Report: IU administration won’t clear Emmanuel Negedu

by Alex Bozich in Recruiting | May 7th, 2010

Mike Griffith of The Knoxville News Sentinel is reporting that while doctors at IU cleared him to play, school administrators will not clear Emmanuel Negedu to play for the Hoosiers:

Former Tennessee basketball player Emmanuel Negedu said Indiana University doctors cleared him to return to play athletically, but the school’s administration declined.

Negedu said he was disappointed with the news, but was not prepared to discuss his situation any further on Thursday.

The report also mentioned that New Mexico, UTEP, Nebraska, UNLV, Arizona and Memphis are showing interest in Negedu and that despite the news from IU, the 6-7 forward still hopes to play next season.

While Negedu would have provided a boost to the IU front court, the potential risk of adding a player who suffered a cardiac arrest less than a year ago was too much to overlook.

As a freshman at Tennessee, Negedu averaged 7.2 minutes, 1.9 rebounds and 1.7 points in 33 games.

Tags: Emmanuel Negedu

JerryCT

feel better now ? its back to normal anyway
IUfanPurduePhD

No offense, but I'd start both of those kids over TP if either of them were coming to IU next year… ok, maybe not start right out of the gate, but by the time conference play roles around (which, coincidentally, is about the same time TP started coming off the bench). And if Jurkin could “get wide”–in his stance–he could set a hell of a screen; he wouldn't knock anybody down like TP, but they would have trouble going around him (and his back-cut would be virtually unstoppable since he's already 7'1″ and lobbing the ball to him would be cake).

I'll talk to some people at Ivy Tech and see if both Jurkin and Hammons can skip their junior AND senior years. You coined the phrase “reverse Carlino” earlier this week, so I'll term it the “Hyper Carlino” or the “Ultra Carlino.” (the next logical step is for players to skip their high school career entirely, entering college at the age of 14… we'll call that the “Doogie Howser Carlino Curriculum Plan” … I should get these things trademarked!)
LTTelamon

…if he lives. Brutal, but it's the truth.
IUfanPurduePhD

And the beauty is, both those kids are sophomores in high school… TONS of time for development of low post moves, passing intuition, and getting taller/stronger. I fully expect both to be *at least* 4-star prospects, but a 5-star rating is entirely possible.
GFDave

If that happens I say Bully for Him.
FWHoosier

My man Guy Mark Michel keeps getting blasted on here; just as I become more and more convinced Crean needs to get him in here (pendng Noreen's visit I suppose). There are many options left for a big and the Hoosiers need a legitimate shot blocker in the lane. I think this kid could fit that role of defensive presence in the lane and rebounder. They measured his wingspan at 7' 8″. (I think that fits into JerryCT's Cirque de Freak nicely)

It does probably mean a pass on Zeller, unless we see multiple transfers, but it realigns another scholarship to the loaded 2012 class. If he can help win a couple games in the next two years, then it also improves our chances of getting the top guys in 2012.

Speaking of transfers, the semester is ending and I am guessing that any announcements in that area would follow shortly afterward. I don't expect any.
MillaRed

Gotcha
FWHoosier

Meant to say “NOT many options left for a big”
MillaRed

Actually I was in Atlanta all week on business. 90 degrees when I left, 50 degrees here when I arrived. Please shoot me.

The thing about Eman's condition, and even our contributing ITH physicians have to agree (yes, I spent two years in the Walter Reed Army Medical Center emergency room in Washington D.C. and have seen more than my share of cardiac arrests, to include defibrillating in the field 11 times in my life) is we are focusing on 1 or 2 tragic instances out of tens of thousands of people with the same condition.

This condition is not that unusual. In fact, many people will live their entire lives without even knowing it. If you are not looking for it in depth, you will never find it. Of course I wish the best for this kid and his health. But honestly folks, by the numbers, the chance of him actually dying while playing basketball are astronomical.

