Kansas to sit Silvio de Sousa | Zagsblog
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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Thursday / March 28.
  • Kansas to sit Silvio de Sousa

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    By ADAM ZAGORIA

    Kansas announced Thursday that sophomore forward Silvio de Sousa will not participate in the Jayhawks’ exhibition game Thursday night vs. Emporia State and will be withheld from competition pending the outcome of an eligibility review.

    “Information was presented during the current trial in New York – some of which we knew, some of which we didn’t,” said KU basketball coach Bill Self. “We have decided to withhold Silvio from competition until we can evaluate and understand the new information. We have already discussed trial developments with the NCAA and will continue to work with NCAA staff moving forward.”

    At the Adidas trial here in New York, Thomas “T.J.” Gassnola testfied that he paid de Sousa’s trainer, Fenny Falmagne, $2,500 for online courses, but did not pay him the $20,000 that Falmagne requested to help get him out from under a $60,000 loan given to him by a Maryland booster.

    De Sousa committed to Kansas on Aug. 30, 2017. Self had a five-minute phone conversation with Adidas executive Jim Gatto a day later, during a time the FBI was wiretapping Gatto, but the conversation was not recorded because of a “technical issue.”

    “Kansas’ head coach knew of and asked for a payment to be made to Silvio De Sousa’s handler,” Gatto’s attorney, Michael Schacter, said during the trial. “Coach Self and Coach (Kurtis) Townsend knew of and asked for this payment to be made to Fenny.

    He added: “Coach Self, in T.J. Gassnola’s mind, speaks for Kansas, and Kansas wants Adidas to help Kansas recruit players. Nike does the same thing for their schools, and if Adidas doesn’t do the same, they’re going to lose their schools to Nike.”

    De Sousa averaged 4 points and 3.7 rebounds in 20 games as a freshman last season. He joined KU in December 2017 after graduating in three-and-a-half years from IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla.

    Photo by Nick Krug

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    Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle. A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.

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