Taylor King and CJ Henry NAIA bound

Taylor King and CJ Henry have been in college basketball headlines for the better part of this decade.

I think it is safe to say that this is the last time the majority of the country hears either name.

The 6'6" King originally committed to UCLA as an eighth-grader. Two years later, he backed out on that commitment, eventually signing with Duke. He had a semi-successful freshman season in Durham, proving to be an offensive sparkplug, averaging 5.5 ppg in under 10 minutes. King would leave Duke after one season, landing at Villanova. After sitting out one year per NCAA transfer rules, King had a big impact early for the Wildcats, averaging 12.4 ppg and 6.8 rpg during Nova's 9-0 start. But as Big East season got under way, King saw his minutes decrease before eventually finding himself in Jay Wright's doghouse, getting suspended for the regular season finale against West Virginia as a "teaching moment."

Taylor King couldn't last at Duke or Villanova.
(photo credit: AP)

Shortly after the season ended, King announced that he was voluntarily leaving the basketball team to focus on his degree. That lasted for about two months, when King opted to transfer to USC, where he would sit out a year and finish up his collegiate career in 2011-2012. (King would have only played three seasons, but per NCAA rules, an athlete only has five years to use up his collegiate eligibility. King's career started in 2007-2008.)

Well, that plan lasted for about two weeks until King realized that he would have to pay his way at USC for a year. While we can debate the academic merits of Duke and Villanova versus USC, one thing we can't debate is that $50,000 -- what tuition would have cost King for one year at USC -- is a heck of a lot of money.

So King will finish up his collegiate career with two seasons at Concordia, an NAIA school in California. For those keeping score at home, King went from UCLA to Duke to Villanova to USC to Concordia. That's quite a fall for someone that played in the McDonald's all-american game.

CJ Henry, if you can believe it, may have led a more convoluted path. Henry was a star at Putnam City high as a 6'3" point guard, and while he was not as highly regarded as his younger brother Xavier, CJ was still good enough to sign with Kansas in 2005. But the elder Henry just so happened to be a better baseball player than basketball player, and when the Yankees picked him 17th in the 2005 MLB Draft as a shortstop, a $1.6 million signing bonus was just too much to pass up.

But as his baseball career stalled -- he was hitting .234 in single-A -- Henry began thinking about a basketball career, which was made all the easier by the fact that the Yankees were contractually obligated to pay for his college education. So CJ went to Memphis to play for John Calipari, who coached his father Carl as an assistant at Kansas, in 2008-2009.

CJ Henry wasn't destined to be the next Yankees shortstop.
(photo credit: Blueclaws Blog)

Memphis also happened to be where most analysts believed Xavier was also headed, but when John Calipari left for Kentucky, Xavier and CJ both headed to Kansas. While Xavier became a lottery pick, CJ couldn't get off the bench, playing in just 13 games. With Josh Selby coming in this season and the Jayhawks returning quite a bit of back court talent, playing time once again was going to be limited for CJ.

So he transferred. But instead of going to a D-I school, Henry opted for Southern Nazarene University, another NAIA school. This means that Henry went from Kansas to the Yankees to Memphis back to Kansas and then to Southern Nazarene.

Once again, that's a long way to go for someone who was once picked 17th overall in a draft that has over 50 rounds.

I'm not writing this post to make fun of these two.

Seeing a kid's dreams disintegrate is not a pleasant experience. Some would call it heart-breaking. Others a disappointment.

I call it a wake-up call.

Henry and King were two of the best high school athletes in the country in their respective classes. King was a good enough basketball player to be one of 24 kids selected to the McDonald's all-american team. He showed enough potential as a pre-teen to earn a scholarship offer from UCLA before he even entered high school. CJ Henry was good enough to sign with Kansas even though he spent his springs and summers -- his AAU seasons -- working towards being the next Derek Jeter, not the next Gary Payton.

But being a highly-regarded high school athlete doesn't mean you've "made it"; it means that based on athletic ability, skill level, pedigree, etc., many believe that with hard work you are the most likely to one day "make it."

Nothing in life is guaranteed, and never is that statement more accurate than when discussing prospects in athletics. Ask Steven Strasburg.

Maybe Taylor King can finish strong at Concordia and find himself a contract in Europe. A 6'6" lefty that can rebound a bit, defend a bit, and knock down 25 footers is a guy that will create some interest. But grinding out a living in overseas basketball is a far cry from the glamour and the glory of the NBA's bright lights.

CJ Henry is in a tougher situation. He's already 24. A return to baseball is unrealistic. If he finishes his four years of college, he'll be 27, which is smack in the middle of his athletic prime. Not many 27 year old product of the NAIA are going to be getting NBA contracts.

Perhaps the best case scenario for both is to focus on becoming more of a student than an athlete. Both are getting their education paid for. Get good grades, get a degree, and perhaps when their athletic careers come to a close -- whenever that may be -- they can be successful working stiffs like the rest of us. There's nothing wrong with working a 9-5, trying to avoid a hangover for your Saturday morning men's league game before getting good and hammered at your Saturday afternoon softball game.

The biggest issue here is that the plight of guys like Taylor King and CJ Henry never gets told. How often do you hear a big-time prospect in any sport say "I need to keep my grades up in case basketball/football/baseball/hockey doesn't work out"? Every so often you'll hear a story about guys like Ed O'Bannon or Ndudi Edi or Lenny Cooke or any of the countless stars that never made it. Generally, these stories are of the "Where are they now?" variety.

At the same time, you see someone like Lance Stephenson -- who barely found his way into college and most recently threw his girlfriend down a flight of stairs -- or Daniel Orton -- a kid that averaged 3.4 ppg and 3.3 rpg in one year of college basketball where he stopped going to class after one semester -- making millions in the NBA.

