With the NCAA investigating Eric Bledsoe’s high school years, observers will be tempted to link Kentucky to any supposed wrongdoing.
To refute such linkage, Bledsoe’s coach at Parker High School in Birmingham, Ala., wanted to remind people that he was no UK fan. In fact, he complained publicly when Bledsoe committed to the Cats. The coach, Maurice Ford, wanted Bledsoe to go to a program that would install him as its point guard as a freshman. At UK, Bledsoe was destined to watch John Wall run the team this past season.
“If you kept up with the story, you know I was against him coming to Kentucky to play with John Wall,” Ford said. “So how could I be shopping him to Kentucky when I was against him coming to Kentucky. What sense does that make?
“I was on record stating I did not want him coming to Kentucky to play back-seat fiddle to John Wall. Why would I shop him to a school I didn’t want him to go to? What sense does that make?”
Jerry Tipton of the Lexington Herald- Leader has covered Kentucky basketball since the 1981-82 season. That time includes five coaches, five Final Fours, four athletic directors, two interim athletic directors and many memories. Before coming to Lexington, Tipton worked eight years for the Huntington (W.Va.) Herald-Dispatch. He covered Marshall’s basketball team for two seasons before coming to the Herald-Leader.
2 comments ↓
The problem is not the shopping him around. I don’t believe for a second that anyone from UK’s staff participated in that. The worry is that Bledsoe and/or his mother and coach participated in academic fraud or extra benefits like paying his rent.
You can’t expect UK to necessarily be aware of things like that, but if it is found to be true UK will get dinged for it.
[...] Tipton reminds us that Bledoe’s high school coach was no fan of Kentucky: “If you kept up with the story, you know I was against him coming to Kentucky to play with John Wall,” Ford said. “So how could I be shopping him to Kentucky when I was against him coming to Kentucky. What sense does that make? [...]