But you still can’t go directly from HS to the D League. It was set up for players who are drafted, by an NBA team out of college, but are found to not cut the mustard, but who may have enough talent if given some time.
There are nine different paths a player can take to the NBA G League:
NBA teams can assign players to their NBA G League affiliate and recall them at any time.
NBA teams can sign players with four years of service or fewer to two-way contracts, allowing them to retain their rights while the player spends the bulk of the season in the NBA G League.
NBA teams can draft players and sign them to NBA G League contracts, thus retaining their rights through the “Draft Rights Player” rule.
NBA teams can designate up to four players that they cut during training camp as “affiliate players,” meaning those players will join that team’s NBA G League affiliate (should the players choose to sign into the NBA G League). These players are signed under contract with the league rather than the team, however, meaning they are technically free agents who can be called up to any of the 30 NBA teams.
NBA G League teams hold local tryouts each offseason and can invite up to five players from these tryouts to their training camps.
The NBA G League holds a draft every year consisting of nearly 200 players who have signed contracts with the league. In 2016, the draft consisted of six rounds.
Players who return to the NBA G League are, by rule, re-acquired by the teams that they played for within the last two seasons (Returning Players).
Once the NBA G League season begins, players who sign NBA G League contracts are placed into a rotating waiver pool so that teams can claim them.
If a player from high school, college or overseas enters the NBA G League without ever having declared for the NBA Draft, he will also join the waiver pool. That player remains NBA Draft-eligible but is not eligible to be called up to the NBA.
The next step is to find a way to make it worth the while of teenage stars-in-waiting to play in the G League for a year or two instead of signing on with a college program. Silver explicitly mentioned the fact that the G League already allows 18 year olds but that the NBA hasn’t pushed that option to high-end prospects.
Few players have used the G League in place of college; in fact, playing professionally overseas has been a more frequent option for the best prospects who choose not to attend college while waiting out the NBA draft eligibility.
Now that the G League is reaching its potential, the solution is staring the NBA in its face: Abolish the age minimum, but allow teams drafting 18 year olds to keep their salaries off the books by assigning them to their G League affiliate for the season. The young players would still earn salaries as assigned by the rookie scale (and their contract clocks would start), but it would only count against the NBA team’s salary cap sheet if the players in question are in the NBA.
This allows the NBA to have a stronger hand in player development without forcing teams to lock up roster spots and salary slots for young prospects who aren’t ready for the big leagues. Prospects would be able to bypass the college charade and get truly professional training (albeit in less glamorous conditions than experienced by full-on NBA or high-level college players).