He's going to be really, really good. And the percentages say he will be just fine while doing it. The IU administration went totally Sally on this one. And another program will benefit from it.
http://www.prinsportsblog.com BGleas

Don't forget no point guard

I'm definitely being reactionary right now, which usually isn't my nature.

Without seeing the schedule and final roster, I think the over/under for next season is 15. At 15 or anything above is progress and anything below is a huge disappointment. We also need to land Davis and Zeller. IMO best case is 17-18 wins with Davis and Zeller committing and worst case is 13 wins and losing out on both.

If the best case happens, then we're back to an extent and everyone is happy. If worst case happens, then the seat is definitely getting warm.
Outoftheloop

I would GUESS that in this instance “the administration” consisted of the President, the University Chief Counsel, the Athletic Director and the Head Coach, with, perhaps, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees. I bet that the vote was “unanimous”, with one “abstention” or vote of “present”, because if the Coach did not want the player, then the administration would never have been asked to make a decision!
IUfanPurduePhD

Welp, you got your wish; Guy is now a Hoosier.
Outoftheloop

I think that Michel could do more for IU in the next 2 years than Abraham could. I know that J Davis will do more for IU over 4 years than Carlino could. Negedu was simply an impossible decision. Offutt should go to IU if he thinks that he is a “Big-Time” player or wants to live and have great opportunities in Indiana after basketball is over. To be an “X IU Basketball Player” is a tremendous asset for your career in ANYTHING in the Hoosier State. To have played college sports at Ohio U, not so much. If there is no good news for IU basketball by the end of May, I will be greatly surprised!
Outoftheloop

There are just too many whiners on this Blog! You can create your own myths but not your own facts. In 2010 IU only tried to recruit 3 5-star players (according to Rivals): Selby #1, Kansas, Irving #4, Duke, and Kendrick #15, Memphis. None were expected to go to IU, but we were in the top 5 with each. In fact we did not recruit Kendrick all that much. The only other 5-star in the picture was Deshaun Thomas who had committed to OH St before we got in the fight. As to 4-star players the only one we tried to recruit was Abraham #95, Georgetown, who probably wanted to come to IU but his family and advisers prevailed and Georgetown was always the heavy favorite. We got the only 3-star players we recruited, Sheehey #141 and Olidapo #144. In each case above the player went to the school that was heavily favored to get his commitment. There were no surprises, no “how did we blow this” situations! The only Indiana kids in the top 150 besides Thomas were Johnson #51, an early Purdue commitment, and Ferguson #46, FL International, and Martin #86, Xavier, whom we did not recruit, and I did not want at IU. Negedu we turned down for identical reasons that led TN to turn him down as a player. No surprise there. There were only 27 5-star players this year and we were seriously considered by 3 coming off a 6-25 season! That's pretty good for Coach Crean and staff. For 2011 things are even better. We have the commitment of 4-star Etherington #86, form IN and we are strong with 4-star Zeller #35 and J Davis #40, also both from IN. In fact we are sort of strong with 5-star Cook #20 MD, and Chandler #10 form IN. Since we can only offer 2-3 scholarships right now for 2011, that is very strong. Hold the tears!
Outoftheloop

Now that walk-ons can eat at the training table with all the other players, I bet the total $ difference is less than $1000/semester and Offutt, as a walk-on, can get a summer job that actually pays a salary without NCAA investigation. Plus when you include the access to academic advisers, strength and conditioning trainers, top rated business and professional schools, 50 miles from home, the “free ride” doesn't look so good after all.
JerryCT

You are the Doogie Plan “Daddy”.

For the record I chose to “compare” the “as is” TP to the “as is” Hammons/Jurkin thinking that is the only legit “comparison” and based it on a video that is an incomplete report.