The busts outweigh the guys that get rich tenfold.

Which stories do you think the next CJ Henry and the next Taylor King are paying attention too?

Continue reading...

Coach Cal and his Shady Recruiting

Sure, Memphis lost Derrick Rose, CDR, and Joey Dorsey from the team that was a couple made free throws away from a national title, but don't expect the Tigers to fall too far from the top of Conference USA. They already have one of the best recruiting classes in the country, headlined by spring signee Tyreke Evans, but they added to it yesterday when CJ Henry decided to enroll in classes at Memphis, making him eligible to be a walk-on for Coach Cal.

Why, you ask, is it newsworthy to talk about a walk-on for Memphis?

For two reasons. First of all, in 2005, when Henry was a senior in high school, he was one of the most sought after recruits in the country out of Putnam City High in Oklahoma. Memphis wanted him. So did Texas, Kansas and just about every other school in the country. One assistant coach who recruited Henry out of high school told Jeff Goodman

"I loved him," the coach said. "He's a big guard who can score the ball. He's explosive and can really shoot it. He's more of a combo guard, but I think he can play the point. Because of his size and athleticism, I think he can play right away."

The thing is, the kid was also a great baseball player, getting picked 17th overall by the Yankees and lining his pockets with a $1.6 million signing bonus from George Steinbrenner.

Well, that baseball career never panned out. Between vision problems, poor performances, and injuries (this season alone he sprained his neck in an outfield collision and his knee in a collision at home plate), he never quite got on track. But in the contract he signed with the Yankees, it said that the organization would foot the bill if and when Henry decided to go to school. So, after hitting just .234 at single A this year, Henry called Coach Cal and Bill Self (he originally committed to Kansas) to gauge their interest and not 24 hours later, he was enrolled at Memphis and ready to take the court. He's not quite in basketball shape (at 6'4", he's up to about 220 lb), but given how wide open the Memphis backcourt is this year, expect Henry to compete for major minutes.

There is another reason that Memphis and Kansas wanted CJ Henry the second time around, and that is his little brother Xavier (pronounced ZAV-ee-yay), one of the top recruits in the class of 2009 (#3 on Rivals). And it just so happens that his top two schools are, you guessed it, Memphis and Kansas.

Now neither of these programs are averse to shady recruiting tactics and "package deals". Mario Chalmers father, Ronnie, was hired by Kansas the same year that his son decided to play for the Jayhawks and left the position when Mario headed to the league. Memphis is worse. Milt Wagner worked for Memphis for six years as a result of his son DaJuan deciding to play there. Already this summer, Coach Cal has hired Lamont Peterson (the trainer and coach for Evans) and Bilal Blatley (who is very close with 2009 commit Nolan Dennis). He also "allegedly" requested the CEO of FedEx to call the mother of recruit Abdul Gaddy, who happens to be a customer service rep for the company. And all this on the heels of Scott Drew hiring #1 recruit John Wall's AAU coach.

Now to be honest, I am not sure if the CJ Henry decision is a package deal. His family was apparently surprised by his decision, and because it was so quick, it is very possible that CJ Henry knew that since his brother was so coveted by the two schools and he didn't need a scholarship that both schools would jump at the idea of having him on the roster. But there is no way that Coach Cal and Bill Self did not at least have the thought run through their minds that getting CJ would give them an edge for landing Xavier.

Based on how commonplace this practice has become, many people might not realize that it is in fact illegal for a school to hire someone close to a recruit for the specific purpose of trying to get that recruit to attend school. In fact, the NCAA has recently made an effort to crack down on college basketball recruiting, including these package deals. Just this spring, the NCAA created a three-person group devoted entirely to keeping an eye on illicit recruiting practices. Despite all of the blatant violations, no schools have received anything more than a slap on the wrist for it since New Mexico State in 1996, mainly because intent in this type of situation is so hard to prove.

But apparently tougher enforcement is not the only thing the NCAA is looking to improve. They also want tougher legislation. During last year's Final Four, an initial working group, headlined by David Stern and Myles Brand, was brought together to discuss the problems facing youth basketball in this country. In their summary report, they said

When an institution hires an individual who has either coached or is related to a prospect who ultimately enrolls at that institution, there should be a rebuttable presumption that the hiring violates NCAA legislation. This presumption would be triggered if the individual were hired within two years, either before or after, of the prospect's initial enrollment at the institution. The burden would then be on the institution to prove to the enforcement staff that the hiring did not violate NCAA rules.

It sounds like a great idea on paper.

Personally, I am still torn on the issue. Yes, it can be unethical. Yes, it opens up doors for funneling money to players and their families. Yes, there are a lot of instances where this is just another adult sidling up with a talented kid just to try and make some money. But I'm willing to bet that many of these package deals are simply an 18 year old kid wanting to be around people that he knows, to have people he is comfortable with in his life.

Think about it like this. You are a kid from a poor family in Brooklyn. The only time you've ever left New York City is to play in high school and AAU basketball tournaments. You are getting recruited to play all over the country, and eventually decide that going to Duke is the best way to further your career and your education. But Durham is a long way from Brooklyn, and you want people that you know and you trust around you. Your parents can't go because you have three siblings and they need to be in Brooklyn. So who would you and your family be the most comfortable with being down there to help you? How about the AAU or high school coach that helped keep you out of trouble and who has coached, trained, and mentored you for the last four years of your life. But he isn't made of money, so he needs something to pay the bills while he is in Durham, so Coach K offers him a position within the Duke athletic office.

Is that really unethical? Continue reading...