Tucker denies claims at UW
MADISON – Two days after the Journal Sentinel detailed the myriad reasons he was not retained as a men’s basketball assistant at Wisconsin, Alando Tucker used social media to deny he had done anything wrong.
“Since the end of my tenure with the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s athletic department, I have been focused on a peaceful and amicable transition for my family and those associates, student athletes and peers I left behind,” Tucker, who served as an interim assistant for the past two
seasons, wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. “For months, however, I have been the target of slanderous articles, conversations, tweets and messages concerning my exit from UW-Madison, most of which have been based upon falsehoods, mistaken assumptions and misguided opinions.
“At this moment, I can no longer remain silent. I wish to state categorically that I have not done any of the things that I have been accused of. Those who know me and have worked with me know that is not my character.”
The Journal Sentinel reported on April 27 Tucker was not expected to return to the team in 2021-22. Tucker did not return a message seeking comment that day and subsequently has not responded to several interview requests.
More than a half-dozen sources close to the UW athletic department and/or Tucker told the Journal Sentinel he was not retained because he engaged in a coordinated plan to undermine head coach Greg Gard and get himself installed as coach.
Those sources spoke under the condition that they would not be named by the Journal Sentinel.
“It was a plot,” a source familiar with both the program and Tucker said.
According to several sources familiar with the program, Tucker went so far as to tell then-athletic director Barry Alvarez he was prepared to replace Gard and lead the team when the Badgers were struggling in late January during the 2019-20 season.
“I chose to return to Wisconsin to be a part of a greater mission to influence, inspire and empower the next generation of student-athletes, while also creating opportunities to further the Wisconsin Idea,” wrote Tucker, who was hired as director of student-athlete engagement in February 2018. “During my time as the Director of Engagement, I not only upheld my duties, but also assisted with recruitment efforts across a number of sports. I took great pride in being a servant to the Madison community and ethos.”
Tucker was hired as in interim assistant in July 2019. He replaced his friend and mentor, Howard Moore, who lost his wife and daughter in an auto crash on Memorial Day Weekend and subsequently suffered a heart attack.
“I did not return to Madison to coach basketball — coaching was never part of my outlook, plan or goals,” Tucker wrote. “However, when I was approached and asked to step in and take over Coach Moore's position on an interim basis, I accepted the offer.
“I made that decision for no other reason than to honor Coach Moore, someone who was and continues to be extremely impactful and close to me and my family. Central to Coach Moore's leadership philosophy is Inspiration through Diversity and Unity. I have only worked to advance that goal.”
Tucker was on the nine-member committee tasked with selecting a replacement for Alvarez. Sources told the Journal Sentinel that Tucker lobbied for UW to hire Northern Illinois athletic director Sean Frazier.
Frazier was hired at UW in 2007, served as Alvarez's deputy athletic director from 2011-13 and knows Tucker.
Sources told the Journal Sentinel that Tucker hoped that if Frazier was hired as UW's athletic director, he would remove Gard.
“He truly believed Frazier would fire Greg and hire him,” one source said.
UW announced June 2 that deputy athletic director Chris McIntosh would replace Alvarez.
“Throughout my life, both personally and professionally, I give the very best of myself,” Tucker wrote. “To my wife as a husband, to my sons as a father, to my school and teammates as a student athlete, to my franchise and teammates as a professional athlete and to the city of Madison and its student body as a member of its athletic office.
“I have consistently proven myself to be loyal, trustworthy and a role model to those around me. My reputation precedes me and remains unshakable amidst the accusations, media spins, speculations, bullying, misrepresentations and fabrications I now face.
“For that reason, I speak now only to confirm to those who support and respect me that I am a man of honor and integrity and would never jeopardize either for a dollar or a title. Although this has been a disheartening experience, my family and I are very happy to start our next chapter and don't despise our time at UW-Madison, as we have forged lifelong bonds and made many great memories.
“I can only hope that those that remain at UW-Madison continue to support the student-athletes and the athletic program in developing champions and leaders.”