It's Official -- Eric Mika = Gone

[snoscythe]

For those who haven't followed the will-he-won't-he thread, he did:

[Brayden Green]

Well, I hope the best for him. Thanks for your time here at BYU.

[Ddawg]

I was holding out hope Mika would not sign with an agent - so he could come back if his draft didn't work out. Well, those hopes are dashed. Sorry to lose such a talented guy. It will be impossible to replace his talent and energy. The world keeps turning.

[snoscythe]

I was holding out hope Mika would not sign with an agent - so he could come back if his draft didn't work out.

He either had to be in or out. The NBA only gives them until the 24th of May to decide if they are in or out. He can't go into the draft without an agent and then go back to college if he doesn't like the result.

[vancouvercougar]

Farewell Erik. I was hoping for another year, but I enjoyed watching you while you were a cougar.

[nuk13]

That's a lot of talent lost. I hope somehow it can be compensated for.

[mormonrasta]

I was holding out hope Mika would not sign with an agent - so he could come back if his draft didn't work out.

He either had to be in or out. The NBA only gives them until the 24th of May to decide if they are in or out. He can't go into the draft without an agent and then go back to college if he doesn't like the result.

Which is a shame. I wish the NCAA would allow players to come back to school if they don't like their draft position. I understand it would be a hassle for coaches to have to hang tight for an extra month, but most would be thrilled with getting talented players like Mika back for a year or two.

[hawkwing]

I was holding out hope Mika would not sign with an agent - so he could come back if his draft didn't work out.

He either had to be in or out. The NBA only gives them until the 24th of May to decide if they are in or out. He can't go into the draft without an agent and then go back to college if he doesn't like the result.

Which is a shame. I wish the NCAA would allow players to come back to school if they don't like their draft position. I understand it would be a hassle for coaches to have to hang tight for an extra month, but most would be thrilled with getting talented players like Mika back for a year or two.

The NBA probably wouldn't be too happy if they spent a pick on a kid who then decided to go back to college.

[BlueK]

I was holding out hope Mika would not sign with an agent - so he could come back if his draft didn't work out.

He either had to be in or out. The NBA only gives them until the 24th of May to decide if they are in or out. He can't go into the draft without an agent and then go back to college if he doesn't like the result.

Which is a shame. I wish the NCAA would allow players to come back to school if they don't like their draft position. I understand it would be a hassle for coaches to have to hang tight for an extra month, but most would be thrilled with getting talented players like Mika back for a year or two.

The NBA probably wouldn't be too happy if they spent a pick on a kid who then decided to go back to college.

It actually worked that way for a couple of years back in the 90s I think. It was actually to the NBA's advantage because per NBA rules, the player could never be drafted again once he entered the draft once. So a player could come out a year early and be taken in the second round, have a monster year in college where he would be a first round pick, then the team would offer a second round contract and the player could do nothing about it except choose to go to Europe, whereupon the NBA team would keep his NBA rights indefinitely. When the NCAA realized that's what was happening, they changed the rule to what we have now where the player has to declare to come back before the draft.

[hawkwing]

I was holding out hope Mika would not sign with an agent - so he could come back if his draft didn't work out.

He either had to be in or out. The NBA only gives them until the 24th of May to decide if they are in or out. He can't go into the draft without an agent and then go back to college if he doesn't like the result.

Which is a shame. I wish the NCAA would allow players to come back to school if they don't like their draft position. I understand it would be a hassle for coaches to have to hang tight for an extra month, but most would be thrilled with getting talented players like Mika back for a year or two.

The NBA probably wouldn't be too happy if they spent a pick on a kid who then decided to go back to college.

It actually worked that way for a couple of years back in the 90s I think. It was actually to the NBA's advantage because per NBA rules, the player could never be drafted again once he entered the draft once. So a player could come out a year early and be taken in the second round, have a monster year in college where he would be a first round pick, then the team would offer a second round contract and the player could do nothing about it except choose to go to Europe, whereupon the NBA team would keep his NBA rights indefinitely. When the NCAA realized that's what was happening, they changed the rule to what we have now where the player has to declare to come back before the draft.

Wow, that really sucks for the kids!