After getting bought out by Indiana University of Feb. 22, former Hoosiers coach Kelvin Sampson was out of work for less than two weeks. This time, instead of being in the college game, however, Sampson has resurfaced in the NBA on the sidelines of the San Antonio Spurs. TheIndyChannel.com was the first to report that Sampson has been hired on as an advisor for the defending NBA Champs.
It took less than two weeks for Kelvin Sampson to find another job, this time with the San Antonio Spurs.
According to
the site, “Sampson was in San Antonio's arena during the Spurs' 108-97 win over the visiting Indiana Pacers. He is expected to advise the defending NBA champions for the next few weeks.”
Apparently, Sampson had formed a strong relationship with the Spurs’ head coach, Gregg Popvich, when the two worked together as assistant coaches on the 2002 USA Men’s World Championship team.
FanHouse’s Will Brinson makes a good point when he asks, “And what, exactly, is he advising them on? Surely they would not have hired him as a ‘Special Communications Adviser’ or even ‘Text Message Composition Adviser.’
When the
Indianapolis Star asked Sampson about his future, he said: "I'm not even thinking about it. Gregg Popovich is a good friend and invited me down and that's it."
But apparently, he is thinking about it. And perhaps he’s found a place that’s right for him.
Sampson has shown throughout his college coaching career that he is unable, or simply unwilling to follow the NCAA’s rules. Maybe Sampson realized that he’d be better off in a place without such rules. Now, because he’ll be dealing with professional athletes instead of amateur ones, Sampson can call and text whoever he wants, whenever he wants.
With Sampson, the Spurs pick up an unquestionably good, but tainted, basketball mind. Sampson showed throughout his coaching career that he was knowledgeable about the game. But they also get the baggage that comes with him.
For Sampson, it was simply déjà vu. He took a program, gave it a glimpse of glory, then got caught cheating. He worked hard to win over fans at IU just like he did and Oklahoma, than saw it taken all away. Yet somehow, again, Sampson came out on top.
Sure, he may be banned from coaching in the NCAA again, but who cares when you’re coaching in the NBA? The man got paid $750,000 to let the university he lied to fire him, and now, just like at Oklahoma he’s scot-free while the school he cheated will likely be punished for his wrongdoings.
Heard the saying “once a cheater, always a cheater” before? Let’s just hope that San Antonio’s not a place a cheater can burn to the ground.
For more on IU’s buyout of Sampson:
http://iuplanet.com/forum/iuplanet-h...00-buyout.html
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