Allonzo Trier, Rawle Alkins attend Elite-Student Athlete Symposium to prepare for life after Arizona basketball

The Arizona guards are preparing for life after college basketball

Allonzo Trier and Rawle Alkins are preparing for life after Arizona basketball.

The Arizona Wildcats guards were two of 19 players that attended the Elite Student-Athlete Symposium in Indianapolis this past weekend.

“The symposium, which is a product of the NCAA Leadership Development program, is intended to educate college players on the expectations and responsibilities they may face should they become a professional athlete as well as discussions on other post- career opportunities,” a Gonzaga press release says of the event. “Among the features of the forum were a former student-athlete panel, agent and players' union discussions, engagement with professional leagues and a seminar on personal branding.”

Per ESPN, the NCAA "selected participants based on publication news surrounding upcoming draft prospects, from individuals linked to future NBA careers and from a list of individuals who expressed interest in turning pro but decided to return to school."

Alkins and Trier clearly fall into that category. Alkins tested the NBA Draft waters before ultimately deciding to return for his sophomore season, and Trier was widely considered to be NBA bound after his sophomore season, but he surprisingly chose to return to Arizona for a third year (thank his 19-game suspension for that).

That said, it seems unlikely both will return for another year, so it makes sense that they are familiarizing themselves with the ins and outs of being a professional athlete.

Here’s more about the symposium from ESPN. Readd the entire article and full list of attendees here.

Some of the topics that were discussed include loss of value and disability insurance, a scouting panel with ex-NBA executives (exploring what teams look for in prospects), a meeting with Ron Klempner of the NBPA (including a conversation about navigating the agent-selection process), Financial Awareness (with Antoine Walker telling his story and personal struggles), Social Media best practices, entering the NBA draft while retaining NCAA eligibility (from an academic and amateurism standpoint), ex-NBA/NCAA players (Eddie Gill, Jahidi White, Malik Rose) discussing realistic expectations for post-college careers, and the "tips and traps of being a college basketball athlete" from the NCAA enforcement staff. The keynote speaker was Derek Anderson, who told his unlikely story of how he emerged as a top-shelf high school prospect, NCAA champion, NBA lottery pick, and then successful businessman following his basketball career. At night, the athletes played pickup at Butler's practice facility.

In a 2018 NBA mock draft published in August, Draft Express projected Trier as the 37th overall pick and Alkins as the 46th overall pick.

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Follow Ryan Kelapire on Twitter at @RKelapire

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