I think I am glad I was able to deal with all the great traumas in my life–my failures, my decades of depression, my disappointments, and my inability to meet the expectations of others–out of the public eye. With that perspective, a few impressions:

I look at Grimes, and it is obvious he is clueless about how to be that fluid 1st rounder, and how to fix things when the game is going too fast. I see a guy who would have benefitted from expecting to develop more gradually, but modern cbb doesn’t allow that anymore.

I look at Dedrick, who has put up AA stats this year despite inconsistent passing to him and with no help in the post where he has been forced to play as the only big, and I see people questioning his effort? or his character? And I think, wow, has he ever complained? Is his stoic expression more important to people than his single-handedly keeping us as competitive as we have been?

I look at Mitch and wish he had been allowed to play the small forward position, and I marvel at his ability to stay enthusiastic. Despite having to come in as a 1.5 ppg undersized player expected to turn it around in the middle when everyone is floundering.

I look at Charlie Moore, and the only flaw I see is that he tries too hard, goes too fast, and tries to change every game with boneheaded “hero” shot selection. His passes would have led to twice as many assists but for the team’s crappy shooting.

And Vick. I look at Vick, and like everyone I wonder what is going on. If it is a mental issue, it is largely beyond both his control and his own understanding. If it is emotional distraction from outside, I can only hope he can learn to deal with it–maybe getting out of the glare will help. I see someone whose face alternates reflecting either a wild fierceness or a bizarre disconnect to the game around him. I see someone whose talent belies the ropes holding him back. And I wonder how heavy it may be for him, knowing at times he is the savior of the team and at other times the anchor dragging the team down.

Finally, I see fans dealing with seeing a team of lofty expectations appearing to dismantle as we watch. Disappointment, anger, cynicism, hopelessness and helplessness all combining to just sap the joy out of us.

I know 2 things, going way back to my very first post a couple or three years ago: those kids are out there trying so freaking hard, and they are vastly more crushed than we are when they lose. So, I am going to do what I can to remind myself that there is always a lot of fun watching KU, and that I can be both disappointed and appreciative for the team, and that if this year is a bust I guess reality had to come sometime. Almost a decade and a half of championship ball (conference AND an NC) is something no other fanbase has ever had. I refuse to let the possibility of it ending get in the way of my unbridled pride in the kids who have made it possible. I hope I never join KU’s enemies by thinking of ANY KU team as losers.

If the suggestion to designate Gr-asshole-nola as a booster as a hypothetical truly came from the NCAA, I think this is all a lot of worrying over something that won’t be as much of a slam dunk as KU and fans are fearing. Here is why:

First, assuming it is true that the NCAA would not consider SDS’s petition for reinstatement without KU agreeing to the hypothetical, that would mean the NCAA was not willing to perform its job without exacting this designation. Courts generally don’t get into second-guessing private organizations’ adjudicatory processes except when an organization does not follow its own rules. To allow deference, those rules must set out the procedures to be followed, must meet minimum standards of notice and right to be heard, and must require initial judgment or appeal to be decided by impartial adjuicators. Here, the NCAA’s rules require determinations on eligibility, both preliminarily and on reinstatement. The NCAA cannot possibly extort a procedural advantage in another case before doing its job.

Second, I fail to see how a hypothetical for one purpose could be used in an enforcement case. A hypothetical is not an admission, and it is not evidence, so it has no res judicata effect. A hypothetical in a circumstance like this is like a statement made in a settlement discussion–it cannot be used in court against the person making the statement.

An example: Victim falls on a sidewalk and is injured. The claim is made that the property owner negligently failed to clear ice from a storm several days before. In settlement conference, the owner breaks in to the lawyers’ negotiations and says, “Okay, if I didn’t clear the ice because the sidewalk was closed, how much do you want?” His statement cannot be offered in any subsequent proceeding to prove he did not clear the ice. Protected–we encourage candid discussions to facilitate settlements.

Here, I can imagine that the NCAA stonewalling involved claiming they would not resolve SDS’s case unless KU accepted a hypothetical to cement Gassnola’s role. KU says, “Okay, if–hypothetically–he was a booster who slipped $2,500 to SDS’s guardian, please determine his eligibility and any sanction for him.”

No way that statement can be used to establish the booster relationship.

I tend to think this story is based on discussions with scared peripheral people who are second-guessing the lawyers because of the brutal 2 year decision, but who have no clue. Chances are, in my view, the lawyers knew precisely what they were doing. I think they have a strong case against any preclusive use of the hypothetical. The NCAA likely knows that, too.

This issue is not something to be upset about. However, I think the NCAA can prove he was a booster without too much trouble, so I think the hypothetical is irrelevant. Kind of like a case I had where the highest military appeals court agreed with me that a certain hearsay statement by an unknown utterer should not be admitted against my client, but it did not matter because my client hand wrote his confession anyway.

If all the NCAA has is the hypothetical, however, KU’s lawyers should go to federal court and stomp their ass. Heck, I am still licensed in Kansas!

Udoka has a long ways to go in most regards but the look is perfected! And, we have to remember, Jeff Withey himself wasn’t Jeff Withey for the first couple of years…

From ESPN:

URI’s Hurley not talking job future after defeat Rhode Island coach Dan Hurley, who sources say is the front-runner for the UConn job, had no interest in addressing speculation about potential openings after his team’s loss to Duke, saying, ‘I could give a crap about who’s got an opening anywhere.’

