Richard Sherman, Draymond Green among athletes praising California bill, blasting NCAA

Written By Zac Al-Khateeb
Richard Sherman-Draymond Green-100119-GETTY-FTR
(Getty Images)

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the Fair Pay to Play Act (SB 206) into law on Monday. Beginning in 2023, it will allow collegiate athletes in the state of California to seek endorsement money outside their respective universities without losing amateur status.

It has already become a divisive topic, with the NCAA, Pac-12 Conference and several California institutions publicly expressing their dissent to the law. Conversely, several high-profile athletes have praised the move while blasting the NCAA for its long-held — and oft-criticized — amateur model.

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Those athletes include San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green and Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, among others.

Here are some of the reactions from current and former athletes on the new California law:

Richard Sherman: "I hope it destroys the NCAA"

Sherman, who has been outspoken in his criticism of the NCAA, pulled no punches on the potential implications of SB 206. From the San Jose Mercury News:

"I hope it destroys the NCAA because I think it’s corrupt and it’s a bunch of people taking advantage of kids and doing it under a mask of fair play.

"It's going to cripple the NCAA in a way where they start to bend, make it more fair and more of a symbiotic relationship between players and the NCAA, or it's going to destroy them in general and start a whole new way of college athletics in general, and I can respect that, too."

Draymond Green: "Someone needs to force this dictatorship to change"

Green was quick to thank Gov. Newsom for passing the bill, saying in a tweet it would protect athletes and bring more equality to a multi-billion dollar industry.

Green also addressed SB 206 at the Warriors' media day on Monday, calling the NCAA a dictatorship that needed to be forced to change its model.

"That’s exciting. We spent so much time in college broke, with no money. Yet everybody else was living very well, universities making a ton of money off your likeness. It is the most bankrupt model. ...

"It’s backwards. Someone needs to force this dictatorship to change. Because that’s exactly what it is. It’s no different than any country that’s ran by dictators. The NCAA is a dictatorship."

LeBron James: SB 206 will "change the lives for countless athletes"

James actually hosted Gov. Newsom on "The Shop: Uninterrupted" as the latter signed SB 206 into law, saying the platform was created for moments such as these.

You can see James' and Newsom's full discussion on the bill below:

Ed O'Bannon: "These AD's and league commissioners are hilarious to me"

O'Bannon, the lead plaintiff in the class-action lawsuit O'Bannon v. NCAA, reacted more to administrator and league responses to SB 206 than the law itself.

The former UCLA Bruins star, of course, is referring to the NCAA and Pac-12, among others, issuing statements after SB 206 was signed into law.

Reggie Miller: "Everyone should have a hand in the cookie jar"

Miller, a former star at UCLA and 18-year NBA veteran, said SB 206 would remove the "the power, manipulation these universities, athletic directors, coaches have had."