DeAngelo Casto didn't have the greatest childhood

Whenever the discussion of whether or not Player X or Player Y should have left school, I make an effort to avoid criticizing the decision.

I don't like saying that the player made the wrong decision or that he was dumb to leave school. We don't know the entire situation. We don't know what that player is dealing with in his personal life. We don't know the ins and outs of why a decision was made. And until you do, it is unfair to criticize.

DeAngelo Casto, the center for Washington State last season, opted to leave school after his junior season and enter the NBA Draft despite the fact that he wasn't a lock to get drafted, let alone get a guaranteed contract in the first round. That decision was met with plenty of internet snark and criticism. But after reading Ryan Feldman's piece on Casto's past, its not hard to understand why the former Wazzu big man wants to be paid to play.

Casto was a product of the system. His mother was a drug addict, a prostitute, and dead by the time Casto was seven. His father was a "hustler", or so he says to Feldman. Casto bounced from foster home to foster home, eventually ending up in Spokane, WA, after a family adopted him out of his St. Louis, MO, home. But that situation wasn't much better than what he was dealing with back in St. Louis, so he continued to bounce from home to home and school to school.

Eventually, Casto was able to secure a scholarship to Wazzu. Ten months ago, his girlfriend of four years gave birth to a son, which means that this young man now has a mouth to feed and a child that needs to be taken care of and a family that needs to be supported.

Casto isn't turning professional because he received bad advice or because he has an unrealistic view of his ability as a basketball player. Casto is sacrificing. He's leaving college early -- stepping away from a degree and a chance to develop himself into a first round pick -- because he needs to start making money.

Casto should be commended and supported for his decision. He's taking responsibility. He's trying to raise a family, and basketball is his means to that end.