If your question however is whether H/J can be better and earlier than TP by the time they get here my answer is yes, of course. But the criteria is still the same :

1. set effective ball screens that players can use 90% of the time
2. effective hedge on ball screens until player exhausts the dribble , and get back on your man w no damage
3. block out so guards get rebounds to kick off the break
4. block out so you get rebounds to extend possessions
5. help D in the lane
6. know where we are in the clock so you can start the last shot sequence
7. prevent opponent deep post position 90% of time
8. develop offensive moves incl FT shooting

2.
Andrew

Remove this post immediately! It makes too much sense, has a clearly thought-out premise, and doesn't include any the-sky-is-falling-IU-will-never-ever-ever-ever-ever-be-good-again platitudes. Additionally, there are no ultimatums (we HAVE HAVE HAVE to get Zeller and JDavis!!!), or my new favorite, talk of Crean's “seat getting warm” after next year, 3 years into a 10-year contract. Outoftheloop, I regret to inform you that there is absolutely no room on this or any other IU message board for this kind of long-term, rational, contextual, level-headed thinking. Please never post here again. Thank you.
IUfanPurduePhD

With what little I've seen on Hammons and Jurkin, I would still start them over TP (is my leeway of stating I'd start them over TP mid-season too much?). I guess if you mean today as in *right now* and not the 2010 season, then I guess TP wins, but if we're talking about the '10 season, it would be either of those kids.

1. Hammons is from IN and having played high school bball myself, I don't think many kids play bball in this state without learning that. And, like I said, I think Jurkin could “get wide” and be very effective here.
2. See 1 for Hammons; as far as Jurkin, his long wingspan would be an effective hedge.
3. not enough data for analysis
4. See 1 for Hammons; at 7'1″ you still need to block out, but man, you've still got an advantage even if you don't.
5. Both those kids are a bigger threat to block shots than TP. (What's TP's vertical anyway, 4 inches? Seriously, it's kind of sad.)
6. see 3
7. Hammons is roughly the same build as TP, but 2 inches taller, so I'm confident he wouldn't get backed down easily. Jurkin is pretty skinny, but the dude wouldn't be guarding anyone as tall as he is–with the exception of Ralph Sampson III–so even if he got backed down, his height/wingspan would be a serious deterrent. And while nobody went through TP, it seems to me that anytime somebody faced him up, they got around him (and that's when he fouled them)
8. see 3.
9. not be an idiot with fouls, constantly in foul trouble

2. I realize this is all hypothetical and ridiculous, but it's fun.
MillaRed

Outoftheloop and Andrew are exactly right. I am a whining idiot. The 2010 class is awesome! You guys come over tonight and lets crack that bottle of champagne!

A 10-20 record next year? Who friggin cares? In 2011 we are getting a committment from Jesus, and in 2012 the Dear Lord God himself will settle all of our point guard whoas. Who better than the Almighty to run our team?

I had a friend that had a coworker suffering from depression. He got treatment, and was given medication. A few weeks later he was asked how he was feeling and he replied in reference to the medication, “It doesn't make me worry anymore.” My friend thought to himself, “No worries? That sounds spretty nice. I may as well go rob a bank, who cares if I get caught? I have no worries!”

In other words, if you do not think the 2010 class is dissappointing, and we don't have at least a few reasons to concern ourselves with 2010-2011 season, and at this point 2012……you need to get off that medication. It's clouding reality for you.

Lastly, we're only dissappointed. No one is bashing Crean or jumping off the bus. Sheesh!
Andrew

MillaRed, you're right. Your nonsensical second paragraph doesn't illustrate my point perfectly at all.
HoosierNshaker

Could NOT agree more… stop living in the past! IU's admin needs to recognize that maybe the medical staff and doctors know a little more about human health than they do.

