todd and Daishen Nix are all entering the NBA's G League professional pathway.
The revamped developmental program will give elite players an opportunity to make money while solely majoring in basketball during the mandated one-year wait between high school graduation and NBA draft entry.
The G League started its program in 2018 as a professional alternative for top prospects. But after it couldn't lure top talent, it recently added more lucrative benefits to encourage star recruits to consider the NBA's development system _ a prep school of sorts for the pro level _ over a college scholarship or overseas move.
And in some cases, it has worked.
"I think that it's a good idea from the standpoint if you have guys that are just dead set on not wanting to go to college for whatever reason _ maybe they just want to focus on nothing but developing their game, maybe they don't like school," said Donnie Tyndall, head coach of the Grand Rapids Drive, the Detroit Pistons' G League affiliate. "Everybody has got their own opinion and mindset about how they want to go about living their life. If a guy doesn't want to go to college and his options have been to go to Australia or go to China or wherever so that you make good money. A few years ago, the G League was paying $30,000-$35,000 and there wasn't this option for the higher-paid guys. Why would you play in the G League if you could go to Australia for $500,000?
"In my opinion, the G League is the second-best basketball league in the world and why not keep those kids right here at home where they've got a chance to develop and grow. ...You're going to learn the NBA game, you're going to be around NBA coaches and you're going to be playing against NBA or borderline NBA players. There's really no negative to it. The only negative is that it used to be was they couldn't make as much money and now there's an opportunity or chance to make good money. I think it's a healthy, good option for these young guys."
