On its face, one of the sillier declarations of testing the NBA draft waters was UConn freshman forward Ater Majok declaring for the draft. Ater Majok never played for UConn this season, as Majok's academic situation took quite a while to unravel. Not too surprising for a Sudanese native that first went to Australia before getting to the United States. The NCAA decided that Majok would not be eligible until the 2009-10 season.Nate Miles, briefly of UConn, but this past season with the College of Southern Idaho (a junior college) has also declared for the NBA draft. Having both players go pro -- even if they do not get drafted -- is probably the best case scenario for UConn and Jim Calhoun.
Majok and Miles are persons of interest to the NCAA with their relationship with Josh Nochimson -- the one-time UConn basketball student manager, personal assistant to Richard Hamilton and formerly registered agent. Nochimson was revealed to be actively involved in the lives of Majok and Miles. Two kids that eventually found their way to UConn -- though neither has ever suited up for the Huskies.
Most of the attention from the initial story reported by Yahoo! Sports focused on the part with Nate Miles. Nochimson housed Miles, may have paid for surgery for Miles, and was an ever-present figure in Miles' recruitment.
Majok, though, also was represented by Nochimson at a summer league tournament before signing with UConn. It is not clear what, if any benefits Majok received from Nochimson. It is also unclear how much Nochimson represented Majok's interests.
These are all questions that the NCAA should want to have answered, along with the records of excessive phone communication between UConn assistant coaches and Miles and Majok. And this is to say nothing of the calls that went first to Nochimson before Miles or Majok were contacted by the UConn coaches. Of course, to do that, the NCAA needs to actually interview Miles, Majok and Nochimson. That's the problem for the NCAA.
The NCAA has no power over Nochimson to get him to speak with their investigators. Miles is apparently not returning to college basketball, and thus, outside the reach of the NCAA. Majok, if he does not return to UConn, would also be outside the reach.
As important as the 6-10 forward would be to UConn's on-the-court hopes for the next season, his departure without ever playing a minute for the Huskies coupled with Miles would be better for Jim Calhoun's legacy and the UConn program overall.
Just ask the NCAA how far they have gotten with their investigations into USC and O.J. Mayo when they have been unable to interview Mayo. They have records and evidence that Mayo was receiving money from a runner for an agent, they have interviewed USC coaches and administrators, and they have little to show for it.
All the NCAA investigators have are damning cellphone records of the UConn assistant coaches. The problem is that that only means that UConn was guilty of committing excessive phone calls to recruits. Good luck on getting anyone on the UConn coaching staff -- present or past -- to concede that their calls were anything more than excessive phone calls.
And the calls that went to Josh Nochimson? They could be explained as nothing more than coincidental conversations with an old student manager who was a friend around the same time they were making calls to Miles and Majok. Surely, there was no way they knew that Nochimson was involved with these kids. At least that will be the story.
Of course, no one at UConn would be so cynical as to hope a couple of kids that are not even projected to get signed in the NBDL wind up not coming back to the college ranks. Never.
