NBA prospects get another college incentive with paid deals

By AARON BEARD
AP Basketball Writer

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Top NBA prospects suddenly have many more options when it comes when it comes to playing college basketball or pursuing alternative routes to the professional ranks. The landscape has dramatically changed in a relatively short period and continues to evolve. A handful of talented prospects full of potential can bypass college by playing overseas or for developmental programs like the G League Ignite or Overtime Elite. Now there is a potential growing incentive for ones that choose college: they can financially benefit from athletes being allowed to cash in on their fame amid events like the NCAA Tournament and Final Four. Duke’s Paolo Banchero is playing in this weekend’s Final Four. He says the ability to profit from endorsement deals could make college “more enticing.”