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Consider what head coaches make at these universities and then compare 450K to keep their job....and the money would be from a booster anonymously. Of course it happens...
 
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Awsi Dooger said:
No surprise. It runs in the family. Jimmy Vaccaro was the biggest crook in Las Vegas during the decades I was there. He was running the Mirage sportsbook and intentionally putting up bad numbers so a handful of guys could bet into them. As soon as the designated bettors took care of the juicy numbers then the prop would either disappear completely, or be adjusted to a standard number. Then those chosen guys would funnel a chunk of the profit back into Vaccaro's pocket.

None of this was theory or cynicism. I saw it first hand for years and years in the '90s. One of the designated guys won so much on an NFL Sunday he got Caesar's Palace to open up an otherwise closed restaurant late that evening. They went along with it only because they knew he would leave a massive tip. That's how much money we are talking about. There were only 6 of us eating in the huge restaurant. The guy is also named Jimmy but I won't use his last name because he was good guy and doesn't need any negative association.

During that meal Jimmy got so drunk I asked him how much money he had to funnel to Jimmy Vaccaro. I knew this was the perfect time to inquire. He turned to me and said over the past 6 months he had kicked back a half million to Vaccaro.

And this is only one guy among many, and over 6 months in a scheme that went on for nearly a decade.

When Jimmy Vaccaro finally got forced out at the Mirage, the sportsbook manager of the sister casino Treasure Island refused to sign the going away card that all the employees were signing. He said, "Are you kidding? Why should I sign a card for a guy who stole at least $8 million from Steve Wynn?"

I knew that estimate was way too low, based on what the other Jimmy had said to me at Caesar's Palace a few years earlier.

Sonny Vaccaro is Jimmy Vaccaro's brother

And I'm convinced basketball is a more valid target for payoffs than football, given what I heard about the Dwayne Polee/USC/UNLV situation in the early '80s, and the basic fact that so few players are needed to dramatically change fortunes in basketball.
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In basketball, you control one top player, you control the game. In football, even if you control the QB, you still don't have anywhere near the control you have with one player in basketball. QB only plays one way, and can only go so far without being benched.

When it comes to gambling, basketball is ripe for the picking. When it comes to paying for players, you can absolutely buy an NCAA tournament appearance by buying the right one player. For this reason and this reason alone, I have no issue believing that GT would be able to scratch together $450k on a one-time basis to get a sure fire first round draft pick to play for them after they got tired of missing out on the tourney.

The guy also could have been counting the car and the job for his mom in the figure, and maybe he's exaggerating a little. It's also possible the school wasn't GT and could have been UNC, NC St, Duke. Maybe he was only considering playing in a real city, so he got the offer from one of these other schools but had zero interest in going there.

We get too hung up on details around here sometimes. Just because one little detail might not be 100% accurate, doesn't mean the gist of the story is 100% meaningless.
 
MiamiChris said:
Watch the ESPN 30 for 30 Sole Man. In the documentary Somny Vacarro mentioned I think it was someone like Bobby Cremons asked about some kid at a camp (forgot the player) and the individual said do you know Sonny and he said WHO. The individual told him don’t even waste your time going after that kid if you don’t know Sonny and it’s the kids Junior year.

I remember John Wall supposedly got all the money he received passed through his local church.

All I’m saying is everyone that doesn’t believe stories like this are foolish and people who think we lose everyone to bags is foolish. I think it’s more in the middle of both for the truth. EVERYONE does this, except some have a lot more resources.
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I believe it with Cremins. The dude landed some big time NYC recruits in his time. You think all things being equal that an engineering school with a hugely skewed male-female ratio can land those kinds of kids without some major cash? Of course not, lol. I admit the 450k seemed pretty large, and I do think Harrington might have exaggerated the amount - I'm sure some was in cash and some was in other value - but I don't doubt that GT pulled some dirty strings back in the day
 
Calvin said:
Exactly, but dont let the fact that he's out smarting the powers that be an is marketing his own son's, "Big Balla Brands" that trick tried to get sympathy after talking about that man's son, than she tried to play the victim roll, lavar wasnt having it, so now after this, in a p.r. move, all she damyum interviews are Black athlete's like we cant see threw that fake ****, Big Balla Brand" got the industry shook, "neva lost"! I cant get mad at nobody who looking out for his son's, that man enjoying his Life. What ball should've told her is, especially after she tried to hit em with the "are you threatening me" he should've said keep on running your mouth, imma call my wife up here to slap yo ***!
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No I get it what he did, hes smart he got his name out there and made money cant hate him for that. I just hate the BS about his sons being legit that they would dominate the NBA blah blah blah BS.
I get it though he made money and did what he had to do.
 
