That year brought the death of Len Bias. The University of Maryland star died of an apparent cocaine overdose barely two days after being drafted by the Boston Celtics. Bias' involvement with drugs took the Celtics by surprise, to the extent that many people blame the incident for the team's subsequent 20-year schneid.
In the aftermath, plainly, every general manager in the league understood that a similar scandal would mean his job. On the other hand, it's hard to imagine an NBA GM losing his job for drafting a kid whose college program has been reduced to a shambles by NCAA sanctions.
That underscores the unsavory pact that academia has struck with the devil of big-time sports. Let's be fair to USC: The Mayo case is only one among dozens that compromise the integrity of American universities.
"The NCAA system is extremely broken," Stanley says. "If the NCAA wants true amateurism, then don't take money from TV. If it's for-profit, then let the players participate. Either way, the NCAA would be on higher moral ground."
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Michael Hiltzik's column appears Mondays and Thursdays. Reach him at michael.hiltzik@latimes.com , read previous columns at www.latimes.com/hiltzik "> www.latimes.com/hiltzik , and follow @latimeshiltzik on Twitter.
