You will want to scroll down to see the article andread the quotes to provide you a backdrop before reading our commentary.
Some of our historians may want to chime in here…but we think that it is important to note a similar historical parallel to this situation that will turn your stomach when you consider the lack of consistency of how the NCAA treats its member institutions.
In 1971/1972, UNC-CH Head Basketball Coach Dean Smith was responsible for reporting NC State to the NCAA because David Thompson – who was already committed to play at NC State – participated in an informal pick-up basketball game on State’s campus that included assistant basketball coach, Eddie Biedenbach. Smith and the NCAA interpreted the game as a ‘tryout’ – despite the fact that Thompson was already enrolling in NC State. The violations led to probation that excluded State from the NCAA Tournament for the 1972-1973 season. The Wolfpack dominated the 1972-73 season sitting at or near the top of the polls all season and finished undefeated with a 28-0 record. The same core team proceeded to win the 1974 National Championship with only one loss (to UCLA) on their resume.
Obviously, ^the Wolfpack’s violation related to a ‘recruit’ that was already committed to NC State (and may have already been ENROLLED at the time) is SIGNIFICANTLY LESS severe than the use of former players to ‘(use) different ways to try and persuade (him) to go there’ (by his own words). We can’t wait to see the Carolina Basketball program brough to its knees with similar probation for much worse behavior. (sarcasm)
Of course, there is NOTHING NEW to this practice in Chapel Hill. Quite frankly, we’re surprised that it is even an issue in light of the years of behavior that the local media and NCAA has chosen to ignore. For example, in the early 1990s highly-recruited high school basketball player, Jerry Stackhouse, openly admitted that Michael Jordan made phone calls – some during dead periods – to the Kinson star that played a significant role in his selection of going to UNC. No matter how you feel about the appropriateness of the rules, the NCAA has always forbidden such recruiting practices by anyone who is not a designated recruiting member of a school’s basketball program. Alums can inadvertently ‘bump into’ players when they happen to be on campus at the same time; but they cannot engage in activities to recruit the player to campus.
CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina is conducting a review to determine whether NCAA rules were broken during a basketball recruit’s campus visit last weekend.
Guard Iman Shumpert of Oak Park, Ill., told the Observer he spoke with and played pickup basketball against NBA players Raymond Felton, Sean May and Marvin Williams during his official visit. All three played for North Carolina’s 2005 NCAA championship team.
“They were just using different ways to try and persuade me to go there, especially Sean May,” Shumpert told the InsideCarolina.com Web site, whose report led to UNC’s review. The Web site is not affiliated with the university.
