On a day where North Carolina somehow avoided punishment for fake classes, North Carolina State received bad news from the NCAA because a basketball player actually went to his.
Braxton Beverly, a 2017 signee, will not be eligible to play for the Wolfpack this season, according to Joe Giglio of the News & Observer.
NC State knew this was a possibility when Beverly arrived at the school. He enrolled at Ohio State earlier this year but left campus when the school surprisingly fired Thad Matta in June.
But this situation is such a perfect representation of what’s wrong with the NCAA.
For context, June is almost always a quiet time in college basketball, so Beverly would’ve had zero indications Ohio State would fire Matta. The longtime coach had survived an entire month after the NCAA tournament ended. Most coaching changes happen in March.
Beverly enrolled at Ohio State, started taking classes and then — bam! — the university decides to relieve Matta of duties. The shooting guard then elected to follow A.W. Hamilton, his coach at Hargrave Military Academy, who is now an assistant at NC State.
And before there are any suggestions about improper recruiting there, NC State’s new coach Kevin Keatts was previously the head coach at Hargrave. There’s nothing sketchy about that connection.
This, quite simply, is unfair for Beverly. How come, after being on campus for a minimal amount of time, can Beverly not transfer without restriction? He should be able to play immediately for the Wolfpack.
After the NCAA decided against sanctions for UNC despite athletes being enrolled in “fake classes,” the irony of the NCAA ruling Beverly ineligible because he went to class is not lost on us.