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The Dagger

Tue Jun 30, 2009 4:35 pm EDT

The Henry Brothers' time at Kansas will be, um, interesting

By Eamonn Brennan

By now, you likely know the story of C.J. and Xavier Henry, brothers and fellow Kansas recruits primed to make the Jayhawks a force at the national level in 2009-10. C.J. is the older brother, who has yet to play a game since deciding baseball wasn't the key to his future (he had a minor-league contract with Yankees before he enrolled at Memphis; he is transferring to Kansas this season and will technically be a sophomore). Xavier is the younger of the two and is probably the more talented, given that he was the No. 8 overall player in the class of 2009.

That Kansas will have both players in 2009 bodes extremely well for a team returning stars like Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrich. That they will have to deal with Carl Henry, the boys' father, bodes well for anyone interested in seeing Bill Self strangle spectators. Because if this keeps up, that's exactly where we're headed.

From the Kansas City Star, some early prognostications from Carl:

Carl says both of his sons hope to be one-and-done at KU. “I don’t like stepping on people’s toes,” Carl says, “but I just know what I know. I watch them play, all the Kansas kids. I like all these kids, (Sherron) Collins, (Tyshawn Taylor), they’re good kids, man. But they’re not better than C.J. Everybody’s gotta be on board. The coach has got to be on board."

Oh man. This is going to be awesome.

Read the whole story, really, because it gets worse and because it's basically a microcosm of the current recruiting process surrounding most one-and-done players. That process? Player picks school, school bends over backwards to accomodate, player plays at school for one year, player leaves school with slumping APR and graduation rates and with possible NCAA violations. Woo! Basketball!

UPDATE: This one gets the all-caps bolded treatment: In an article by Yahoo!'s own Jason King, Carl Henry says "his sons are having second thoughts about becoming Jayhawks following an article in Sunday’s edition of The Kansas City Star. [...] The article has caused quite a buzz among Kansas fans, some of whom have criticized the Henry family on Internet message boards. Carl Henry said the scrutiny has caused his sons to reconsider their college options." That could merely be Henry fighting back at the hometown newspaper, or it could be something more. Who knows?

Either way, more later, especially if it escalates.

Related: Big 12 Basketball

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37 Comments

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  1. Brandon S
    1. Posted by Brandon S Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:12 pm EDT

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    absolutely ridiculous! different sport but makes me think of brett favre. if they do end up renigging on their comittment to kansas and leave for kentuck i think that shows how classless they really are. if they really wanted to go to kentucky then they should have gone but now they have basically screwed kansas because if it weren't for them comitting to play in lawrence the jayhawks could have gotten a number of other players to fill the void. but now the jayhawks are just kinda stuck between a rock and a hard place. i hope they do leave, because it sounds like they're not a good fit for kansas anyways. they don't want to go to class, they're only going to be here for a year and that is not what KU is about. and as for carl henry, i think he is a liar because if he truely told bill self about his sons reservations in coming to ku i think coach self would have ended it right there and gone after someone else because he doesn't want anyone on his team who is not 100% comitted to the program.
  2. Jesus Presley
    2. Posted by Jesus Presley Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:18 pm EDT

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    Way too much media, & Drama! I hope Bill Self can work this out and do whats best fot Kansas, & I hope the Henry Brothers play at Kansas. Because that squad will be loaded, & have a very good chance at another title. I don't think Kentucky has any scholarship room left this late? Crazy Drama!
  3. Simon Moon
    3. Posted by Simon Moon Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:39 pm EDT

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    Do not want.
  4. Tyler
    4. Posted by Tyler Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:48 pm EDT

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    Hey Brandon, I do agree with you on the fact that KU may be in trouble if they both leave because that is wasted time on recruiting and unfortunate for the school to recruit better players, but If Xavier and C.J. are as good as they say then they should be able to leave after one year. At least Xavier since all the focus is on him more than his brother. Do you really think Michael Beasley and Derrick Rose cared about going to class in college when they knew they were going straight to the NBA after a year? Of course not and look at them now! Beasley played pretty decent in Miami and Rose almost led his team to the NBA Finals. If it weren't for Lebron James: Xavier, Beasley, and Rose would've never taken the time to look into college basketball.
  5. DROP DEAD TIGER
    5. Posted by DROP DEAD TIGER Tue Jun 30, 2009 5:59 pm EDT

