This discussion kind of begs the question -- where IS the "break even" point for work ethic? In other words, at what point does WE get so low that it no longer makes sense to look at potentials? I've maxed out/nearly maxed out kids that started in the low 30s, but say a kid starts at 20 and is a "below average student in the classroom" -- if you start that kid for 4 years and he has, say, average improvement (i.e-a couple high potential categories, 2-3 low potential categories and everything else average) -- does he get to his full potential by the end of his senior season? What about a kid with 5-7 high potential areas, what WE is needed then to max the guy out?
I would think this would be a pretty easy thing to figure out, but I'm not sure I've ever seen it pinned down to a specific numerical range beyond the generic "don't go lower than 40/30/25" banter that pops up from time to time.
Similarly, at what point are you just spinning your wheels to simply keep what you make over the course of a season?