The success John Calipari has been able to attain in his first year in Lexington is impressive. No one can argue with this. He has been able to exceed expectations where expectations are rarely exceeded, and has stepped up to the pressure of being the most talked about person in the Bluegrass state. The problem with Calipari is his recruiting. Problem? How can the #1 recruiting class in the country be a problem?

College basketball is unique from the NBA because talent is not the only thing that brings championships. Of course, it is a major factor, but less so than in the NBA. College basketball is about cohesiveness and teamwork. Without these integral aspects, all the talent in the world will still not allow a team to succeed in the long run. The collegiate game is true fundamental basketball. Passing, dribbling, movement, screens, defense, all the less glamorous aspects of the game, are what separates teams. To solidify this point, let us examine one of the most successful college basketball teams of the past two decades: Duke. The Mike Krzyzewski led Blue Devils have won three national championships and countless ACC titles executing the less glamorous aspects of the game better than anyone else. Sure, they have had their talented players, but much less so then some other teams of the past twenty years. Dukies often flounder in the NBA because they simply don’t have the raw skills to keep up. This is proof that it is something deeper than pure talent that drives collegiate basketball.

With the still fresh NBA by-law in place stating that a player must be at least one full year removed from high school before he enters the NBA draft, the best recruits in today’s game are the ones who five years ago would have made the jump straight to the NBA. These recruits aren’t going to college to get an education or to further develop their skills, they are going to college because they have no other choice (except go overseas, of course.) With this said, their plan is to satisfy the year requirement and enter the NBA. As a result, the coach who acquires the top recruits only benefits from a single year of productivity before the players say bye bye. This constant shifting in atmosphere in both the locker room and on the court doesn’t allow the cohesiveness and bond to develop amongst the team, and furthermore, will not lead to championships. While Calipari is spending his time and efforts recruiting players who are giving him and the school a single year of service, other coaches are getting kids who, although not as talented, will most likely be delivering four years to their respective schools. This gives the lesser recruits a chance to develop (both on and off the court), bond with the coaches, mesh with the other players, and engrain themselves into the threads of everyday university life.

Of course, this will not change the environment of collegiate recruiting. Calipari will be gunning for the best of the best next year and the year after that and so on. But, just maybe, if he focused more of his attention on garnering devoted players who don’t plan on bailing as soon as possible, he would be cutting down the nets in April instead of watching someone with a less talented squad do the same.

So who is this alleged player?  The letter states that the athlete played for Memphis for the 2007-2008 season and during the 2008 NCAA tournament.  The only player who played just that season is none other than the 2009 NBA Rookie of the Year, Derrick Rose.  His name has been the only one floating around as the potential wrong-doer since the story broke last week.  However, Memphis athletic director R.C. Johnson has denied any knowledge of the claims against the former Tiger, and said that the school has no reason to believe that a former player enrolled at the university using a fake SAT score.  While Johnson has neither confirmed nor denied that Rose is the player involved, he noted that the athlete is cooperating with the investigation.  A hearing for the case will be held in Indianapolis on June 6.  If the allegations are proven true, the team may have to forfeit its 38-win season and Final Four appearance during the 2007-2008 season.

Former Memphis coach Calipari was not named in the NCAA report, but is being told by the NCAA that he must appear at the upcoming hearing.  The committee on infractions will allow him to participate via phone or video conference.  His current employer, the University of Kentucky, says that Calipari informed them of the ongoing investigation during the interview process.  This is not the first time that the coach has been involved in an NCAA investigation.  After Calipari lead Massachusetts to the Final Four in 1996 and then left to coach in the NBA, it was revealed that center Marcus Camby had improper involvement with an agent.  The Final Four appearance was vacated.  Coach Calipari was not named in the report for that violation either, so it seems that twice he has been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Darren Rovell reports

On the day of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship game, I hypothesized which Kansas and Memphis players would sign with which agents. Based on the fact that no particular agent has had a grasp on the Memphis Tigers program in the recent past coupled with William Wesley’s deep connections with John Calipari, Derrick Rose, and agent, Leon Rose, it seemed like Derrick was destined to go with Leon and his agency, CAA. If Darren Rovell’s report is correct, then I am a little shocked. Leon Rose could still end up scoring Chris Douglas-Roberts, but I imagine that he had his sights first-and-foremost on the kid who he shares a last name with.

On a side-note, I have to disagree with Rovell about something. I don’t think Derrick Rose, with all of his talent, ends up being the #1 pick. The #1 pick will be Michael Beasley, case closed.

