More than likely there was $50-100k passed under the table from alumni to him to go to Kentucky. Which he did. "Thanks for the money, I'm going to the NBA!"
Yeah there’s no downside for Kentucky, besides obviously that he didn’t end up playing, but they still got a #1 prospect to go there, they still boosted their recruiting class. He can still claim another Kentucky player in the NBA.
But, even if that was his intention, going to Kentucky covered his bases. If his draft stock slipped, he had the opportunity to play NCAA next season. It is smart; testing the waters for the future, while still maintaining an alternative path forward to reach goals. I'm not sure how people can't understand that. It is simply smart, pragmatic behavior to ensure the best path forward for himself.
Great, another highly selfish move, contributing to the death of the collegiate system, is now being lauded as smart and pragmatic. I want to build a team with team-first players. I know that's increasingly difficult in the one-and-done era, but at least pretend to care about something other than oneself. It costs programs a lot of money for each high profile athlete they cater to. I'm sure Kentucky can afford this one letdown, but if it becomes a common bridge between HS and NBA, it'll be a significant issue. Colleges will have to decide whether it's even worth going after the top recruits, which could lead to a much worse product on the court. I don't buy that Kentucky benefits in any way from Sharpe having been there. Any mention of him won't be as a Kentucky product, rather as the kid who didn't play for Kentucky. He'll always be the one whose context begs the question, "why not?" That's negative advertising for the program, no matter how good he becomes. There's also scholarship ramifications with how many players can practice. I don't know how that was handled this year, but they presumably had an open slot?
Some people go to college so they can get a job. Sharpe went to college and he got a job. Seems like a win
If Sharpe had done this at say like... Washington State, do you think he would have been drafted as high? Being recruited by and signing with a program like Kentucky adds value to a player. It also adds value to a program like Kentucky, once again, they got a top recruit who went on to play in the NBA. Back to the Washington State example, if he had done this to a program like that the talk would be there are major problems with that program for a player like Sharpe not to play for them. No one is saying that about Kentucky.
Agree to disagree. This was a well thought out post, and I understand your perspective, but the reasoning doesn't do much for me. Probably a personal bias on my account. These colleges make sooooooooooo much money off of these kids, and have long held all of the power. My personal bias comes into play here, because I will always be more interested in individuals doing what is best for themselves collectively, and gaining personal power, responsibilities, and actual agency in the process. Calipari uses these kids, as do all college programs, as cash cows. Yet, if he blows out his knee at UK, there is almost no safety net in place. One must look out for their own best interest in this dog eat dog world. And maybe student athletes should have a little bit more agency, and actually have a say in their own fucking lives. Empower those whose literal bodies are generating all of the money.
To me, the whole point of college is to further your personal success. If it’s not for that, why else am I paying off a shit ton of student loans? so why the hell would anyone fault a kid for using a college to further his personal success? He doesn’t owe them anything.
My uneducated guess was he graduated early to practice with KY and planned to play for them next year. He then discovered he'd be at least in the top 8 this year (gleaned from what I've read). Cal told him if he played next year, he'd be the overall #1. His agent did the math and coming out this year made more sense than playing next year. Generally if you enter college early, you redshirt, not play. Anyway, just my $0.02.
Our resident "Dog" who is very Sly is going to take Calipari and the entire Kentucky Program down now? I see years of NCAA sanctions in the future! All because of S2. Hope you aren't a Wildcat fan.
Seems many are over thinking this. In a timeline like this i see this very plausible: goes to kentucky. Sees his stock rise as scouts are onto him. His agent says he is likely a first round pick now or a number one pick next year. But if he plays now and doesn't instantly succeed, his stock could drop. Though he likely had initial thoughts of playing a year, his stock rose enough and with agents advice, went into this years draft.
