As if on cue, the room erupted into a boisterous jungle of noise and anger, and the piercing sound of wood slamming against wood echoed through the chamber.
This is typically how Hollywood depicts the world of law and order — individuals clad in pleated black robes attempting to restore order among a chaotic sea of spectators witnessing the court case of the century.
However, films make every part of life seem more interesting than reality, and real court hearings are as exciting as your high school algebra class.
I’d say most people understand the difference between the courtrooms on the silver screen and the ones in real life given the morose reaction to jury duty notifications, but there’s something about cases of higher profile that pique our interest.
According to a report from Yahoo! Sports, LSU men’s basketball coach Will Wade will be subpoenaed to appear in court on April 22 regarding the high-profile NCAA basketball corruption case.
This report created quite a buzz on the internet and social media, and I’m sure many began to fantasize about the theatrics and intrigue that people associate with a court hearing of this magnitude.
Some, including myself, believe this will unfold differently than people are expecting.
For the sake of this column, let’s assume that the original reports are accurate and Wade will be subpoenaed. This may be a stretch for some considering that this wouldn’t be the first time Yahoo! Sports released a misleading article about Wade, but we’ll play the game anyway.
I’m also assuming that if Wade is subpoenaed, he will be asked to testify on his dealings with former low-level agent runner Christian Dawkins, who was found guilty of multiple felony fraud charges last October. There was a recording via federal wiretap admitted into court in late 2018 of Dawkins and Wade having a conversation about four-star recruit Balsa Koprivicia that raised some eyebrows despite the extreme opacity of the recording.
Wade has already previously commented that he has had no dealings with Dawkins, and that shouldn’t be difficult for him to prove in this case considering that Koprivicia has since signed to play basketball at Florida State, not LSU.
Like many following this particular installment of the NCAA corruption case, the Yahoo! Sports article points to Wade’s recent success on the recruiting trail as evidence that there may be more to his tactics than meets the eye.
While LSU finished with the No. 4 recruiting class in the country in 2018, the Tigers didn’t necessarily have a history of awful recruiting before Wade’s arrival. From 2010 to 2016, LSU has only suffered from two unranked recruiting classes, but also recorded two top-10 classes in that time.
While none of those classes have gotten as high as No. 4, the point is that the Tigers have not been strangers to solid recruiting classes. I also realize that this is not proof that Wade or past LSU coaches are without guilt when it comes to recruiting improprieties. I’m simply stating that Wade’s highly-ranked recruiting class should not be the lone cause for suspicion.
I have maintained, and still maintain, that Wade’s appeal to recruits is his energy on the court and his success as a coach. It’s obvious why men would want to play for him. To speculate any more than that is to make bold assumptions given the information available to the public.
While Wade’s wiretapped conversation with a now-convicted Dawkins appears to have raised enough red flags for a subpoena, there are too many blanks in the context and the recording.
I believe that Wade will be subpoenaed to provide the court with that context. However, I am doubtful that Wade’s testimony will be included in any blockbuster movies because to believe that, is to assume what his conversation with Dawkins was about or to assume that investigators have more recordings.
We all know what they say about assuming, so I would suggest that fans should suspend their judgment until the public has more information.