Indictment: UM defrauded by schemers
Revision in federal charges a mea culpa for Hurricanes.
Miami basketball coaches might have an extra bounce in their steps this weekend.
Tuesday’s revised federal charges against a former Adidas executive and his associates stripped language that implied Jim Larranaga and his staff approved of their scheme to pay a top-flight recruit to sign with the Hurricanes. The new indictment makes a different point: that Miami was defrauded by the men. From a UM perspective, it amounted to a mea culpa.
It will no doubt help answer any questions recruits have about potential NCAA trouble for the Hurricanes, who are trying to fill out their roster for 2018-19 and beyond.
Later this week, UM will be hosting two transfer guards. High-scoring combo guard Zach Johnson, who is leaving Florida Gulf Coast, will make an unofficial visit Friday, a program source confirmed. Wyoming transfer Anthony Mack will see the campus this weekend. The Hurricanes also are a finalist for Oklahoma transfer Kameron McGusty, who would sit out this season.
Johnson, who would be immediately eligible, is a Miami native who made the All-Atlantic Sun team last year (16.1 points per game, including 37 in the A-Sun title game, and 3.0 assists). Like his former Miami Norland High teammate Dewan Huell, he declared for the NBA draft but did not hire an agent.
Last season, he set career highs in 3-point shooting (39.2), free-throw shooting (78.1), steals (2.0), rebounds (3.3) and minutes (32.4). He shot 46.9 percent from the field, taking 12.4 shots per game.
Johnson (6-foot-2, 195 pounds) would be a valuable addition to a backcourt that returns three scholarship players (Chris Lykes, D J Vasiljevic and now-eligible transfer Miles Wilson). He could also reunite with Huell, should Huell decide to return to school. According to Jon Rothstein, Johnson will also visit Creighton, Louisville and Arizona.
Mack (6-6, 218), a threestar recruit in the 2017 class, was a high school teammate of UM freshman forward Deng Gak at Blair Academy in Blairstown, N.J. A Las Vegas native, he redshirted last year.
McGusty (6-5, 191), who visited Miami last weekend, has narrowed his choices to UM, Virginia Tech and Houston. The Katy, Texas, native averaged 8.0 points in 18.5 minutes last year as a sophomore. He would sit out this season and have two years of eligibility remaining.
If Miami landed all three players and Huell returned, next year’s active backcourt would have ballhandling guards Lykes (sophomore) and Johnson (senior), shooter-scorer Wilson (sophomore) and shooter Vasiljevic (junior). The forward unit would include big wing Anthony Lawrence Jr. (senior), stretch fours Sam Waardenburg (sophomore) and Gak (redshirt freshman), and big men Huell ( junior), Rodney Miller ( junior) and Ebuka Izundu (senior).
Including McGusty (an eligible junior in 2019-20) and Mack (sophomore that season), Miami would have 12 scholarship players, and could add an eligible transfer or prep player to round out the roster.