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Don't expect a Shark sighting in the Hall Posted: Tuesday March 11, 2003 5:57 PM
On the face of it, Jerry Tarkanian's induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame, in Springfield, Mass, should be a no-brainer. His 778 victories rank him fourth all time in Division I, behind Dean Smith, Adolph Rupp and Lefty Driesell. Tarkanian won four junior college national championships and has more total collegiate wins (990) than any other coach. He has the fifth-highest all-time win percentage (.794), coached in four Final Fours, and he won a Division I national championship in 1990 at UNLV. Yet, when the Hall of Fame released its list of 21 candidates for possible enshrinement on Monday, Tarkanian's name was not included. Five other coaches were on the list -- Driesell, Guy Lewis, Bill Sharman, Norm Stewart and Eddie Sutton -- but aside from Sutton, none of those men can match Tark's credentials. The Hall does not reveal the names of its voters, much less expound on their reasoning, but but it's safe to say factors other than wins and losses are keeping Tark out of the Hall. To put it mildly, Jerry Tarkanian is a no-good, low-down, dirty, scummy, lying, sleazy cheater, and he is a disgrace to the game the Hall celebrates. I thought we were finally through with Tark scandals when he retired from Fresno State last year, but it turns out he can still haunt us from the Great Beyond. Last week, Fresno State admitted that serious academic fraud was committed on Tarkanian's watch from 1999-2000. In an effort to beat the NCAA to the punch, university president John Welty instituted a one-year postseason ban on the basketball team. Tark, of course, says he was shocked -- shocked! -- to hear that a former team statistician and the basketball program's academic advisor had conspired to write papers for his players. Meanwhile, not only did Welty get to keep his job despite the fact that he hired Tarkanian, but Welty did not even fire Tarkanian from the job he currently holds at the university. That's right, Tarkanian still pulls down $120,000 a year as a senior development consultant for the Save Mart Center, which is nearing completion and scheduled to open next fall. Academic fraud was just one of many malfeasances that were committed during Tark's seven years in Fresno. There was the federal point-shaving investigation, the extra-benefits suspensions of players like Tito Maddox, Terrence Roberson and Melvin Ely, the bizarre arrest of Kenny Brunner and Avondre Jones for allegedly assaulting a man with a samurai sword (Brunner was acquitted, and Jones was convicted of one felony count of weapons possession and three misdemeanor charges), and dozens of other mini-transgressions that made for ugly headlines. And that's just the the rap sheet from Fresno. Tark committed numerous recruiting violations at UNLV (Lloyd Daniels, anyone?) and resigned only after three of his players were photographed lounging in a hot tub with a convicted sports fixer. And don't forget, Tarkanian also landed Long Beach State on NCAA probation before he even got to UNLV. Throughout all of this, Tarkanian has never accepted responsibility or admitted breaking any rules. He simply denied the charges, decried the injustice of the NCAA, then went back to doing his dirty work. I can only imagine all the sleazy things Tark did that never came to light. John Welty and the entire Fresno State community are equally to blame. Welty, who never confirmed the academic fraud charges until after they were published in The Fresno Bee on Feb. 9, hired Tarkanian because he wanted to build an arena. Well, congratulations, Mr. Welty, you got yourself a building, one that will stand as a gleaming monument to dishonesty and corruption. As for the Hall of Fame, well, I imagine that decades from now, some youngster will be thumbing through the NCAA's record book and wonder why this Jerry Tarkanian guy was never enshrined in Springfield. The reason is obvious, and it serves as a fitting, two-word epitaph to Tark's coaching career: He cheated.
