Adam Silver Wants to Lower Minimum NBA Draft Age

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver is advocating to lower the minimum NBA Draft eligibility age from 19 to 18, he told reporters on Tuesday.

Currently, the minimum age for athletes to enter the NBA Draft is 19 — meaning prospects can’t go straight through from high school. 

But the limitation has made less and less sense in recent years, as many players have begun exploring options for their post-high school season that don’t include the traditional NCAA route.

• The NBA’s G League Ignite team offers players a chance for players to get paid and develop NBA relationships.
• Overseas opportunities have also become a common avenue to spend the gap year. 
• There’s even a high school league, Overtime Elite, that pays top prospects six-figure salaries. That route automatically forces athletes out of the college route, as the salary makes them ineligible for NCAA hoops.

In his comments, Silver noted that the age at which players appear on the college and NBA radar is getting younger and younger. From training to nutrition, Silver said he believes it would benefit all parties to give players access to NBA relationships as early as possible.

Silver hopes that the younger age can be accomplished in the next round of collective bargaining agreements. It’s “the right thing to do,” he said.