Saturday, April 03, 2004
Favoritism?
Former Blue Devils star Corey Maggette is found to have taken payments from Myron Piggie, but the NCAA has decided not to take any action against Duke.Piggie embodies everything that is wrong with amateur basketball, summer tournaments and the NCAA (though the following makes only the Kansas City AAU coach seem like scum).
Piggie was sentenced in 2001 to about four years in prison on fraud and tax charges. He was also ordered to pay more than $320,000 in restitution. Piggie had admitted in May 2000 that he schemed to defraud UCLA, Duke, Missouri and Oklahoma State, their conferences -- the Pacific-10, the Atlantic Coast and the Big 12 -- as well as the NCAA by making payments to high school stars who played for him in summer league games.
Besides Maggette, players involved were brothers JaRon and Kareem Rush, who played at UCLA and Missouri, respectively; Korleone Young, who entered the NBA Draft without playing in college; and Andre Williams of Oklahoma State.