Column: "It’s time for Miller to explain what he knows and how this could’ve happened in Tucson"

[Franisdaman]

Bickley: Tucson bracing for its darkest moment after NCAA basketball scandal

Arizona's Sean Miller remains silent regarding the arrest of his longest tenured assistant.

For too long, college basketball has been two different games. One transpired on a hardwood court. The other took place under a table.

The dirty charade is finally over.

The funneling of cash to blue-chip recruits has long been college basketball’s worst-kept secret. Even legendary coach John Wooden had his own bag man, Sam Gilbert, who took care of UCLA players on the side. But this time, the FBI is running the show, not a team of toothless NCAA investigators.

A giant shoe company is involved. Cooperating witnesses seeking to lessen their own punishment could sing like birds at sunrise, doing more than expanding the scope of this story and exposing the dark underbelly of college basketball.

It could burn this sport to the ground.

This is a traumatic time for Tucson, a sleepy city that has staked much of its reputation and civic esteem on a powerhouse program that Lute Olson built from scratch. Miller, an intense head coach with a reputation for successfully recruiting the nation’s best players, had magically restored Arizona’s status as an elite basketball school.

Like most Division I coaches, he is a control freak, overseeing every detail.

Is it plausible he didn’t know that one of his longest-tenured assistants was corrupt? Oblivious to a guy on his own bench paying recruits to play basketball in the desert?

It doesn’t seem likely. But now is not the time for assumptions. It’s time for Miller to explain what he knows and how this could’ve happened in Tucson. There were more crickets than revelations on Tuesday, when Arizona canceled its annual Media Day event, which was set for Wednesday.

The longtime assistant to Sean Miller, Richardson joined Miller at Xavier in 2007 after running a prominent New York travel team.

Even if it doesn’t cost him his job, Miller’s program will surely take a big hit. He was expected to field a championship-caliber team in 2017-18, a group that could’ve brought the talented coach his first Final Four appearance. His current team might’ve been ranked No. 1 before the FBI’s bombshell, allegations that could spark NCAA sanctions and the exodus of highly talented players who are looking to transfer to a safe haven.

http://www.azcentral.com/story/spor...ment-after-ncaa-basketball-scandal/710021001/

 

[Hawk_82]

I find it interesting that former Iowa coaches are/were coaches at both schools listed here. I hope this means that Iowa was not willing to participate in the cheating and so that is why each coach moved on from Iowa. obviously we know there was more than that regarding Alford, but he also said that Iowa was a football school and was vocal about Iowa.

I like Fran a lot and I am happy he is our coach during this time. I have faith that he has been doing things the right way and he will enjoy watching the cheaters go down.

 

[Franisdaman]

What did Sean Miller know and when did he know it?

This assistant was with him for TWO YEARS before they BOTH MOVED ON TO ARIZONA. The longtime assistant to Sean Miller, Richardson joined Miller at Xavier in 2007 after running a prominent New York travel team.

And Sean Miller had no idea this was going on?

Don't believe it for a second. Just hope the Feds have it on tape.

 

[terrehawk]

Dukie V has already come out in support of most of these head coaches. What a slime ball.

 

[Franisdaman]

Here is a column with a lot of questions for Sean Miller:

1) What did the Arizona head coach know, if anything, about the $20,000 in bribes assistant coach Book Richardson was accused of taking?

2) Was Miller aware that, according to the federal complaint, another UA coach met with the sports agent also charged in the investigation?

3) That former associate head coach Joe Pasternack may have talked with a sports agent twice on the telephone?


And also, from the complaint, these questions:

4) Had a current UA player already taken payments from a sports agent, as that agent alleged?

5) Was it true that a sports agent involved with the bribery scheme was “friends” with the UA coaching staff, and that he could attend practices “like I’m on the team,” as the complaint quoted him as saying?

6) And did the UA really offer a five-star recruit $150,000, as an Adidas rep alleged in a separate federal complaint involving the shoe company’s ties to college basketball?

...there’s some stuff that looks pretty shady involving the program,” said Jerry Meyer, a recruiting analyst for 24/7 Sports. “I think all these schools are now under a microscope and we have no idea how much intel and evidence the FBI has.”

All this led CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander to write Thursday of Arizona:

“How many players on that roster are subject to investigation? How many players could be held out or ruled ineligible? In a flash, Sean Miller’s program has gone from preseason title favorite to an alleged cheating machine.”


Link: http://www.azcentral.com/story/spor...716649001/?from=global&sessionKey=&autologin=

 

[Franisdaman]

There's little doubt the federal indictment against Book Richardson could have potentially seismic implications for the Arizona Wildcats.

Here's one look at them:

• Jahvon Quinerly is unlikely to play for Arizona, and may not play college ball at all. Quinerly appears to be the player given money from agents through Richardson and if the NCAA finds he took it, Quinerly could be suspended for part or all of his freshman season (though it may be more likely at this point he doesn't play college ball at all, and just plays professionally overseas before joining the 2019 NBA Draft).

How do we know it's Quinerly? The document reported that Richardson took a total of $20,000 in bribes and gave most of it to a "top point guard" who committed “around three days” before Aug. 11. Quinerly, a five-star point guard, announced on ESPNU on Aug. 8 that he would play for to Arizona.

• The rest of UA's recruiting class could dissolve. Brandon Williams and Shareef O'Neal may not want to take chances signing with a program that could be under NCAA investigation.

• UA coach Sean Miller's status could be affected. While Miller isn’t implicated in any wrongdoing on the federal indictment, the U.S. attorney at Tuesday’s press conference stated that it is a continuing investigation. Obviously, any subsequent NCAA investigation will seek to find out if Miller was involved or had knowledge of it, too.