So, this means he is definitely going, right?

Well, dammit, Mitch just might have to redshirt again. Maybe for a couple more years with these recruits and transfers coming in.

When he finally leaves KU, he will probably get a gold watch and a pension.

@BeddieKU23 If I used drugs, I might prefer Walton, but I’d rather have Bilas.

“It is unclear whether Jayhawks coach Bill Self will be charged with a coach control violation…”

Well, nice journalism here. I think the whole damn thing is “unclear” since it is just rumor getting repeated based on nothing new since the June statements by the NCAA.

From an alleged newspaper you can find on the Web, or perhaps buy it and use it for lining bird cages:

Traylor to play in Greece

Former Kansas forward Jamari Traylor has signed a contract to play for GS Kymis, a team located in Kymi, on the island of Euboea, Greece, Eurobasket.com and the GS Kymis official Website reported.

Traylor, 25, averaged 10.2 points and 7.0 rebounds per game in 40 games for the Redwell Gunners of Oberwart, Austria, last season. He was selected to Eurobasket.com’s Austrian League All-Imports Team and to the All-Star Game.

He also played 10 games in the FIBA Europe Cup. He averaged 9.1 points and 6.3 boards a game.

My dad and I watched SB I and IV together (I was 10 and 13 on those), but the only game I remember really well was the infamous Christmas Day game a couple years later when Stenerud broke my Dad’s heart. The Chiefs were no good for the rest of the 70’s and he passed away in 1978.

I started crying today! I was watching all those fans going nuts, thinking, “That’s my city! This one’s for Dad.”

I am often accused by people I know of being a great moralist, and of being overly harsh in my expectations and judgments of myself and others. I might exceed the speed limit by 8 mph, but I pay every dime of income tax, don’t download pirated movies and broke off a close friendship when he wanted me to lie about an affair. In short, straight and narrow.

But I think y’all are going way overboard in calling this a program that is out of control, or assigning blame to Coach Howard for Bragg’s infractions. This thread really has degenerated into a massive amount of handwringing and old-lady fainting over a few reported incidents that actually only involve two kids currently in the program. Yet we are being referred all the way back to Giles as an indictment of our team? I will take all the success stories in the meantime as an overwhelming counterbalance to that, or to a DUI here or an embarrassing photo there–any and every day of the year.

Zero tolerance policies are being set up everywhere, and good kids are being kicked out of grade schools for having drawn a picture of a gun. I think HCBS has earned the right to decide who works for him and to use his discretion in evaluating character or administering punishment to athletes or staff.

Please note that if Vick was put on probation for something from 16 or so months ago, that could have been with the cooperation of the athletic department. No indication that it hasn’t been successful. Bragg’s stuff is more serious, but hardly reason for anyone to pull the rug out from the coach.

Take a deep breath, everyone. Please!

Of course, if the rape incident involved a player, and if it was known to the staff and ignored like Baylor’s football players, I will retract this post and light the torches myself.

@wissox Yeah, because of analytics (home runs are worth the strikeouts, etc). Thanks, slide rules.

@Kcmatt7 said in 7 inning doubleheader:

literally 23 days of your life spent watching ball

Holy Crap! Imagine how many hours in that total would be commercials!

And I suspect the total time of ball in play would be just a few hours.

The rest? Waiting and waiting, sometimes in thrilling suspense, and sometimes with nothing happening except watching them spit or scratch.

I love baseball, but I would probably swallow a grenade if I had to watch a team’s every game!

@dylans @approxinfinity

Mea culpa for my reference to why I like MLB right now. My comment triggered 'prox’s.

Kind of hard to talk about MLB as an institution in the baseball section without a reference to why the All Star Game was moved.

And the fans got 10 innings…without having to pay extra. Hmmm…overall, do games average less than or more than 9 innings. There are 7 inning dbl-headers, extra-innings, games called because of rain… @wissox, what’s the call–good or bad overall?

@Texas-Hawk-10 I thought Dotson acknowledged Howard as a big influence. Not sure. I do have Oldtimer’s disease…

@approxinfinity Living 8 miles from GA, I am a big MLB fan at the moment.

@AsadZ I already gave an opinion on this, but it might simply be that he thinks it would be cool to work with Beard and is looking forward to recruiting kids to the $300 million facility.

@BShark Of course it can, but when you are as likely to get a guaranteed contract as Gooden was when he elected, there is virtually no risk. Undrafted players stuck in the G League without 2 way contracts may be earning less money than might be necessary to buy a college education if they flame out in 1 or 2 years. Might make more money overseas, but that has its own risks and for many players not named Keith Langford can be miserable and not too lucrative.

A guy who was doing the termite inspection of our house got lured to go pro after 2 years because he hired an agent who promised he would be drafted. Nope. Instead, he wandered among teams in South America, never earned more than $18,000, got injured and was cut while having to pay his own way home. Had no means available to go back to school.

Gooden is a best case scenario, the termite guy obviously among the worst. Obviously Ochai is further along and probably has more resources available.

@BShark Gooden, of course, knew he would be drafted, was drafted 4th, played 14 years in the NBA, and earned almost $68 million.

Ochai may not be coveted so much by the people writing checks.

Are we going to have Christian B1, and Christian B2? I mean, we are a public school. What about the establishment clause, for ------'s sake?