(Taxi Please! Picture from http://www.woh.rr.com/)
As if things could not get any worse for the Iowa Hawkeye Basketball faithful, a little police report just pushed fans over the edge. The 4-7 Hawkeyes just lost their second leading scorer Anthony Tucker indefinitely. Tucker was arrested earlier this morning. What for? Public Intoxication. This is the second time this 20-year old has run into the law on account of alcohol. If you recall, Tucker was charged with something similar last year when he was passed out drunk in an alley behind a bar. According to reports, Tucker allegedly was assaulting a taxi driver over money/a stolen cell phone, which resulted in his arrest. The police came to The Lodge after a 9-1-1 call from the taxi driver complaining about someone beating on the side of his cab. Tucker accused the man of stealing his cell phone, then proceeded to assault the driver (how does a Taxi driver steal your cell phone while he's driving Tuck?) The driver apparently locked the doors, and when the police came to the scene they found Tucker with "bloodshot and watery eyes, slurred speech, a strong odor of alcohol and [he] swayed while standing."
Tucker seemed to have a lot of remorse this morning. He reportedly wrote "I am outta here" on his Facebook page (way to man up). What bothers me the most is this kid had every opportunity to be a star on this team. He was starting as a true freshmen, and with his terrific three point shooting, he fit perfect in The Todd's "no transition, no dribble drive; work the ball around the wing until the shot clock has 2-seconds remaining and crank up a shot" offense. Not only is this his second run in with the law for alcohol, but last year he couldn't play because he was academically ineligible. This kid needs a good kick in the ass, and I'm sorry if that offends anyone. There were already rumors that Tucker was going to transfer, which would have been the seventh player under Lickliter to do so in his short coaching career at Iowa. I don't know what Gary Barta is looking at, but with so many players not interested in playing for The Todd, a lack of talent, a scheme that worked in the Horizon League (but needs a few tweeks for the type of basketball being played in the Big Ten), and the empty seats in Carver, it is obvious that some things need to change. If you recall, The Todd was supposed to revive this program, but instead it is now at an all-time low. It's hard to rebuild a team with a coach that seems unable to change his philosophy to fit around the players he has.
Losing is not acceptable, but I much rather see the Hawks lose with kids that deserve to be playing basketball. Kids that have good character, good morals, and good decision making skills on and off the court. I'm not saying that the remaining players on the team meet these standards, but I don't see their names in the Daily Iowan police blot either. Tucker, you not only hurt your career and your dreams, but you hurt your teammates, Hawkeye fans, and quite possibly The Todd's job at Iowa (if it wasn't already hurt). Oh and by the way, that tattoo you got to show you are a "changed man" that reads, "Adversity causes some men to break, others to break records. My mistakes do not define my character" is now moot. You should have taken a look at it before you went out last night, and maybe a few times while in the bathroom at the bar.
I'm going to pull out my inner Jim Rome, and tell you that maybe your tattoo should read, "I make mistakes over and over again, that do in fact define my character", or maybe a heart with a bottle of Patron in the middle. Either way you stepped out of your role as a leader, took a giant leap back from where you were last year, and have jeopardized your basketball career. I hope you found your cell phone and enjoy the taxi ride home. That is, if you can get one to drive you.
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