Experiencing the Enes decision from the top of America

As I stood Thursday peering out from the third floor into the eyes of consumerism, also known as the Mall of America, my heart began reverberating. It wasn't due to the passing of the indoor roller coaster, the realization I had not properly recorded my parking location, or even the vibrating of my phone in my pocket. It was the effects of the text, Twitter, and voicemail messages I was receiving. News was just broke that Enes Kanter had been declared 'permanently inelligble'.

The NCAA bylaw says a player can receive benefits but just not in excess to what is needed for travel, schooling, and playing. Thursday, Kanter was ruled to have received excessive benefits that amounted to $33,000. These excessive benefits classify him as a professional and thus he cannot play collegiate sport. I will put the situation in terms that mean more to many of you. Kanter is to the NCAA what Jenna Jameson would be if she was to film her own bedroom interactions. She is a professional. Just because she slaps the tag "Amateur" on her DVD and shakes the camera while filming, doesn't make her an amateur.

But my heart eventually settled back into the normal beat pattern and I removed myself from the Dora "The Explorer" rocking ride in the mall as there was a little bit of hope still left in an afternoon of disappointment. There's always the appeal process, where a committee will review the situation and decide to confirm, reduce, or eliminate the decision of the NCAA.