What's the point of the G-League

[Tim Lehrbach]

If professional basketball needed a "true minor league system," it would have one. The NBA is better off letting other leagues/colleges invest in player development, then reaping the rewards. If the NCAA is destroyed by NIL/player empowerment (*fingers crossed*), the landscape may change.

[ejftw]

It's just dumb because only 5 guys can be on the floor at once.

You're literally handcuffing the talent with your idea. If a player is with a team and the franchise sees them solely as a prospect, they have no avenue to the NBA.

All this would do is push more players overseas to get paid and get a real league opportunity.

It's not broken right now, no reason to mess with it.

Ah yes, the beautiful throwing of ad hominems when there is nothing much left to say.

And it's quite amazing, I didn't know that A/AA/AAA or NextPro/Youth Academies was handcuffing talent. Because, you know, trades don't happen. Buy outs don't happen. Players don't hit free agency.

You're speaking about 2 inferior leagues............

Yeah, let's copy the underwater basket weaving professional league next Lmfao

Weird, I didn't know the NBA was superior to every league on the planet.

[Tracymcgoaty]

If you truly want to develop potential talents you need to go the youth academy route.

That is the way you develop proper talent who'll play within a system and learn proper basketball. But it's impossible because that would take college straight out of the equation. Hell it would probably take high school out of it as well.

But im willing to bet the talent that would be produced would be absurd if teams actually had youth academies.

Also the draft would be completely abolished as well so REALLY a teams success would be extremely tied to how well they develop talent.

Which imo sounds great.

[JujitsuFlip]

Ah yes, the beautiful throwing of ad hominems when there is nothing much left to say.

And it's quite amazing, I didn't know that A/AA/AAA or NextPro/Youth Academies was handcuffing talent. Because, you know, trades don't happen. Buy outs don't happen. Players don't hit free agency.

You're speaking about 2 inferior leagues............

Yeah, let's copy the underwater basket weaving professional league next Lmfao

Weird, I didn't know the NBA was superior to every league on the planet.

It's not, that is the NFL lol they should steal ideas from them, not the MLS and MLB.

[ejftw]

You're speaking about 2 inferior leagues............

Yeah, let's copy the underwater basket weaving professional league next Lmfao

Weird, I didn't know the NBA was superior to every league on the planet.

It's not, that is the NFL lol they should steal ideas from them, not the MLS and MLB.

So they should scrap the G League all together along with the lottery?

And you are aware youth academy referred to, virtually, every other league in the world, from the Polish Ekstraklasa to FIBA to La Liga?

[sp6r=underrated]

It was called development league (before sponsors), and thats the idea, a place you can send young players who wouldn't play NBA minutes, so they could play and develop. How effective it is is up to the debate, but we had good NBA players who started their jumps in G league, like Pascal Siakam for example.

Also, its a league for players who want straightest way to NBA, but do not have NBA offers, and also want to play in USA. Problem is G league is low level with low paying wages, so NBA material there is very minimal, but we had instances where guy bet on himself by declining serious Euro money, went to G league just to showcase himself to the NBA first row, and got the job. Stank face Alan Anderson did exactly that, if he extended his Barcelona offer, he never would have gotten NBA job most likely, he went to G league and got it.

To me, USA sports system is fascinating, where there is 1 PRO league, thats it. At least Basketball (and I believe Baseball too) now has another pro league these days for players to play and fans to have, and the fact its under NBA umbrella, doesn't hurt.

Baseball has a very structure minor league system.
A
AA
AAA

Players work their way up through the minor leagues before making the pros. The minor league teams are affiliated with the major league clubs but are independent companies.

[UcanUwill]

You're speaking about 2 inferior leagues............

Yeah, let's copy the underwater basket weaving professional league next Lmfao

Weird, I didn't know the NBA was superior to every league on the planet.

It's not, that is the NFL lol they should steal ideas from them, not the MLS and MLB.

What would make NFL superior to any league?

[OxAndFox]

All three guys who finished top 3 in MVP voting i doubt will ever be contributors in the NBA.

What is the real point of the g league? I see some star player practice there back from injury but that's about it.

