Alabama Basketball: Battle in Baton Rouge about more than hoops
By Ronald Evans
Alabama Basketball: Crimson Tide vs. LSU in Baton Rouge about more than hoops. It’s a classic confrontation between good and evil.
Most Alabama basketball fans know about the sleazy recruiting practices of LSU, Head Coach, Will Wade. With what the college basketball world, including the NCAA knows about Wade, his continued employment is damning to LSU.
The NCAA can be criticized for many failed enforcement results. Despite the long delay, it is hard to believe Wade will escape severe punishment. The saga that began as an FBI investigation into college basketball found many villains. Some have been successfully prosecuted. A few schools have been punished by the NCAA. More than a few coaches have been revealed for their inexcusable failure to abide by NCAA rules and any standard of professional ethics. Will Wade is one of them.
More: HBO documentary shows LSU has no shame
Three men, convicted through the FBI probe, had their appeals denied in federal court recently. One of the three, aspiring player agent and business manager, Christian Dawkins had the goods on Will Wade. First revealed by Yahoo Sports and later included in the HBO documentary, entitled The Scheme, Will Wade talked to Dawkins about buying players. Wade described one of his player deals.
"I was thinking last night on this (Ja’Vonte) Smart thing. I’ll be honest with you, I’m [expletive] tired of dealing with the thing. Like I’m just [expletive] sick of dealing with the [expletive]. Like, this should not be that [expletive] complicated… I went to him with a [expletive] strong-ass offer about a month ago. [Expletive] strong."
Smart signed with LSU and is a junior on the current team. Will Wade, inexplicably, is still employed by LSU. Any Alabama basketball fan knowing these and other details concludes Will Wade is an unrepentant, despicable basketball coach. He should not have just been fired by LSU. He should never be hired to coach again. Christian Dawkins was right about Wade when saying,
"Just the audacity, you’ve got to take your hat off to him, bro. … Will Wade is definitely a f—— gangster for what he did."
LSU is apparently content having a gangster as a coach.
It is not enough to defeat the Will Wades of the world in a game. More is needed. If the NCAA does not punish Wade with the most severe penalty ever levied against a coach, it should just close its entire enforcement operation.
Until then a Crimson Tide beatdown in Baton Rouge will have to do.
dark. Next. Is it too early to talk NCAA seeds?
The Alabama Crimson Tide tipoff against Will Wade’s LSU team Tuesday night is at 8:00 PM CST. The Tide returns home on Saturday against Mississippi State.