Arizona Basketball: NCAA is committed to change college basketball

It seems a lot will be changing for Arizona Basketball coaches and future athletes as the NCAA, courts, and NBA makes upcoming crucial decisions.

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The National Association of Basketball Coaches special committee led by Condoleezza Rice is proposed rules that will cut out AAU organizations from NCAA recruiting. The NCAA and Division 1 Board of Directors approved changes today that will fundamentally change the NCAA’s structure. Arizona Basketball coaches will need to re-evaluate their strategy and staff to cover recruiting back at high schools once more.

One of the biggest changes is to a student athlete’s ability moving forward to enter the draft and come back to school if undrafted including the ability to work with an agent and return later to school even if they go pro.

In addition, the NBA and NCAA are collaborating to put on NCAA recruiting camps with selected players. On top of all that there is also a court case that may change the status of college athletes in order for them to get paid some money in addition to scholarship and stipends.

We will try to help explain what’s going on.

NCAA is changing rules on recruiting per Rice Commission

The NCAA commissioned Dr. Condoleezza Rice to lead a team of NCAA personnel, agents, apparel companies and more to investigate and review current NCAA Rules and policies and recommend changes to help the NCAA to avoid FBI indictments and more.

A lot came out of the commission along with rule changes that the NCAA is looking to implement as early as April of next year. Coaches are not happy. CBS Sports reported that a “high-level source involved in the process” that major changes are coming. The proposal is expected to be passed and implemented on Aug. 8th this week.

Coaches aren’t happy because the way they recruit today will be restricted even more than they already are. In April, according to CBS Reporter Matt Norlander, there will be a new live period allowed before an athletes junior year, “In-home visits for coaches will be allowed after on-the-road eval periods conclude.” Coaches should be happy about that change but wait, there’s more!

Coaches will be allowed to recruit at AAU types of events during the current 5-day July evaluation period. That may mean that the Nike Peach Jam may be the only event NCAA Coaches will be allowed to attend as coaches will only be allowed to attend one weekend of sanctioned, non-scholastic events.

In addition to the one week of non-scholastic events, Coaches will be able to recruit during an additional week in July but only at an NCAA sponsored event who will collaborate with USA Basketball, the NBA and the NBA Players Association for the first time ever. Keep in mind that the Jr. NBA is sponsored by Under Armor (did your eyebrows reach your hairline?).

"The camps will include approximately 1,100 high school seniors, potentially as many as 1,000 juniors and significantly lower number of elite sophomores. High school freshmen will not be invited."

In addition, there will be an additional live period in June, but coaches can only go and watch players at their high schools, no shoe-company sponsored events allowed.

Well-respected Pangos Program Director Dinos Trigonis (Pangos All-American Camp, tournaments, etc.) had a lot to say about the upcoming changes proposed. He feels the changes will hinder the under-the-radar athletes who will be excluded from being recruited and more.