Not so much for basketball and American football though which are the main college sports that are the main focus of most programs. Guess should have said LeBron, since afterwards the rules changed.

But, that is my point. That as you said guys of Messi's caliber already go pro early. Like how Luka Dončić went pro at 16 compared to players like LeBron who had to wait until he graduated college and then guys like Durant had to do one year of college after the rule change. So it was speaking of the differences in college competitiveness in the states compared to overseas.

Highest paid NCAA football coach makes nearly 11 million dollars because of all the revenue and attention around college sports. It just seems like a completely different level of interest compared to what other countries have in their college sports. It's a giant industry. With of course student athletes not being paid.