Current Issues in Journalism

Wright made the right decision, but yes, I'd argue that Rush absolutely, 100% made the absolute wrong decision from every standpoint. And that's not just coming from me because I love KU basketball.

The way youth culture is now we want everything now--RIGHT AWAY.
We want the money now, we want the fame now and everything that comes with it. We don't want to wait.

If Rush returned next year, he'd have the chance to be one of the top 5 players in the country. With Durant, Horford, Green, Afflalo Conely, Oden, Hibbert and Noah leaving early this year, it left the door wide open for Rush to be one of the top college players in the country next year.

Wright was in a different situation because he has the type of skills where an NBA team can refine his game. He doesn't have much more to gain at the college level.

Rush, however, does. If he returned, he'd be a top 10-12 pick at worst next year and make several million more dollars right off the bat. He still has serious issues with his consistency and how he dissapears in big games. People can argue the "injury" concerns if he returns, but I don't feel that's a real valid reason to leave when you still have so much to prove at the college level.

His decision was all about money, but that's not something you can blame Rush for entirely. It has more to do with the way youth culture wants instant gratification. It's a shame though as a Rush fan. Next year, he would have been one of the top players taken in the draft and could have developed into a very good player.

This year, he's a late first/early second rounder who is most likely bound to get lost in the NBA in the sea of players who opt out of college early unprepared to take their game to the next level. One more year and he really could have been something special.

Andy,
I should have added that I think that Brandon would have been well served staying another year. He would have gotten a lot better next year had he stayed and the team would have been pretty good. However, I am impressed with him for coming this far in college. Having grown up in KC, I heard all about him struggling in school and not being the sharpest tack in the box. While that conclusion is unfair to him I think some people just aren't college people and I think he's one of them. I really hope his decision doesn't come back to bite him in the ass.

yeah I hear ya. I agree with the college not really being his think. I just think he could be a very good player in the league who could have been a consistent starter if he spent one more year refining his game in college.

He still could turn out to be a good player we'll just have to wait and see. And yes, he has come a LONG LONG way from that player I remember seeing at the start of his freshman year.

I'm wishing him the best and if I was put in the same situation, I'd probably consider doing the same thing.

Yes, maybe Brandon made a decision that's going to cost him some money. However, it's still a six figure job for a kid. Let me repeat that...It's still a six figure job for a KID. I would love to be able to accept that kind of money at this point in my life, because I spend lots of money as I'm sure everyone else in our class does. I would also be mad if a bunch of strangers held me in comtempt for making a ton of money while fulfilling my life dream. He's getting a chance to play his favorite sport against the guys he probably admires...for money. Anyway, that's all I have to say.

The NBA draft these days is based primarily on potential, and no longer on reliable past accomplishments. As a perfect example, Julian will be a top 10 or 15 pick because of his potential, and not necessarily due to his accomplishments. Yes, he was an All-American and yes, he is a very talented basketball player. But as far as his individual performances in the tournaments he participated in, he did not fare too well. In both tournaments he looked mediocre and even dissapointing considering his athleticism and, you guessed it, potential.
And that is what the scouts and general managers of the NBA see: immense physical potential. This is why Julian left.
Brandon, on the other hand, left because he wants it all. As was said before, he wants the Escalade, the diamonds, the money. And who could blame him? The youth today, and espcially the promising members of the athletic youth in particular, need to have these material possessions to assert and flaunt their success and skill, to show they made it, and they want to do this as early as possible. It's true that Brandon would learn and grow a lot as a basketball player and a leader if he stayed another year, but this would take too long, be too much work. Why live in a semi-shabby Jayhawker Towers apartment when you could be living in that suburbanite mansion or downtown condo? In today's world its all about what you have now, not what you can have if you wait a little longer. This world, unlike the NBA, judges on one's acomplishments and not on one's potential to accomplish them. Brandon is simply getting all he can get while he can. This does not at all mean I support his decision, though.

i agree with ben, the nba draft is based on potential, so brandon rush and julian wright are helping themselves out by leaving college and going pro. the risk that they take to stay a year in college without making money and the risk of leaving "too early" to go to the nba are not the same. Brandon or Julian could get hurt in college and automatically lose their draft status and on the other hand, by heading to the nba, Rush and Wright (Wright for sure) will be making over six digits as 21-22 year old kids. Put yourself in their posistions and I'm pretty sure that 9-10 of us would head to the NBA for money... Today's youth is all about making money quick and easy, why not be happy for Brandon and Julian and support them even if they leave KU early?

That anonymous post was me. I forgot to put my name...oops.