The NC2A handed down punishments to our athletic dept. yesterday for various crimes and misdemeanors, including improper gifts to Darnell Jackson from donor/patron Don Davis. Men's hoops got off rather light, losing only a scholarship and eight campus visits for recruiting.
The main problem was "lack of institutional control," and the blame is being assigned, as it has been for many other things, to weaselly ex-AD Al Bohl. But it's important to remember that Hemenway was chancellor all through this Roman orgy of rule-breaking, so he deserves some blame, too.
On the other hand, KU has been getting some good pub lately as well. On CNNSI, Luke Winn says we have the best backcourt in the nation, and puts us at #2 in his power rankings. Seth Davis wonders whether in fact we have TOO much talent.
Also, Rush and Wright were selected as preseason co-Big 12 Players of the Year. They deserve it, but the fact that this honor is going to underclassmen doesn't speak well for the strength of the conference this season.
Last but not least, tonight (Oct. 13) is Late Night at the Phog (though it no longer takes place late at night). In celebration of this, the LJW has a silly but amusing article about dunking, in which the word "dunk" is repeated 36 times by my count. Typical is this comment from the always-quotable Sasha Kaun:
"I agree with what coach (Bill) Self says about the dunk. People say the dunk is just two points. It is just two points, but the dunk can change the momentum of the game. Coach Self says, and I believe him, the game can be going one way, if somebody dunks or dunks on somebody, it just gives so much adrenaline and excitement to the team that dunks. Dunkety-dunk. Badunk-a-dunk dunk."
(OK, I may have fabricated part of that quote).
All the Late Night dunks, sloppy scrimmage action, and bad skits will be streaming live here.
Could've been worse. Still, anything that makes us look more like Mizzou is bad.
ReplyDeleteLate-breaking news this afternoon is that CJ Giles is being suspended. Apparently a press conference is happening shortly.
ReplyDeleteLooks like you're right about CJ.
ReplyDeleteToo bad, though I guess it frees up a scholarship. . . .
Interesting you call it "light," losing that scholarship--seems like a pretty big thing, you ask me. Guess I hoped that sitting Darnell for 1/3 of last season had been enough repentance.
On that other, positive hand, once more: the Big 12 coaches picked KU as the team to beat.
Yes, the Big 12 may be in a bit of a lull, so that pick isn't as much a compliment as in years past; a pleasing confirmation, nonetheless, that high expectations (as high as Ismail's? why not?) are in order.
Yet another thing that makes us look like MU?
ReplyDeleteSelf is talking as if C.J. might never return. I was really hoping he'd have a breakout season this year.
Still, it might seem callous to say, but I do think the most expendable guys in our rotation were the three junior big men, if Darrell meets expectations. We can't afford to lose any more of them, however.
Self agreed with you, Yance, that the NCAA penalty was harsh, but I can't see it really hurting us.
I agree w/ "AWOL" Ismail that this team has Final 4 potential, but I worry that inexperience and a soft schedule could leave us unprepared for the Big Dance.