Mitch to NBA
According to Yahoo Sport's Dan Wetzel Mitch to the NBA after testing positive for marijuana which netted him a YEAR LONG BAN from the NCAA
EDIT: Because some people aren't reading the article:
- Mitch failed an NCAA administered test during the tournament - schools test during the year
- The NCAA has harsher policies than schools do. Had Mitch failed a Michigan adminstered test it would have been 1-2 week suspension
- Mitch dressing did not affect his test. Had Mitch been in street clothes or in AA he could have been tested by the NCAA during the tournament
- Mitch passed 8 tests during his 2 years at Michigan, this was his only failure
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/mitch-mcgary-heading-to-nba-after-positive…
Mitch McGary took a deep breath. He wanted to tell the story of why he smoked marijuana one night in March, why the NCAA suspended him for a year because of it and why the confluence of those events is helping lead him to declare for June's NBA draft. It wasn't easy, so he started at the beginning. For months, McGary had struggled to come to terms with the back injury that limited him to just eight games for the University of Michigan this season, none after mid-December.
EDIT 2: Quotes from Mitch and Beilien from mgoblue.com:
http://www.mgoblue.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/042514aaa.html
"My family and I want to thank everyone for giving us privacy and the time to make this decision," said McGary. "As you know, it was important for us to weigh all the factors that go into something like this. With that being said, I am ready to move on to the next stage in my life and enter the NBA Draft. "Being a part of a program that values integrity, it is important to let everyone know of a poor decision I recently made. I tested positive for marijuana during the NCAA Tournament. We were notified of that result after the Final Four. I regret thoroughly disappointing my family, coaches and administration. Despite all of this they have been understanding and helpful over the last couple of weeks. "I take full responsibility for this poor choice and want to apologize to everyone, especially those I have grown close to during my fabulous two years at the University of Michigan. "I love the University of Michigan and all it has allowed me to do. I have had my ups and downs, especially with my injury this season. I want to thank all the fans for embracing me. This has been the best two years of my life and I have some unbelievable memories. I know that I will be a Wolverine forever. Go Blue."
WITH WEED AS KINDLING
Why the fuck can Michigan not catch a break?
How can that be possible? Its pot, not crack, sexual assault or drunk driving!
What an impact to our prgram and what revenue the NCAA just lost b/c of this. Sounds like he was coming back otherwise. Wow, lose lose for everyone.
That said, last year's tournament run with Mitch was one of my all time favorites. Thanks for the memories Big Puppy...my kids are going to be crushed!
April 25th, 2014 at 11:14 AM ^
After the Red Wings game last night, waking up to this, along with having almost no hope for the football team this fall...I think I may have to take a one-year sabbatical from sports.
the ncaa has rules, you know, just because.
Ladies and gentleman the NCAA! They just suspended a kid for one entire season for a first time marijuana offense. A drug that is being slowly deregulated and is fucking legal in some states! A kid who wanted to stay at Michigan to keep his college career going and improve his game now basically forced into the NBA draft because he has no other option because he hit a joint with some buddies in a dorm room then went to sleep. Remember that the next time they bitch about players leaving early and one-and-dones and how kids need to stay in school longer.
But it isn't legal yet.
When it is legal, then the NCAA can remove the suspension policy.
If you can't honestly see both sides of the coin, then you are ignorant.
gets charged with drinking and driving, and he's suspended for 1 game.
a player gets caught smoking weed--possibly weeks after he did it--and he is suspended for a year.
if any of the millions of punishable offenses deserves a slap on the wrist, it's smoking weed. and the ncaa can choose to mirror that in it's suspension policies.
....drinking and driving leads to the deaths of innocent people, which is no big deal. Smoking weed leads to the deaths of precious, precious Doritos. Think of the Doritos!
April 25th, 2014 at 10:06 AM ^
Of course - the answer for that isn't only that the punishment for weed is too harsh, it's also that the DWI punishment is WAY too lenient.
I'd be all for a DWI/OWI being a year long suspension. Weed? Shouldn't even be against the rules.
If you can't honestly see how much bullshit it is to suspend a guy a year for a first time marijuana offense, then you are just a dumbass.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:08 AM ^
As hundreds have pointed out, players get far lesser suspensions for far worse criminal activities (e.g., drunk driving, punching girlfriends, breaking and entering). If you want to have a week or two suspension, OK, I guess. But a whole year strike me of "Reefer Madness" type nonsense.
And I say this as a non-smoker. It doesn't affect me personally if pot gets legalized. But the penalties for it, in many avenues of life, are still ridiculous.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:21 AM ^
The same shamteurism that prompted Avery Brundage to send home members of US Olympic squad for sipping champagne.
Just one more blow to the house of cards that is the NCAA. Something else will arise because of the money, but this will just accelerate the process.
