Jeremy Tyler heads east. Way east.

There was plenty of criticism when Jeremy Tyler decided to forego his senior season in high school to become a professional basketball player overseas.

And for the last year, Tyler seems to be doing all he can to enforce the sentiment that he did, in fact, make a big mistake. He played limited minutes in just 10 games with Maccabi Haifa. He argued with the coach and management over playing time. He walked out of one game at halftime. And, finally, he became the subject of two unflattering pieces before quitting with five weeks to go in the season.

Now?

Jeremy Tyler is headed to Japan.
(photo credit: San Diego News Network)

Tyler is headed to the Japanese professional league.

Two summers ago, Brandon Jennings made waves when he decided to skip college and head to Italy to play professional basketball for a year before entering the NBA Draft.

I think we all know how that worked out -- after a disappointing season with Roma, Jennings was the tenth pick in the draft, going on to average 15.5 ppg and 5.7 apg as a rookie.

Last summer, two players followed in Jenning's footsteps. Latavious Williams, a Memphis commit, didn't enroll in college, instead opting to spend a year in the D-League before entering this year's NBA Draft. It paid off, as Williams averaged 11.3 ppg and 8.0 rpg, enough to get him picked 48th in June's draft.

And then there is Tyler.

We all remember Tyler. A Louisville commit, Tyler opted to forego his senior season in high school, opting to play professionally for two seasons to help him develop and prepare for the 2011 NBA Draft. Now, as a college basketball fan and blogger, this may sound weird to hear, but I have no qualms with a player quitting school to become a professional, so long as that player is making the smart decision. I don't think anyone can claim that John Wall made a bad decision to enter this year's draft, just like it would be tough to argue against Samardo Samuels turning pro to help support his family. Hell, I'd even argue that Jennings and Williams made the correct decisions given there was no guarantee either was going to be eligible as freshman.

At the time, the decision Tyler made didn't look terrible. At 6'11", Tyler would have faced triple teams for an entire season. Can one really develop that much when the "defense" that player faces consists of three kid six inches shorter triple-teaming, and mauling, him on a consistent basis? By heading abroad, the thinking was that Tyler would be able to learn the rigors of being a professional athlete while practicing on a daily basis against grown men with his size.

He had to be able to develop, right?

Well, he didn't. In fact he may have even regressed, especially in the eyes of NBA scouts. NBA teams are known for their ability to babysit, but who is going to want to deal with an entitled superstar that quit the first professional team he ever played for?

Most expected Tyler's next step to be somewhere in Europe -- or, ideally, the D-League -- a place he would be able to get more exposure and good competition. But he went to Japan instead. He went to a league that no one associated with the NBA watches or cares about, where there was nary an NBA prospect before he signed with the Tokyo Apache. He may post great numbers, but he'll be doing against shoddy competition without being seen.

The longer this goes, the worse Tyler's decision looks. Odds are good that he will get a shot with an NBA team simply based on his potential. But if he had played his cards right, Tyler might have been able to sneak into the first round. Now, it looks like all but a certainty his professional career in the States will begin in the D-League, which he and his people so vehemently avoided this off-season.

I wouldn't be surprised if skipping college and turning pro for a year before entering the NBA Draft became a trend, or ever the status quo, for the country's top prospects, especially if Williams becomes a quality pro.

And while Williams and Jennings may one day be considered trendsetters, the hope should be that Tyler will remembered as well. Not as a trailblazer, but as a cautionary tale.

You want to turn pro early?

You better be able to handle to rigors of being a professional.

Tyler wasn't. Hopefully, we will hear his name again, and not when someone says "Don't be the next Jeremy Tyler."

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The Jeremy Tyler experiment is not off to a good start

Back in April, Jeremy Tyler made headlines as he decided to fore-go his senior year in high school in order to pursue a professional career overseas. He eventually chose Maccabi Haifa, a professional team in Israel, where he signed a contract worth $140,000.

Initially, I supported this decision.

Playing as a professional against grown men, working on your game around the clock, and getting paid six figures seems like a much more attractive option than playing for a mediocre high school team (San Diego was 15-14 last year) where you will routinely be triple-teamed and mugged by 6'5" high schoolers.

