A countersuit filed by former Kansas State 1-and-done phenom Michael Beasley against an NBA agent suggests recruiting violations by Kansas State, according to an investigation by The Washington Post. The Post‘s story centers more around the DC Assault AAU program, but the Kansas City Star does a better job explaining the KSU ties. Beasley’s civil suit alleges that an acquaintance of DC Assault president Curtis Malone provided funds to his mother, Fatima Smith, to pay for six months of rent in Manhattan, Kansas, as well as relocation costs. And this same man faces other allegations in the lawsuit– notably, that the agent, Joel Bell, told Beasley’s mother that her rent and car payments would be handled.
Former KSU assistant Dalonte Hill, known for his ties to the DC Assault team, told the Post he did not know of any payments received by Beasley’s mother. Current KSU coach Frank Martin told the Star he also knew nothing about the lawsuit or the Post‘s investigation. Keep in mind that Bob Huggins was the head coach at the time of Beasley’s recruitment, though Martin was still on staff as an assistant. This could mean trouble for Kansas State, but the NCAA must prove two things before it can slam the Wildcats with any penalties. First, did these alleged payments even occur? And second, did any member of the K-State program know anything about them?
If the answer to the first question is a “yes,” then Beasley would have technically been ineligible during his one season at Kansas State. Extending the logic out from previous cases, the Wildcats would probably have to vacate their NCAA Tournament appearance from 2008. If the answer to the second question is also a “yes,” Kansas State could be looking at a whole new world of troubles. Like many of these after-the-fact situations, both the head coach (Huggins) and an assistant at the center of the issue (Hill) are now at different schools, but any punishment stemming from the violations would still affect KSU.
It may take a while to sort out all of the allegations, but much like the Miami scandal, it’s a wide-reaching and complicated investigation. In the end, Kansas State better hope there’s no proof to any of Beasley’s statements in the lawsuit; otherwise, hoping for the survival of Big 12 basketball could be the least of the school’s worries.