Sports Editorial: University pulls truly classless act

Sophomore forward Da’Ron Sims, a player who turned his life around at City College playing hoops for Rams head basketball coach Justin Labagh the past two seasons, recently found out his full-ride basketball scholarship to Sacramento State had been retracted.

Apparently, after doing a Google search, the Sacramento State athletic department came across a feature story on Sims published in a fall 2009 issue of The Guardsman. The feature illustrated the many hardships overcome by Sims, a man who grew up in West Oakland surrounded by drugs and violence.

Following an arrest in 2007, Sims was approached by his former McClymonds basketball coach Brandon Brooks, who knew the potential he had to become a successful basketball player. After working out with the City College basketball team, he became a walk-on player following tryouts.

Sims was named Coast Conference Player of the Year as a freshman, and earned All-State honors both years he’s played for City College, becoming a team leader and fine student athlete.

Sims’ own personal struggles were also well documented in the feature, including his dropping out of McClymonds High School in Oakland his senior year, turning to the streets to help make ends meet.

Sacramento State’s basketball program must have only read the first half of Sims’ feature. If they had read all the way to the bottom, they would have realized what an outstanding player, and more importantly, an outstanding person they were about to have playing for them.

To hinder an individual’s struggle for greatness and to judge somebody for the mistakes they made during their youth is not only unforgivable, it is simply unethical.

Sacramento State University has provided a perfect example of just that.

Sims epitomizes the idea of redemption, as he spent significant time in jail three years prior to his return to basketball. Not only did basketball save his life, it helped reveal his high level of character.

Whoever at Sacramento State made this decision should be ashamed. This is also, apparently, not the first time a scholarship offer has been taken back by Sacramento State’s athletic department due to “concerns” they had for a recruit.

The need to judge character before admitting a student into a university is understandable when allowing them to attend school for free. However, Sims’ story shines light on his personal triumphs and should not raise warning signs for any sort of risk.

Not only does the university’s decision strip away the chance for Sims to attend college, get a degree and continue to play the game he loves, it strips away the integrity of Sacramento State as a college athletic institution. A simple sit-down with Sims would have silenced any doubts they had about his character.

Repeated judgments of character have been drawn based on what people read or see online, and that is purely absurd. Unfair. Reprehensible.

What the university has done is write an ugly chapter to what is truly an inspiring story. The fact that Sims came from a life involving crime, poverty and reprehensible actions and changed into a young man on the brink of forever improving his life should be celebrated, not punished.

This blatant disrespect Sacramento State has shown not only to Sims, but to every coach and mentor that has helped turn his life around is despicable.

While Sims still may be able to attend a university, something that would never be a reality without the help of a basketball scholarship, this decision creates a huge cloud over his future. Not only was he stripped of the right he earned to play basketball at this university, he has for now been stripped of his right to earn a college degree.

The beauty of Sims’ story has been tarnished by the ugliness of this university’s decision. For that, shame on you Sacramento State.