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4/01/2020 4:24 pm  #1


HBO's "The Scheme"

Wondering what everyones thoughts were about the HBO documentary?  Seems to me that the FBI had a fairly flimsy case and just got whatever convictions they could.  Sean Miller and Will Wade come off pretty bad.  Wonder how much Wade was paying kids at VCU and what sort of budgets schools like Dayton and VCU have currently to pay recruits?  Considering how cheap GW is I think we can be fairly sure we aren't offering any extra benefits to our recruits.



 

 

4/06/2020 10:08 am  #2


Re: HBO's "The Scheme"

ML provides his review of "The Scheme"

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4/06/2020 10:36 am  #3


Re: HBO's "The Scheme"

I watched this over the weekend.  It's very interesting to read Mike Lonergan's perspective.  He was technically in competition with every other coach/program in America, and suffice it to say that this is anything but a level playing field.

The documentary is completely from Christian Dawkins's perspective.  What struck me about this story were his reactions after being convicted.  Often, we read or hear about a story where someone does something wrong and is punished, yet the subject shows zero remorse whatsoever.  I'd suspect this tends to anger most people.  "Why is this person not getting it?"  "How, after all of this, are they still not getting it?"

This story is the exception to the rule.  Dawkins not only shows no remorse but takes this a step further.  He states that any coach who wants to pay his players is a good guy, not a bad guy.  He sees the Mike Lonergans of the world, the guys who actually are playing by the rules, as the bad guys for not paying their players.

You are left with mixed feelings.  Paying players does not break a law in any way; it's simply an NCAA violation in which one can rationalize that many NCAA rules should be considered archaic by now.  I tend to be a rule follower in general but it was hard to listen to Dawkins and not see some validity to what he was doing.  On the other hand, what gets left unsaid is how Dawkins is compensated for his efforts.  Are "runners" like him even needed?  Are AAU coaches needed to do anything beyond coaching young basketball players?  Are the sneaker companies needed to finance these deals?  If you change the NCAA rule so that the schools can compensate players directly, do we then do away with these outside factions?  The answer is probably not because no matter what you pay, it's never going to be enough for certain players and their families.

Am interested in knowing whether the FBI is finished with all of this or not?  What Will Wade and Sean Miller (2 former A10 coaches, interestingly) have said in tape recorded conversation flies in the face with their being able to retain their well compensated positions.  My guess is that the problem is that practically every major conference program (and some midmajors as well)  is guilty of this to some extent.  How do you prosecute all of them?   

 

4/07/2020 7:53 am  #4


Re: HBO's "The Scheme"

Gwmayhem wrote:

My guess is that the problem is that practically every major conference program (and some midmajors as well)  is guilty of this to some extent.  How do you prosecute all of them?   

In the documentary they said that Creighton was allegedly throwing $100,000 out there for recruits.  I think any school with a deep alumni donation base, which in the A-10 could include URI, SLU, Dayton, VCU, and Richmond, has the capacity to fund these types of payments.  I don't think you can prosecute all of them at this point either.  Too much $$$ is out there to try to piecemeal enforcement.  The NCAA needs to completely reevalute what it's role is in all of this.  

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