Sad loss for the Hoosiers

In my opinion… mediocre/bad recruiting class this year if Crean can't real in a BIG man.
LTTelamon

Well analyzed and argued. Nice.
LTTelamon

We do, it's true.
LTTelamon

Thank you for this, because it's exactly what I was thinking. Thank you, Indiana, for putting this young man's welfare first. I hope Emmanuel is safe and has no further complications, but I think this was the best decision for his future.
LTTelamon

The risk is not worth the reward. Perhaps ethically he should be the one to decide that, but it's not only on him that the consequences would fall… IU's motivations would have been instantly scrutinized. The administration has a duty both to protect itself and to protect the athlete. I think they fulfilled that duty here.
LTTelamon

They're not saying he can't play anywhere. They're saying he can't play here. Why do they not have the right to think he risks another incident of cardiac arrest and possible death if he plays again? They decide to not let him play because they're worried about the university and about the kid, and you find that offensive? Sorry, but his life is more important than the program, and the university is also more important than the program, and the interests of both run against the interests of the team.
HoosierNshaker

IU is too scared from Sampsongate to take any risk at all.

Can't blame Emman at all for the article, I feel for him and his desire to play the game… We may have been scared by the IU is “desperate” comment, but aren't we?
LTTelamon

I hope they do have the strength to make that decision. I'll be right behind them. Most programs wouldn't dare.
MillaRed

It's called humor dude. Try it sometime.
MillaRed

Indeed. Time for homeade tacos and a Margarita. I'll chill for the rest of the day in your honor plane.
JerryCT

Yes it is fun alright having you around PHD.

Not really arguing w you but I have a little diffferent view on some things you mention. Sorry in advance but I can't be brief here.

The point of laying out evaluation criteria for a center in our offense is to show a) how critically important the role is , b) how many things are part of the role and c) to get beyond the level of just “big” as a criteria for a recruit ( we are better fans than that ).

1. effective screen is not as easy as it looks. TP may be the best in B10. Elston and Capo, who are strong, do not get the same results with their screens for example. Hammans has the width for it no doubt. The screen also has to set with timing when the target player needs it as well … very overlooked. Taber was good at it , Abernathy etc

2. Hedging is about the legs and effort. Any reaching will result in fouling. This is the one thing TP does really well and rarely gets a foul. How many times does he take the guy all the way to the out of bounds line ? Hulls/VJ need to kiss his butt for that. BTW people who think he is slow are wrong. He almost always gets back on his man w no damage done … this takes some speed

3. If you watch TP in isolation as I do you will see that when the ball goes up he is classic. He finds his man first and then nails him where he is before he tries to rebound. And he does this every single time. This is why CTC says our guards must rebound, which they do ….. becasue TP has usually stuck his man 8ft from the hole . Can't tell about the kids but I have seen enough of VO to know that he does not block out yet either.

5. TP has been coached not to block the shot with his hands to avoid fouls. He actually uses his lower body to disrupt the shot. Many times last year easy shots around the rim were missed by his man with TP flat on the floor and arms extended only. This is really good and takes alot of practice not to jump at everything. BTW his D on Hummel showed that an ALL B10 player still has trouble going around him. In the PSU game his guy went around him but CW and our guards were havign trouble all over the place and TP was helping on everythng that moved.

On fouls: I think he is a bit snake bit due to his strength. The other guy acts out a bit and TP gets called. Most of his legit fouls were trying to guard 2 guys, the one Jones/Hulls allowed in the lane and his own.

There is a reason CTC says TP is the best player on the team in practice and I believe him. If the position were easy Bawa would have played more and Capo's improvement would not be as impressive .
JerryCT

It is a wonderfully rich issue isn't it. The medical status, the player's right to choose what's best, the schools desire to win, the legal liability, the fans, the public relations aspect and then pretty soon all of these make it so complicated you just want to walk away ……… which is what I think we did.
MillaRed

I just don't see it LTT. I think it's very possible he never even suffers another setback. Hank Gathers was a long, long time ago. Medicine has come along way since then. The best thing that happened for him physically is that it was diagnosed so it can be closely monitored.

He just may see less minutes to make sure he's not overloading himself.
MillaRed

It's hard to completely disagree with the decision if we were under normal circumstances but this reeks of the “deer in the headlights” mentality IU is employing right now and it's really irritating.