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    Classless is the kansas fans crying on all those message boards. the henrys know what is
    up. i can hardly wait to hear jason whitlock chime in on this!!!!!
  6. seniorsanchezsucio
    6. Posted by seniorsanchezsucio Tue Jun 30, 2009 7:28 pm EDT

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    Sounds like to me that the Henry brother's old man needs to shut the hell up and let his sons play basketball. He needs to let them speak for themselves. Sounds like to me their father is overbearing and wants to be in the limelight. You had your chance old man not let your suns grow up and become men. All of this negative publicity could end up costing these players millions. If the Henry brothers don't care about going to school and are only going to play one year of college then they should go to Europe like Jennings and get paid to train.
  7. Chris C
    7. Posted by Chris C Tue Jun 30, 2009 7:46 pm EDT

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    HENRY's + KENTUCKY = The best class ever. Come on down to the Blue Grass State.
  8. darb
    8. Posted by darb Tue Jun 30, 2009 8:43 pm EDT

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    I have been a KU fan since the late 70's and will always look at whats best for the school and then the fans. I say, tell the dad and Henry brothers that they are no longer welcome at KU and release them from any obligations. The school does not need to take the risk of any NCAA violations down the road from this situation and the publicity it has attracted. The basketball team is still loaded and very deep and will most likely win another Big 12 title and will make the NCAA tourney with no problem and control their own destiny on how far they make it in the tourney just like every other team that knows it is one & down in the big dance.... "ROCK-CHALK- JAYHAWK - KU"
  9. matthew p wichita
    9. Posted by matthew p wichita Tue Jun 30, 2009 8:45 pm EDT

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    brandon jennings and xavier henry are so right,college is stupid, go overseas ride the bench and then get drafted and make make millions in the nba,,,,mmwhahAHAHAHa..
  10. The Real Deal Phil
    10. Posted by The Real Deal Phil Tue Jun 30, 2009 8:53 pm EDT

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    As a long time Kentucky fan, I dont know if UK really needs Henry. Now am I going to complain if the brothers stick it to KU and come to Lexington? Absolutely not. Kentucky is has been out of the game for a little over a decade but now were back and here to stay. Get used to it Jayhawk fans!! We will see you in Indianapolis.
  11. Brandon S
    11. Posted by Brandon S Tue Jun 30, 2009 8:57 pm EDT

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    they fit perfectly with calipari because he is a lowlife, cheating scumbag so they should go play for them and have kentucky slapped with penalties from the ncaa.
  12. From Nebraska
    12. Posted by From Nebraska Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:05 pm EDT

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    For the record, this article did not appear in the KU Hometown newspaper (which would be the Lawrence Kansas paper), it appeared in the Kansas City Star, which is located in Kansas City, MISSOURI. Missouri writers may not care if the Henry's come to KU.
  13. jjkosty
    13. Posted by jjkosty Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:06 pm EDT

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    hey henrys take ur circus to kentucky hit the road we dont want babies here
  14. Jester
    14. Posted by Jester Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:20 pm EDT

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    Who cares....they will be there one season and then stink up the NBA or maybe just the NBA development league....im tired of the one and done players....a free education why pass that up...maybe because they are not the smart in the first place
  15. Matt
    15. Posted by Matt Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:34 pm EDT

