The University of Louisville announced Wednesday that suspended freshman Brian Bowen will not play for the Cardinals basketball team after his recruitment became the subject of a federal investigation into corruption within the sport in recent months.
Bowen is allowed to keep his scholarship as long as he decides to stay at Louisville, but the 6ft7 forward was among the top recruits in the country, so it’s likely he will either try to transfer or declare for the 2018 NBA Draft.
Federal documents allege that Adidas funneled $100,000 to the family an unnamed player, who was later revealed to be Bowen. The ensuing scandal ultimately led to the dismissal of Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino, who allegedly had knowledge and directed payments to potential recruits, according to an indictment that was unsealed on November 8.
Pitino has not been charged with any crime and has maintained his innocence.
Bowen’s lawyer previously told ESPN that his client had been cleared of any wrongdoing in the investigation. He was never charged with a crime.
Brian Bowen drives along the baseline during the 2017 McDonald’s All-American Game
Federal documents allege that Adidas funneled $100,000 to the family an unnamed player, who was later revealed to be Bowen. The ensuing scandal ultimately led to the dismissal of Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino (above), who allegedly had knowledge and directed payments to potential recruits, according to an indictment that was unsealed on November 8
‘Brian has been a responsible young man for the institution since he enrolled,’ Louisville interim athletic director Vince Tyra said in the school’s statement. ‘He has endeared himself to his teammates and the men’s basketball staff with a positive attitude during a very difficult period.’
Louisville announced last week that the school had dismissed associate head coach Kenny Johnson, who was already on paid administrative leave.
According to federal prosecutors, Adidas representatives Jim Gatto and Merl Code colluded with Christian Dawkins, a 25-year-old former sports agency rep, financial advisor Munish Sood and Brad Augustine, who ran an AAU program that was sponsored by Adidas. The hope, according to the complaint, was that the five-star recruit would attend Louisville, hire Sood, and ultimately agree to an endorsement deal with Adidas when he turned professional.
And since the alleged payments were illegal, they were supposedly laundered using fake purchase orders, invoices and related documents to make them appear legitimate.
Bowen will be allowed to keep his scholarship if he stays at Louisville, but that’s unlikely
Bowen originally played at Arthur Hill High School in Saginaw, Michigan, but ultimately transferred La Lumiere School in La Porte, Indiana, where he averaged 22 points a game as a senior. He went on to play in the McDonald’s All-American and the Jordan Brand Classic, where he scored 26 points.
After reportedly considering a number of other colleges besides Louisville, Bowen shocked college basketball fans by declaring his intention to play for the Cardinals in June.
‘We got lucky on this one,’ Pitino told Terry Meiners of News Radio 840 soon after. ‘I had an AAU director call me and ask me if I’d be interested in a player [Bowen]. I saw him against another great player from Indiana. I said “Yeah, I’d be really interested.” They had to come in unofficially, pay for their hotel, pay for their meals. We spent zero dollars recruiting a five-star athlete who I loved when I saw him play. In my 40 years of coaching this is the luckiest I’ve been.’
Bowen was among the top recruits in the country before deciding to attend Louisville
A two-time national champion and former NBA coach, Pitino was initially placed on unpaid administrative after he was implicated in the alleged scheme. He was officially fired on October 16.
Gatto and his fellow defendants were indicted and accused of facilitating the bribe in order to persuade Bowen to attend Louisville.
Louisville’s Athletic Association officially fired Pitino ‘with just cause’ in October – nearly three weeks after the school acknowledged that its men’s basketball program was being investigated as part of the federal corruption probe.
In an affidavit presented by his attorney, Pitino claimed he ‘had no part – active, passive or through willful ignorance’ in the alleged bribery scheme.
‘I had no reason to know about the conspiracy described in the complaint, and no reason to know about the complicity of any UL assistant coach or staff member in any bribery conspiracy,’ the affidavit read.
‘I never have had any part – active, passive, or through willful ignorance – in any effort, successful or unsuccessful, completed or abandoned, to pay any recruit, or any family member of a recruit, or anyone else on a recruit’s behalf, as an inducement to attend UL.’
The NCAA typically requires Division I transfers to sit out a season before being allowed to play at a new school, so the odds are in favor of Bowen declaring for the NBA Draft.
Carmelo Anthony (center) throws an arm around Bowen (center left, holding a trophy) after his 26-point performance in the Jordan Brand Classic last April in Brooklyn