In the latest episode of All The Smoke Unplugged, Matt Barnes discusses the current landscape of college basketball and certain players’ freedoms when playing at an age beyond the traditional college age.
There has been much controversy surrounding changes in the college game in recent years. In addition to some players staying in college longer to reap the rewards of NIL, the NCAA has amended its eligibility rule for 2025-2026, allowing junior college players an extra year of eligibility. Barnes made it clear that he does not fault the players for taking advantage of the system that the NCAA has no control over, particularly NIL. He highlights teams like Auburn, which has an average player age older than that of the Oklahoma City Thunder, and comments made by St. John’s head basketball coach Rick Pitino, who alluded to favoring experienced transfer portal prospects over recruiting high school players.
College basketball is beyond broken.
There’s only one man who can clean up the NCAA’s mess 👀
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Barnes says it’s hard to complain about players getting paid since so many people were calling for the players to be paid for so long, but he does believe there should be some regulation and age limit for college basketball. He pointed out that college used to be for amateurs, specifically 18-year-olds looking to reach the next level, whereas now it’s players in their early to mid-20s competing and to him it’s ridiculous. While Barnes does not criticize the athletes themselves because the money is there and there are no regulations, he believes competing beyond the traditional college age is weak, as it overshadows younger prospects coming out of high school. Ultimately, he argues that the NCAA should regulate the age component, though history has shown that the organization is reactive and slow to address any and all key issues. They’ve always been behind the curve.
So how would he fix it? He may not have all the answers, but he knows just who might, as he suggested that long-time ESPN college basketball commentator Jay Bilas should step away from sports media and take over. He says Bilas has always kept it real and makes the most sense when talking about all these issues facing the NCAA. And another person and solution Matt wants to shout out is Marquette head coach Shaka Smart, who is helping out his players by not allowing agents into the mix. This keeps his players from losing cuts out of their NIL or collective money with some of his top players actually using Shaka as an unpaid representative, letting the kids keep ALL of their money. Whether or not that trust exists in other programs remains to be seen, but Matt loves what Shaka is doing, allowing his players to eat in a safe environment without what he calls predators lurking around.
Watch or listen to the full episode below and keep an eye on DraftKings Network for new episodes of All The Smoke Unplugged every Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET!
SHOW BREAKDOWN
KAT & Draymond want ALL THE SMOKE, March Madness is completely BROKEN & Lakers without LeBron
- The HEAT is ON as Matt and Geno break down Draymond Green’s mind games with Karl-Anthony Towns and why KAT’s own teammates were dapping up Draymond after the game. Jimmy Butler and Luka Dončić are on fire with their new squads, and the guys analyze what’s behind their dominant performances.
- Plus, Matt and Geno dive into the LA Sparks’ controversial advertisement for male practice players that has the basketball world talking. Matt drops some bars about the NCAA’s broken system – how the combination of NIL deals, transfer portal chaos, and agent influence is DESTROYING college basketball. What’s the solution to fix the game we love?
- We also give an exclusive preview for an interview Ryan Garcia opens up to Ak and Barak in a tell-all interview dropping this week, revealing the personal struggles behind his controversial year.
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Check out the DraftKings YouTube page and the All The Smoke Productions YouTube page for more. Subscribe to the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. You can also follow Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson on Instagram at @Matt_Barnes9 and @_Stak5_ as well as All The Smoke Productions.
