Facts are stubborn things, but important ...

by Glenn Logan on Mar 2, 2007 5:51 PM EST in Kentucky Wildcats Basketball

I just saw this in a post on Matt Jones' blog {[editor's note, by Truzenzuzex] The post was made by Rob Gidel, not Matt Jones. See update below}:

The Denver Post's John Henderson, a national college basketball beat writer for the paper, wrote a pretty darn scathing article about the UK basketball program, this morning. In the report, Henderson cites numerous sources that indicate an altercation between Tubby Smith and Mitch Barnhart, rumors of racism playing a role in Tubby's possible departure and the reason for UK's fall in the talent pool.

OK, ~~Matt~~ Rob, wait a minute. I linked this article this AM, and I know what it says and doesn't say, and it absolutely doesn't indicate multiple sources for the alleged altercation. Here is what the article actually says:

At the end of last season, Smith clashed with Barnhart, who tried to get Smith to make changes on his staff. Smith refused, and the Wildcats did not improve.

I have at least two comments to make about this. First of all Smith most certainly did make a staff change - his strength and conditioning coach.

Second, the author doesn't source this comment to a single soul (or even a group of souls), as far as I can tell. That's one reason I chose to focus on another part of that article in my post below.

~~Matt~~ Rob has apparently had a conversation with Henderson and says he will speak to him on his radio show. Perhaps during that conversation, Mr. Henderson divulged his "numerous sources" who indicated an "altercation". It certainly isn't present in Henderson's article.

Update [2007-3-3 10:33:11 by Truzenzuzex]: I somehow failed to notice the author of the post I mention was not Matt Jones, but Rob Gidel. I have corrected it above. Apologies to Matt for the error.

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Right on

Henderson cites "one prominent alumnus" who doesn't discount race in the situation; he certainly doesn't put it out there as the primary motivator. Though perhaps Jones will want to clarify that he was attributing "multiple sources" to the dispute with Barnhart, which I'm totally willing to believe at this point.

by Logan5 on Mar 2, 2007 7:26 PM EST reply actions

A commenter ...

on another board wondered if the "prominent alumnus" might be Rex Chapman. Chapman has made similar comments in the past, IIRC.

I didn't hear Matt's show, so I don't know if Henderson disclosed his "multiple sources" or, even if he had "multiple sources" for the alleged confrontation between Smith and Barnhart.

by Glenn Logan on Mar 3, 2007 10:20 AM EST up reply actions