Kellenberger: It's time for Malik to go
Malik Newman has never been afraid to bet on himself. He stayed at Callaway and won four state titles when there were some saying he should go to a prep school far away from Mississippi. He turned down Kansas and Kentucky to go to Mississippi State, believing he could change a program instead of just being another top-rated recruit.
One of those things worked. The other did not. But the courage of his conviction is why Newman should go ahead and leave Mississippi State for the NBA, as he announced were his intentions Tuesday (while not hiring an agent, leaving open the possibility of his return to Starkville).
Newman is a basketball player. He should spend the next two to three years of his life figuring out where that is going to take him, because we already know what happened at Mississippi State.
It just did not work. It’s no one’s fault, really, or rather not one single person’s fault. Newman was a five-star talent that was supposed to learn how to play point guard under famed NBA prospect whisperer Ben Howland, and in the process lift up a program out of the doldrums and into national relevance.
Well, I.J. Ready was the point guard. Craig Sword was the two guard. Newman? He hung out in the corner a lot, shooting 3s and spacing the floor for everyone else. Injuries (turf toe, knees, back) all played a role in Newman’s descent down the priority chart, but facts are facts: Newman finished fourth on the team in minutes (27.7 per game), fourth in scoring (11.3) and was second in three-point percentage (37.9). And Mississippi State was not any better for his presence, still among the worst teams in the SEC.
MSU WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: Van Chancellor says UConn the best
All-American? All-SEC? Newman didn’t make All-Freshman; that was Quinndary Weatherspoon, the latest point of contention in a rising argument in Starkville over who was actually the better basketball player between the two.
Some people will read all that and think that it’s patently absurd that Newman would even consider going pro, much less actually do so. I get that. Bust is too strong of a word for Newman’s college career to date, but not by all that much.
But you have to remember that entering the NBA draft is not necessarily saying that you believe you’re ready to go play on a NBA team next season. It means that you’re ready to get paid to play basketball, and that your goal is to do so in the league.
What if Newman goes through with this, gets picked somewhere in the second round (where DraftExpress.com and ESPN.com’s Chad Ford both still have him) and spends the next one to two years of his life playing in the D-League? Is that so bad? He’d be playing basketball full time, not having to pretend to be a student-athlete, and that matters significantly for someone who has to learn how to be a better ball handler, finish stronger at the rim and play adequate defense.
He’d be learning from the best coaches in the world, too, because the D-League is constantly improving the way it interacts with its parent NBA teams. No one looks at a college baseball player drafted after his junior year and claims he made a mistake leaving school if he ends up playing single-A ball the next spring. It’s an assumed part of the process. Well that’s where the NBA is headed with the D-League, and is that so bad for Newman or any other guy who is just ready to go do something else?
If it works out, you’re in the NBA. If not, then at least you know you did everything you could and you go off to make a nice living playing in Europe somewhere.
If what Newman hears from the NBA is that there’s a good chance he will not get drafted, then he should absolutely return to school. But if that’s not the case? Why not see what the future holds, because the present disappointed everyone.
Malik Newman to declare for NBA Draft, won't hire agent
Contact Hugh Kellenberger at (601) 961-7190 or hkellenber@jackson.gannett.com. Follow @HKellenbergerCL on Twitter.