Will Wade, McNeese State and a Faustian bargain

Will Wade is a college basketball head coach again, though he will not be courtside when the season opens next November. He is the new head coach of the McNeese State Cowboys. In an attempt to minimize future NCAA penalties against Wade, McNeese hired the former LSU coach and quickly suspended him for the first five games of the 2023-24 season.

The NCAA through its Independent Accountability Resolution Process (IARP) has been examing LSU basketball and Wade since 2020. In the NCAA’s typical snail-pace fashion, the process is incomplete. Thanks to scrutiny brought on LSU by Will Wade, the NCAA is also examining actions of the LSU football program.

Wade is charged with seven NCAA violations, six of which are Level One infractions. He does not have an NCAA show cause yet, which McNeese took advantage of to hire him while his final penalties are unknown.

Wade was caught red-handed through a 2017 FBI wiretap. He told a ‘handler’ of recruits he had made Javonte Smart a strong ass offer. Wade also claimed that he and LSU,

"could compensate [players] better than the [NBA] rookie minimum."

Chronology is important in reviewing Wade’s history. Will Wade, before NIL changed the recruitment of players, was blatantly cheating. That he was probably one of many coaches, does not excuse his actions. What Wade proudly did is also not excusable because it is now the apparent norm in the recruitment of elite athletes.

Javonte Smart played three seasons for LSU. In the 2021 SEC Tournament, it took a blocked shot by Herbert Jones for Alabama Basketball to beat LSU. Smart was an outstanding player at LSU, but he has never stuck with an NBA team. He now plays in the NBA G League for the Birmingham Squadron. So far, he may have earned more money playing for LSU, than he has playing ‘professionally’.

It is too easy to criticize McNeese for hiring Wade. Throughout college sports, much is forgiven of coaches who ‘just win’ and especially those believed to be able to turn programs around quickly. Ole Miss is a recent example.

Will Wade and a McNeese Faustian Bargain

McNeese is taking a gamble that Wade will bring in better players for its roster. Wade has already gained two transfer pickups. The risk part of the gamble is that the NCAA could levy a suspension of Wade for many more than five games; perhaps the entire 2023-24 season.

There is a reason to ask if McNeese has made a Faustian bargain. Will Wade has proven himself as one of the best at procuring players. That does not mean he is particularly adept at coaching them. And worse for McNeese is Wade’s procurement process offers no advantage in the NIL era.

Will Wade represents much of what is wrong with college sports. It is sad, as teams seek a path to their ‘shining moment’ that Will Wade continues to tarnish the game.