It must have been an intoxicating rush, on that Friday in November, for Memphis administrators to wave middle fingers in the general direction of Indianapolis, to tell the NCAA, “Hell no, we won’t bench James Wiseman.” It must have been a giddy feeling when the fans backed the posturing and ignored the consequences of willingly using a likely ineligible player. Rebellion can be a hell of a drug.
Now here comes the sober aftermath.
The investigation into Memphis’ Wiseman Rebellion is happening, and it’s happening in a completely different venue. The Tigers are the first crash-test dummy for the NCAA’s newly created “off ramp” into the realm of independent parties as investigators, advocates, judge and jury.