Ayton paid $10,000/month in college

[82CardsGrad]

do I believe for a minute Ayton went to ARizona for free.

I always cringe when I see these sorta statements... given that ALL of these kids are most certainly attending school for “free,” as they receive full ride scholarships...

 

[Russ Smith]

I always cringe when I see these sorta statements... given that ALL of these kids are most certainly attending school for “free,” as they receive full ride scholarships...

Sure but do you honestly believe DeAnde Ayton got a years worth of education at Arizona? These kids are taking the bare minimum to stay eligible, that's why the NBA has get rid of that rule. I have no problem with kids that are good enough deciding to make the NBA their career path at a young age. But all the shams around it are tough.

My point though was if he was getting paid to go to Kansas, and didn't go to Kansas, the most obvious reason why is someone else paid him more to go to Arizona.

 

[GatorAZ]

According to Greg Hansen the sentencing for Book is May 30th and he’s expected to make a public statement. If I were Arizona/Miller I would probably wait to make another statement until then.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

According to Greg Hansen the sentencing for Book is May 30th and he’s expected to make a public statement. If I were Arizona/Miller I would probably wait to make another statement until then.

Agreed.

 

[82CardsGrad]

Sure but do you honestly believe DeAnde Ayton got a years worth of education at Arizona? These kids are taking the bare minimum to stay eligible, that's why the NBA has get rid of that rule. I have no problem with kids that are good enough deciding to make the NBA their career path at a young age. But all the shams around it are tough.

My point though was if he was getting paid to go to Kansas, and didn't go to Kansas, the most obvious reason why is someone else paid him more to go to Arizona.

No, I don't believe he got a years worth of education. But I really don't care. That his choice to abuse a scholarship - just as thousands do each year throughout the NCAA.
And I get your point and 100% agree with it. I just can't get past the fact that these kids are "getting paid" via their full-ride scholarships, separate and apart from any money they also take in from other sources.

The NCAA has been and remains immensely hypocritical. They obviously know these kids are taking money from other sources, yet they continue to push their laughable rules aimed at preventing and penalizing the act that they know about and, arguably, contribute to... what a joke.

 

[Yuma]

I roomed with student athletes in college. The amount of time they put into their team sport is insane. Other people get jobs to work their way through college. Let's be honest, the schools with big programs make a LOT of money from their athletes. Yes they get a scholarship. I know people with scholarships that do work study. I think of sports like work study programs. If you allow pay, then you can regulate it. Maybe $10,000 a month is way too high. Right now the only way to regulate that is to catch a school in the act. It always comes out later after the athlete is gone, and the school gets left holding the bag. I agree, this should all be made above board.

 

[Russ Smith]

No, I don't believe he got a years worth of education. But I really don't care. That his choice to abuse a scholarship - just as thousands do each year throughout the NCAA.
And I get your point and 100% agree with it. I just can't get past the fact that these kids are "getting paid" via their full-ride scholarships, separate and apart from any money they also take in from other sources.

The NCAA has been and remains immensely hypocritical. They obviously know these kids are taking money from other sources, yet they continue to push their laughable rules aimed at preventing and penalizing the act that they know about and, arguably, contribute to... what a joke.

Agreed one of the things that has been totally lost in this whole story is that NCAA rules don't even require money to change hands for it to be a violation. if there is an agreement in place with an agent, even if it's for a later date, that's a violation and the kid is ineligible. That rule exists to stop the scenario where you tell Ayton for example, we'll pay you to go our school but we can't do it until after you leave or you'd be ineligible. So in this story we have all these examples of kids who apparently were being steered to Dawkins and Sood, IF the kids were in on it, they're all ineligible even if they never saw a penny of money. If they weren't, and it's just Dawkins, Sood and Book scheming, then the kids are ok.

That's where the Book stuff on tape becomes critical he's the only guy with both ties to a college team, Arizona, and ties to the kids, he's one of their coaches. If for example Alkins cousin was really in Arizona getting paid by Book, then Alkins was ineligible. It's also why in the case of Ayton possibly the most damning story is really the Avenatti one not the FBI one. Because that shows what is purported to be a paper, text and email trail of someone going to meet his mom, with money they had, and then gave to her. They don't have video but if the NCAA agrees she actually met them with the intent of getting money, he's ineligible retroactively.

All of which is just too complex. The NCAA needs to let them have some spending money, and then they need to continue to have rules to stop the kids who want MORE, from being bought and paid for. Which will be very tough to do since the entire youth basketball system depends on money from shoe companies.

 

[JCSunsfan]

I roomed with student athletes in college. The amount of time they put into their team sport is insane. Other people get jobs to work their way through college. Let's be honest, the schools with big programs make a LOT of money from their athletes. Yes they get a scholarship. I know people with scholarships that do work study. I think of sports like work study programs. If you allow pay, then you can regulate it. Maybe $10,000 a month is way too high. Right now the only way to regulate that is to catch a school in the act. It always comes out later after the athlete is gone, and the school gets left holding the bag. I agree, this should all be made above board.

