NBA fans smell something fishy in a new rule that would reportedly place restrictions on agents who hope to act as a liasion between college athletes and the league. College basketball reporter Jon Rothstein shared the rule change on Twitter, noting that agents hoping to represent NCAA athletes would need a bachelor's degree, a long-standing certification with the Players Association, and a passing grade on a certification test that would take place at the NCAA's head office.
LeBron James, a client of Paul, also agrees:
Others said that the qualifications looked like a way to keep black agents out of the profession. Placing barriers in the way of agents would bar many inner-circle and family agents from representing the athletes they are connected to and becoming successful.
The new restrictions come along with a wider loosening of the rules regarding agents in the NCAA. The collegiate sports organization recently announced that basketball players would be allowed to retain the services of an agent, an act that would have once risked their eligibility to play college ball.
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