Tubby Smith’s Recruits Keep Getting in Trouble
1-liner, College Basketball, Courts, Legal November 4th. 2009, 1:00pmTubby Smith and Minnesota: The Golden Gophers appear to be on the rise – they reached the NCAA tournament last year for the first time since 2005 – and Tubby Smith is bringing in high-profile recruits to the program. Problem: They keep getting in trouble. JUCO transfer Trevor Mbakwe, who is supposedly a force, won’t play until his December court case (assault) is complete. Royce White, a freshman who was Minnesota’s Mr. Basketball last year, was arrested Oct. 13 for shoplifting and fifth-degree assault at Macy’s in the Mall of America. Did a 6-foot-8 guy think he could steal $100 worth of merch and get away with it? Assuming these two guys are playing by Jan. 1, the Gophers – who return all their best talent from last year – should still be looking at about 24-25 regular season wins (the out-of-conference schedule is a joke) and another NCAA berth. [Star Tribune]
30 Responses to “Tubby Smith’s Recruits Keep Getting in Trouble”
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November 4th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
The Mbakwe case comes down to credibility of the 4 alibi witnesses. They say he was with them at the time the crime occured but the victiim ID’d him from a lineup.
Royce White if a fucking idiot. He got kicked out of a couple high schools (1 for cheating) and he seems to be listening to people who tell him he’s one and done.
So much for having a Gopher sport to cheer for this year. Fuck me.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:09 pm
Does Saul Smith have any eligibility left?
/seems like he played for Kentucky for 13 years
November 4th, 2009 at 1:12 pm
never been to the Mall of America
November 4th, 2009 at 1:12 pm
Groin: there’s always hock…oh wait.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:13 pm
Hey! National attention for Minnesota! Alright!
Oh….shit.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:13 pm
I say cut them both. This is a young and relatively decent team. The last thing they need are stupid punks like these two fucking up a good thing.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Wrestling team should be solid again.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
Groin: there’s always hock…oh wait.Yeah, I was going to write that but I knew you’d be the only one who would pick up on it. Sadly, you’re right though. Do you ever attend the Final Five? I’ve been going with a group of 4 Gophs fans and 1 misguided Sue fan for years.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
Rumor is Mbakwe is going to redshirt.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Groin: I’ve only been once. Good times.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
well obviously you can’t accusse Minnesota of funneling booster money to recruits. Cal’s players and their fur coats are laughing at the fact that a player would have to shoplift.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
Somehow Kentucky and their decision to fire Tubby are to blame for this.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
White shoplifting confuses me. He’s a dumb punk (I have a friend who teaches at DeLaSalle, and he has stories), but I was not expecting shoplifting.
Maybe if Gopher hockey is sub-par for a couple of years, I’ll actually move up on the season ticket wait list. Hopefully
November 4th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
He wasn’t fired; although, I still regret the fact he left. I’m one of the (very) few.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
He wasn’t fired the same way Joe Aleva wasn’t fired at Duke.
/He was given an extension and told to find another job in 6 months.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:27 pm
minnesota’s barn: one of the coolest gyms in the country.
i think running up the stairs dozens (hundreds) of times a game took six years off of bobby knight’s life. if i remember right in his later years, he finally wised up and had a stool on the floor.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Not likely. I’ve only moved up 90 spots since 2002. Still about 1600 ahead of me. FWIW, I’ve heard that the suites at Mariucci are ghost towns now that alcohol is prohibited.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:28 pm
mall of america fucking rocks. there is a hotel right by it called the thunderbird. been there twice.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:29 pm
Um, no. It seems you’re confusing fan hatred with what the school wanted from him — that is, to fire a couple of his assistants. He didn’t want to and took the Minnesota job when they offered.
It’s apparently nice to go somewhere you are appreciated.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
No alcohol in Mariucci anymore? Pussies.
/we have a bar in our arena
November 4th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
I completely disagree with this. Royce White is one of the best recruits the Gophers have had in a while. He could help pull the Gophers out of Big Ten mediocrity.
The assault charge is because he got into a fight with the Mall Cop after being caught shoplifting. Apparently Royce didn’t want to take any shit from a Momma’s Boy.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Spin it however you want, the writing was on the wall for Tubby at UK. He was going to be fired within 2 years, so when offered a job, he followed the old maxim “quit before they can fire you.”
November 4th, 2009 at 1:34 pm
Is it as awesome as Bourbonnais?
/Diesel
November 4th, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Quite being an asshole, Fetch. j/k. Sorry one of our guys almost killed one of your guys with a sucker punch last month.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:36 pm
I’m sure our guy started it. I have no sympathy for our idiot fans.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
nope. becuase it doesnt have the bears there. or my grandma
November 4th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
I figured as much, but I can only hope. I’ve heard the same thing about the lofts. There are alot of bitter ticket holders about that. I wonder how the Barn Lofts are going to sell this year.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:44 pm
I dropped about $3K on a 20 person suite for a Gopher hockey game a few years ago to entertain clients. It was well worth it but I wouldn’t have even considered it now without the availability of beer and wine. Shit, half of the realtors I invited didn’t even know college hockey was a sport. They showed up to get hammered and yell at leer at cheerleaders. I met Doug Woog that night. Helluva nice guy.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
It’s not spin. It’s being around the situation a lot closer than outsiders speculating on what might’ve happened if Tubby stayed. What is the point in keeping him two more years if they were that unhappy with his last two seasons? Following the rationale you put down, that makes zero sense.
November 4th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
No question about that. I just hope the Legislature revisits the alcohol ban this year.