They should pay them an hourly wage for the time they put in, on top of their scholarship. That would be fair. If they put in 45 hours a week on the practice field and training, then pay them $20 an hour, which is still a deal for a worker with special talent and skill. $900 a week. $4000 a month or so.

 

[GatorAZ]

They should pay them an hourly wage for the time they put in, on top of their scholarship. That would be fair. If they put in 45 hours a week on the practice field and training, then pay them $20 an hour, which is still a deal for a worker with special talent and skill. $900 a week. $4000 a month or so.

Agreed. They should be paid but a lot of people get so dramatic about it like they’re working 14-hr shifts, don’t have a life and barely eat.

 

[BC867]

I don't like ballplayers earning millions per year. Or entertainers. Or politicians. Or business executives.

While the middle class can't afford to send kids to college and young couples can't afford to buy a house.

It jacks up prices to be entertained. Runaway inflation out of proportion. It hurts our country.

That being said, a ballplayer's "shelf life" is limited. Less than ten years for many and in the upper teens
for a few. They have to get it while they can, considering significant risk of injury throughout their career.

Particularly in basketball and football, college is part of the process. It begins there. So I do not blame the
ballplayers for being subsidized in these times. But it is hypocritical to do it behind the scenes.

 

[Russ Smith]

I don't like ballplayers earning millions per year. Or entertainers. Or politicians. Or business executives.

While the middle class can't afford to send kids to college and young couples can't afford to buy a house.

It jacks up prices to be entertained. Runaway inflation out of proportion. It hurts our country.

That being said, a ballplayer's "shelf life" is limited. Less than ten years for many and in the upper teens
for a few. They have to get it while they can, considering significant risk of injury throughout their career.

Particularly in basketball and football, college is part of the process. It begins there. So I do not blame the
ballplayers for being subsidized in these times. But it is hypocritical to do it behind the scenes.

One thing I think any basketball fan should do at least once is attend an AAU event, one day is enough but two will really drive it home. You have 16 year old kids playing 5-8 games over 2-3 days with a bunch of old coaches in the stands watching and discussing which kid they want and how much it's going to cost them. I get the idea that entertainment is too expensive it probably is, but kids at that age playing that much it's why we see injuries to younger players quite often now, they're totally overworked.

I remember going to the Rumble by the Bay one weekend years ago because part of it was at my old HS in Cupertino. Drew Gordon was there before he got to UCLA, was just nuts watching the whole thing is surreal you have 50 plus year old men looking at 15 year olds like I gotta get that kid. A guy I played against in HS was one of the coaches who ran that event he said the stuff you see and overhear in those things is just a real eye opener.

I think it's an interesting question there are now 3 separate claims of Ayton getting money, 2 of which came out in open court from people on tape and or under oath. He's in the NBA he can probably do what Derrick Rose and others did and just decline to comment. Honestly either way that's my recommendation to him, right now I think the vast majority of fans don't care if college players get paid, he has little to gain by speaking publicly and I don't think too many people are goign to believe him if he denies it with so much smoke out there.

 

[Russ Smith]

Fascinating verdict. They found Dawkins guilty on only 2 of the 6 and that was bribing Lamont Evans the OK State assistant coach. The jury did not believe that the schools were victims in the other coaches cases so not guilty of bribing Book or Bland. Both of them already plead guilty to conspiracy and taking bribes. But the jury effectively ruled Dawkins didn't bribe them, they just took money the undercover agents were fronting which was illegal, but didn't constitute bribery by Dawkins.

And after the trial, Dawkins said he never had a conversation with Miller about delivering Ayton to Arizona. Near as I can tell he didn't deny the tape of him and Book discussing Ayton being paid, but he explicitly said the ESPN report was wrong he didn't deliver Ayton.

 

[DWKB]

Fascinating verdict. They found Dawkins guilty on only 2 of the 6 and that was bribing Lamont Evans the OK State assistant coach. The jury did not believe that the schools were victims in the other coaches cases so not guilty of bribing Book or Bland. Both of them already plead guilty to conspiracy and taking bribes. But the jury effectively ruled Dawkins didn't bribe them, they just took money the undercover agents were fronting which was illegal, but didn't constitute bribery by Dawkins.

And after the trial, Dawkins said he never had a conversation with Miller about delivering Ayton to Arizona. Near as I can tell he didn't deny the tape of him and Book discussing Ayton being paid, but he explicitly said the ESPN report was wrong he didn't deliver Ayton.

Zagoria: “Did Miller pay players?”

Dawkins: “I’m not going to answer that. I don’t want Miller to get fired”

 

[GatorAZ]

Zagoria: “Did Miller pay players?”

Dawkins: “I’m not going to answer that. I don’t want Miller to get fired”

Yet his lawyer leaking the ESPN story nearly did.

 

[Russ Smith]

Zagoria: “Did Miller pay players?”

Dawkins: “I’m not going to answer that. I don’t want Miller to get fired”

Yeah I printed the whole quote in the Arizona board here. It was pretty clear Dawkins thinks Ayton got paid he just wasn't part of the payment. He said I don't want to get Miller fired. I don't want to throw him under the bus for something I agree with, paying players.

I do think ESPN has to issue a retraction and apology though it's clear Schlabach had the story wrong.