Ostensibly Hoops

[AugustWest]

Nice try Stu. The only violation reported by RAL was the loan of a car by Leal to Leslie when his car broke down. We self reported and suspended Leslie. Leslie then sign with an agent not associated with Leak. Per Amerson, his agent and Leak no money exchanged hands and Leak did nothing to steer Amerson to that agent. The university has completely disassociated Itself from Leak even threatening him with jail if he sets foot on campus again. What else can we do?

Blake had an office on campus, was receiving a university paycheck, was directly responsible for the conduct of the young men on his team, was listed as an executive of a sports agency, was receiving money from said agency and even carried an agency credit card. Phone records show that he was a go between the agent and a player receiving money. U*NC claims to have known none of this, reported nothing, appealed the NCAA ruling, paid Blake to go away, did not make cooperation with the NCAA investigation a condition of his severance.

The two situations and the handling of those situations are so far apart as to not even be in the same universe. Do you really think that after that build up that the U*NC fan boy reporter has information he didnt put into the report? That was it Stu. There's nothing else out there. Too bad you dont have the resources to conduct an investigation of NC State. The RAL guy couldnt find anything. Maybe you could uncover our department set up to give athletes whatever grade they need to stay eligible with no actual work. Maybe you can find the agents on our staff. Maybe you could find the agent we have teaching classes, maybe you could find out who paid for thousands of dollars of parking tickets for mysterious rental vehicles with multiple tags, maybe you can find the Durham thug getting his picture taken with NC State athletes in the clubs for over 5 years. Knock yourself out Stu. I anxiously await your report.

[AugustWest]

The NFL and NBA have frequently said that their decisions are made based upon what they think is good for their league. What colleges do is their business.

Of course they have. Currently the colleges function as a very expensive farm team system at no cost to the leagues. That still doesnt mean that the current system is good for the universities or the athletes.

[hedge]

"As long as we all get to cheat equally. "

LMAO. If everybody is cheating equally, it's not cheating...

[AugustWest]

Not true. Cheating is breaking the rules. Period. Doesn't matter if one person is doing it or all of them. Part of the problem is unequal enforcement by the NCAA.

[hedge]

If everyone is doing the same thing, then no one is getting an advantage. If everyone is breaking the rules equally, then it's not even breaking the rules anymore, it just IS the rule...

[Bklyn]

Not true hedge. Breaking rules are breaking rules. It's just essentially nullified because everyone is doing it. However, Lance Armstrong was still a cheat...he was just more advanced in his cheating than his competitors.

[hedge]

He wasn't more advanced at his cheating, everybody was doing the same thing. He was just more advanced at hiding it...

[Bklyn]

Nope. His resources were so extensive and his process so sophisticated, he was generations (technologically) ahead of his competitors. Safe houses, private jets, the latest iterations of PEDs, detection protocols...dude's "training" apparatus was unsurpassed.

[hedge]

And all on one nut to boot...

[Owlman]

The NFL and NBA have frequently said that their decisions are made based upon what they think is good for their league. What colleges do is their business.

Of course they have. Currently the colleges function as a very expensive farm team system at no cost to the leagues. That still doesnt mean that the current system is good for the universities or the athletes.

Good for the pros

[crotch]

http://www.cbssports.com/general/writer ... alyzed-fan

[hedge]

That's a touching story. Also, I noted this:

"As a Wildcats fan, Dick Gregory is unremarkable in that Kentucky basketball is his passion and his obsession. That makes him like, oh, a million other people in the state, maybe more. They are one, all of these Kentuckians bound by a love for Wildcats basketball, whether they grew up on Adolph Rupp as Dick Gregory did, or whether they were introduced to the team under the guidance of coaches like Joe B. Hall or Rick Pitino or Tubby Smith or John Calipari."

What, no mention of Gillispie??

[hedge]

Hate to say it, but at first glance, Jabari Parker looks pretty good...

[crotch]

[crotch]

[youtube]mNF095ezmhw[/youtube]

[goldenbear]

Good win last night, like Britt at the point and Marcus as more as scorer, Meeks looks good as well.

[sardis]

I don't see how you guys get excited about these cupcake games. UNC Asheville? Doing well against them doesn't prove how good you are.

[crotch]

I don't see how you guys get excited about these cupcake games. UNC Asheville? Doing well against them doesn't prove how good you are.

Excited?? Hardly. Just posting info.

[eCat]

Parker does look good but I did notice that Randle outscored him on a team full of scorers.

[Owlman]

Early impressions of top freshmen

http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/jeff-go ... st?id=2266

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Nearly all of the top freshmen made their college debuts this week. Kansas’ Andrew Wiggins finished with a quiet 16 points, Kentucky’s Julius Randle went for 23 points and 15 boards, Duke’s Jabari Parker showed his efficiency, and Arizona’s Aaron Gordon registered a double-double.

