Many NBA players go on to receive their bachelor's and sometimes masters, in the cases of Shaquille O'Neal and Bruce Bowen.

I'm sure if someone offered us millions of dollars to fulfill a lifelong dream, school would take a backseat as well, no matter how close to finishing we may be.

Why is there such an emphasis on how much school they get all the time? They are choosing an occupation that basically is a skill. No matter how many credits they receive it will not help them in their chosen profession. College is not for everyone, if it was then it would be required like high school. These guys if they are great players will have a career where they will still be retired in their 30's. They will still have a lifetime to pursue other interests and if getting a college degree is one of them then so be it. There are many types of education in the world and the things that they will see and experience will never be taught in a classroom. The biggest thing I got from college was living and not some piece of paper at the end and those guys will be getting the experience of a lifetime. The quest for knowledge is not given to you in college it is something that an individual has or doesn't. There are plenty of people who have graduated from college that aren't interested in continuing to educate themselves. Education is a lifetime not just 4 years.
I still think the post yesterday about pulling for the graduates in the draft is crazy also. I am jealous also that I didn't have the talents that would allow me to be a millionaire in my 20's and had to go out and get a real job! But I don't have any animosity towards those kids for stepping out of college early to pursue their dreams, I just say good luck.

Perhaps if the NCAA emphasized education more early on, and forced students to realize the consequences of not performing well in school everyone would be better off. Instead the NCAA sets ridiculously low standards for GPA and SAT/ACT scores and all but the most seriously deficient students fly right through the process. Instead of forcing the student to recognize the importance of working hard in school, the NCAA just continues to reinforce the attitude that certain athletes just need to do the minimum to play sports.

It was nice to see the two seniors go in the latter portion of the draft (Law & Thornton). Of course you could make a case for many that came from high school (before the rule change) that should have at least gone to the next level before skipping it to become a pro (Andrew Bynum, Kwame Brown).

Of course it is the decision of the player. I respect any choice these kids make for themselves. You have to give them credit though, at least they are good enough to be playing pro basketball in the best basketball league in the world.

Let's not forget that MANY of these seniors would probably go pro if they were good enough. Many just wait to increase their status and improve their draft position. I don't think they ALL are out there for 4 years just to get their degrees....