BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana University spokesman Larry MacIntyre says the school has agreed to a $750,000 buyout with basketball coach Kelvin Sampson. Assistant Dan Dakich takes over as interim head coach.
Senior captain D.J. White, Armon Bassett, Jordan Crawford, Jamarcus Ellis, DeAndre Thomas and Brandon McGee skipped Dakich’s first practice Friday afternoon. It is unknown if they will play when the 15th-ranked Hoosiers travel to Northwestern on Saturday.
An NCAA report cited Sampson for making improper phone calls to high school players, then providing false and misleading information to investigators from both the university and the NCAA.
Greenspan met briefly with Sampson Friday morning. A few minutes after Greenspan left the coach’s office, Sampson walked down a ramp with his wife, Karen.
Players, managers, assistant coaches and the coach’s son, Kellen Sampson, then gathered in the locker room for what appeared to be a team meeting which broke up about midday.
Later, Indiana star freshman guard Eric Gordon was on his way to practice and said said he expected to play against Northwestern.
IU trustee Philip Eskew Jr. said he had lunch on Friday in Indianapolis with university president Michael McRobbie, who hoped the situation with Sampson could be resolved in a positive way. McRobbie was at IUPUI for a visit by the Chinese ambassador to the U.S.
“But you have to do what’s right for those kids,” Eskew said in a telephone interview.
Trustee Patrick Shoulders acknowledged the frustration of those who were awaiting a decision.
“There’s obviously some loose ends,” Shoulders said. “It’s crazy, but I think it will all get taken care of today (Friday).”
Late into Thursday night, university officials discussed what to do about what the NCAA called five major violations. The Hoosiers have not been guilty of a major NCAA infraction since 1960.
Last week the school released the NCAA’s report alleging Sampson also failed to promote a high standard of honesty and an atmosphere of rules compliance in the program.
Sampson has said he never intentionally provided false or misleading information to NCAA investigators.
With speculation about Sampson’s future sweeping the campus, the images rekindled scenes reminiscent to the prelude and aftermath of Bob Knight’s firing in 2000. Reporters spent hours staking out the hallway of the administration building and the lobby of Assembly Hall, waiting for word on whether Sampson would still have his job this weekend.
According to the contract signed in April 2006, Indiana was paying Sampson an annual base salary of $500,000. The contract runs through the next five seasons.
Sampson’s deal included termination clauses for violations of university or NCAA rules that eliminate the payments.
The second-year coach came under scrutiny for his newest round of alleged NCAA infractions in October when an internal investigation found Sampson and some of his staff made more than 100 impermissible recruiting calls. Most of the calls were made by assistant coach Rob Senderoff, who later resigned. At least 10 were allegedly three-way calls that Sampson had been patched into, a violation of NCAA restrictions imposed on Sampson for previous telephone improprieties while he was coach at Oklahoma.
The university called those secondary violations. The NCAA, however, used the term major when it accused Sampson of lying.
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