Mitch McGary To NBA
Exit. [Fuller]
Well, dammit. McGary's out the door and in the end there wasn't even a decision to make:
The Michigan sophomore who turned down a prime opportunity to enter last year's NBA draft and paid a price has decided to declare for the 2014 draft, admitting that he failed an NCAA-administered drug test in March and faced a one-year suspension from college basketball.
The drug test he failed was for pot, which seems ludicrous. Since when does the NCAA even test for pot, let alone levy year-long suspensions? Especially of a player who didn't even play? The situation here is insane. If Michigan issues the test, they get to decide the punishment. If the NCAA does, it's pretty much a death penalty for your career:
By failing a test administered by the NCAA, rather than his school, McGary was subject to the draconian Bylaw 18.4.1.5.1, which calls for a player to be "ineligible for a minimum of one calendar year." A second offense, even for just marijuana, results in permanent banishment.
"If it had been a Michigan test, I would've been suspended three games and possibly thought about coming back," McGary said. "I don't have the greatest circumstances to leave right now [due to the injury]. I feel I'm ready, but this pushed it overboard.
"I don't think the penalty fits the crime. I think one year is overdoing it a little bit."
Michigan agreed, McGary said, and appealed the decision to the NCAA in early April. It was denied, however. Neither the university nor the NCAA would comment directly on the case or the appeal.
The NCAA is the worst organization in the world (that isn't FIFA). They just changed the penalty to a half-season—still ludicrously punitive for a substance that is heading towards legalization within a decade—and would still not relent, because think of the NCAA like a marching band full of assholes. Good on McGary for just talking about it. At least one party in this situation comes off like an adult.
Michigan's situation at the five is now pretty alarming. They've got true freshman Ricky Doyle and, now out of necessity, redshirt freshman Mark Donnal. Transfer Cole Huff now has a scholarship slot, though he would not be available next year.
April 25th, 2014 at 12:21 PM ^
its the nature of the beast though. When you have a coach who produces talent like Belein does, its going to happen. And money talks, these young men dream to play in the NBA their whole lives and when someone says you will get drafted, its hard to say no. Think of it as a good thing brother, we are producing NBA talent like crazy, elite kids are starting to want to play for Michigan. Chatman is about a 5 star...watch his tape if you havent, its unreal how smooth he is.
He could be a 1 and done as well, but we are getting those kids now.
April 25th, 2014 at 11:54 AM ^
April 25th, 2014 at 11:48 AM ^
April 25th, 2014 at 11:49 AM ^
Says "this is bullshit."
April 25th, 2014 at 11:50 AM ^
Seriously, the six major power conferences should exit the NCAA, and make sure they aren't gentlemen about it. If I saw Mark Emmert on the street right now, I'd probably be unable to stop myself from shouting at him. Death to the NCAA. It must die in its current form.
April 25th, 2014 at 11:51 AM ^
So tired of everyone saying that Mitch made a mistake. He didn't. The NCAA made a mistake. Mitch did was the majority of college students have done (and likely the majority of student athletes as well). Sometimes, the rule is the mistake and not the breaking of the rule.
April 25th, 2014 at 12:44 PM ^
But good job NCAA! Way to look like big bad tough guys!
April 25th, 2014 at 12:58 PM ^
Lots of bad rules/laws exist. Those that are the most unjust are either not enforced or removed from the books. That's why folks aren't often jailed for oral sex. The NCAA could have looked at Michigan's appeal and said, "Holy crap, our rule is terrible and thus we will not enforce." They didn't.
April 25th, 2014 at 11:51 AM ^
drink.
April 25th, 2014 at 12:09 PM ^
So am I to understand, that the NCAA choosing to test McGary, of all people, was random ??????
So its 12 players, so 1 in 12 odds ?
Does anyone know how the NCAA randomly chooses who to test? I SMELL A RAT, folks..... for the odds, are quite astronomical...that the one likely player who injured all year the most likely to be smoking, is tested.....
April 25th, 2014 at 12:12 PM ^
this is bullshit. College kids make mistakes but the year ban is absolutley ridiculous, there have been issues from other players throughout the country that involve rape and I have only seen a few games suspensions ...if any!!!! Ridiculous. NCAA is such crap.
