Here are the kinds of statements that should send chills down the spines of thoughtful leaders of school-based basketball:

• From Maverick Carter, business manager for LeBron James and CEO of Springhill Entertainment: “. . . the system is broken at the base, the foundation of it, which is youth basketball . . . And if youth basketball is broken, then that’s part of his (NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s) job, too, because those kids are quickly in his league.”
  “. . . the NCAA has these stupid-ass rules that are so archaic, so you have to fix that whole thing and figure out a way to do it. I own a piece of Liverpool football club, in European soccer, because clubs have a system all the way down to youth.”
• From Michelle Roberts, NBA Players Association executive director: “. . . we need to go younger, and we’re now plotting ways to do that.”
• From Draymond Green, formerly of Michigan State and now of the NBA’s Golden State Warriors: “You talk to the European guys who I’ve played with, and they’ve been making money since they were 15 years old . . .”
• From Michael Singer of the Commercial Appeal, Memphis, TN: “. . . the NBA is indeed exploring avenues to connect with elite high school players and improve the developmental system . . . Part of the NBA’s plan could hinge on working with elite prospects throughout high school, whether at tournaments or at summer camps.”

So, at minimum, this is what school-based sports can expect as a result of NBA and NCAA efforts to fix what’s broken in college basketball:

1. Additional pressures on students to specialize in basketball year-round from a very early age.
2. Further distraction from the masses of players toward elite players.
3. An attack on amateur standing rules in school-based basketball.