OT - Jeremy Tyler Going To Europe, After Junior Year Of High School

[BasX]

SAN DIEGO — 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.

Tyler, 17, would become the first United States-born player to leave high school early to play professionally overseas. He is expected to return in two years, when he is projected to be a top pick, if not the No. 1 pick, in the 2011 N.B.A. draft.

Tyler, who had orally committed to play for Rick Pitino at Louisville, has yet to sign with an agent or a professional team. His likely destination is Spain, though teams from other European leagues have shown interest. A spokesman for Louisville said the university could not comment about Tyler.

“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.”

His decision is perhaps the most important one since Kevin Garnett jumped straight to the N.B.A. from high school in 1995. Garnett was the No. 5 pick in the N.B.A. draft and ushered in a generation of preps-to-pros stars like Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Dwight Howard. A minimum-age rule passed for the 2006 draft cut off that route, essentially forcing players to spend at least one year in college.

But Brandon Jennings, a point guard from Los Angeles, became the first player to graduate from high school, skip college and play professionally in Europe. (Whether Jennings would have qualified academically to play at Arizona, where he had signed a letter of intent, is unknown.) He is in his first season with Lottomatica Virtus Roma in Italy and is projected as a high pick in the N.B.A. draft in June.

Tyler took Jennings’s path and added a compelling twist, perhaps opening the door for other elite high school basketball players to follow.

Sonny Vaccaro, a former sneaker company executive, orchestrated Jennings’s move and has guided Tyler and his family through the process.

“It’s significant because it shows the curiosity for the American player just refusing to accept what he’s told he has to do,” Vaccaro said. “We’re getting closer to the European reality of a professional at a young age. Basically, Jeremy Tyler is saying, ‘Why do I have to go to high school?’ ”

Vaccaro said he was unsure how much money Tyler would make, though it will most likely be less than the $1.2 million Jennings made in a combination of salary and endorsements this season. Vaccaro said Tyler would make a six-figure salary, noting that the economic crisis in Europe could hurt his earnings.

Vaccaro made his name by signing Michael Jordan to Nike in the mid-1980s and has advised numerous elite players over the years. “I believe he’ll be a 10-time All-Star with his ability,” Vaccaro said of Tyler.

For now, Tyler said he was working out eight to nine hours a day at local gyms and schools and spending two and a half hours a day to get his high school diploma online. He said he had his “ups and downs” in the classroom but was on track to qualify academically to play in college.

Tyler said his game stagnated by playing high school basketball here and he was frustrated by the rules of the California Interscholastic Federation and the National Collegiate Athletic Association.

He averaged 28.7 points during a tumultuous junior season in which his team went 15-11. Two of his coaches were fired in part because of their roles in trying to recruit three star players to complement Tyler. Kenny Roy, the former head coach, denied any wrongdoing.

But the three transfers were ruled ineligible, leaving Tyler the centerpiece of a team whose next biggest player was 6-2.

“It was boring and I wasn’t getting better,” Tyler said. “Each game was the same thing. I was getting triple-teamed and getting hacked. After each game I’d have scratches and bruises up and down my arms from getting triple-teamed. It just wasn’t for me.”

Spain is the most likely option for him because of the structure of its basketball league. Vaccaro said Tyler could shuttle between his professional team and its development squad for 18-year-olds. So if Tyler, who turns 18 in June, struggles early against professional men, he will be able to play and practice with the younger team.

Tyler, who was raised primarily by his father, James, and his uncle, Maurice, will move to Europe with his older brother, James. A rotation of relatives plans to visit. Tyler’s father said he had reservations at first about sending his son overseas, knowing there would be a strong reaction in the community.

“You know what? It’s just a job,” the elder James Tyler said. “He gets a chance to work the job of his dreams and have fun doing it. There’s kids leaving to go to Iraq at age 18. They took a job to serve their country. He’s going to play ball.”

Along the way, Tyler may just become a trailblazer for other high school basketball prodigies.

“This is what I want to do,” he said. “It will help me get better and grow up.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/23/sports/ncaabasketball/23prospect.html?_r=1&hp

This is an extremely interesting move. Thoughts? 5-Star Recruit. Initially going to Louisville.

 

[oldmangrouch]

Phooey.

The way jocks are coddled at most schools, you have to be dumber than a dirt sandwich or totally undisciplined to not be able to survive a year in college. This knucklehead can't even get a high school diploma?

No brains, no discipline, and an inflated sense of entitlement.......the best thing that could happen to this kid is to crash and burn utterly.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

Phooey.

The way jocks are coddled at most schools, you have to be dumber than a dirt sandwich or totally undisciplined to not be able to survive a year in college. This knucklehead can't even get a high school diploma?

No brains, no discipline, and an inflated sense of entitlement.......the best thing that could happen to this kid is to crash and burn utterly.

Its a good move. His focus for his career is basketball. He will make hundreds of thousands of dollars in Europe instead of being stuck in a lame ass school and playing for a bunch of people twittering in the stands. He will get better competition, grow as a player and by traveling and living in a foreign country...he will grow as a person.