I just hope we don't become a program that is fundamentally overcautious. It will not help us win any quicker.

Like someone mentioned in another post. Let's move on as an organization. Another team is going to land him and I'm already hearing a “Jackpot!” when it happens.
MillaRed

By the way Jerry, legally speaking, this has “pre-nup” written all over it. This kid wants to play bball on a scholarship. The team that lands him will without question cover themselves before he suits up.
IUfanPurduePhD

I wonder how Guy Marc-Michel will perform in one/any of these roles…
FWHoosier

I hope he makes me look good! I am a little shocked that they signed him even before Noreen's visit.
Taskmaster75

No, he meant good lawyers.

/snap
IUfanPurduePhD

I hope he makes me–and the rest of us that didn't want IU to sign him–look bad. I don't often enjoy eating crow, but if it means that IU is performing well, then it'll be worth it! He's now a part of the team and I'll never root against a Hoosier (unless that particular Hoosier gets a bunch of DUIs or sells meth to children or something terrible like that).
Taskmaster75

No matter how far medical treatment has come, there is always a risk, and that's IU's stance on this. There's a risk, and they don't want to be the people that force this guy to compete just for wins and have it be a liability to them.

I mean, I was a big proponent of having Negedu come here, but if it's not safe, it's not safe.
FWHoosier

Yes indeed.
marsh21

A protective decision from IU which I can't blame them for. We are in no position for any bad press. I'm more upset that Crean actually took the time to evaluate the kid. I wonder if there are any hard feelings from Crean and the administration?

Crean should have known better.
aceman07

Yeah. I'd have to agree that it's a bit disappointing not only for IU fans who wanted to see an athlete on the floor but also for the kid who just wants to play.
Diesel

Welcome back to 2010, your back to the future moment lasted all but a few hours.
transplantedhoosier

I understand the point you are trying to make, but Negedu's condition is a little different than allowing someone with terminal cancer or a concussion to play. A patient with terminal cancer is going to pass away regardless of his situation. A player with a concusion should not suffer a fatal incident in the course of play (although it is not unheard of to happen). However, Negedu likely (I'm speculating) has a condition where exertion at a level similar to a college basketball game could cause him to suddenly die. If he avoids situations that exacerbate his heart condition, he may be able to live a relatively normal life. Arrhythmias do not have to be brought on by exertion and can occur spontaneously. However, a rapid heart rate may bring on a fatal arrhythmia. If he has HOCM, he certainly could suffer a fate similar to Gathers. To be honest, our treatments for HOCM are almost no different than they were in 1990. The treatment basically centers around slowing down the heart and avoiding heavy exertion.
LTTelamon

It is absolutely possible he doesn't have another issue. It's true, Gathers was a long time ago… and most of the headlines we see of kids collapsing on the court and dying were the result of undiagnosed maladies. I have to acknowledge that side of it. I still think, though, that IU made the right call for the kid and for the university. It may not have been the right call for the program, necessarily, but three years from now, I feel like we'll be in a position where we won't have to worry about whether we landed Emmanuel Negedu.

As a side note, would we want a player who could only play limited minutes for medical reasons? The first player that came to mind for me was Nick Smith, the former Illini center who had the asthma issues.
LTTelamon

And really cool ones, so I was included.
garydavid711

How dumb is I.U.? They had to be involved for the Doctors check him out. They had to know they were going to reject and not clear Negedu. Why did they get involved in the first place? This confirms to me that that the bunch at I.U. need to get on the same page. Keep the negetive B.S. away from the Hoosiers WOW!
Outoftheloop

Thanks, any comment without 4-letter rebukes are much appreciated!
Outoftheloop

I will gladly drink some good champagne, but I don't need any medication. I will make a bet with you, $10, you take a record of 10-20, I take a record of 20-10, closest to the actual record wins, at 15-15 we tie.

Report: IU administration won’t clear Emmanuel Negedu

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