The Kansas Jayhawks and the Memphis Tigers are set to tip off the 2008 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship tonight at 9:21PM EST, and until that time, many newspapers and blogs will be writing about the two teams and their players, and contemplating which team that wears the color blue will come out victorious. One common thread will be that Kansas, as a school, has more experience when it comes to making it this far in the Tournament. Kansas has been in the Championship Game eight times, including this year. For Memphis, this is only the team’s second visit to the final game. Kansas has won it all twice, been in the Final Four thirteen times, made the Tournament thirty-seven times, and has eighty Tournament victories. Memphis has never won the Championship, and does not rank close to Kansas in any of the other categories discussed above. But throw all that information out of the window, because it does not matter. Tonight is anybody’s game.

Instead of making predictions like every other sports blog, I decided that it would be interesting to look at the individual top players at each school that are currently on the court and those that have graduated to play in professional ball. What sports agents have dominated Memphis and Lawrence? Which agents have a comfortable relationship with the Championship Game coaches? Are there other people at each campus that may be influencing players?

Kansas Jayhawks in the NBA and their agents:

• Nick Collison – Mike Higgins (SFX)
• Drew Gooden – Calvin Andrews (BDA Sports)
• Kirk Hinrich – Jeff Austin (Octagon)
• Raef LaFrentz – Mike Higgins (SFX)
• Paul Pierce – Jeff Schwartz (Excel Sports Management)
• Scot Pollard – Mark Bartelstein (Priority Sports & Entertainment)
• Wayne Simien – Leigh Steinberg (Steinberg & Moorad)
• Jacque Vaughn – Jeff Austin (Octagon)
• Julian Wright – Rob Pelinka (SFX)

Memphis Tigers in the NBA and their agents:

• Earl Barron – Mark Termini (Mark Termini Associates)
• Rodney Carney – Chris Emens (Octagon)
• Shawne Williams – Happy Walters (Immortal Sports)
• Lorenzen Wright – Andy Miller (ASM Sports)

It was not an easy task to find out the agents of all of the players listed above. After a quick glance at the names and the agencies listed above, it seems like representatives from Octagon and SFX will have some nice seats in San Antonio. I am sure that Jeff Austin and Mike Higgins will be in attendance, but I doubt that they say a word to each other. Which Jayhawks will they be fighting for? DraftExpress.com currently lists Darrell Arthur going #20 in the first round and Brandon Rush being snagged at #25 overall in the 2008 NBA Draft. Will either player (or both) sign with Octagon and/or SFX?

Then there is Memphis and its three stars that are suggested to be selected in the 2008 NBA Draft. DraftExpress.com has Derrick Rose being the 2nd overall pick, along with Chris Douglas-Roberts (CDR) being picked at #15 and Joey Dorsey going in the middle of the 2nd round. The list of agents for the current Memphis NBA players does not suggest that any particular agent/agency has an advantage for this year’s talented crop of Tigers. But as far as Memphis is concerned, the history books need to be swept off the table and it must be realized that this is an entirely new organization.

The landscape in Memphis was redone in 2000, when the University named John Calipari its new basketball coach. He led the team to win the NIT Championship in 2002 and then took Memphis to the NCAA Tournament in 2003 and 2004, something the Tigers were not used to. In 2006, the Tigers got a #1 seed in the Tournament, and Calipari realized that it might have been time to return to old friends with heavy influence in the basketball community.

Ever hear of a guy named Worldwide Wes? If not, I suggest you read this GQ article on him. The heading describes William Wesley as, the most connected, most discreet, most influential man on and off the court. Not a bad guy to have on your side. In fact, there may be a lot of validity in equating the success of this year’s Memphis Tigers team with Calipari’s connection to Wesley. Don’t think that Calipari has been working with William? Why else would he say that Wesley is a goodwill ambassador for the University of Memphis program? Wesley openly roots for Memphis to win and has been instrumental in bringing relations between Memphis basketball and China.

The sports agent point of all of this is that besides having a strong connection to Calipari as a coach, Worldwide Wes is a big fan of Leon Rose as an agent. None of the four Memphis Tigers currently playing in the NBA are signed with Rose, but you may see some or all of this year’s Memphis draft class signing with the basketball agent if William Wesley has his way. It seems like if there is one player out of the three Memphis ballers leaving for the draft this year that is least likely to sign with Rose, it is Joey Dorsey. I have seen reports linking Wesley with Rose and Douglas-Roberts, but have come up empty in any connection with Dorsey.

I cannot wait for the game tonight. I honestly have no idea who is going to win. But for me, the most exciting period for me is after the game is over and players start to make their decisions on representation for the 2008 NBA Draft. Stay tuned as we update you on the agent signings by both teams’ draft-entry players.