One month after the general manager of a Turkish club team said he'd given more than $100,00 in cash and benefits to Enes Kanter, the highly regarded Kentucky freshman's father emphatically refuted those claims.
In an e-mail interview with The Sporting News, Dr. Mehmet Kanter said Turkish hoops officials are attempting to make it difficult for his son to become eligible to play at Kentucky so that future generations of Turkish players don't follow a similar path. Dr. Kanter said the family passed up several contract offers worth millions of dollars in hopes of ensuring that Enes would be eligible to play and study at a U.S. college.
"They are trying to set an example with my son to coming generations in Turkey, so they can control and use the talent and youth any way they like to," Dr. Kanter told The Sporting News.
"It hasn't been easy, but we believe it's worth fighting for. Enes just turned 18 recently so sometimes he gets confused over all this and doesn't understand what wrong he has done."
Whether the NCAA rules Kanter eligible or not is one of the most significant remaining stories of the offseason because his presence is the difference between Kentucky being a good team and a potential title contender. The 6-foot-11 Turkish import could provide the interior scoring and rebounding the Wildcats need to replace DeMarcus Cousins and Patrick Patterson, but the Wildcats might have to play a more up-tempo, trapping style if Kanter's not available.
Although Kanter passing up lucrative contract offers in Europe to forge his own path in the U.S. would seem to enhance his chances of playing at Kentucky, the outcome of his case probably still hinges on the same thing it did before his father came forward.
If the Turkish club produces bank statements or other documents proving Kanter received compensation during the three years he played there, he'll be ruled ineligible or at least heavily suspended. Otherwise, it's a he-said, he-said case and there may be insufficient evidence for NCAA officials to hand down a harsh punishment.
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