LaVar Ball launches junior basketball league for players to skip college before NBA draft

Controversial NBA dad LaVar Ball told ESPN on Wednesday he is starting a basketball league for high school graduates who do not want to attend college before launching an NBA career.

Ball says his Junior Basketball Association will be fully funded by his Big Baller Brand and seeks 80 players to fill 10 teams he hopes will play at NBA arenas in Los Angeles, Dallas, Atlanta and New York.

“Getting these players is going to be easy,” Ball told ESPN. “This is giving guys a chance to get a jump start on their career, to be seen by pro scouts and we’re going to pay them because someone has got to pay these kids.”

NBA rules say a player must wait one year after their high school class graduates before they can be taken in an NBA draft, which has led to many top players going to college for only a single season before making the move to the NBA.

While colleges make millions of dollars from basketball television rights, players receive only tuition and scholarships from colleges under National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rules.