Dwinstitles said:
No I get it what he did, hes smart he got his name out there and made money cant hate him for that. I just hate the BS about his sons being legit that they would dominate the NBA blah blah blah BS.
I get it though he made money and did what he had to do.
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LoL, i think if they had gone to college they would've had a better chance, but i think i got an idea of why he went that route, but of course the nba was going to ice his other 2 boys out, they dont want other highschoolers trying to follow that path and have colleges getting depleted!
 
Poptimus said:
That's rather presumptive of you. Marbury was on GT in 1995; the Yellow Jackets were a shell of the team he was on by the time they reached out to Harrington in 1998. GT went from 24-12 the one year Marbury played there, to a paltry 9-18 the following year.

Schools that drop $450k bags don't allow that to happen. Period.
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Harrington got drafted in 98. 97-98 Ga tech went 19-14 and 6-10 ACC play which was 6th place compare that to Miami in 14-15 when they were 25-13 and 10-8 ACC play 6th place also. Which Dewan Huell came here the following year and allegedly the kid was being paid. Harrington was National Player of the Year then. What's the difference?
 
Savannahcane said:
Harrington got drafted in 98. 97-98 Ga tech went 19-14 and 6-10 ACC play which was 6th place compare that to Miami in 14-15 when they were 25-13 and 10-8 ACC play 6th place also. Which Dewan Huell came here the following year and allegedly the kid was being paid. Harrington was National Player of the Year then. What's the difference?
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Huell was not paid $450k, not even close. I don't dispute guys get paid, clearly they do. I just disbelieve the amount in question. If a school was looking to drop $450k on a guy and missed, they'd reallocate that money to other guys. And the fact is that GT swung and missed on the #1 recruit back in '98 and settled for just the 56th ranked recruit.

Think about that: we know that Brian Bowen, a top 15ish player in 2017, was given $100k to sign at Louisville. Why was GT then unable or unwilling to sign several such players back in 1998? Clearly they had the funds to do so if you believe they were ready to drop $450k on Harrington. I think Harrington either doesn't remember the amount or is puffing the story. I don't get why people think that's unreasonable, it was 20+ years ago.
 
Poptimus said:
Huell was not paid $450k, not even close. I don't dispute guys get paid, clearly they do. I just disbelieve the amount in question. If a school was looking to drop $450k on a guy and missed, they'd reallocate that money to other guys. And the fact is that GT swung and missed on the #1 recruit back in '98 and settled for just the 56th ranked recruit.

Think about that: we know that Brian Bowen, a top 15ish player in 2017, was given $100k to sign at Louisville. Why was GT then unable or unwilling to sign several such players back in 1998? Clearly they had the funds to do so if you believe they were ready to drop $450k on Harrington. I think Harrington either doesn't remember the amount or is puffing the story. I don't get why people think that's unreasonable, it was 20+ years ago.
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We all know about swinging and missing on top recruits here. Honestly I think it depends on the bagman. If the Bagman thought he was a once in generation type of talent and wanted to deliver a ship to the school I can see. National player of the Year and top 15ish is still a wide gap. The thing everybody not taking into consideration is what he said he though. 50k up front if he committed. For all we know once he signed the LOI that would've been it.
 
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My cousin played for Cremins, played on those GT teams with Price & Salley...from what I could tell those cats weren't gettin' broke off.

Now they may have started breakin' cats off during the Anderson,Best, & Marbury eras, but not in the 80s from what I could tell.

As far as Harrington is concerned, He would've been an idiot to go to any College...because of the 99' CBA, 98' was the last year NBA teams were handing out those fat *** rookie contracts, so I'm sure He had that in mind when He went from prep to pro.
 
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No dude, your missing the point. If you don't play the lotto, winning it is impossible. Athletes are lotto tickets to their institutions. Harrington was a fringe first rounder. Im sure colleges threw alot if money to fringe first round talents. Harrington said no, others said yes, you just didnt hear about because they didnt snitch. Being a second round pick ensures nothing.
 
OriginalGatorHater said:
I don't think you understand the point.

The poster said they paid 450k to compete with the draft. I am saying that 450k is not going to lure anyone away from the draft so it is a dumb point to even make.
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Original, I was thinking here imagine if bag 💼 was legal.

Miami would be SUPER POWER BAG , Star Island, South Beach poon, Bayside, Fisher Island and do much more places down here in South Florida with money beyond most any place other the NY or California no one could out BAG 💼 is with added POOON .

Anyway just thinking out loud
GOCANES
 
OriginalCanesCanesCanes said:
LOL

GT didn’t offer anyone 450k to go there. That’s not even the slightest bit believable. Maybe 4,500 in 1998. Shlt, 45K would have been a stretch.

You guys won’t even understand the school if you think that’s possible.
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Most people don't realize that bags rarely, if ever, have come from the school

Too hard to hide from audits ......and most schools don't have that kind of $$ to throw around anyway

Bags come from and are delivered by the school's boosters.

Ask any bagman
 
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