NBPA leader Michele Roberts: 'Be happy with one-and-done'
Michele Roberts, the Executive Director of the NBA Players Association, made clear on Friday her stance on the league's age minimum.
"Be happy with one & done, it's not going to be two & done," Roberts said, according to Ethan Skolnick of Bleacher Report.
The league's collective bargaining agreement stipulates that players born in the United States must turn 19 in the same calendar year as the draft and be at least one year removed from the graduation of their high school class.
The so-called "one-and-done" rule, implemented before the 2006 draft, has led many players to spend only one year in college before declaring for the draft. Roberts' stance on the rule contrasts with that of NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who said on Saturday that he prefers the minimum be raised to 20 from 19.
"I think it would be much better for the game if the minimum age were 20 instead of 19," Silver said, according to Sean Deveney of Sporting News. "Having said that, I do understand the other side of the issue. While the Union has stated its view that they want to keep it at 19, we haven't entered collective bargaining. We haven't sat across the table and discussed it with them. We haven't had an opportunity to present, in essence, our side of why we think it would be beneficial not just for the league, but for the players as well. So we'll see. When we get into bargaining, I'm sure we'll discuss it.”
The CBA expires after the 2021 season, but the NBA and the union can opt out following the 2017 campaign.
• MANNIX: Roberts looking to make her mark on the league
