Why High School Athletes Shouldn'T Turn Pro

High School Athletes becoming Professionals

Lebron James, who is the so-called next Michael Jordan, and Freddy Adu, the American soccer phenomenon, both have something in common. They are professional athletes and with millions in their pockets with a countless number of endorsement contracts. Whether it is high school athletes skipping college and discontinuing the development of their education for millions of dollars, or teenagers signing contracts with businesses for massive amounts of money, youth sports programs are changing rapidly. However, American high school athletes are not financially, physically, or mentally prepared to tackle and endure the pressures of professional sports.

Society today allows fourteen to eighteen-year-old athletes to make millions of dollars and eventually become stars. From Lebron James, signing with Nike for ninety million dollars before even stepping on the court, to Freddy Adu, signing with Major League Soccer to be the youngest professional to ever sign a contract in United States history, teenagers of today are changing. Freddy Adu is the youngest player on a major league team since Fred Chapman was fourteen years old and played baseball for Philadelphia in 1887. Adu, born in Ghana, signed with the MLS to play for D.C. United in 2003. He and his family moved to Potomac, Maryland in 1997 and he eventually became a United States citizen in 2002. He signed with Nike for one million dollars in 2000, becoming the youngest professional to sign an endorsement deal with Nike. Greg Couch, a writer for the Sun Times states, "Are we ready for this? Because if Freddy Adu makes it big, then the battle to save little things like fun and imagination in youth sports is gone." He is absolutely right. What happened to the main reason to play sports- have fun? These young children won't understand fun after being demanded, day in and day out, from the most rigorous coaches to perform to a level they have not been exposed to yet. They haven't been exposed to that level because they skipped the most important part of their life and career, and that is college.

In rare cases, there's one athlete that comes along and is very special. Sappenfield of The Christian Science Monitor says, "In some instances, they are truly unique athletes. In others, they are simply the products of a new and hyper-competitive youth-sports system, lured to big-time athletics by bad advice and the prospect of outlandish wealth and rock star glory" (Sappenfield 1). Kids, not exposed to the rest of society outside athletics, do not know how to live and support themselves, except that of college students in a way. Millions of dollars in their pockets could be a dangerous idea. They may not be able to withstand the pressures of professional sports and spend all their money on drugs and alcohol. What they do not understand is that once they are in that spotlight, there is no turning back. Young athletes are exciting to see in professional sports, but it makes you think of what they actually went through and handle in everyday life as a teenager. In addition, Isamu Bae says "Professional scouts must attempt to decipher the maturity level of players, and for athletes in their teens, it is nearly impossible to figure out." Growing up, the time a child would have playing with his friends or going to the movies, would not be there like for any normal kid. They made the sacrifice to play sports rather than have a social life and be a regular kid.

Marty Blake and other NBA scouts said, "No high school player belongs in the NBA" (Unknown 1). They don't have the body type or mental strength to withstand night-in, night out beatings by bigger and faster people than them. Getting your education should be your first and most important priority in life. Scholarships and other academic money will help you learn things that you will never learn in your life. College ends up tapping into your outside sports life and lets you learn there are greater things and achievements than just sports. A more mature and literate person tends to be of better use to the rest of the world, and a better athlete.

Nevertheless, Tiger Woods went to college but left early to turn pro although everything worked out okay for him. The Williams sisters played in tournaments in there teens and went pro early. Everything worked out okay for them without going to college. Lebron went pro early out of High School and it seems to be working out. On the other hand, with Adu going pro, if that works out and it seems to be, then we as a society are subjecting our kids and the youth sports organizations they are in.

Over the past few years, many professional leagues have been trying to pass minimum age requirements. For example, "The NBA says it would prefer a minimum age requirement of 20"(Satterfield 1). Other leagues however, like the MLS has its own idea. MLS offers kids leaving college or coming out of high school the option to be a Project-Fourty player. The league offers $35,000 dollars to the player to attend a college while playing along with pre-made living arrangements. Only four Project-Fourty players are allowed on one team however. European soccer clubs created their own academies for the soul purpose of creating superstars under their care and supervision. Meanwhile, having them get an education too. The likes of big soccer stars like David Beckham and Ryan Giggs, along with many other renowned players signed with Manchester United at around age eleven. They were taught the skills, both physically and mentally, to become the best at what they do.

In rare cases, there is one player that comes along that is very special separate from the rest. For example, Michelle Wei was thirteen when she became the youngest player ever to make an LPGA event. Accord to the Christian Science Monitor, Dr. Tripps, a sports psychologist says, "Part of this is an outgrowth of the specialization of youth sports." Tennis, out of any sport, builds up many coaches to develop star teen talent. Anna Kournakova and Jennifer Capriatti were both examples of that. Well-known coaches suckered them in, built up their skills, and marketed them in tournaments at the age of thirteen just to say they were there coach of them. Welcome to today's society of cutthroat sports programs that just want the fame and glory they think they deserve.

With professional sports drawing the best and most exciting players, every sport has there own developmental leagues to shape that talent. Hockey and baseball both have developmental leagues and systems. Hockey and Pittsburgh Penguin's star Marcus-Andre Fluery just turned nineteen, and was playing for a Quebec junior league for at least three years before signing his contract with the NHL team. However, basketball relies