So some news came out recently that Zion Williamson asked for cash, housing and a job for himself and family members in exchange for his commitment to play for the university. Kudos to him. No need to mince words and act like this isn’t what it is. Players are getting paid. No need for FBI investigations, no need for sanctions, just put everything out in the open. These kids are going to the highest bidder anyway. We have to stop being dishonest with ourselves and act like this is a surprise when it’s brought to light. Zion just beat them to the punch.
There are a couple of things I think will be interesting about this particular situation though. I think the fallout from this will be intriguing. I have a feeling that this will quickly turn into “How dare Zion compromise the game by asking for money!!!!” instead of focusing on Bill Self reportedly okaying the payments. Also, I wonder if we will ever hear “If he demanded illegal benefits from Kansas then Duke had to give him something right?”. Is the basketball world ready to openly question the integrity of the honorable Coach K????? I have a feeling he will escape this ordeal unquestioned and undoubted. Because there’s no way Mike Krzyzewski would ever undermine the rules and compromise the integrity of the game right? If you believe that, I have some beach front property in Idaho for sale I think you may be interested in.
In regards to Zion asking for money, it’s no different than what the schools are doing. The problem with this is the players are punished more severely than the university. It’s a very real possibility that Zion will not be able to play this season. Will Kansas and Bill Self be reprimanded? Will Duke’s recruiting process be inspected and examined with a fine tooth comb? They were able to land a guy who had apparently been involved in heavy contract negotiations. Are we just to blindly believe that the other two top 5 recruits they landed were gotten the honest way? Honestly, these schools should welcome Zion’s approach. He took out the guess work for them and told them what he wanted straight up. You won’t have to worry about underbidding. Zion was bringing must see TV to whatever school he signed with. $100,000 would render a huge return on investment.
At the end of the day, this is much ado about nothing as far as I’m concerned. I don’t know why anyone is acting like this is a surprise. I find it hypocritical that the NCAA is trying to impede these kids’ enterprising spirit in the midst of this capitalist society. They say collegiate athletes are being paid with a free education. Well if Zion was planning to major in business then he’s 10 steps ahead already.