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What Really Is Probation?
Sure, the NCAA punishes rouge coaches and programs. But how effective is it, really? And do they have the same power as before?
The news Donnie Tyndall has become a head coach for the Detroit Pistons G-League team, the Grand Rapids Drive, makes me wonder about the concept of “probation.”
Tyndall has a 10-year show cause penalty that won’t expire until 2016, thus effectively keeping him from coaching in the college ranks until the middle of the next decade.
He’ll will tell you he’s innocent of the charges that he paid players with cash and credit cards while at Southern Mississippi. That the NCAA took the word of a former grad assistant and has no real proof.
Maybe he is and maybe he isn’t. But the question here is why when a coach goes rouge does the team suffer as well?
Think about it. Hot Shot Carlton signs with State U with the best of intentions. He keeps his nose clean and is on path for his degree in anthropology.
But then Coach Slime is caught cheating. He’s fired. He’s told he can’t work in the NCAA for years.
Why is Hot Shot Carlton punished by being told he won’t be able to participate in the NCAA Tournament if he is not involved in the scandal?