In 2k you can use it to bring a 68 level to a 81 level in 2 seasons if you do it right

Explain to me because I think I am missing the boat somewhere. It seems the minor leagues were better back in the day somehow.

The point of G League is to play basketball. Or maybe we need to drill down on it. To score points...more than your opponent.

[UcanUwill]

It was called development league (before sponsors), and thats the idea, a place you can send young players who wouldn't play NBA minutes, so they could play and develop. How effective it is is up to the debate, but we had good NBA players who started their jumps in G league, like Pascal Siakam for example.

Also, its a league for players who want straightest way to NBA, but do not have NBA offers, and also want to play in USA. Problem is G league is low level with low paying wages, so NBA material there is very minimal, but we had instances where guy bet on himself by declining serious Euro money, went to G league just to showcase himself to the NBA first row, and got the job. Stank face Alan Anderson did exactly that, if he extended his Barcelona offer, he never would have gotten NBA job most likely, he went to G league and got it.

To me, USA sports system is fascinating, where there is 1 PRO league, thats it. At least Basketball (and I believe Baseball too) now has another pro league these days for players to play and fans to have, and the fact its under NBA umbrella, doesn't hurt.

Baseball has a very structure minor league system.
A
AA
AAA

Players work their way up through the minor leagues before making the pros. The minor league teams are affiliated with the major league clubs but are independent companies.

Looking purely from American perspective, what are pros and cons to that Baseball system in your opinion? DO you think NBA should mimic that, were they trying to do that with D league (currently G league)?

I know nothing of Baseball, but I know the sport is somewhat global, I believe Japan are current world champions. how are those minor leagues compare to other international Baseball leagues? I imagine MLB is best league in the world the same way NBA is, but how is it comparable to Basketball, are international Baseball leagues way worse than MLB?

[Chuck Everett]

It was called development league (before sponsors), and thats the idea, a place you can send young players who wouldn't play NBA minutes, so they could play and develop. How effective it is is up to the debate, but we had good NBA players who started their jumps in G league, like Pascal Siakam for example.

Also, its a league for players who want straightest way to NBA, but do not have NBA offers, and also want to play in USA. Problem is G league is low level with low paying wages, so NBA material there is very minimal, but we had instances where guy bet on himself by declining serious Euro money, went to G league just to showcase himself to the NBA first row, and got the job. Stank face Alan Anderson did exactly that, if he extended his Barcelona offer, he never would have gotten NBA job most likely, he went to G league and got it.

To me, USA sports system is fascinating, where there is 1 PRO league, thats it. At least Basketball (and I believe Baseball too) now has another pro league these days for players to play and fans to have, and the fact its under NBA umbrella, doesn't hurt.

Baseball has a very structure minor league system.
A
AA
AAA

Players work their way up through the minor leagues before making the pros. The minor league teams are affiliated with the major league clubs but are independent companies.

Looking purely from American perspective, what are pros and cons to that Baseball system in your opinion? DO you think NBA should mimic that, were they trying to do that with D league (currently G league)?

The NBA can't mimic the baseball system because that's not the only way to make to the NBA, like it is in the MLB (with notable exceptions from Japan, even Latin American phenoms begin in the minors). NBA gets players from leagues all over the world, some of whom are ready to play on Day 1, and no franchise would ever be okay with spending 3-4 years developing a project in the minors, while paying premium salaries, not to mention, the entire CBA would have to get re-worked to accommodate that.

At the end of the day, with the robust collegiate system we have, plus leagues in Europe, Asia, South America, Africa and Oceania, plus NBA Global Acacdemy's, the G-League needs to keep doing what they're doing.

I also noticed someone mentioned JD Davison for the Celtics. It's not a surprise that he doesn't play well when he gets called up from the G-League like say Baylor Scheierman. None of the stuff Davison is allowed to do in Maine, is available to him on the big club. NBA seniority is a real thing and when he gets called up, he has to defend, hopefully hit a few open shots and not make any mistakes. He doesn't get to go out there and do his best Derrick White imitation. As a two-way guy, the only way his role could change on Boston would be if older players are eventually let go and the coaching staff empowers him to do more. Until then, he will continue to look like a fringe guy.

