Will Barton ruled academically ineligible

Josh Pastner's attempt to return the Memphis Tigers basketball team to national prominence has hit a bit of a speed bump.

Will Barton, a consensus top 10 recruit and the jewel of what is arguably the second best recruiting class in the country behind Kentucky, has been ruled academically ineligible by the NCAA. He will be appealing the decision, but according to a source for Gary Parrish -- a Memphis-based writer who wrote for the Commercial-Appeal for years -- winning that appeal is "a longshot".

Based on what we have seen, it is tough to pin down exactly what the issue is. Dan Wolken, a Tigers beat writer, says the core of the problem is that Barton waiting until last August to graduate from high school instead of last June (more than eight semesters), partly in an effort to be eligible for the McDonald's all-american game. Parrish said that, among other things, Barton's transcript is a "total mess". That will happen when you attend four high schools in four years.

And if that doesn't convince you, take a look at what Barton tweeted last night:

(photo credit: RTC)

So what happens to Barton?

There are a number of people out there that believe Barton had a chance to be a one-and-done prospect. If that is the case, then Barton can head to follow Latavious Williams, another former Memphis commit, to the NBDL. He can probably make a bit more money if he headed overseas, but 19 year olds living on their own halfway around the world as professional athletes is not necessarily an easy transition to make. After one season, either in Europe or in the NBDL, Barton would be eligible for the 2011 NBA Draft. His third option is to go the Renardo Sidney route, trying to get eligible for the 2011-2012 season.

Memphis should still be the best team in Conference USA even if Barton never suits up for them. Wesley Witherspoon and Will Coleman are the only returning starters, but with Joe Jackson, Jelan Kendrick, Chris Crawford, and three other talented recruits joining the fold, the Tigers still look like an NCAA Tournament team.

If nothing else, we hope that Barton becomes a cautionary tale. High school is not difficult. Go to class, get your grades, and get eligible. You think Barton is going to regret some of his decisions when he's taking buses from Idaho to Sioux Falls while watching Memphis play in front of 18,000 at the FedEx Forum?