Kansas awaits NCAA decision on five-star Cheick Diallo’s eligibility
There is a big decision looming around the Kansas basketball program and it could impact whether the Jayhawks have the kind of roster that could compete for a national title this season.
Kansas has already cleared five-star forward Cheick Diallo and allowed him to enroll in classes for the fall semester, but he hasn’t been cleared by the NCAA Eligibility Center. Coach Bill Self told reporters at a local charity golf tournament this week that he believes Diallo will be cleared to play for the Jayhawks this season, but he also acknowledged there is uncertainty about what is holding up the process.
Diallo attended Our Savior New American in Centereach, New York, a school that has come under scrutiny. Alabama and Oklahoma State each had recruits from the school ruled ineligible, but other schools have successfully added players from the school.
“The thing about it is … it’s been mis-reported a lot — that there’s been good news, bad news,” Self told KUSports.com. “There hasn’t been any news because the NCAA hasn’t told us no on Cheick. They haven’t told us yes. But also we haven’t wanted them to tell us anything yet, either, because I think it’s nice to see how things play out with other kids who went to that school so we have a better angle of what we’re trying to address, than just going in there cold saying, ‘Here’s your stuff, make a determination.’’’
KUSports.com reported that Self believes the school will have some answers about Diallo soon and that Self feels ‘confident’ that he will ultimately be cleared to play for the Jayhawks. Of course, no one wants Diallo to be cleared more than Self, who has seen a potential star in the 6-foot-9 forward in early workouts. Diallo won the MVP award at the McDonald’s All-American game in April.
Rivals.com rated Diallo the No. 5 overall recruit in the nation in the 2015 class.
“We’ve never had a big guy that could run like this,” Self told KUSports.com. “It’d be nice to have a mindset to play at a much faster tempo than we have in the past … Cheick forces a pace that nobody has ever forced here. He can create pace better than any point guard we’ve ever had here. Just because the dude from rim to rim is as good as I’ve seen. I didn’t say the best offensive player, but running rim to rim I think he’ll drag everybody along with him. I also think it forces us to play at a faster pace when your big guys run like that.”
– – – – – – –
[Kyle Ringo is the assistant editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo
