Friend_Of_Haley wrote:Okay that makes sense informally... but what would a guy's leverage in that situation be? Just go play in Europe (but have his rights held forever by that NBA team?).
edit --
If you didn't see it, this article explains the situation quite well and educated me more on it:
https://www.vice.com/en/article/ezevwz/the-second-round-of-the-nba-draft-is-broken-but-not-beyond-repairEffectively, the player who is drafted in the 2nd can sign the tender offer (which is non guaranteed in salary but guarantees him a roster spot if not waived before the season starts). If they do this, the drafting team is forced to take him on or lose his rights.
Pros for the player:
Forces the decision of the drafting team
Can play anywhere if it doesn't work out
Cons for the player:
By the time he is waived it may be too late to catch on elsewhere.
Pros for the team:
None
Cons for the team:
May lose their pick without compensation
May be forced to make a decision before they want
So effectively now, teams / agents are seeing who will agree to what terms to be drafted. A guy who will agree to play in the G-League or overseas for a few seasons then doesn't force the hand of the team that drafted him right away and becomes more valuable than a better player that you know you don't have a roster spot for this season or know needs a few years to develop and then may or may not be good enough.