 

[Natebishop3]

If I could have gone to Europe to play pro ball at that age, I would have gone too.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

lets see, hook up with skanky cheerleaders or bang Italian supermodels. not a hard choice!

 

[julius]

The "best American big man since Greg Oden"..

That's such a long time ago too.

 

[BengalDuck]

Foolish decision.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

Foolish decision.

why? i don't see any real downside to it.

He plays more basketball. Learns more offenses. Probably actually has LESS distractions and makes money.

Travelling is probably worth more in education than him taking Pre-Algebra.

 

[Natebishop3]

Whatever, man. He's going to be a Basketball player, not an accountant. If he can ball, he can ball, no need to place artificial restrictions on him. Maybe he can finish high school, but why? I didn't and I'm a successful law student who will soon be a successful practicing attorney. I didn't need high school and all staying 4 years would have done is slow me down. High school is a fucking waste of time for anyone with half a brain and some ambition anyhow. I'm of the opinion that most freshman in high school would be better served educationally by enrolling in their local community college. The course work isn't really any harder, and they'd be closer to their degrees and making steps towards a good career.
So if regular people could really do without high school, why not someone who doesn't need a degree? Is high school magical? No, high school is where they teach you almost nothing for 8 hours a day and send you home with more work because they teach at the pace of the slowest non-disabled person in the class.
Good for this kid! Fuck the arbitrary requirements! Life isn't one-size-fits-all, go out and do what is right for you, arbitrary societal expectations be damned.

Maybe wishing for a young and enterprising athlete to crash and burn is something other than totally classless, but I don't see it... perhaps because of my lack of a public high school education... ;-)

That's what I did. Smart man.

 

[BengalDuck]

Well, with all the talk about the NBA and NBAPA trying to actually lengthen the post-high school graduate requirements, he might just end up stranded over there for three years.

And "growing his game" just might not happen. Young guys don't play big minutes internationally. Jennings hasn't even played all that much. Sure, he'll have hours in the gym to practice, but if he were dedicated to his craft he could do the same thing at home.

Do you think NBA teams are going to eagerly draft a dude who didn't even graduate high school? How do you think PR campaigns will go with him telling kids to stay in school?

 

[MARIS61]

Sad that his word means nothing to him.

Hope he stays in Europe.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

Well, with all the talk about the NBA and NBAPA trying to actually lengthen the post-high school graduate requirements, he might just end up stranded over there for three years.

And "growing his game" just might not happen. Young guys don't play big minutes internationally. Jennings hasn't even played all that much. Sure, he'll have hours in the gym to practice, but if he were dedicated to his craft he could do the same thing at home.

Do you think NBA teams are going to eagerly draft a dude who didn't even graduate high school? How do you think PR campaigns will go with him telling kids to stay in school?

OK. So he's stranded in Europe making hundreds of thousands of dollars versus making zero playing free collegiate basketball. Big deal about that.

And maybe he won't play big minutes internationally. There's no guarantee he would play at Duke or UNC either.

And as far as marketing, big whoop. He'll worry about that when he gets there. Stay in School is only good if you're a loser. If you're an agressive guy willing to take reasonable risks, then staying in school makes little sense. Maybe he'll just get his GED for the hell of it and then take summer classes if he wants to.

 

[BengalDuck]

He'd play no matter what college he goes to, because he's a freakishly athletic big guy. Honestly, all we would have to do is block shots, rebound, grab some alley oops and stay healthy and he's the #1 pick.

He's also losing potential marketing footholds by not having a chance to play in front of his future target audience. Granted he's a big guy so maybe this applies to Jennings more, but instead of cementing college memories like Durant and Mayo did, he's in Europe making some money. However, rest assured Durant and Mayo are far more marketable than Jennings in to perpetuity, just because they have a huge college fan base that remembers him.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

well, its not really fair to compare guys that are already in the NBA with guys that aren't in terms of "marketability".

and he'll just be like a foreign player.

 

[MAS RipCity]

should be illegal (ok maybe not illegal, but still lame), need to at least graduate high school imo...not even finishing high school is a fucking disgrace (since read, hope he does get a HS diploma)

Also, he may enjoy the money, but just from reading the article, my assumption is he does not have a passion for the game and is just looking for a quick buck. There is no price tag on a college experience and paying in a college atmosphere..he may also sit on the Euro bench, as they dont like playing young players. He would be best suited going to a team where he could start right away in college.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

should be illegal, need to at least graduate high school imo...not even finishing high school is a fucking disgrace

Why? High school is glorified babysitting for the most part.

 

[Natebishop3]

I had a 12 year old girl in one of my college classes this year. Nobody gets on her for skipping high school. If you possess the skills, whether mental or physical, to move ahead in life, you do it. You can ALWAYS go back to school. I'm a couple months shy of 28 and I'm back in college.

And btw, nobody got on THIS Guy for skipping high school.

 

[oldmangrouch]

So, if playing in Europe is such great experience for a player, why is Jennings in such a big rush to come back?