We got a chance to talk to a few NBA guys and also college coaches in attendance about their thoughts on what they saw. We’ll start with the Kentucky Wildcats and their star-studded class -- since that’s where I was Friday night.

Julius Randle, F, Kentucky Wildcats

He finished with 23 points and 15 rebounds in the win over UNC-Asheville. Played with energy but missed some point-blank shots. Did almost all of his damage in the paint and went to the line 13 times, making 11.

“His body, his shoulders are so big. You know it, but it’s different when you see it in person. There’s just not much you can do about him. He’s so strong and so quick off the floor. He goes hard. He’s a man. He needs to do a better job finishing through contact. But he’s so big and strong that you expect him to dominate. What people are going to forget is that he’s still just a kid.”

James Young, G, Kentucky Wildcats

Was 3-of-10 from the field, 2-of-5 from deep, and finished with 11 points. Had one stretch where he was extremely active in the first half but was a nonfactor much of the time -- and didn’t do much except for score. He’ll need to impact the game in other ways going forward.

“He can get it going. We saw that, but at times he just floats and you almost forget he’s even out there. He’s a better athlete than people realize. He can get where he needs to go. The thing I worry about him is his motor, especially on this team with all this talent.”

Andrew Harrison, G, Kentucky Wildcats

Finished with eight points, five assists and just one turnover. (I’m fairly certain that is a mistake.) He struggled to run the team, but it was his first college game and his decision-making should improve with time. The surprise was that he shot the ball only three times from the field. He was 6-of-9 from the line.

“He played against a freshman at UNC-Asheville tonight and should have kicked his ass. He didn’t. He’s been able to physically overpower guards in high school and he may be able to do it at times in college, but he can’t rely on that. He’s got to be able to shoot it better -- especially at the next level. He’s big, strong and a good athlete, but he didn’t talk at all on the court and he’s got to improve his decision-making.”

Aaron Harrison, G, Kentucky Wildcats

His stat line was solid: 32 minutes, 10 points, five rebounds, four steals. He’s big and strong for a 2-guard and should be able to get to the basket and finish through contact. He’ll need to move the ball -- like many of his teammates -- to help create easy looks for someone else.

“He did all the little stuff. He rebounded, got steals, made a few shots. He doesn’t have to score 15 or 20 points to be effective. He’ll have his nights where he’ll get his, but the key for him is doing all the other things -- and he did that tonight.”

Andrew Wiggins, F, Kansas Jayhawks

Played 34 minutes and finished with 16 points, three rebounds, two assists and three steals against Louisiana-Monroe. The positive was that he knocked down a couple of shots from deep (2-of-4 from 3-point range), but he tended to stand around a lot. Wiggins will need to be more aggressive as the season goes along, and he’ll also need to use his length and athleticism to rebound at a higher rate.

“Great athlete, no way he’s the top pick in the draft. Julius Randle is better. There’s just way too much hype. His skill level is average. He made a few shots but plays straight up and down and doesn’t have any playmaking skills. Everything has to be a straight-line drive. Right now, he’s the third- or fourth-best player for Kansas. He’s long and athletic but has a long way to go.”

Jabari Parker, F, Duke Blue Devils

Parker and his teammates blew out Davidson, and the 6-foot-8 forward showed his efficiency. Parker was 8-of-10 from the field, hit all three of his long-distance attempts and finished with 22 points and six rebounds in 23 minutes.

“He is a matchup nightmare, especially when they play him at the 5. He’s bigger and stronger than I thought he was. He made his jumpers and came off screens and made a 3. That forces you to play up on him, and then he just abuses you going to the rim. He’s got very good athleticism. He has to get better defensively and will. He rebounded well and can handle the ball like a guard. He has to learn how to bring it every play and needs to get a little better with his back-to-the-basket moves.”

Aaron Gordon, F, Arizona Wildcats

Registered a double-double against Cal Poly, which was not much of a surprise. He finished with 13 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in 33 minutes. He started at power forward, but Sean Miller has given him the leeway to take perimeter shots. Made 1-of-2 from deep but was 2-of-6 from the charity stripe. That number will be key since Gordon could see plenty of time at the line due to his aggressiveness.

“He’s super long and is a great second-jumper. He has a motor around the hoop, and he’s so quick to the ball and is a terrific on-ball defender. He’s able to get to the rebound, bring it up the court and make a quality pass. He must work hard on his skills to be an NBA impact guy. There’s no way he’s a 3-man.”

Noah Vonleh, F, Indiana Hoosiers

Finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds in just 22 minutes against Chicago State. Was 3-of-10 from the field, made all five of his foul shots and had three blocks.

“He’s long, athletic, has great footwork and will be a 10-year pro. He’s a poor man’s LaMarcus Aldridge. He’s going to keep getting stronger, and he has a good face-up game. He has good footwork in the post and can step out and make shots from the perimeter. He plays hard and plays physical.”