Time to Go for Chaney

You know, I've always liked John Chaney the basketball coach. And plenty of people I respect like John Chaney the person, even if I think he's unhinged at times. One of my coaches back in middle school, a person I admired as both a coach and a person, was a Chaney disciple, and he praised his old coach for teaching him more than just basketball.

It's pretty clear that I don't share John Chaney's political beliefs. But he's not the only one promoting tired Democratic propaganda, and those political beliefs have little to do with his real job -- that of being a basketball coach and teacher of young men.

And in that job, he's always been a bit on the edge. Until last week, when he went way over the edge by sending a player out onto the floor to "goon" it up. I'm wondering whether Greg Doyel may be correct that Chaney's suspension isn't enough...

In Temple's 63-56 loss Tuesday to Saint Joseph's, Chaney sent in a goon -- his word, goon -- to send a message. That message went all the way to a hospital in Philadelphia, where Saint Joseph's forward John Bryant was diagnosed Thursday with a broken arm.

Chaney sent a player into the game for the express purpose of roughing up Saint Joseph's, and the result was the probable end of John Bryant's career.

And so should end John Chaney's career.

Earlier Wednesday, before anyone knew the severity of Bryant's injury, and before Adamany stepped in, Chaney suspended himself for the Owls' next game, Saturday against Massachusetts.

That gesture, before any of us knew about Bryant's broken bone, looked noble enough. Now it looks hollow. What happened Tuesday night wasn't an act of passion. Chaney was upset with the officials for allowing the Hawks to set what he felt were illegal screens, but sending in his goon was no fateful, split-second decision. One day earlier, he had told the media that he would take action if the Hawks continued with their illegal screens.

On Tuesday, that action was named Nehemiah Ingram. He stands 6-feet-8, weighs 250 pounds and plays almost never. He averages 0.4 points and 0.0 assists per game, not that Chaney called on Ingram on Tuesday to score or pass. He called on Ingram to get rough, and Ingram did -- fouling out in four minutes, including a technical foul.

The result was a disaster, right down to Ingram's stupid shove of Bryant at the end of a layup. Bryant landed hard, and probably won't play again this season. Because he's a senior, he probably won't play again. It's too late to redshirt, and he's not good enough to play overseas. His career, in effect, is over.

...Forgive me. I'm part of the problem. Me and every other sports writer who has been so impressed by Chaney's mission -- to graduate young men; to make them better in basketball and better in life, and not in that order -- that we were blind to the whole picture.

If Bob Knight grabbed another coach around the neck, would Knight still be coaching? Maybe, but maybe not. If Mike Davis threatened to kill another coach, would Davis still be coaching? Probably not. They haven't built up the same level of media equity enjoyed by Chaney.

With the X-ray that confirmed Bryant's broken arm, Chaney's equity should be gone.

I hope that Chaney opts to leave the game and retire on his own accord -- I think it's past time anyway. The coach is 73. Before he destroys his legacy at Temple, he should resign. He's done a number of good things. Let's hope the memory of those things isn't obscured by the numerous dumb things he's done.