By Dalton Ray —
The long awaited FBI report investigating corruption in men’s college basketball has finally come. Multiple top players, current and professional, were named in the story released by Yahoo! Sports.
Louisville was one of the first schools to be tied into the FBI probe last fall for their involvement with Brian Bowen, who was also named in this report.
Surrounded around former NBA agent Andy Miller, associate Christian Dawkins and his agency ASM Sports, the FBI report includes expense reports and balance sheets of payments that went to players and their families.
By receiving payment, players in the document have their NCAA eligibility in jeopardy due to their loss of amateurism. The potential loss of eligibility is huge due to the postseason about to begin.
Some of the big name schools involved are Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina, Michigan State, USC, Texas and more.
Three potential 2018 NBA first round draft picks and current college basketball stars are also named in the report in Michigan State’s Miles Bridges, Duke’s Wendell Carter and Alabama’s Collin Sexton. The impermissible benefits given to players and/or their families range from “basic meals to tens of thousands of dollars,” according to the Yahoo report.
ASM funneled money to some high school and college players. The balance sheet, dated through Dec. 31, 2015, lists the payments to players. Here are some of the big names and documented money received:
Dennis Smith (2016-17 NC State guard) — $43,500.
Bam Adebayo (2016-17 Kentucky forward) — $36,500.
Markelle Fultz (2016-17 Washington guard) — $10,000.
Diamond Stone (2015-16 Maryland center) — $14,303.
Kyle Kuzma (2016-17 Utah forward) — $9,500.
Apple Jones, mother of Josh Jackson (2016-17 Kansas forward) — $7,000.
PJ Dozier (2014-16 South Carolina guard) — $6,115.
Jaron Bloosomgame (2013-17 Clemson guard) — $1,100.
Fred VanVleet (2012-16 Witchta State guard) — $1,000.
Cynitha Bridges, mother of Miles (2016- Michigan State forward) — “hundreds of dollars.”
The report also includes current players in Bowen ($7,000 in benefits), Eric Davis of Texas ($1,300), Bennie Boatwright of USC (at least $2,000) and Chimezie Metu of USC ($2,000).
Dawkins met with several players before turning pro. In some cases, Dawkins paid for the meals of players and/or family members, which is an NCAA violation. Here are some of the notable names:
Sexton (current Alabama guard), Carter (current Duke forward), Kevin Knox (current Kentucky forward), Tony Bradley (2016-17 North Carolina forward), Malcolm Brogdan (2014-16 Virginia guard) and Justin Patton (2016-17 Creighton center).
Dawkins also had dinners with Michigan State coach Tom Izzo, “Villanova coaches,” Fultz and the family of Mitchell Robinson (2017 five-star forward) according to documents.
The NCAA hasn’t made any rulings surrounding this report but did release a statement.
“These allegations, if true, point to systematic failures that must be fixed and fixed now if we want college sports in America. Simply put, people who engage in this kind of behavior have no place in college sports,” NCAA President Mark Emmert said in a release.
What will happen to the schools and even coaches listed is to be determined. The report names at least 20 Division I schools. In Louisville’s case, the scandal cost coach Rick Pitino and athletic director Tom Jurich their jobs.
You can follow Dalton Ray on Twitter @dray5477.
File photo / The Louisville Cardinal
