Arrests in Major NCAA College Basketball Probe

Clears Cleaver

Lil' Bill
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Aug 1, 2001
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So what did Duke give him to go there?
Some high quality synthetic hgh from duke medical, a free night with Belle Knox, and the opportunity to lose to a lower seeded team in the tourney before the ncaa drug testing takes place?

Coach K pulls a Pitino and says that stuff isn’t really happening. Lolol.

 

DukeSox

absence hasn't made the heart grow fonder
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Dec 22, 2005
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This shows how clearly others schools need to offer $ to compete for select students that Duke seems worthy of joining The Brotherhood.
 

DJnVa

Dorito Dawg
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Dec 16, 2010
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Will Wade on tape talking about the "Smart situation" and "a fucking strong offer" and how someone is upset because the offer leaned more towards the family than some middleman.

Ja'Vonte Smart is a freshman at LSU, and was a top 50 recruit.


 

RedOctober3829

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Jul 19, 2005
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deep inside Guido territory

Tmrw at 11 am ET, we will be holding a press conference to disclose a major high school/college basketball scandal perpetrated by @Nike that we have uncovered. This criminal conduct reaches the highest levels of Nike and involves some of the biggest names in college basketball.
 

InstaFace

The Ultimate One
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Sep 27, 2016
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To be fair, Michael Avenatti can be a scumbag and Nike can still be committing massive fraud and bribery. Stopped clock, etc. It's not like it'd take a big reach to believe anything about Nike at this point, nor a pure messenger.
 

Humphrey

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Aug 3, 2010
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The losers in the Williamson recruitment have to take a page from Doyle Lonergan (the bad guy in The Sting): "What was I supposed to do - call him for cheating better than me"
 

Clears Cleaver

Lil' Bill
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Aug 1, 2001
11,370
Some high quality synthetic hgh from duke medical, a free night with Belle Knox, and the opportunity to lose to a lower seeded team in the tourney before the ncaa drug testing takes place?

Coach K pulls a Pitino and says that stuff isn’t really happening. Lolol.

Is there a bigger phony than K? Anxiously anticipating his back going out again. He's old enough now he probably should just go away anyways. Although getting COVID from a recruit that was illegally brought to the school would seem apropos at this point.
 

BigSoxFan

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May 31, 2007
47,084
Is there a bigger phony than K? Anxiously anticipating his back going out again. He's old enough now he probably should just go away anyways. Although getting COVID from a recruit that was illegally brought to the school would seem apropos at this point.
Coach K is one of the biggest phonies in sports. I don’t care about the bag men. I really don’t. But stop pretending you’re above it all.
 

mauf

Anderson Cooper × Mr. Rogers
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Can someone provide a rundown of what’s happening in this case? College hoops is dirty enough that I’ll believe just about anything, but a “request for admission” is even weaker sauce than an uncorroborated allegation in a complaint.
 

Humphrey

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Aug 3, 2010
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When is "one and done" going to go away and be replaced by something like baseball has?

If Zion Williamson were subject to those rules instead of what he was subject to; Duke or any other college cannot (legally or illegally) put an offer on the table that's competitive with what an NBA team can offer.
 

InstaFace

The Ultimate One
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Sep 27, 2016
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When is "one and done" going to go away and be replaced by something like baseball has?

If Zion Williamson were subject to those rules instead of what he was subject to; Duke or any other college cannot (legally or illegally) put an offer on the table that's competitive with what an NBA team can offer.
I don't think we're very far away, the main difference between the G-League and the NCAA isn't the level of competition (or the pay :) ), it's the ability to build a personal brand and get known. And even beyond the G-League, there are a number of basketball minor leagues in this country that a lot of people just have no idea about, but are played at a very high level (just not, you know, the absolute physical freaks you see in the NBA or among the candidates to join it). We're already seeing people skip the NCAA in favor of the NBL or New Zealand, and while that's probably more culturally appealing to most US-based NBA prospects than playing in China or Turkey or even Europe, there's just a wealth of options for them to get paid and focus entirely on basketball during that year's wait.

My prediction is that if the trend of top NBA HS prospects going abroad rather than to college continues, the NBA will eliminate one-and-done. They'll prefer that rather than risk more of that talent leaving their system (i.e., to keep the AAAA-level players in the G League, rather than having them playing abroad and just staying there if they can't make an NBA roster).
 

