This Good Deed By Washington's Mike Hopkins Shows Why The NCAA Sucks

Listen, I don’t have anything against Mike Hopkins here. I think it’s awesome that he’s giving fans $15,000 of Starbucks gift cards. That’s one way to keep fan engagement up for a team and program that is on the rise and should be a good program year in and year out, especially with all the homegrown talent in Seattle. This is about something else.

This is about how the NCAA sucks and how dumb the whole amateurism set up is. Yes, coaching is important, no one is going to argue that. But, shouldn’t the players be rewarded here? Shouldn’t guys like Jaylen Nowell, Noah Dickerson, David Crisp and Matisse Thybulle be rewarded for buying into the 2-3 zone, making up for losing Markelle Fultz and, you know, winning the games they are playing?

Think about this. Mike Hopkins gets a $15,000 bonus. He can’t give one give card to his players or who it’s a violation. A fucking gift card to Starbucks is a violation. That’s a goddamn joke and everything that’s wrong with the NCAA. Why can’t we reward players for success on the court? It’s simple. Set up a fund for this. Yes, let Hopkins get his bonus, but make it $15,000 for the players too. Or at least let them get a dumbass gift card.

If you disagree with this, let me know why besides ‘they get paid in a scholarship.’ I’m willing to listen to why people think college athletes, especially basketball and football players don’t deserve to get money. We’re essentially talking about a $1,000 per player for this.