Like most of you have said, we never got the full potential from Mitch, he was more like a 1 and done for us. Could've done something special this year...time to move on to a new team. Coach B has all our trust to keep us at that elite level
April 25th, 2014 at 12:14 PM ^
Remember when 2014 was the year of hope and happiness and nothing but good things? Sadly, I don't either.
Notwithstanding, thanks Mitch for a year of great play and a year of great bench mobbing. Sucks you had to go out like this, but hey, the last Michigan basketball star who the NCAA ran out on a rail for stupid, unjust reasons has had a solid and long pro career, so you got that going for you. Which is nice.
April 25th, 2014 at 12:19 PM ^
I mean, I don't know how often players are normally tested and Mitch did say he was tested 9 times in 2 years
....but the guy smokes pot once and is immediately tested. wtf. Is there a snitch about?
April 25th, 2014 at 12:43 PM ^
4. profit
April 25th, 2014 at 12:30 PM ^
Through all the NCAA shit over the last few years, I've defended the NCAA. Not because I thought they were right, but because my love for, and addiction to, college sports made it so hard to admit that they were broken. Much like Michigan living in the pre-spread past, I was still holding on to the glory years of college sports. I knew things were broken, I just couldn't bring myself to admit it. I can't keep up the lie anymore, the NCAA and college sports are broken. It's time for a shake up.
April 25th, 2014 at 12:32 PM ^
I'm gonna miss Mitch. Seems like a great guy. Positive attitude, team player.
Win the Game
April 25th, 2014 at 12:33 PM ^
It's hard to look at this situation and not think Mitch was targeted for testing by the NCAA.
April 25th, 2014 at 12:40 PM ^
I was thinking the same, everyone in the country knew he wasnt playing the rest of the year. Some leak happened at some point and they went after him. Eff this
Do you really think that Mitch would have come up with such a great strategy as "Win The Game" had he not been on performance enhancing drugs like Marijuana? The NCAA knew right then who to target! A college student does not have the brain development to come up with such a bold and courageous gameplan.He obviously was getting a boost from somewhere.
Hopefully I'm not being cruel for saying this, but this situation is making every Mitch McGary gif and picture 10 times more funny. Just imagine him as a pothead.
April 25th, 2014 at 12:49 PM ^
I'm very tempted to just be done with college sports until the NCAA dissolves.
As an advocate for cannabis, this makes me significantly angrier than I would be normally at this news.
There's just nothing about this that's right...
The NCAA is forcing a student-athlete to suspend his education.
The NCAA is banning a substance whose possession is, at worst, a civil infraction in A2.
The NCAA has a more strict penalty for weed use than rape.
The NCAA is (effectively) banning something that could have helped Mitch's pain.
The NCAA is banning something sold, literally and legally, across the street from Crisler.
But hey, get drunk at 18, drive drunk, beat up people, etc...you're all good.
April 25th, 2014 at 12:51 PM ^
Forty years later, there's this.
Hm.
yes but everyone knows that wooden's genius is dwarfed by those in ncaa compliance.
This may be the first time I've even heard of someone getting caught in one of the NCAA's random tests. I mean, they test like 3 people in all of D1 per year it seems.
Thank you for one of the stupidest comments of the day. I don't know how he can "straighton" his life out, but smoking weed once is hardly a problem. How in the hell can you have a hard time rooting for him? He made one silly mistake, and this is how you go about your life? Pathetic.
but smoking weed once is hardly a problem.
Smoking weed on a semi-regular basis is hardly a problem.
smoking weed on a regular daily basis is hardly a problem
Even I think this comment is wildly off base.
if this is based off of smoking marijuana then i think you will have a hard time rooting for most of our former players.
http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/98654/ncaa-airballs-handling-of-mcgary
I'm also hoping that Bilas, Vitale, et. al. absolutely go off about this.
"Hey, NCAA, if “students” aren’t employees, why are you drug-testing them?"
best line from that article.
So true.
The stupidity here is staggering.
There may have been dumber things they have done, but the stupidity x harm calculation here is so high, this one may be hard to top.
is it possible to arrange a scenario where Mitch can set a pick on Emmert?
...good luck to him. loved having him around.
So wait, the NCAA finally allows unlimited food but if you get high first, they kick you out?
The NCAA didn't think about the impact of Mitch's ban on the Northwestern football union vote. If you were on the that team what would your vote be after hearing about Mitch?
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