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    Strong thoughts Brandon S and Jim T! Someone a little mad about their team losing some of their players? As I recall, didn't Bill Self get caught committing a rules violation recently? Calipari hasn't been caught doing anything and don't try to say the stuff that has come out of Memphis was as his doing, the NCAA even told him that he was not involved in the allegations. I'll admit, he has been very shady about alot of things in the past, but he has never been caught. Don't go calling someone else's coach a scumbag when your own coach has commited violations albeit very small ones, but if we all face the facts, probably every coach out the commits some kind of violation at some point in their career. And Jesus PResley, Kentucky does have 1 scholarship available since we made room, planning for meeks to come back to school, which he ended up not doing, and C.J. would be a walk on so that doesn't really matter as far as scholarships
  16. roger v
    16. Posted by roger v Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:57 pm EDT

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    Hmm Calamari throws Pilgrim under the bus at UK, leaving ONE scholarship open this year. CJ is a walk on paid for by the Yankees baseball team.......Now Xavier is considering UK?? Sure, it's all a coincidence......The sorry POS in Lexington will stop at nothing to further boost his sorry EGO. Sorry Uk but you will pay the price!
  17. the_mad_one_23
    17. Posted by the_mad_one_23 Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:59 pm EDT

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    Okay, so the Dad goes off all big and bad in an ON THE RECORD interview ... and the paper reports it accuratly - without a single complaint about the accuracy from ANYONE ... and somehow this is KUs fault?!?!? WHAT THE EFF IS THAT ALL ABOUT?!?!? Sounds to me like the Henry's need an excuse to go to play for the Wildkits. To which I say, GO AHEAD - SERIOUSLY - GO! Kentucy will be loaded next year and they will mop up the SEC and they will play well in the tourney ... but mark my words, with all those 1-and-done clowns, the moment there is a hint of trouble they fold like a house of cards - COUNT ON IT!
    KU National Champs 2010!
  18. roger v
    18. Posted by roger v Tue Jun 30, 2009 9:59 pm EDT

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    Hey Ben, how bout letting the wildcats actually play a game first eh? Lmfao at Lexington, just wait till Vandy kicks your A22, what cha gonna say then???
  19. Tyler
    19. Posted by Tyler Tue Jun 30, 2009 10:16 pm EDT

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    "HENRY's + KENTUCKY = The best class ever. Come on down to the Blue Grass State. "
    To not win a championship...
    and Ben, haha, just like you are with calapari? Lets see where you stand a few years from now when Calamari puts you guys on probation. And about the Henry's, us Kansas fans(well most of us anyway) don't have a problem with the Henry brothers, we have a problem with their dam dad. And even IF you guys buy, erm I mean, get Xavier and CJ, how is Calamari going to keep all those inflated egos on one court? They'll be to busy *****ing at each other to win a game. You Kentucky fans crack me up
  20. pathoheart
    20. Posted by pathoheart Tue Jun 30, 2009 10:31 pm EDT

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    It's tough to go to class when you can't read, have the attention span of a three year old and don't understand big words like cat and dog.
  21. Michael H
    21. Posted by Michael H Tue Jun 30, 2009 10:53 pm EDT

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    22. Posted by pathoheart Tue Jun 30, 2009 10:24 pm EDT Report Abuse
    Those idiots will never make it at Kansas where they will be expected to go to class and study. Kentucky is for [profane]s and morons and incestuous beings. Oh Henry!
    You have a small brain.
  22. Michael H
    22. Posted by Michael H Tue Jun 30, 2009 10:56 pm EDT

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    22. Posted by pathoheart Tue Jun 30, 2009 10:24 pm EDT Report Abuse
    Those idiots will never make it at Kansas where they will be expected to go to class and study. Kentucky is for [profane]s and morons and incestuous beings. Oh Henry!
    You have a small brain.
  23. Christopher S. Crowder
    23. Posted by Christopher S. Crowder Tue Jun 30, 2009 11:47 pm EDT

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    If they aren't willing to do things "the KU way", then they shouldn't come here. If they are willing to get with the program, even if just for one year, then we're glad to have 'em. I don't know how kids likes this, or perhaps more accurately their parents who want to live off of them, expect to get along in the NBA. It'll be a real shock to the parents when no one in the front office even gives them the time of day, and the kids will be in for a shock too when no one is impressed with their high school stats.

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