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

So, if playing in Europe is such great experience for a player, why is Jennings in such a big rush to come back?

I don't know.

 

[Natebishop3]

So, if playing in Europe is such great experience for a player, why is Jennings in such a big rush to come back?

Language barrier?

 

[MAS RipCity]

I had a 12 year old girl in one of my college classes this year. Nobody gets on her for skipping high school. If you possess the skills, whether mental or physical, to move ahead in life, you do it. You can ALWAYS go back to school. I'm a couple months shy of 28 and I'm back in college.

And btw, nobody got on THIS Guy for skipping high school.

They are skipping HS to FURTHER their education, big difference.
We aren't the most intelligent country and this situation kind of adds to the fact

 

[BengalDuck]

I had a 12 year old girl in one of my college classes this year. Nobody gets on her for skipping high school. If you possess the skills, whether mental or physical, to move ahead in life, you do it. You can ALWAYS go back to school. I'm a couple months shy of 28 and I'm back in college.

And btw, nobody got on THIS Guy for skipping high school.

He didn't skip HS. He just completed it quickly. I wouldn't have a problem if Tyler were graduating HS this summer and taking college classes.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

They are skipping HS to FURTHER their education, big difference.
We aren't the most intelligent country and this situation kind of adds to the fact

Why would this situation add to that fact? This guy's career is going to be centered around basketball barring a freak injury. He is going to make more in two years than many of his "high school graduate" counterparts (both non-basketball and basketball playing) are going to make their entire lives.

What would one more year of high school do? Senior year is one big party. Its easy, you don't give a shit about the second semester and you spend your weekends having a good time. By him starting his career and getting real work experience, he'll be better for it.

I mean unless he wants to learn the Pythgorean Theorm

 

[MAS RipCity]

Why would this situation add to that fact? This guy's career is going to be centered around basketball barring a freak injury. He is going to make more in two years than many of his "high school graduate" counterparts (both non-basketball and basketball playing) are going to make their entire lives.

What would one more year of high school do? Senior year is one big party. Its easy, you don't give a shit about the second semester and you spend your weekends having a good time. By him starting his career and getting real work experience, he'll be better for it.

I mean unless he wants to learn the Pythgorean Theorm

EXACTLY! One injury and he is flipping burgers the rest of his life, because he has no education.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

EXACTLY! One injury and he is flipping burgers the rest of his life, because he has no education.

Actually he'll have a contract. His contract is his insurance policy. He signs a decent contract, gets insurance coverage for himself...he won't have to worry about flipping burgers.

You don't get that guarantee as a high school and college athlete.

 

[julius]

EXACTLY! One injury and he is flipping burgers the rest of his life, because he has no education.

What, he's incapable of going to a community college to either get his GED or start off with college?

He also could get injured in college too.

 

[MAS RipCity]

I think you guys are severely overestimating his handling of finances(meaning, don't assume he will have money just b/c of a contract)..a lot of athletes screw up their money, contract or no contract.

 

[AgentDrazenPetrovic]

I think you guys are severely overestimating his handling of finances(meaning, don't assume he will have money just b/c of a contract)..a lot of athletes screw up their money, contract or no contract.

So assume he'll squander his money, get injured and end up flipping burgers?

ok.

 

[oldmangrouch]

Language barrier?

That could actually be a contributing factor.

I don't claim to be an "expert" on the Euroleagues, but from everything I have read, there is only one type of young player who thrives there - a "savant" like Rubio. From the neck down, Jennings is probably a much better prospect than Rubio...but like most players his age, he is still learning the game. As a result, he sits on the bench, and is expected to learn the game on his own time.

The rule of thumb seems to be that players get far more individual coaching at a US college, than they do with a Euro team.

I'm sure they gave Jennings a *chance*, but once he came up short, they just lost interest in him. Compound this with the language barrier and the shorter season...and it sounds like a piss poor way for an American teenager to try to develop his game!

 

[yakbladder]

Whatever, man. He's going to be a Basketball player, not an accountant. If he can ball, he can ball, no need to place artificial restrictions on him. Maybe he can finish high school, but why? I didn't and I'm a successful law student who will soon be a successful practicing attorney. I didn't need high school and all staying 4 years would have done is slow me down. High school is a fucking waste of time for anyone with half a brain and some ambition anyhow.
Maybe wishing for a young and enterprising athlete to crash and burn is something other than totally classless, but I don't see it... perhaps because of my lack of a public high school education... ;-)

Yeah, I'm totally with you. In fact, junior high was a waste of time too - think of all the elementary things they taught you! And speaking of elementary, damn, elementary school was a waste of my time. Addition and subtraction? Come on, does anybody NOT use a calculator or cell phone now to do math? Hell, I should've just popped out of the womb and gone to a pro team...

What they never tell you about is the 10,000 other dingleberries that think (or are told) they are NBA material who end up lying at the bottom of the human trash can who can now forget about the most meaningless jobs because they don't have any education and no motivation to continue on that path. So, for you, more power to you, but I'm thinking it's more exception meet rule.