Look at what happened to Quentin Grimes this year with more minutes, reps and opportunity. Sure, tanking team, but those reps and playing through mistakes, can be invaluable to some of these guys. Dyson Daniels is another one, on an even greater level.

[JujitsuFlip]

Weird, I didn't know the NBA was superior to every league on the planet.

It's not, that is the NFL lol they should steal ideas from them, not the MLS and MLB.

What would make NFL superior to any league?

I suppose the fact it has zero global competition, if i had to guess.

The NBA people discuss against the Euroleague all the time.

MLS is obviously far inferior to several overseas soccer leagues.

MLB is the most prominent league but Asia and other countries have several leagues and in the Olympics the US hasn't won gold in 25 years.

The NHL has 7 teams in Canada but hockey has been pitted against Russia as far back as i can recall.

The only other American football league i can even think of is the UFL and it is in the US, played in the spring, far inferior talent. I know Canada has a similar rule set but that league talent wise may be below the UFL. From Google i see Mexico may also have a league but idk anything about it. I think that is what makes the NFL unique, it has no competitors.

[UcanUwill]

It's not, that is the NFL lol they should steal ideas from them, not the MLS and MLB.

What would make NFL superior to any league?

I suppose the fact it has zero global competition, if i had to guess.

The NBA people discuss against the Euroleague all the time.

MLS is obviously far inferior to several overseas soccer leagues.

MLB is the most prominent league but Asia and other countries have several leagues and in the Olympics the US hasn't won gold in 25 years.

The NHL has 7 teams in Canada but hockey has been pitted against Russia as far back as i can recall.

The only other American football league i can even think of is the UFL and it is in the US, played in the spring, far inferior talent. I know Canada has a similar rule set but that league talent wise may be below the UFL. From Google i see Mexico may also have a league but idk anything about it. I think that is what makes the NFL unique, it has no competitors.

The word was used, on a planet, not US. If we are talking US, yeah I imagine NFL might be the best league, but on the planet that would be odd choice I think.

[slickrickstyles]

Mac McClung is an interesting case study, considering that he has carved out a career and niche in the G League, in combination with his time in the NBA.

[JujitsuFlip]

What would make NFL superior to any league?

I suppose the fact it has zero global competition, if i had to guess.

The NBA people discuss against the Euroleague all the time.

MLS is obviously far inferior to several overseas soccer leagues.

MLB is the most prominent league but Asia and other countries have several leagues and in the Olympics the US hasn't won gold in 25 years.

The NHL has 7 teams in Canada but hockey has been pitted against Russia as far back as i can recall.

The only other American football league i can even think of is the UFL and it is in the US, played in the spring, far inferior talent. I know Canada has a similar rule set but that league talent wise may be below the UFL. From Google i see Mexico may also have a league but idk anything about it. I think that is what makes the NFL unique, it has no competitors.

The word was used, on a planet, not US. If we are talking US, yeah I imagine NFL might be the best league, but on the planet that would be odd choice I think.

I mean, idc about cricket and tennis lol i couldn't name you a single cricket player in the history of the game, i don't even know the rules.

Tennis is mostly a solo dominated sport and even still i only know the largest names in the history of the game, not current.

The NBA is not going to pull rules from cricket or tennis.

The next one would be Soccer but the MLS is not the best soccer league in the world, Google tells me it's the 9th best soccer league worldwide.

So why would the NBA (the best basketball league in the world) take rules and ideas from a league that is barely top 10 in it's own sport?

Like i said earlier, we might as well try to pull ideas from the underwater basket weaving pro league, if that's where we're at with it.

[HangTime]

It's good to develop role players, sometimes you get All-stars. Organizations just need to know how to maximize it.

Think about it, The Raptors (bench mob) had Pascal Siakam(27th), Fred VanVleet (Undrafted), Norm Powell (46th), Jakob Poeltl (9th) and Delon Wright (20th) all participate it the G-League.


This season they've had Walter (19th), Mogbo (31st), Shead (45th), Battle (Undrafted, converted to standard) and Chomche (57th, 2 year, 2way contract) all play games in the G-League.


