Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has been coaching college basketball for a long time and has seen a lot of things in his tenure. From NIL to the transfer portal, and now he is dealing with something no one ever thought the NCAA would allow.
Louisville announced this week that they have a commitment from 21-year-old London Johnson, who, for the last three seasons, has been playing professionally in the NBA G-League. Some may be wondering how this can be possible, as once a player turns pro, they are no longer eligible to play in college again in that sport, but thanks to NIL and revenue sharing, that line has blurred.
Due to the NCAA deeming that players who play in the G-League do not earn enough money to be considered more than "necessary expenses," the association is deeming that they are not actual professsionals with the way the old rule defined it. The old rule defined it as a player who has gone on to take a salary or signed a pro contract.
Now, the NCAA is taking a new approach with G-League players and saying that if they are within five years of their high school graduation date, they can be deemed eligible to return to play college basketball.
Tom Izzo can't believe this is where the NCAA and college basketball is heading
For a coach like Izzo, who has been around college basketball for a long time, he simply can't believe that the NCAA has made this ruling without even speaking to the conferences or coaches. When speaking during a practice, Izzo was absolutely enraged over this decision and frankly couldn't believe he was only just now hearing about it all.
"This just shows you how ridiculous people in power make decisions," Izzo said.
Izzo went on to say that this new information was sprung on him and his coaching staff just yesterday, and in no way is he blaming the kids, but blaming the adults making these decisions. One of the main reasons that Izzo is so bothered by this is because of the freshman and younger kids coming into the program.
Coaches are always going to play their five best players, and to have a player come in after getting professional coaching for a few years versus a player who is coming in from high school, of course, they aren't going to be on the same level.
"What about the freshman that you recruited there?" Izzo said. "That is somebody's son, and he thinks he got himself a good place, and then all of a sudden, shazam, they pull out of their hat and bring a 21 or 22-year-old in. To me it's ridiculous, to me it's embarrassing."
Izzo respects his job as a coach and what he does, but he certainly does not respect his profession and what is going on in college sports right now.