Gonzaga's Mark Few Blasts California Governor For 'Not Staying In His Lane' By Signing Name, Image And Likeness Bill In A Bizarre Interview

Let me start this off by saying I love Mark Few the coach. Hell of a coach. I’m a big Gonzaga fan, pretty sure every guy my age has a soft spot for Gonzaga after the Blake Stepp, Dan Dickau, Matt Santangelo, Casey Calvary days.

But, uh, what in the living fuck is this?

Now, again, Few actually says a couple decent things. But it takes him 2 and a half minutes for him to get to an actual point and saying that players should make money on NIL after taking a detour to healthcare, Mexico and staying in your lane. I mean Goodman’s face says it all

It’s one of the more bizarre interviews I can remember. Let’s get into the fact he says that politicians should stay in their lane and not be involved with NCAA stuff. Okay, maybe I can buy into that. Except for the fact that oh, you know, the NCAA quite literally brought in Condi Rice to fix college hoops. Now, call me crazy, I know I get things wrong from time to time. But Condi Rice didn’t play men’s college hoops. She’s not involved in men’s college hoops. She is … a politician.

You know why these politicians are getting involved? Because the NCAA refuses to adapt without any sort of pressure and yeah, sure, it’s a good look for them to pass bills that 99% of people are behind. I mean it’s really simple. It really is. The NCAA doesn’t need to do ANYTHING besides less enforcement if players can make money off of name, image and likeness. Schools don’t need to adjust how they give scholarships. Non-revenue sports aren’t hurt by this. It’s simply the schools/NCAA charter members getting a tad less money in their pockets.

Also, Mark, this is NOTHING like healthcare in America. It’s not that complex. That’s one of the more bizarre comparisons I’ve heard yet about this whole ordeal. It’s not disgusting that states are passing these bills. It’s disgusting how the NCAA refuses to adapt. It’s disgusting how people like Few and Gene Smith and Larry Scott and others have no idea what this really is. They just don’t want to lose money. Call it how it is.

Now, I agree with Few. People that are in the ‘space’ of college hoops should help out here. The problem is the group that’s working on it isn’t that. There’s 1 former player – Grant Hill. Grant Hill isn’t a regular former player, he came from wealth with his dad as a professional athlete. Money was irrelevant to him compared to others. Get rid of all the ADs and school presidents and get more former players that come from various backgrounds and schools.

Finally, the dumbest thing Few said (well arguably) and something that’s been said by others. He’s worried about competitive balance. THAT’S NOT A THING IN COLLEGE SPORTS. Look at college football. There are pretty much the same 10 teams competing for a national title. The last time a school won its first national championship was in the 90s. Everyone else has been repeat. Even in college hoops. How many teams can actually win the NCAA Tournament? Sure, you get the story like Loyola Chicago, but the moment they played Michigan it was over. Mid-majors aren’t winning the NCAA Tournament. It’s also not going to change shit. Recruiting is going to be the same. The best players are still going to go to Kentucky, Duke, UNC, Kansas, etc.

It’s really not that difficult.