I guess some people really hate development. It could be frustrating, but still fun to watch.

[ejftw]

I suppose the fact it has zero global competition, if i had to guess.

The NBA people discuss against the Euroleague all the time.

MLS is obviously far inferior to several overseas soccer leagues.

MLB is the most prominent league but Asia and other countries have several leagues and in the Olympics the US hasn't won gold in 25 years.

The NHL has 7 teams in Canada but hockey has been pitted against Russia as far back as i can recall.

The only other American football league i can even think of is the UFL and it is in the US, played in the spring, far inferior talent. I know Canada has a similar rule set but that league talent wise may be below the UFL. From Google i see Mexico may also have a league but idk anything about it. I think that is what makes the NFL unique, it has no competitors.

The word was used, on a planet, not US. If we are talking US, yeah I imagine NFL might be the best league, but on the planet that would be odd choice I think.

I mean, idc about cricket and tennis lol i couldn't name you a single cricket player in the history of the game, i don't even know the rules.

Tennis is mostly a solo dominated sport and even still i only know the largest names in the history of the game, not current.

The NBA is not going to pull rules from cricket or tennis.

The next one would be Soccer but the MLS is not the best soccer league in the world, Google tells me it's the 9th best soccer league worldwide.

So why would the NBA (the best basketball league in the world) take rules and ideas from a league that is barely top 10 in it's own sport?

Like i said earlier, we might as well try to pull ideas from the underwater basket weaving pro league, if that's where we're at with it.

Not sure why your so hell bent on only talking about the MLS when it comes to football when it's been stated that youth academies and reserve leagues are a world wide thing.

But then again, I'm expecting an YoUr iNsAnE response along with some asinine **** that doesn't exist.

[UcanUwill]

I suppose the fact it has zero global competition, if i had to guess.

The NBA people discuss against the Euroleague all the time.

MLS is obviously far inferior to several overseas soccer leagues.

MLB is the most prominent league but Asia and other countries have several leagues and in the Olympics the US hasn't won gold in 25 years.

The NHL has 7 teams in Canada but hockey has been pitted against Russia as far back as i can recall.

The only other American football league i can even think of is the UFL and it is in the US, played in the spring, far inferior talent. I know Canada has a similar rule set but that league talent wise may be below the UFL. From Google i see Mexico may also have a league but idk anything about it. I think that is what makes the NFL unique, it has no competitors.

The word was used, on a planet, not US. If we are talking US, yeah I imagine NFL might be the best league, but on the planet that would be odd choice I think.

I mean, idc about cricket and tennis lol i couldn't name you a single cricket player in the history of the game, i don't even know the rules.

Tennis is mostly a solo dominated sport and even still i only know the largest names in the history of the game, not current.

The NBA is not going to pull rules from cricket or tennis.

The next one would be Soccer but the MLS is not the best soccer league in the world, Google tells me it's the 9th best soccer league worldwide.

So why would the NBA (the best basketball league in the world) take rules and ideas from a league that is barely top 10 in it's own sport?

Like i said earlier, we might as well try to pull ideas from the underwater basket weaving pro league, if that's where we're at with it.

Yeah, but the guy was not talking about MLS, he was basically talking about most leagues on the planet that had those systems.

I mean personally I am not sure if American leagues should mimic International leagues, some things Americans leagues do is far more interesting and they have a platform to have rules like CAP and draft and max contracts, because they have by far the financially most dominant leagues of their sport, as least still have it. They were doing just fine until now while doing their own unique thing. La Liga for example couldn't have CAP or draft or max contracts, because competitor leagues would just destroy them if they put a cap on how much their teams can spend.

I would only wish there was a promotion relegation system in the NBA, that to me is one of the most exiting things that happens in sports, and it would also instantly fix tanking problem. I really hate NBA doesn't have that. They already have second division basicallly, of course for relegation and promotion to work, they would need to make every G league team independent. People argue that it would tank franchices value, but imagine hoe much G league franchises would worth instantly if they would have a shot into becoming NBA franchise every year. Its a gold mine, fixes tanking instantly, makes G league far more interesting, makes races not just on top but on the bottom, incredibly exiting.

