One only has to be 18 years of age and breathing and somebody can scout you. A player staying four years in college is about as unique as Moses Malone was 22 years ago when he entered the American Basketball Association, also known as the ABA, straight out of high school. High school and college basketball players entering the NBA early are effecting the college programs, the NBA, and themselves in negative ways. .
The college basketball program suffers from players leaving early to play in the NBA. College coaches are used to recruiting players, but now they have to concentrate on keeping the players. Many players are leaving college early and now there are few seniors on the teams. "There are no great upperclassmen anymore," said Purdue coach Gene Keady (Curtis). Coaches have begun to develop schemes not just on how to attract star players but also how to keep them. Former Kentucky coach, Rick Pitino, is in favor of making freshmen ineligible for varsity competition. Making freshmen ineligible for varsity competition would make the college program more structured. "Quite frankly I think the college game is in serious trouble. I think the NBA is in serious trouble in the long run," said Pitino. .
Would Duke have blown out North Carolina at the Dean Smith Center if Antawn Jamison and Vince Carter still ran on the Tar Heel's fast break? Would Kansas need to win the Big 12 tournament just to crack the top 25 if it still had Paul Pierce? How good would Kentucky be if Nazr Mohammed and Ron Mercer were still around? Can you imagine Stephon Marbury as a senior at Georgia Tech? Better yet, how much better would college basketball be if the stars were seniors and the future all-stars rather than freshmen who think a weak-side pick is a broken fence? These are just a few examples of how the players make a difference to their former collegiate teams when they make the jump to the NBA. The college basketball programs are suffering from lack of substance (Henderson).