Basketball: Being Amare Stoudemire

Have you ever seen the movie "Being John Malkovich?"

It is the type of film that lulls you into thinking it could not get any more bizarre, and then proceeds to do just that. It is sort of Alfred Hitchcock meets Andy Warhol. Yeah, very bizarre.

Unfortunately, a sequel of sorts is being played out right before our eyes in the basketball drama that swirls around 6'9" prep sensation Amare Stoudemire of Cypress Creek HS in Orlando.

A few weeks ago on the HBO series "Real Sports" with Bryant Gumbel, another bizarre episode was unveiled, which quite possibly could spell the end of Stoudemire's amateur status and jeopardize both his high school and collegiate eligibility.

During the program, Stoudemire's mother, Carrie, admitted to taking money and gifts from Nike executive George Raveling. This latest revelation comes on the heels of equally disturbing events that have occurred in this young man's life over a very short period of time.

A brief recap:

* Carrie Stoudemire has been in and out of prison for several years, including a six-month jail term last winter, leaving her son in the care of many different individuals.

* Stoudemire has attended six different high schools thus far, and is considering a transfer from Cypress Creek before the start of this school year.

* After committing to participate in the Adidas ABCD camp, Stoudemire made a surprise switch to the rival Nike All-America Camp. Guess who's the executive director of the Nike camp? None other than George Raveling.

* In an unprecedented move, Stoudemire received the pro-bono services of PR specialist, Marc Little. During the Nike camp, Little passed out media kits on Stoudemire's behalf.

* Recently, it was reported that Stoudemire's pastor, Reverend Bill Williams, who had befriended the player and introduced him to Little, is a con man who will begin a 41-month federal prison term this month for bribery; his fourth prison term in the past decade.

It seems that Amare Stoudemire is destined to be a poster child for all that is iniquitous in major college athletics. Here is a highly talented individual with a bright future, playing a game that he loves, yet mired in controversy at the age of seventeen. And who is to blame?

Well, for once we simply cannot point the finger at the NCAA. And, it is certainly not the fault of the player. In this case, the blame falls squarely on the adults in Stoudemire's life who were supposed to be acting in his best interest. Sadly, they have failed him. Their selfish and greedy passions have robbed this young man of his youth. Amare Stoudemire is a victim, and I ache for him.

Though he has verbally committed to the University of Memphis, Stoudemire now says that there is a 50-50 chance he will declare for the NBA draft next spring.

While we all have differing opinions on high school players who bypass college in favor of the NBA, what will be our opinion of a player who has no other choice than to opt for the NBA because he was misled and deceived by the adults in his life? What will we say then?

One word comes to mind-- bizarre.