By ROBERT L. LEE

First off, it’s a gamble. A high school student now has the option to bypass college completely for a (hopeful) career in the NBA. I know Kobe Bryant did it a few years back, but now this movement is in the early stages of a trend. Kids this age will still have the opportunity to leave the NBA and return to college for an education should something go wrong physically or politically, so their education is not totally ruled out of the picture. Then too, if the player can get signed or drafted and jump to such a prominent position, for basketball, and with such a prominent, for any job, salary and at such a young age, why not do it? One thing they wouldn’t have to gamble with is having an injury during the last year or two of college which would likely end their basketball career, never having seen a paycheck. It would be a devastating loss to know you could have made some serious money during those few years, and if you were injured at that time anyway, you would at least have the NBA experience under your belt.

But, yeah here it is, where do students and their parents, who are in the mix somewhere, draw the line?

There is a kid, a high school junior, up in Ohio considered one of the best players in the country. I’ve even seen a picture of him in front of the Goodyear blimp with his name on it in lights. I don’t know how much doing that feat takes, but it seems pretty darn cool to me.

However, what makes this kid different, the junior wants to skip his senior year of high school to play ball in Europe for a season, so he can then become eligible for the 2004 NBA draft. I don’t know who cooked up this scheme but it wasn’t done overnight.

Younger and younger players in the pros and leaving school earlier and earlier may seem like a great trend to some, and at some points or in some cases it may be, but where will the line be drawn? Like I said, where are the parents in these issues and how can anyone let their kid leave a good high school for a shot in the NBA? Yeah the boy is good, he probably can’t beat me, but if he does, the least I have over him is a high school diploma.

Honestly, did he think of how would he feel should he have to leave the NBA because of an injury or something, then try to find a job without so much as a high school diploma? The fact is that situation is highly likely when you throw an 18 year old in with a league of grown men fighting for a ball and their respect.

I guess during a job interview he could say, “Well I have communication skills, I know how to yell ‘Two’ across a basketball court.”

ROBERT L. LEE is the sports editor. He can be reached at 985-652-9545.