Kentucky Wildcats Basketball: Stacey Poole Sr.'s Decision?

Jorts didn’t have the players at his position the caliber of Lamb, Miller, Goodwin and potentially Harris and/or Muhammad in the lineup to compete with him last year.

While I believe that Sr.‘s actions are ostensibly deplorable, I think I can see where he’s coming from. Jr. is definitely a talent – he was a 4* and ranked #33 nationally by Rivals in the Class of 2010 – and he would probably be the premier player on a lesser squad. More minutes = more exposure and a higher likelihood of being drafted. Jr. was also recruited by Clemson and South Carolina. There is no doubt that he would be a team leader at one of those schools. This presents my problem with Sr. – he’s more concerned with Jr.’s pro prospects (which are questionable, at best) than allowing his son to make his own decisions.

But you have to let the “young man” (oh lord, I’m 27 now) make his own decisions.

And we saw how that ended.

Maybe it’s because I’m a father (though certainly not of a possibly-professional-level-talented player), but I don’t necessarily think Senior’s actions are completely out of line. I certainly could have benefited from advice from my parents at some points in my life at that age. It’s also interesting the drastically different approaches the two articles I read (CJ and LHL) took in characterizing Senior’s actions. In the CJ article the impression is that the discontent is about playing time (though notably, that’s not a quoted statement). There are quotes about “stepping on the floor,” so that conclusion isn’t necessarily specious. In the LHL article, however, Senior is specifically quoted saying it’s NOT about playing time, but rather that he doesn’t think his son looks like he’s enjoying himself anymore. Perhaps my reaction to the situation is based on the fact that I read the LHL article before I read the CJ’s version.

All that being said, I don’t disagree with everyone’s points that handling this through the public forum of the media seems a horrible way to approach it. But consider this scenario—perhaps Senior wants to make sure that if the decision to transfer is made, the public places the blame on him rather than on Junior. (And maybe there’s even some dissatisfaction on Junior’s part; he’s certainly admitted it in the past.) If that is the case, Senior’s actions seem a lot less insane and maybe even a little noble. Though I personally don’t think anyone would “blame” Junior if he decided to transfer to a program where he had the opportunity to make a more visible impact.

I believe Junior still has the opportunity to do great things at and for Kentucky. But if he departs for other locales, I wish him success there as well.

You say tomato, I say tomatoe. Would any of us have done it? Maybe not, but these kids live in a different world, and sometimes they are not a perfect fit.

“Tomatoe?” Dan Quayle would be proud. :-)

Just kidding, spelling errors are forgiven in the comments, I just couldn’t resist.

I say it is unacceptable for a father to do this to his son. I’m hopeful it was just a mistake and not a deliberate attempt to force Stacey Jr. to transfer by public embarrassment, but I am not sanguine.

I agree with the suggestion that the son should solicit and strongly consider his father’s council. I strongly reject the idea that the father has the right to assert control over his son’s life after he has reached the age of majority, and that is what has happened here.

Stacey Jr. may allow his father to make decisions for him, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.

I think he has a chance for some PT this year, more next year.

I hope Stacey Sr. apologizes to his son for embarrassing him in the media like that.

the presumption of control (“I’m going to make the call”) and the public forum. Even if we assume Jr. is giving his dad reason for concern, those problems remain. I feel the same way about rushing to judgment on the message boards, but here, regardless of what happens, Sr.‘s conduct invites fair criticism. I believe it’s an invitation Glenn reasonably accepted.

the fishbowl just works that way……my concerns are the same as yours seven…..

The sharks are looking for chum in the water….and unfortunately Stacey Sr. provided it. If that was intent, then he needs a dressing down, if it was not, then we have another classic case of the press making a mountain out of a molehill…….

I’m sorry you are disappointed, but I make no apology for calling them as I see them.

Even you admit that Poole Sr. shouldn’t have said what he said in the press. I just said it stronger, and in my opinion, justifiably so. The circumstances that led to that exposition are utterly irrelevant in my view. Nothing could possibly justify those comments whatever, at least the way they were made to the Courier-Journal.

I am criticizing what I see, which is, to me, unambiguously wrong. It’s not a condemnation, but what he did was clearly mishandled in my view by any measure that can be objectively applied.

By the by, I think being a control freak as a parent is dubious, even when you do have the legal and moral authority to do so, which Mr. Poole Sr. transparently does not. His son is an adult.

So I guess we’ll agree to disagree.