The problem with my initial support is that I didn't know Jeremy Tyler.

Apparently, he is a bit of a primadonna. Pete Thamel, a college sports writer for the New York Times, recently went to Israel to visit with Tyler. Take a look at some of these quotes from the article:

His coach calls him lazy and out of shape. The team captain says he is soft. His teammates say he needs to learn to shut up and show up on time. He has no friends on the team. In extensive interviews with Tyler, his teammates, coaches, his father and advisers, the consensus is that he is so naïve and immature that he has no idea how naïve and immature he is. So enamored with his vast potential, Tyler has not developed the work ethic necessary to tap it.

...

He scored just 1 point in his first two games, and his coach was baffled that a player with such great potential could arrive without basic skills like boxing out and rotating on defense. Tyler is lost, Ashkenazi said, if he cannot do what he does best: taking the ball to the rim and dunking.

...

Discussing his problems, Tyler tended to point fingers. Asked about his immaturity, he said his teammates should treat him like a man. Asked about his reluctance to work and listen to his coaches, he said he was skeptical of their knowledge and methods. Tyler, the captain and focus of his high school’s offense, said he was still adjusting to a new role.

...

At a recent practice, Kozikaro spun past Tyler to score a layup.

“If I let up a basket that easy, I would want to stab myself,” Kozikaro said.

Instead, Tyler said that Kozikaro had fouled him with his elbow. Kozikaro, who has been playing at a high level since Tyler was in the first grade, said he just laughed.

Jeremy Tyler has struggled in his first year playing professionally.
(photo credit: NYT)

Brandon Jennings struggled as well during his one season in Rome. But he struggled for different reasons than Tyler. You see, Jennings is a dynamic, play-making point guard that excels in the open floor and when he is given the opportunity to create.

Perfect for the NBA. Not-so-much for European play, where point guards are expected to run the team and set up the offense.

Jennings struggled to due a clash of styles. Tyler is struggling because of an attitude problem.

But before you go and say that Tyler is a bust, or that he made a bad decision going pro, consider this: we are talking about an 18 year old kid that did not even graduate high school that is going through a massive culture and lifestyle change. In the US, he was a god at the high school level. Recruiting expert Dave Telep said he was the best eighth-grader he has ever seen. More than one pundit predicted that Tyler would be the first pick in the draft when he was eligible in 2011.

And Tyler clearly bought into the hype.

He has lost his work ethic and motivation to improve himself, both on the court and off, and has yet to realize that he is far from a finished product.

As Sonny Vaccaro put it "all he had to do was go and do what Brandon did, shut up and go learn. He obviously isn't doing that. He thinks that he’s Kevin Garnett."

So maybe this is exactly what he needs. Maybe being dominated by guys that are a long way from being in the NBA is the wake-up call that will turn potential into production. Maybe one day soon he will understand that in the professional world, success isn't handed to you on a silver platter. You have to work for it.

But maybe he won't get it, and Tyler will be the cautionary tale of the downsides of skipping school to play in Europe.

What you need to remember is that Tyler has been a pro for all of 100 days. He still has basically two full seasons to prove himself.

Keep that in mind before you label him a bust.
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Its official: Jeremy Tyler to Maccabi Haifa

Last week, news leaked that Jeremy Tyler, a 6'11" high school junior that opted out of his final year of high school, was close to signing a deal with an Israeli team.

Now he has.

It is a one-year contract worth between $140,000 and $150,000, depending on where you look, and also includes the standard Euro benefits - car, apartment, business class tickets. He will have to go through the signing process again before next season.

Tyler had offers in Spain, Italy, Switzerland, and Slovenia, some of which were for more money according to Sonn Vaccaro (who advised the Tylers), but decided on Israel because he would have a chance to play in Haifa, and because the team spoke English.

As I said last week, I believe this to be the correct decision for Tyler. While he is an excellent talent with loads of potential, he is still raw and I don't see him improving all that much as he faces triple teams from 6'4" kids during the high school season.

I wish him all the best, and hopefully we will hear his name atop the 2011 draft.
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Jeremy Tyler to Israel

You remember Tyler.