JCizzle

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Dec 11, 2006
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I don't think we're very far away, the main difference between the G-League and the NCAA isn't the level of competition (or the pay :) ), it's the ability to build a personal brand and get known. And even beyond the G-League, there are a number of basketball minor leagues in this country that a lot of people just have no idea about, but are played at a very high level (just not, you know, the absolute physical freaks you see in the NBA or among the candidates to join it). We're already seeing people skip the NCAA in favor of the NBL or New Zealand, and while that's probably more culturally appealing to most US-based NBA prospects than playing in China or Turkey or even Europe, there's just a wealth of options for them to get paid and focus entirely on basketball during that year's wait.

My prediction is that if the trend of top NBA HS prospects going abroad rather than to college continues, the NBA will eliminate one-and-done. They'll prefer that rather than risk more of that talent leaving their system (i.e., to keep the AAAA-level players in the G League, rather than having them playing abroad and just staying there if they can't make an NBA roster).
Two of the top high school players signed with the G League this year! Jalen Green was #1 on this ESPN list and the ~#13 player, Isaiah Todd, signed with the G League as well. To your points, I heard on a Ringer podcast that there has been talk of featuring this G League team's games on ESPN as lead-ins to primetime NBA games to drive his brand and visibility.

https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29043828/sources-top-high-school-player-jalen-green-enter-nba-g-league-pathway
California high school star Jalen Green, the No. 1 prospect in the 2020 ESPN 100, is making the leap to a reshaped NBA professional pathway program -- a G League initiative that sources say will pay elite prospects $500,000-plus and provide a one-year development program outside of the minor league's traditional team structure.

Green -- a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft -- announced Thursday that he is bypassing college to become the professional pathway's first participant, a decision that likely clears the way for more commitments from elite prospects.
 

axx

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Does the G League actually bring in that kind of dough to be able to support the above?
 

Kliq

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Mar 31, 2013
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Does the G League actually bring in that kind of dough to be able to support the above?
The NBA certainly does, which is all that matters, especially if ESPN ponies up some dough to put the specific G League select team on its network.

To me, the G League will kill the one-and-done atmosphere of college basketball, it has all the advantages.

1. Paid a lot of money to play (legally).
2. Chance to grow brand, land sponsors, etc.
3. Scholarships to college, which most won't care about but it offers a fine security blanket for some players.
4. Playing as a professional without having to worry about the going to class facade, or dealing with NCAA regulations.
5. Perhaps most importantly, a chance for important skill development outside of a ruthless competitive atmosphere. College and international teams are focused on winning, which could hinder player development in the sense bad shooters would be encouraged not to shoot in games, as opposed to working to develop that skill in games.

College basketball's only advantages are the chance to play for a legendary coach/program and to participate in the NCAA Tournament, both of which may not offset the chance to make $500,000 and play against better competition, in a professional environment.
 

JCizzle

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I think KOC hypothesized that the NBA may even allow the select G League team to participate in the future NBA tournament. Zion in the NCAA Tournament was cool, but it also would have been fun to watch him play LeBron that year with a couple other young future stars.
 

Humphrey

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Aug 3, 2010
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The NBA certainly does, which is all that matters, especially if ESPN ponies up some dough to put the specific G League select team on its network.

To me, the G League will kill the one-and-done atmosphere of college basketball, it has all the advantages.

1. Paid a lot of money to play (legally).
2. Chance to grow brand, land sponsors, etc.
3. Scholarships to college, which most won't care about but it offers a fine security blanket for some players.
4. Playing as a professional without having to worry about the going to class facade, or dealing with NCAA regulations.
5. Perhaps most importantly, a chance for important skill development outside of a ruthless competitive atmosphere. College and international teams are focused on winning, which could hinder player development in the sense bad shooters would be encouraged not to shoot in games, as opposed to working to develop that skill in games.

College basketball's only advantages are the chance to play for a legendary coach/program and to participate in the NCAA Tournament, both of which may not offset the chance to make $500,000 and play against better competition, in a professional environment.
I disagree with #5. If the games are not played to win then the young man's development is missing an important component.
 

Average Reds

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Sep 24, 2007
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They are unquestionably dirty - like most if not all big programs - but the same article projects that they will walk here, as the case is almost certain to settle before any trial and the NCAA will look away, as they always have.

I'll admit that the parts about the Williamson family's housing arrangement and the involvement of Michael Avenatti were amusing nuggets of information.
 

BigSoxFan

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May 31, 2007
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They are unquestionably dirty - like most if not all big programs - but the same article projects that they will walk here, as the case is almost certain to settle before any trial and the NCAA will look away, as they always have.

I'll admit that the parts about the Williamson family's housing arrangement and the involvement of Michael Avenatti were amusing nuggets of information.
I mean, I would bet everything I own on them walking. But even these articles are better than what we could have hoped for.