The Latest Freddy Adu opus

This quote is interesting too:

"The plan right now is to try and get him to finish his work so he can graduate by the time he turns 15," said Ellinger. "If he goes in MLS he'd go in the draft next year but he would still stay until May to graduate."


If it ends up looking like Freddy will play in MLS in 2004, I would expect the league may need to implement an NBA-style draft lottery to prevent lower echelon clubs from intentionally trying to get the worst record in MLS this year.

 

He'll play for DC

His Mom is so concerned about his having a normal childhood, and their family is very close. I wouldn't be surprised to see some strings pulled so that he can become a professional player near his hometown.

At least that's what I'm hoping

 

I figure DC will stink again this year, so he should end up there either way...

 

Wherever he ends up, it would be great if he made an impact his first season.

I'd expect that even normally soccer-apathetic shows like SportsCenter would show highlights of Freddy's goals or of Adu nutmegging some guy old enough to be his father.

 

Are you joking, or serious? I hope you're joking.

1. One huge, huge difference is that if the kid is really that good, then he'll only be in MLS for 2-3 years anyway. It's not like when teams tried to lose on purpose in order to get Ralph Sampson (it was after that the NBA put in the lottery.)
2. Only 2 teams miss the playoffs.
3. I'm a huge fan of his potential, and even of his ability. But do you honestly think that a 15 year old will be so good in MLS that it will be worth a team throwing games so that they can have him for a couple of years?
4. The fact that Ralph Sampson, in the end, wasn't worth losing games on purpose over, when he had spent 4 years in college, tells you how silly it is to project Freddy to be worth it.

Look at it this way...at best (best) he's as good now as Landon was 4 years ago. So that gives you some idea of how good he'll be when he's 17. Roughly as good as Landon is now. Landon's a great MLS player, but he's not worth throwing games over.

 

what does one have to do with another? chris albright was once as heralded as just about any other young american player .... so does that mean freddy adu will be as good as him in a few years? (shudder)

 

Actually, I was being a little facetious. But I also think Freddy has an excellent chance of being the overall #1 pick should he come out next year.

Adu would likely play in MLS 3 to 5 years until he reached 18 or 20. And in that time span, he'd undoubtably be one of the biggest attractions in the league provided his game is as good as people make it out to be.

The team selecting Adu would undoubtably get a lot more coverage in its local media, and that in turn would help boost the team's attendance, the sale of replica jerseys, and so on.

 

In single entity, the first two factors only would bring 49% of the profits to the team. And I'd be very, very surprised if MLS hasn't adopted the NFL system for merchandising.

 

But 49% is a lot better than 5%.

 

Aren't there laws against a 15-year old kid working for more than a certain number of hours per day or week? Any labor lawyers on this board?

 

So we have a date now. May of '04, let the countdown begin.

 

According to the U.S. Dept. of Labor, a 14 or 15 year old can work a maximum of 18 hours in a school week and 40 hours in a non-school week.

http://www.youthrules.dol.gov/hours.htm

 

But you could say that Freddy is in the Entertainment industry therefore except from the rules.

 

Exactly, so if the kid finishes school at Bradenton in an accelerated program like Ellinger says, then he'd be able to work his ass off all week for whatever team he plays for in MLS once he gets drafted. Sounds good, I hope this kid turns out to be a great player. Also, I shamefully look down upon anyone doubting his age... WHO CARES, HE'S 13, PLAYING FOR THE USA, AND THAT'S IT!!!

 

4. The fact that Ralph Sampson, in the end, wasn't worth losing games on purpose over, when he had spent 4 years in college, tells you how silly it is to project Freddy to be worth it.

Hey, hey. Take it easy on Ralph. He was my childhood hero. Besides, he was having a good pro career prior to the back and knee injuries (NBA Final, NBA All-star MVP...).
I do agree with you, however, that any team willing to lose games for an arguably unproven Freddy would be foolish.

 

But if Mr. Adu is out of school by May 04, then would the child labor laws still apply? For Freddy there would be no school week, he'll be out of school.

 

Once Freddy graduates, he'd be able to work 40 hours a week as a 15 yr old.

After he reaches the age of 16, there are no federal regulations restricting how many hours he may work. There may, however, be state or local regulations that would limit Freddy's working hours.

 

but what if freddy's sooo good he doesn't have to work at it ... what if he can just show up and school the metros (like who can't?) then if it's not technically 'work' can he play 80-90 hours a week?

 

Don't think it matters

Not a labor lawyer, but weren't there women Tennis Players turning pro that young before the Tennis Association put a minimum age of 16 in place (or something like that)? (Jennifer Capriati was one, she turned pro just shy of her 14th birthday.)

I think somehow athletes are exempt.

 

I think that child labor laws apply more to jobs where children are payed by the hour, not a 15 year old getting 5 or 6 figures to start with.

 

Awful fact-checking. He can't add correctly, nor does he know Freddy's birthday. Pathetic.

 

Are you being sarcastic? The adjectives seem a bit over the top.

Or maybe not. I, for one, know Freddy's B-day, but that's not because I'm a sick groupie. It's because I saw articles on consecutive days saying he's 14 now, so I looked it up at the USSF site. Still, if you're writing an article on a player, wouldn't you go to the site and look up the personal information? Hey, I'm happy this writer is only off a month.

 

Agoos is Freddy's father? Boy, have my dreams of 2010 been crushed.

BTW - I think the MLS will "arrange" to have Freddy stay near home (DC United). It seems to be the "unofficial" policy (ex. Eddie Gaven). If (a big "if") DC doesn't suck this year, they will probably be "forced" to trade-up to get him.

 

Freddy's birthday is in May, and I believe that he won't play for the MLS until he graduates from high school which will occur in May of '04, when Freddy is 15. I was not talking about now, but the future.