Dominique Sutton lands at North Carolina-Central

There is a lot of great basketball being played in the state of North Carolina. Whether it is UNC or Duke, Wake Forest or NC State, rare is the occasion that there aren't multiple schools from the state of North Carolina occupying spots in the top 25.

Dominique Sutton is a North Carolina native, Durham to be exact. But after spending the past three seasons in Manhattan, KS, Sutton made the decision to transfer to a school closer to his girlfriend and two daughters.

Sutton's a player, too. He started last year, averaging 7.2 ppg and 5.8 rpg, for a Kansas State team that won 28 games. He would have started this year for a team many considered to be in the top five or ten teams in the country.

He's a valuable addition to any team.

The problem?

Dominique Sutton is known for his work on the defensive end.
(photo credit: CJOnline)

The big boys wanted Sutton to sit out a season.

"A lot of bigger schools want me to sit out, but I want to go to a place where I can play right away," Sutton said.

It seems that Sutton will be able to play right away. According to Jeff Goodman, Sutton intends to continue his basketball career at North Carolina ... Central. Now, we could sit here and talk about how disappointing it will be for Sutton to go from playing for a national title in the Big XII in front of raucous crowds in the Octagon of Doom to being a member of a team that gets paid to travel to schools like Kansas State for an annual ass-whooping. We could talk about how noble Sutton is for making a sacrifice like that to be with his family. We could talk about how shocking it is that none of the four ACC schools in North Carolina had use for a 6'5" lockdown defender.

But none of that would be fair to Sutton. He made an adult decision, he sacrificed personal gain for his family. He made the decision that makes him happy. He should be applauded for it. He shouldn't have to read about what he gave up.

No, I want to talk about the situation that he walked into at NCCU. NCCU will become the 13th member of the MEAC conference next season. The Eagles, who were founding members of the MEAC but stay at the DII level when the conference went DI in 1979, have been a DI provisional since 2007. And while their 7-22 record looks bad, this is a group that was actually competitive against MEAC level competition last season. With just one senior on the roster in 2009-2010, this is a group that will be competitive in the MEAC.

Sutton isn't the only transfer they landed, either. Ray Willis, a 6'8" wing that saw limited minutes in his two seasons with Oklahoma, is also headed to NCCU. Sutton will be petitioning for a hardship waiver (which, hopefully, the NCAA will grant), while Willis will have to wait until 2011 to suit up for the Eagles.

Either way, its a great start for a program like NCCU, a MEAC looking for an immediate impact. If Sutton does get himself eligible, and the Eagles somehow make the NCAA Tournament, rest assured that Sutton will get plenty of publicity.

It will be an ending worthy of a movie deal.

And even if NCCU and Sutton fade into the oblivion that is low-major basketball come February and March, rest assured that this will still be a storybook ending for Sutton.

The only difference is that he alone, and not the entire college basketball watching world, will know about it.

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Dominique Sutton transferring out of Kansas State to be closer to his family

Dominique Sutton, a starting forward on the Kansas State basketball team, has decided to transfer out of the school and return to North Carolina is order to help raise his two young daughters.

"Being around my kids every day, and having the chance to play in front of my family all the time sounds pretty good," Sutton told the KC Star. "I love them a lot. I want to be there for them, and be a part of their life. Seeing them grow up is something I want to do."

We've seen this before.

Dominique Sutton is transferring from K-State to be closer to his family.
(photo credit: CJ Online)

Murphy Holloway, a 6'8" sophomore forward, transferred out of Mississippi to be closer to his young family in South Carolina, eventually landing with the Gamecocks, where he will have two years of eligibility left after sitting out a season.

But Sutton's situation is quite a bit different. Holloway may have transferred into a better basketball situation by going to South Carolina. He still has two years of eligibility left. Sutton just finished his junior season. He has one year left to play. And unless he lands at North Carolina or at Duke, odds are good that he won't have a better shot at playing in the Final Four.

Sutton was a starter on a sure-fire Final Four favorite. Kansas State may have lost Denis Clemente, but they return a young, talented, and athletic front line as well as a potential Big XII player of the year in Jacob Pullen. Sutton wasn't just some average schlub, either. At 6'6", he's athletic enough to defend on the perimeter or in around the basket, he is an excellent rebounder, and he brings toughness and hustle. In fewer words, he's an ideal glue guy that averaged over 7 points and 5 boards each of the last two seasons.

While it had to have been a tough decision leaving all of that behind -- "I'm leaving behind everything that I helped build," Sutton said. "It's tough to say goodbye to all that, but sometimes other things come up that are just more important." -- you have to admire a man that is willing to step up and claim the responsibility that comes with being a father. While I don't think Duke or UNC would use a scholarship on Sutton, if NC State and Wake Forest had any sense, they would immediately try and scoop this kid up.

If the NCAA had any sense, they would grant him a waiver to skip the mandatory red shirt season. Sutton is doing the right thing, and he should be rewarded for it.

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