Many great basketball players chose to skip college and went straight to the NBA leagues. Here is the list of five successful players with no college degree.
The concept of highschoolers skipping college basketball to play straight in the NBA is not that new as one may think. Even back in the 90s some of the top NBA players were discovered way before they even got a chance to play in college. Of course, most highschool players are not trying to jump over their heads and work hard to get into the college of their dreams. From there, they expect to move straight to the NBA world. However, there have been some lucky examples that showed enough talents even during their school years. After all, why not? Many sports have even younger athletes participate in a major competition. The NBA should not be an exemption.
Here are five famous basketball players with no higher education. They did need it! Their play spoke for itself, and they were hired right after high school graduation.
NBA drafting history
Let’s just start with a quick NBA history note on their drafting policy. Since the beginning, there has been a never-ending discussion on the appropriate age for drafting new players. There were a few cases in history when players were picked right after high school. You can even ask sports writers from essays produced by EssayPro to fill you in on details.
Overall, those cases set an example for the future regulations. Yet, for the past fifteen years the rules have become pretty clear. No high schooler should be drafted right after graduation. There must be at least a year gap period after high school. Also, a person must be at least 19 year old. This rule doesn’t include international players, though. So, usually future young NBA players choose to take one year of college before they get picked by a new team or they go abroad to play in international leagues. Now back to the list.
Lou Williams
Lou Williams decided not to wait till college (rightfully so) and instead declared for the NBA draft back in 2005. Back at the time, he was already among the leading shooting guards across the country. So, it was no surprise that he was picked right away, even though he had just finished high school. Interestingly, the 2005 drafting was the last one with the old rules on high school players. Since 2006, the rules have come into effect, where a person must be 19 years old and there should be a year gap after school graduation. Of course, Williams was already accepted by the University of Georgia, so he could have easily played one year for the college team.
LaMelo Ball
LaMelo Ball also chose professional basketball over a college degree. He made a decision to spend his gap year playing for an Australian team. It was a wise decision by all means. Thus, he showed his maturity, ability to play with those much older than him, and high professionalism. Fair to say, he was picked in the next NBA drafting season. The Charlotte Hornets took a leap of faith and picked the rookie full of potential. Ball didn’t disappoint them.
Darius Bazley
Yet, another talented young player on our list, Darius Bazley, chose to skip college in favor of professional sports. Of course, he couldn’t declare for drafting right after graduation. After analyzing his options (playing for college or going to G-league), he decided to train on his own for the whole year. Fair to say, when the drafting came, he was one of the first picks of the season. Bazley knew what he was doing. A college degree surely wasn't in his top priorities.
Dwight Howard
Dwight Howard was the first choice during the 2004 draft even though he just finished high school. Should we say declaring for drafting was the wise decision on his side? Fortunately, back in 2004, he was able to go straight to the NBA league right after high school. Sure it means that he didn’t get his college degree. However, instead, he has built an excellent career in professional sport. Last year he finally lifted the Larry O'Brien trophy over his head. What a day that was! Basketball was everything he had ever known, and it surely paid off. By the way, if you don’t know the history behind the Larry O'Brien trophy, you should definitely contact writers from scamfighter.net to write you a paper on that. It’s quite an interesting read.
LeBron James
It shouldn’t be hard to believe that LeBron James was that good from the very start. So yes, he didn’t have a chance at avoiding the NBA draft, even if he tried. They were out to get him. Such a talent was impossible to miss, so the league wasn’t willing to give him to any college. Of course, LeBron was happy to oblige. To learn about LeBron’s basketball achievements, you need to file for a real report to a professional writer. So, if you are interested, check out online paper writing service reviews and choose the right writer for the job.
