Mayer: College Athletes Must Play Smart and Bolt for the Pros

Courtesy midwestsportsfan.com

I've had many should "college player A" and "college player B" declare for a professional league debates. The subject comes up as Victor Oladipo is about to announce his decision to forgo his senior season at Indiana to declare for the NBA Draft. Cody Zeller will follow with his own press conference tomorrow. His fate is not as sure, but I fully expect Zeller to make the jump as well. (UPDATE: Oladipo declared for the NBA Draft and multiple reports have Zeller going as well)

There are many IU fans that believe the duo, or at least Zeller, should stay at Indiana to improve their bodies and skill set. To that I would respond, take a walk in their shoes. These two young men have worked their entire lives for the chance to play the game they love professionally. Oladipo's draft stock has absolutely sky rocketed and will never be higher. He is a lottery pick. Over the last month or so Cody Zeller's stock has dropped a bit with pundits pointing out his struggles against larger more powerful opponents. He should still go.

Courtesy espn.com

This is a big deal and fans often forget to realize that an NBA contract gives the player a chance to be set for life if they manage their money properly. Zeller, the Washington native, was once thought of as a top five pick and will still be a first round pick. So what, he'll make a ton of money, develop his skills, and improve his body practicing against NBA players. No team will look at Zeller, or for that matter Oladipo, as a savior. They are young and will have time to develop into even better players.

Oladipo will have his college degree and has been a part of the transformation at Indiana. Zeller will be able to graduate with summer and online classes. He was the first domino to fall allowing the Hoosiers to once again become a dominant recruiting force. They have put their time in and left their legacies. It may have come up short of a championship (or even an Elite 8), but they deserve to move on.

I believe this is the smart path for any college athlete that knows they can make enough money to provide for themselves and their families. If Jake Odum was projected as a first round pick this year, then I would say go pro. There are only so opportunities to play sports professionally and a single play could result in a career ending injury.

Obviously not every college athlete should try and go pro at first chance (Christian Watford made the smart move to not enter the draft last year). It is only a good decision after doing research and understanding the possibility of being drafted and predicted position within the draft.

Courtesy NBA

Personally, I can't stand that basketball players are not allowed to enter the NBA from high school. If a player has the skill set out of high school to play sports professionally and that is his dream, let him go. Fans root for these players as if they were family, so there should be no ill will at the end. When it's time for the bird to leave its nest, don't fault it for flying away.

Mayer: Why Not Expand the Crossroad Classic?

The Crossroads Classic, being played this weekend, was a fantastic idea that went very well last year and looks to build on that success this weekend. We will have coverage from the Classic game between Indiana and Butler. Notre Dame will face off against Purdue as well. The four schools kicked off the first year of the double header held at Bankers Life Fieldhouse last year with Indiana defeating Notre Dame and Butler sneaking past Purdue.

Courtesy bankerslifefieldhouse.com

To think it took this long for someone to come up with a day where the major Indiana college basketball teams meet to play at the NBA arena in Indianapolis is surprising. After all, this is the "basketball state". Yes, most would say that Indiana is known for its high school hoops, but what fan of basketball would not want to see the Hoosiers, Boilermakers, Bulldogs, and Fighting Irish square off in a rotating double header at the home of the Pacers each year. (Although, it should be noted that the rotation is not complete because IU and Purdue avoid playing each other due to their mutual conference). It's as simple as it is brilliant, especially with all four teams making significant strides or having a national presence in recent years.

My questions is this: Why limit the Crossroads Classic to just four teams? There is tremendous basketball being played all across the Hoosier State and I would be extremely surprised if other schools wouldn't jump at the opportunity to get in on the fun at Bankers Life. Not only that, but there are some really good teams other than the "big four" that would give fans plenty of reason to make the Crossroads Classic a two day event.

Courtesy cbslocal.com

Now, I don't want to leave any schools out, but the writing is on the wall which squads would be a perfect fit to expand and enhance the college basketball derby in Indy. Those teams are: Indiana State Sycamores, Ball State Cardinals, IUPUI Jaguars, and Evansville Purple Aces. Think about it, a two day event would bring in fans from every corner of the state in a celebration of Indiana college basketball.

My first choice would be to make this a tournament which would just be too much fun. The seedings would be based on rank and/or record (with power of conference a factor). Unfortunately, this might not be a realistic option due to the high amount of scrutiny and detail placed on every team's scheduling in college basketball. It's fun to think about though.

I propose a two day event and two "brackets" within the Classic. The first bracket would be IU, Purdue, Butler, and Notre Dame while the newcomers Indiana State, Ball State, IUPUI, and Evansville would make up the second bracket (Since Indiana State and Evansville both reside in the Missouri Valley Conference, the second bracket would act similarity to the first with those two schools not matching up). Taking a realistic approach and understanding ticket sales and TV ratings drive sports, the two bracket system is the best option.