[JujitsuFlip]

The word was used, on a planet, not US. If we are talking US, yeah I imagine NFL might be the best league, but on the planet that would be odd choice I think.

I mean, idc about cricket and tennis lol i couldn't name you a single cricket player in the history of the game, i don't even know the rules.

Tennis is mostly a solo dominated sport and even still i only know the largest names in the history of the game, not current.

The NBA is not going to pull rules from cricket or tennis.

The next one would be Soccer but the MLS is not the best soccer league in the world, Google tells me it's the 9th best soccer league worldwide.

So why would the NBA (the best basketball league in the world) take rules and ideas from a league that is barely top 10 in it's own sport?

Like i said earlier, we might as well try to pull ideas from the underwater basket weaving pro league, if that's where we're at with it.

Yeah, but the guy was not talking about MLS, he was basically talking about most leagues on the planet that had those systems.

I mean personally I am not sure if American leagues should mimic International leagues, some things Americans leagues do is far more interesting and they have a platform to have rules like CAP and draft and max contracts, because they have by far the financially most dominant leagues of their sport, as least still have it. They were doing just fine until now while doing their own unique thing. La Liga for example couldn't have CAP or draft or max contracts, because competitor leagues would just destroy them if they put a cap on how much their teams can spend.

I would only wish there was a promotion relegation system in the NBA, that to me is one of the most exiting things that happens in sports, and it would also instantly fix tanking problem. I really hate NBA doesn't have that. They already have second division basicallly, of course for relegation and promotion to work, they would need to make every G league team independent. People argue that it would tank franchices value, but imagine hoe much G league franchises would worth instantly if they would have a shot into becoming NBA franchise every year. Its a gold mine, fixes tanking instantly, makes G league far more interesting, makes races not just on top but on the bottom, incredibly exiting.

They can't do relegation.

What League would they relegate down to? The G League?

The NBA cap for a NBA team is $140 million. The G League doesn't have a cap but for all 15 players would be less than $1 million.

Further, the capacity of the G League gyms is tiny compared to NBA arenas. Can you imagine NBA teams having to play in gyms that only hold 750 people? That would be pure chaos. Even the gyms with 2,000 to 5,000 people capacity, is tiny. Only 5 of the 31 G League teams actually have NBA sized arenas.

Plus, players are not going to be cool with riding buses to games after 1 season before they were flying on private jets.

The NBA is a player driven league, any idea without the consideration is dead on arrival. They're unionized too, so they have someone backing them.

[UcanUwill]

I mean, idc about cricket and tennis lol i couldn't name you a single cricket player in the history of the game, i don't even know the rules.

Tennis is mostly a solo dominated sport and even still i only know the largest names in the history of the game, not current.

The NBA is not going to pull rules from cricket or tennis.

The next one would be Soccer but the MLS is not the best soccer league in the world, Google tells me it's the 9th best soccer league worldwide.

So why would the NBA (the best basketball league in the world) take rules and ideas from a league that is barely top 10 in it's own sport?

Like i said earlier, we might as well try to pull ideas from the underwater basket weaving pro league, if that's where we're at with it.

Yeah, but the guy was not talking about MLS, he was basically talking about most leagues on the planet that had those systems.

I mean personally I am not sure if American leagues should mimic International leagues, some things Americans leagues do is far more interesting and they have a platform to have rules like CAP and draft and max contracts, because they have by far the financially most dominant leagues of their sport, as least still have it. They were doing just fine until now while doing their own unique thing. La Liga for example couldn't have CAP or draft or max contracts, because competitor leagues would just destroy them if they put a cap on how much their teams can spend.

I would only wish there was a promotion relegation system in the NBA, that to me is one of the most exiting things that happens in sports, and it would also instantly fix tanking problem. I really hate NBA doesn't have that. They already have second division basicallly, of course for relegation and promotion to work, they would need to make every G league team independent. People argue that it would tank franchices value, but imagine hoe much G league franchises would worth instantly if they would have a shot into becoming NBA franchise every year. Its a gold mine, fixes tanking instantly, makes G league far more interesting, makes races not just on top but on the bottom, incredibly exiting.