Slightly OT: So what about the teams in Colorado? If a kid there is caught - since it is legal there does it become a violation of team/conference/NCAA rules only - sort of like a by-law violation. Do those kids have a legal standing (in Colorado) that such a suspension will curtail their work opportunities therefore making it an infringment on their civil rights? Or is it trumped by them signing (somewhere) an agreement with the school or NCAA that they would abide by whatever rules the NCAA imposes?
April 25th, 2014 at 10:48 AM ^
Mitch will be fine, this will cost him millions initially, but he will definitley get a chance in the league, especially with most analysts have him late first round, early second.
I don't have a problem with the NCAA drug-testing players - and our guys have to know that they're going to be tested during the season - but a year-long suspension for a first offense? That is crazy.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:02 AM ^
Even for pot? In this day and age? Absurd. Do they test for alcohol? Is a player allowed to responsibly have a beer or a glass of wine every now and then? Ok. Testing for pot is anachroniistic and illogical.
Two thoughts. I eye-roll at both the NCAA and McGary on this one.
1. Okay, the one year ban is a little ridiculous for one doobie. Of course, my high school outright expelled kids if they got caught with one doobie. So, everything's relative.
2. Really, Mitch? You smoked pot? What are you, 12?
The predominant demographic that comes to your mind when you think of marijuana use are pre-teens?
April 25th, 2014 at 10:01 AM ^
April 25th, 2014 at 10:19 AM ^
time in the NBA. Who thinks they picked it up when they got there? It's more likely that they got away with it. Whether he used once or it was more, his biggest mistake was getting caught.
I think the NCAA would have a major problem if there were 100% unbeatable tests because teams would lose an awful lot of players.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:51 AM ^
Yeah, Sam Perkins played his entire career high as kite, and was a perfectly fine player. Kevin Gamble is one of my neighbors here in Illinois, and he always talks about how Larry Bird would smoke a pack of cigs in the locker room before and after games, and how Robert Parrish and a lot of the Celtics would partake in the herbals.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:35 AM ^
plenty of AAPS kids started when they were 12.
I would love to have seen Mitch come back for this season, but it isn't going to happen.
He knew the possible consequences of getting caught but went ahead and did it anyway. That's irresponsible. Now, he is being held accountable. Don't blame the NCAA for what Mitch did.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:07 AM ^
April 25th, 2014 at 10:25 AM ^
April 25th, 2014 at 10:50 AM ^
The point is Mitch knew it was a punishable offense and did it anyway.
support Brian changing the site's tagline to "Screw the NCAA"?
I love their statement on going to a half-season penalty: "Street drugs are not performance-enhancing in nature, and this change will encourage schools to provide student-athletes the necessary rehabilitation."
I wonder what it's like to work at the NCAA...it's probably like a gigantic Ponzi scheme. You know something isn't quite right but you don't ask any questions and know it's all going to come crashing down very soon.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:08 AM ^
We have random drug tests and if you're found positive for any illegal substance you're fired - yes, that includes marjuana...
thought this was some sort of april fools joke when I read content. boggling.
I guess we now know what Horford meant by he knew what Mitch was doing with regards to the NBA.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:09 AM ^
good non-answer
sometimes i wish we all had resume's attached to our names. course it wouldn't change anything, people would still talk crap about things they know nothing about.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:09 AM ^
Time for the team and fans to move on. I loved watching him play but reality is he only had a stretch of 10 or 15 games where he played like a freak. JMo had beaten him for the starting job to begin the season and held it late season/tournament time.
McGary showed flashes of brilliance but that's all we'll ever see of him as a Wolverine. Who's to say he'd come back and be the same player? Someone in the draft will either get a steal or a dud. What we do know is that doobie cost Mitch a ton of money.
Hello Cole Huff?
April 25th, 2014 at 10:01 AM ^
McGary started this season once he was healthy enough to play. His mediocre performances during last year's regular season and the games he played this year were the result of him either not being in great shape or being hurt or both. He was apparently fantastic in camps against top-notch NCAA players and even NBA players this summer. There was no guarantee that he'd be great next year, but it was a very reasonable thought.
April 25th, 2014 at 10:15 AM ^
Mitch McGary clearly had the potential to be one of the greatest Wolverine hoopsters.
He'll join Roy Tarpley (who played more and probably could have been a huge player here) and Tate Forcier as what-ifs. I know that the emergence of Denard Robinson seriously cut into Forcier's playing time, but had he kept it together, he would have seen a lot of action and could have had a decent career. He was certainly a popular fan favorite.
Arggh....
Just reading the whole story and just wow. He was picked randomly and only because he suited up as a glorified cheerleader to sit on the bench. Or did it matter if he was in uniform? If he was sitting at home watching on TV would they have gone to his house to test ? Curious how it works.