He was a top 10 player in the class of 2010 and committed to Louisville before he decided to drop out of San Diego High School after his junior season to play professional basketball overseas.

It looks like Tyler is headed to Israel to play for Maccabi Haifa, who finished second in the Israeli Premier League last season. From ZagsBlog:

"They"re the favorites," Sonny Vaccaro, who is advising Tyler, said by phone. "It looks like Jeremy Tyler is going to end up with Maccabi Haifa. It's 90 percent done. The contract has not been signed yet. As soon as they do the faxes back and forth, it should be done Tuesday or Wednesday."

An Israeli newspaper is reporting that Tyler has already reached a deal. Haifa is owned by American Jeff Rosen and also features former USC Trojan Davon Jefferson, who made the team after a 60 player open tryout in Florida prior to last season.

Jeremy Tyler looks to be headed to Maccabi Haifa.
(photo credit: Big Apple Basketball)

To be completely honest, I think Tyler is probably making a good decision here, at least when you consider his career. Think about it like this - he is a 6'11" center that some scouts have said could play in the NBA right now. For someone with that size and skill level, is there anyone at the high school level that would actually challenge him? Definitely not in practice (his high school team was right around .500 last year, pretty bad when you have a McDonald's all-american candidate), and rarely in games throughout the season. Instead, he will be going against overmatched high school kids that will double and triple team him, fouling instead of playing defense.

And you expect him to get better that way?

Israel may not have the best basketball in the world, but he will be going up against professionals, grown men that can match, at the very least, his size and strength. Two years of pro ball can only help a big man's development.

Tyler's situation is a little different than Brandon Jenning's. I don't necessarily believe Jennings made the correct decision to head to Italy. Point guards play a much different style in Europe than they do in college basketball (especially for a team like Arizona). While he did get a year of pro experience, I can't help but wonder if he would have flourished in Tucson.

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Jeremy Tyler to go pro

Jeremy Tyler has decided to skip his final year of eligibility and head to the professional level.

Pretty standard post, right?

It is, until you consider that Tyler is a 17 year old finishing up his junior year in high school.

Tyler, a 6'11" center from San Diego High School currently committed to Louisville, will be leaving school to play pro ball in Europe for two seasons before he is eligible for the draft. According to the article, Tyler looks like he is headed for Spain, but he has yet to sign anything.

Maybe the decision by Brandon Jennings to skip college for Europe will have a bigger effect than first thought.

A quote from Tyler to the New York Times:

Nowadays, people look to college for more off-the-court stuff versus being in the gym and getting better. If you're really focused on getting better, you go play pro somewhere. Pro guys will get you way better than playing against college guys.

I'm not exactly sure how I feel about this decision. I've never been a fan of the one-and-done rule, simply because it is strictly in place to benefit the NCAA and the NBA.

But leaving high school early to go pro?

There is no question that Tyler is good (he is #9 in Rivals top 150 for 2010), with a chance to be great. One scout told Dan Wetzel that Tyler could play in the NBA right now, and many people have him projected as the #1 pick in the class of 2011. But sending a kid - and a 17 year old junior is very much a kid - to another country to play professional basketball against grown men is going to be quite trying.

Just ask Brandon Jennings, who averaged just 5.8 ppg and 2.3 apg in Italian League games and 7.6 ppg and 1.2 apg in 16 Euroleague games.

But this decision is different for Tyler, mainly due to his size. Playing at the high school level, Tyler may face five guys all season with his size, and maybe one with his combination of size and ability.

Explain to me how a center with NBA aspirations is going to get better going up against 6'4" and 6'5" kids triple-teaming and hacking the hell out of him.

He isn't.

So he was basically left with two decisions: go to a basketball factory (like an Oak Hill Academy) and then spend a year a Louisville, where he is pretending to be a student athlete and watching white guys is suits line their pockets off of his ability; or go play pro ball in Europe, where he can make a good chuck of change, spend everyday going toe-to-toe with grown men his size, and spend every waking hour working on his game.

While I do believe this makes sense, both financially and from a basketball standpoint for Tyler, I wish there was some way to keep kids like Tyler and Jennings from heading overseas.

Because in reality, the only people truly getting hurt are college basketball fans.
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