• Current UA players could be declared ineligible if they were found to have taken money from an agent. There is a reference in the document to a current player already having taken payments.

While Richardson spoke of directing two current players to the agent, there is no suggestion those players have received any money from him or an agent.


• Other UA coaches could be questioned. There are references to the agents' meetings with Richardson and another, unnamed UA coach, suggesting more than one coach may have known what happened.

• Finally, of course, a subsequent NCAA investigation could result in sanctions against Arizona, likely in the area of recruiting but possibly involving games — especially if current players are found to have taken payments.

While the timing could make it unlikely for an investigation to lead to immediate sanctions, the 2018-19 and subsequent seasons could be affected.



The five charges facing Richardson:
1. Conspiracy to commit bribery

2. Solicitation of bribes and gratuities by an agent of a federally funded organization.

3. Conspiracy to commit honest services fraud

4. Honest services wire fraud

5. Wire fraud conspiracy

http://www.azcentral.com/story/spor...-means-arizona-wildcats-basketball/707856001/

 

[Franisdaman]

It’s at last apparent what Arizona’s position on Sean Miller will be.

School president Dr. Robert C. Robbins released a statement Tuesday backing Miller barring new evidence implicating him in the federal investigation into bribery and corruption in college basketball.

“Sean Miller has not been charged with, nor accused of any misconduct and he has been fully cooperative and supportive of our efforts to determine the facts in pursuit of the truth,” Robbins said. “In a message that he shared with the community earlier today, Sean expressed his own devastation at the revelations last week and acknowledged his responsibility as the head coach to promote and reinforce a culture of compliance. Based on the facts that we know at this time, we support Coach Miller and intend to provide him with all of the tools necessary to meet our goals and expectations.”

Robbins’ support of Miller comes one week after longtime Arizona assistant Book Richardson was arrested on charges of bribery and fraud. A federal complaint alleged that Richardson received $20,000 in bribes in exchange for steering current Wildcats to a sports agent and used some of that money to bribe recruits to play for Arizona.

It’s no surprise that Arizona is standing behind Miller given his clean track record and impressive win-loss record. Miller brought stability to a proud yet floundering program when he arrived eight years ago, leading the Wildcats to a 220-66 record and six appearances in the Sweet 16 or beyond.


Even though it strains the bounds of credulity that a coach as detail-oriented as Miller would not know how his longest-tenured assistant was allegedly operating, the federal investigation has not yet produced any evidence incriminating Miller. In his first public comments, Miller released a statement Tuesday that did not specifically address what he knew or didn’t know.

“I was devastated to learn last week of the allegations made against Emanuel Richardson,” Miller said. “I have expressed to both Dr. Robbins and our Athletic Director Dave Heeke that I fully support the University’s efforts to fully investigate these allegations.

“As the head basketball coach at the University of Arizona, I recognize my responsibility is not only to establish a culture of success on the basketball court and in the classroom, but as important, to promote and reinforce a culture of compliance. To the best of my ability, I have worked to demonstrate this over the past 8 years and will continue to do so as we move forward.”

Arizona has not yet said whether the federal investigation could impact the eligibility of any current members of a team expected to begin the new season in the top three in the polls. The federal complaint describes Richardson telling an agent that a current Wildcats player has already been paid in exchange for eventually signing with a different agency.

In Robbins’ statement, he announced that Arizona has hired the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson to conduct an independent review. Robbins said the university has also retained lawyers to handle the federal probe and any subsequent NCAA investigation.

Arizona athletic director Dave Heeke described himself as “angered and disheartened” by the allegations in a letter to Wildcats fans. But Heeke, like Robbins, is for now standing behind Miller.

“I promise that I, along with our staff, will work tirelessly to ensure this department operates with the highest of ethical standards,” Heeke said. “With basketball practice underway, I ask that you join me in supporting Sean Miller, the staff, and our student-athletes as they work towards the start of the season.”

LINK: https://sports.yahoo.com/arizona-pr...vestigation-bribery-corruption-021513093.html

 

[WildIowaCat]

Is it possible Miller knew? Of course. Anyone here have a loved one cheat on you or steal from you? Did you know?
There are also rumors flying around that he had been cooperating for some time before the arrests. I am not sure about those claims. The 150k that was mentioned was hearsay from a scumbag trying to raise a bid from an adidas school. Arizona is a Nike school. The Quinerly speculation is just that, there is also rumor JQ was not aware of it and never received a dime. It is notable that he actually committed before those dates, not after. Some think Book wanted the money for himself knowing the kid was commited.

But I would be very careful who you link with these articles. There are some in Phoenix with an axe to grind....think Ames press.

More developments to come. There is about to be quite a few new indictments handed out soon. There may be as many as 50 programs implicated.

One thing is for sure whoever is involved is in for a bumpy ride.

 

[Franisdaman]

• Jeff BorzelloESPN Staff Writer
• Oct 7, 2017
• http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...-quinerly-hires-lawyer-amid-fbi-investigation

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- Five-star point guard Jahvon Quinerly said Saturday that his family has hired a lawyer, but he has not been contacted yet by federal authorities in connection with the FBI investigation into college basketball last month.

Quinerly was not explicitly named in the FBI documents, but he is committed to Arizona and was recruited by Arizona assistant Emanuel "Book" Richardson, who was one of four assistants (from various schools) arrested. The documents allege a $15,000 bribe from Richardson to Player-5, who "verbally committed to attending" Arizona "on or about August 9, 2017." Quinerly committed to Arizona on Aug. 8.

When asked on Saturday whether he accepted money, Quinerly responded: "I have no comment."

His lawyer didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Quinerly said his family hired Alan Milstein, who represented Maurice Clarett in 2004 in his fight against the NFL's age minimum.

Quinerly remains committed to Arizona.

"For now, I'm committed," he said.