If he went on a mission, that would be huge publicity for the church. Imagine a college player of the year as a freshman than choosing to go on a 2 year mission. The last instance of something like this was Shawn Bradley. This would be much bigger than that, and would help dispel a lot of stereotypes about the church.
In fact, in this regard it would probably be better for the church if he went to a high profile basketball school like Duke. Or UNC. Or Kentucky.
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