Courtesy bankerslifefieldhouse.com

In regard to scheduling, both brackets would play on Saturday and Sunday which would ensure that all teams are able to play in front of a sizable crowd. Let's pretend that the expansion took place this year (Scheduling would be altered before hand with knowledge of the Classic. ISU already played Ball State and actually plays IUPUI this weekend) So, let's keep Saturday's already scheduled game of IUPUI and Indiana State as the opener followed by IU vs. Butler. Sunday would start with Ball State vs. Evansville followed by Purdue vs. Notre Dame.

It's a pretty simple set up and would only make the Crossroads Classic more entertaining and inclusive for all of  Indiana. Of course, this really does pale in comparison to an eight team seeded tournament. When discussing the idea with Jeremiah Johnson, who you all know from his time at WTWO and current work at Fox59, he came up with the best proposal of all. The eight team tournament taking place to open the season at Lucas Oil Stadium using the half stadium configuration. That's something I'll be day dreaming about for a while.

Courtesy skyscraperpage.com

ReuKnighting Bobby and the Hoosiers

NBC 2 Videographer AJ Schub, who covered the Hoosiers for the last four years, gives us insight into IU's tumultuous relationship with their famous ex-coach. 

Courtesy si.com

 So the news broke yesterday that legendary Indiana University basketball coach Bob Knight will partner up with Dan Shulman (a voice that many Hoosier fans will recognize from covering the famed Indiana-Kentucky game from last season) to call the semi-final round of the Progressive Legends Classic featuring Georgia and Indiana.  No the sky has not fallen, Hell has not frozen over, and Brett Favre isn't coming back to quarterback the Philadelphia Eagles (but if I were Mike Vick I'd be worried). Bob Knight will be talking about Indiana Basketball for 40 minutes of game time.

  




September 10, 2000, the last day Bobby Knight had anything to do with Indiana University.  That was the day that Miles Brand, then Indiana University President, announced that he had fired Knight for violating a zero tolerance code of conduct policy enforced by the school.  Kent Harvey, then a player, told school officials Knight had grabbed him by the arm for disrespecting the coach.  Hoosier nation was divided.  Should Knight have been fired, or given every opportunity to stay until he decided to hang up his whistle? The decision was not theirs to make and Knight would leave Bloomington for good not long after he called for 2,000 students camped outside of Assembly Hall to calm down and go home.

For the last decade plus Knight has avoided the words "Indiana University" and "Hoosiers" as if he was a religious man who refused to use the lords name in vein.  A couple of years ago Knight led a segment for ESPN analyzing the Ohio State Buckeyes, and in particular, Jared Sullinger.  Who was the team Sullinger and the Buckeyes were beating up on in the highlight?  The Indiana Hoosiers.  Knight constantly referred to IU as "the other guys" or "that team" as if to say he still was not ready to even mutter the dirty word, Hoosiers. 

Courtesy The Herald Times

Indiana University, and Athletic Director Fred Glass have taken a proactive approach to reconnect the university with Bob Knight, but they have also been careful to not anger or push the knowingly stubborn coach.  Knight was inducted into the IU Hall of fame in 2009, and of course, was not present.  I attended a sports communications class at Indiana University last fall where Glass spoke about the relationship he was repairing with Coach Knight.  He confirmed that he and Knight had spoken in Indianapolis, but there was little progress made.  Knight did respect that Glass reached out, but he still was not ready to have a role with Indiana. 

Tom Crean has also embraced the history of the Indiana University Basketball program since taking over the head coaching job in 2008.  He understands that the program was able to turn around and be competitive so quickly partially because of the foundation that Knight already laid. Crean, along with Glass, brought back the 1983 Big Ten Championship banner that hangs above the north side of Assembly Hall.  It was a gesture to Coach Knight.  The 1983 banner was known as "The Fans Banner" and that team meant a great deal to Coach Knight.  Crean also brought in the 1987 National Championship team last season to honor their 25th anniversary.  The entire team and coaching staff returned, minus Knight.  His face did sit atop a commemorative poster of the group.

Courtesy NYTimes

So has Bob Knight finally taken a step on his own to rejoin the Indiana basketball family?  He may have been contractually obligated and does need money for his grand children's college funds. Maybe ESPN told him he had to announce this game or he would be fired.  He also may just not care. This isn't Knight going to Bloomington and announcing an IU game inside Assembly Hall. This is a neutral site game (Coach Cal's favorite!) featuring the number one team in the country.  Knight can no longer avoid Indiana because they are no longer in the cellar. They will now be a fixture on ESPN for years to come if Tom Crean keeps doing his job right. If that is the case, then Knight needs to be ready to call Hoosier games.  He can't pretend IU doesn't exist forever. Maybe this is step one in an overdue process to reunite the coach with his people, maybe this is just an assignment that Knight is forced to work, or maybe Knight will back out of the gig and this post will be meaningless. Guess we will find out sometime before Monday November 19th at 5:30 EST.