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Report: Current age minimum remains in place, but both sides open to change under new CBA

Markelle Fultz, Jordan Caroline

Washington’s Markelle Fultz (20) tries to drive past Nevada’s Jordan Caroline in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

AP

At late stages of Collective Bargaining negotiations, the age limit reportedly re-emerged as as sticky issue.

The resolution? A new CBA without any change to the age limit, which requires players to be 19 years old and one year removed from their high school class’ graduation.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports:

The union wants to lower the age minimum. NBA commissioner Adam Silver wants to raise it.

So, leaving the current rule in tact is a viable compromise. Clearly.

There’s also room for more creative solutions, such as a zero-or-two plan that allows players to declare from the NBA draft out of high school or wait two years (and presumably spend that time playing in college). Baseball has a zero-or-three system to serve as a model.

But that – and any other arrangement – was on the table now, and the sides couldn’t agree to anything other than the status quo. Why will that change over the during of the new CBA? Outside of an expanded D-League shaking up the system, it’s hard to see new circumstances emerging.