They can't do relegation.

What League would they relegate down to? The G League?

The NBA cap for a NBA team is $140 million. The G League doesn't have a cap but for all 15 players would be less than $1 million.

Further, the capacity of the G League gyms is tiny compared to NBA arenas. Can you imagine NBA teams having to play in gyms that only hold 750 people? That would be pure chaos. Even the gyms with 2,000 to 5,000 people capacity, is tiny. Only 5 of the 31 G League teams actually have NBA sized arenas.

Plus, players are not going to be cool with riding buses to games after 1 season before they were flying on private jets.

The NBA is a player driven league, any idea without the consideration is dead on arrival. They're unionized too, so they have someone backing them.

Yes, a lot of further work needs to be done, but I always thought it sucks that only 28 USA cities has a real Basketball team. If they introduced relegation system, they could expend so much, not directly NBA, but a second league, put team in Nashville, Seattle, Vegas, many other cities I imagine could be exited. League would no longer be G league, it would have normal salaries, not NBA level cap, but competitive. New player contracts would have relegation clause, just like they do in Europe, sometimes teams with big players get relegated, these players can leave, they do not go to domestic second division. I mean I understand it absolutely sucks for the fan if your team gets relegated, but thats sports, if you suck, you get punished, and then you compete in a weaker league, hoping to get back as soon as 1 year later.

[JujitsuFlip]

Yeah, but the guy was not talking about MLS, he was basically talking about most leagues on the planet that had those systems.

I mean personally I am not sure if American leagues should mimic International leagues, some things Americans leagues do is far more interesting and they have a platform to have rules like CAP and draft and max contracts, because they have by far the financially most dominant leagues of their sport, as least still have it. They were doing just fine until now while doing their own unique thing. La Liga for example couldn't have CAP or draft or max contracts, because competitor leagues would just destroy them if they put a cap on how much their teams can spend.

I would only wish there was a promotion relegation system in the NBA, that to me is one of the most exiting things that happens in sports, and it would also instantly fix tanking problem. I really hate NBA doesn't have that. They already have second division basicallly, of course for relegation and promotion to work, they would need to make every G league team independent. People argue that it would tank franchices value, but imagine hoe much G league franchises would worth instantly if they would have a shot into becoming NBA franchise every year. Its a gold mine, fixes tanking instantly, makes G league far more interesting, makes races not just on top but on the bottom, incredibly exiting.

They can't do relegation.

What League would they relegate down to? The G League?

The NBA cap for a NBA team is $140 million. The G League doesn't have a cap but for all 15 players would be less than $1 million.

Further, the capacity of the G League gyms is tiny compared to NBA arenas. Can you imagine NBA teams having to play in gyms that only hold 750 people? That would be pure chaos. Even the gyms with 2,000 to 5,000 people capacity, is tiny. Only 5 of the 31 G League teams actually have NBA sized arenas.

Plus, players are not going to be cool with riding buses to games after 1 season before they were flying on private jets.

The NBA is a player driven league, any idea without the consideration is dead on arrival. They're unionized too, so they have someone backing them.

Yes, a lot of further work needs to be done, but I always thought it sucks that only 28 USA cities has a real Basketball team. If they introduced relegation system, they could expend so much, not directly NBA, but a second league, put team in Nashville, Seattle, Vegas, many other cities I imagine could be exited. League would no longer be G league, it would have normal salaries, not NBA level cap, but competitive. New player contracts would have relegation clause, just like they do in Europe, sometimes teams with big players get relegated, these players can leave, they do not go to domestic second division. I mean I understand it absolutely sucks for the fan if your team gets relegated, but thats sports, if you suck, you get punished, and then you compete in a weaker league, hoping to get back as soon as 1 year later.

That would just water down the talent.

The NBA can't even field 30 competitive teams right now and we're supposed to essentially expand that to 60?

I appreciate that the NBA is very exclusive. 450 players get into the NBA. Everyone else is fighting to get there or play in lesser leagues.

I don't think the NBA's problem is that there's too much talent that can't fit in the league, i believe it is the opposite.

If anything, the NBA should shrink, not expand.