I recently took part in an online discussion about on a sports topic and thought that I would carry part of that discussion over to this site as I see it as an indication of where our society stands on a different but related issue. The discussion that I took part in was about whether or not the University of Kentucky (the big blue, my other alma mater) should allow a kid that is facing drug related charges to play on the basketball team.
As background, the kid's name is Bud Mackey and he was the star point guard for the defending state champion Scott County team. He was considered a top 100 prospect and, after not being recruited very much by Tubby Smith, took a scholarship offer from Kelvin Sampson and Indiana. Early this school year, young Mr. Mackey got charged with possession of cocaine at his high school and possibly a dealing charge as well. He withdrew from that school and is now enrolled at a school in Ohio to finish out the year. Indiana, by the way, withdrew their scholarship offer to him soon after the charges came were filed.
The story gets interesting because it was recently reported that Mr. Mackey recently posted on his MySpace page that he was going to be a Kentucky Wildcat next year and this information has had cat nation in an uproad with some lambasting the coach for even considering the kid as a possible player and others defending the coach and saying that UK needs all the help it can get.
Those were the dominant positions in the argument that I joined at the other web site and if you wish to see the entire article and argument follow the link that is provided. My view is a little different, so I will try to set it forth and also explain why this argument has relevance to society as a whole.
First, UK should not take the boy on for the team if his court case is still going on. I think that is a no-brainer. If a regular player on the team had something similiar happen, there would be a suspension until the case was over, guilty or innocent. If the boy gets a guilty, then the discussion is moot as he will have some time to serve in "the stony lonesome" as a judge I used to know would say. If he comes out of the case with a not guilty or a dismissal, then there is absolutely no problem as we are innocent until proven guilty and he has come out innocent and should be treated as such.
The big question is what to do if he gets a guilty for some drug charges, like possession and is allowed to stay out of jail (a very real possibility if you know what happens in criminal courts these days). Many say that he is tainted, he should never be allowed to go to UK and that UK would be tarnishing it's grand reputation by allowing him to "start over". I am not so sure. First, UK's reputation isn't so grand as it is quite possibly the most penalized school in NCAA history and UK has had its share of rogues on the team in the past.
To me though, the bigger issue is the societial one. When has a person been punished enough? If I did something wrong when I was growing up, I got punished for it once, not over and over again. One mistake (or action if you do not like the word "mistake" here) should not lead to being punished multiple times. My dad, who is a big law and order, hang the crooks by their thumbs kind of a guy always told me that once someone had been punished for their crime, that should be the end of it. If a convict has served his sentence then we should let him go on and move on with his life and not hold that prior act against him. Once we sin and repent, God forgets and lets us move on. Merle Haggard sang an old song that talked about being a "Branded Man" not allowed to move on with his life after being in jail. Too many times, I have seen someone who has done something wrong not be able to move past that as society would not let them.
I know that there are repercussions for our decisions and Bud Mackey will have many to deal with for many years. I just do not see why not being allowed to play a game for Kentucky is one that he should have to face. These schools are not charities; basketball has turned into a business and they are looking for the best "employees" they can get to make that business profitable. If you look at playing basketball for UK as being a job, then I can see no reason at all for denying him a chance. If, however, you think of playing ball at UK as something holy, a gift from God himself, well then, I guess we can't let this sinner into heaven.
Friday, February 29, 2008
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2 comments:
Click on the title to go to the discussion page that I referenced.
If the charges against Mackey are cleared up, dismissed, reduced, whatever and he stays out of jail and wants to go to UK, then I don't see a problem with it. However, given the well-publicized zero-tolerance policy for athletes and drugs/alcohol that the university instituted in the mid-1990s, I don't see how they can even consider recruiting or signing him until the courts have finished dealing with his case. I can understand the argument that this isn't the kind of person that UK wants representing it, but there's something to be said for giving a young person who makes a mistake a second chance. Mackey isn't the first and he won't be the last.
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