College basketball bribery scandal: a catalyst for change?

The college basketball bribery scandal has engulfed the news agenda for international basketball this week, and with good reason. An investigation by U.S. federal prosecutors into numerous parties wielding power within the system is ongoing. However, is the scandal a turning point, could it really change how recruitment and money is used in college hoops?

On Tuesday, ten people were arrested and charged with fraud and corruption following a two-year FBI investigation. Sportswear giant Adidas and numerous people within college basketball (from agents to coaches) are involved in a bribery scam to entice new recruits. assistant basketball coaches at Arizona, Oklahoma State, USC and Auburn were among those charged, while Louisville head coach Rick Pitino was “essentially fired” despite not being directly implicated.

“The picture of college basketball painted by the charges is not a pretty one,” Joon H Kim, the acting US attorney for the southern district of New York, said Tuesday. “For the 10 charged men, the madness of college basketball went well beyond the Big Dance in March. Month after month, the defendants exploited the hoop dreams of student-athletes around the country, allegedly treating them as little more than opportunities to enrich themselves through bribery and fraud schemes.”

I mentioned yesterday, there is a whiff of possibility that some of those involved did not believe the law was being broken, or they were just doing what they thought was standard practise. The investigation is only beginning. New evidence will emerge from testimonies and many more people will be implicated.

That thing about standard practise is certainly no excuse, and the prosecutors have said jail time is a real possibility. Ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law. If coaches and agents accepted bribes because it was the normal thing, could this be something widespread through college basketball?

It is something many are asking… how far could this go? The most optimistic are claiming this will be a catalyst for change and that the NCAA will be forever transformed by the scandal. However, one thing these kinds of scandals tend to do is be forgotten.

It’s all about money, and the NCAA cannot take money out of the game. Even if it wanted to, there is little the organization could do to stop the cogs in the machine that have arguably led to this scandal. It is fair to point out that the NCAA’s own rules have aided the black-market-like money trail between players, agents, coaches, and sports apparel companies.

Let’s take the sportswear companies. In this scandal, it is German company Adidas involved, but rivals such as Nike and Under Armour are also hugely involved in financing college hoops. Now, there is no allegation around these companies and even if there was, it is foolish to think the corporate giants will go away.

Legitimate partnerships exist between NCAA members and these sports companies. Nike, Adidas, and companies like them plough hundreds of millions of dollars into organizations each year. Of course, players in the NCAA are amateur and unpaid for what they put onto the court, but each star NCAA player is an advertising billboard for companies.

There is nothing wrong with this on a basic level, but there is a clear contradiction when one considers the amateur nature of the NCAA. Organizations are already making money off their unpaid players without the need for the word scandal to be thrown around.

What happens when the governing organization is amateur-oriented, but floods of money are involved? Well, it seems a black market appears where individuals want to get what they believe is theirs.

Two potential routes exist. The NCAA could attempt to remove all money from the college game, including stopping schools from having sponsorship deals with sports companies. Yes, this is never going to happen. Secondly, the NCAA could attempt to monetize its system and pay players, moving away from an amateur model. Unlikely for sure, as this would throw up its own set of problems.

So, all the talk of the landscape being changed by the college basketball bribery scandal, perhaps it’s just wishful thinking.