ATLANTA – Andre Drummond speaks fondly of his one season spent on the UConn campus. Able to fulfill his mother’s wish of seeing her son…
ATLANTA – Andre Drummond speaks fondly of his one season spent on the UConn campus.
Able to fulfill his mother’s wish of seeing her son in a college uniform briefly, Drummond says the time spent in Storrs, Conn., for the 2011-12 season was an important step in his maturation process.
But he’s emphatic when asked about Duke freshman sensation Zion Williamson, whose knee injury renewed the heated debate over the NBA’s eligibility rules.
“Why would you keep playing?” Drummond said Friday morning. “All the money that they making off this kid, why wouldn’t he just sit out?
“He’s selling out arenas. People pay $10,000 to see him and he gets hurt and gets none of that money spent to see him play. You have to think about yourself because you could have a career-ending injury and that’s the rest of the story for him. I’d rather him take care of himself and get himself prepared. We all know he’s going to the draft so start working out and get yourself ready for a tough, grueling league.”
The NBA rule on draft eligibility is making news because of two recent developments.
Williamson suffered a Grade 1 knee sprain on the first possession Wednesday night against rival North Carolina, which set off a chorus of criticism for the rule that required the future lottery pick to wait one season before earning millions in the NBA.
Windsor: Zion Williamson injury reminds us the NCAA is a farce
Some pundits have suggested Williamson should shut it down for the rest of the season to preserve his NBA future, although the injury doesn’t appear serious. Williamson was ruled out of Duke’s next game, Saturday against Syracuse.