Other Hoop Thoughts
Mail CallThe e-mail traffic was light this week due to computer issues on our end, so if you sent in a question (or the name of your favorite Radiators song), you may want to resend it. For some reason, I received a lot of Syracuse-related questions this week. Chris from Dansville, N.Y., writes, "What are the chances that Carmelo Anthony will remain in school another year?" Michael Warren of New Albany, Ind., wonders why I had Carmelo ranked seventh on my Hoops Heisman list and says, "Explain to me why he isn't better all-around and more ready for the NBA than LeBron James!" And Sean Pinkerton of Ogdensburg, N.Y., wonders why nobody is pegging the Orangemen to be a No. 1 seed. "Obviously, Kentucky and Arizona are locks," he writes, "but why is it that Syracuse is still getting no respect?" Well, the second question helps answer the first. I know Jim Boeheim says Anthony loves his math and science classes, but if he really is good at math I'm sure he has already calculated how much jack is waiting for him when he enters the NBA. The LeBron comparison, I must say, is rather titillating. I'd still give James the edge because of his superior athleticism and passing ability, but it's not so wacky to predict that Anthony will turn out to be the better NBA player. As for Syracuse's seeding, just look at its wimpy non-conference schedule, which included exactly one true road game, at Michigan State. (The Orangemen lost their season opener to Memphis on a neutral court.) If the 'Cuse makes the Big East tournament final, it should be a No. 2 seed, nothing more, nothing less. Either way, I like the Orange to make the Final Four. They -- and Anthony -- are that good. I received an interesting question from a reader in Germany who claims his name is Seth Davis -- and really, why would he pretend if it wasn't? Seth is a graduate of Wisconsin and asks, "What are the chances of Kirk Penney making the NBA?" My answer: Rather slim. In fact, I'd say Penney has at best a 25-percent chance of getting drafted at all, though I'm certain he'll get invited to some free-agent camps. Still, at 6-foot-5 he has decent size and can really shoot. Good shooters can find work somewhere playing pro basketball. Regarding my swipe at Geno Auriemma, the UConn women's coach, for saying he would suspend a player if she turned her back on the American flag a la Manhattanville's Toni Smith, John Chambless of Austin, Texas, wrote: "While a player certainly has the freedom to not face the flag, coaches have the freedom to take action against them for doing so. Under your slippery slope, a player can make public, derogatory, hate-filled, racial remarks against teammates and the coach, yet she can escape any repercussions." Well, John, under your slippery slope, silently turning your back equates to racist, hate-filled remarks, and to be charitable that is quite a leap. Second, I'm not sure that a coach would have the "freedom" to discipline a player under those circumstances. I believe that could very well be considered against the law because it would have a direct, detrimental effect on the player. You simply can't say the same about Smith's protest. Any lawyers out there want to dissect that scenario for me? (Free of charge, of course.) Larry Rice of Newport, Wash., took exception with what I thought was a compliment for Western Kentucky coach Dennis Felton, whom I said deserved a big-time job: "Could it be that the reason Dennis Felton doesn't leave the Hilltoppers is that he thinks it's possible for it to be a major program, or that it already is?" My answer: It could be, but it isn't. While some coaches might very well turn down the chance to leave a great mid-major job for a high-major school (longtime College of Charleston coach John Kresse comes to mind), it's a rare occurrence. Felton interviewed for the Tennessee job after the school fired Jerry Green, and Felton would have taken the job if it were offered. I believe he'll be at another school within two years, probably next season. I am still championing the cause of women who want to coach men's basketball at any level, so I'd like to thank Jud Rogers of Laporte, Pa., for letting me know that the Sullivan County High School boys' basketball team is coached by Pam Murray, who played Division III ball and this season led the squad to its first winning season in 10 years. Yes, Jud, I'll say it: You go, girl! Finally, here's our weekly Radiators Roll Call, your favorite songs from New Orleans' greatest band: Danang (Matt Shelton, San Francisco), Wrong Road (John Schandler, Lynbrook, N.Y.), Red Dress (Mike Olson, Madison, Wisc., who submitted that tune in honor of his beloved Badgers), and requested specifically for the Indiana Hoosiers, Never Let Your Fire Go Out (Michael Mathis, Arlington Heights, Ill.). Unfortunately, Michael, I think your Hoosiers were extinguished weeks ago.
Sports Illustrated staff writer Seth Davis covers college basketball for the magazine and is a regular contributor to SI.com. Hoop Thoughts appears every Tuesday during the regular season. Davis' first book, Equinunk, Tell Your Story: My Return to Summer Camp, available through Chandler House Press.
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