Star UK Freshman John Wall Cleared To Play By NCAA

Late Thursday afternoon, a report emerged that suggests Kentucky superstar John Wall could face punishment from the NCAA for benefits he's received in the past from a FIBA-certified agent. That agent--Brian Clifton, of D-One Sports--just happened to be his AAU Coach, as well. Yeah, this could get complicated. ESPN spoke to SEC commissioner Mike Slive concerning the eligibility of Wall and another star freshman, Mississippi State's Renardo Sidney:

"Those are amateur issues that arose prior to their coming to our schools," Slive said of Sidney and Wall. "Those are strictly amateurism issues. As we told our people, somebody needs to determine if they are eligible. It's not relative to you, it's relative to them."

In other words, the questions currently facing investigators concern the players, not the coaches or the teams that recruited them. You're in the clear for now, Calipari, but we're watching you.

ESPN elaborates, with less platitudes:

Brian Clifton, Wall's AAU coach, was a certified agent with FIBA, basketball's international governing body, for nearly a year. Under NCAA rule that equates to Wall accepting illegal benefits from an agent. Consequently Wall could have to repay any and all expenses Clifton footed during that period before he can play with Kentucky.

NCAA rule also stipulates that an athlete can be withheld from at least 10 percent of a team's games as part of the punishment.

In other words, worst case scenario, we're talking about a situation that forces Wall to sit out 2-3 games, which won't be the end of the world. Many had speculated prior to Wall's commitment that he'd bring with him all sorts of complications, and while the headline "Wall, Possibly Ineligible" will certainly provide the skeptics with ample fodder, that's not really what we're talking about here.

Basically, Wall's AAU coach was a failed sports agent, that instead turned his attentions to fostering his sports program "D-One Sports." But because he was technically still certified as an agent, any clothing, travel expenses, or food that he gave to Wall could be considered improper benefits. In other words, by providing John Wall with the exact same things that other coaches give their players--uniforms, food, shoes, etc--Clifton and Wall were potentially involved in something illicit. At least in the NCAA's eyes.

ESPN cites the specific violation:

Under the guidelines set by the Committee on Student-Athlete Reinstatement, agent violations can fall under two categories:

" If an individual accepts significant monetary benefits from an agent, his or her eligibility should not be reinstated.

" If an individual accepts benefits from an agent that are not significant enough to warrant permanent ineligibility, the student-athlete will be withheld for the violation and will be required to repay the value of the benefits.

The committee goes on to say that if a student-athlete accepts benefits from an agent greater than $101, the student-athlete will have to repay the money and be subject to a minimum 10-percent withholding condition -- in other words, withheld from 10 percent of a team's regular-season games.

In short, if the NCAA determines that Clifton Smith's "benefits" were consistent with those of a typical AAU coach, there's a chance that Wall may not be suspended at all, provided he can pay back the value of whatever benefits he incurred. If not, he'll have to sit out 10 percent of his team's games, which would presumably take place in Kentucky's first 3 games, against Morehead State, Miami of Ohio, and Sam Houston State.

Not exactly a cause to panic, if you're a Wildcats fan. And if you're a sports fan, it's only further proof that the NCAA operates completely independent of reason or practicality. (Though if you're a fan of bureaucracy, get siked!)