BOOM! “High School basketball star lands the winning dunk in the biggest game of the season, against hometown rivals!” says the announcer. Every school has the star sports player, whether it is boys basketball, or girls soccer, who are able to captivate an audience through their athletic performance alone. Would allowing these athletes to gain money for their performance benefit them or harm them?
It is often questioned if high school athletes should receive money for their performance, similarly to NIL deals of college athletes. College athletes can generate revenue based on their name, image, and likeness. College football athlete, and former Douglass student, was sponsored by Buchart and Wachs Orthodontics towards the end of last year. Many look at this example and wonder why he was not able to get paid in high school. It is argued that if athletes have the talent, they should be able to get paid for this talent they could in a few years time in college. This money given to high school athletes can be extremely helpful to pay for further educational and athletic opportunities that could benefit the student.
It is important to consider the negative effects that could come with paying high school athletes. Many homes would have trouble handling or managing the income, then you run into issues of parents misusing the money for their personal benefit rather than using it to maximize academic and athletic opportunities for their child. Many argue that 14 and 15 year-olds should not be considered “employees” and paying high school athletes takes away the unprofessional aspects of their selected sports. This can affect the overall experience of athletes as they are expected to perform at a professional level, when high school sports are supposed to be the place where you meet best friends, what happens when your own teammates become competition?