Hoop Scoop on Lewis Clinch

So what is the scoop that nobody wants to talk about with Lewis Clinch? Will he be ruled academically ineligible? I have a few different sources that have confirmed a fairly similar story as to what is going on.


However, I do not plan on sharing the details, because if true, it sounds like a pretty serious matter................. Here is what I will say............ It does have to do with academics............. However, if the story is true, it does NOT have to do with "making grades".......... So the plot thickens..................


Matt Winklejohn from the AJC has made the following comments about the situation in his columns:

First comment:

The return of Morrow's smooth stroke may be particularly critical if fellow shooting guard Lewis Clinch does not receive good news next week, when his second-semester eligibility will be clarified by school officials.

Second comment:

Then, it may hurt less to lose Lewis Clinch, which is not a lock anyway the way I understand things (and that’s not in any more detail than I’ve written).

While Winky has not written any specific details about the sitation, his wording does give clues. His words allow you to draw the conclusion that the situation is waiting on some kind of interpretation by school officials. Folks, if it was just grades, he'd either BE eligible or NOT BE eligible. The only caveat would be if he was appealing a grade and waiting on a review of his "case" - similar to the Theodis Tarver situation last season.


Bottom-line, it does not appear a 100% fact that Clinch is gone for the season or that he will be ruled academically ineligible. Details I have gathered tell me that if he's ruled ineligible it won't be for GPA reasons. The real fuzzy part is that there are a WIDE array of potential outcomes of this process based on what happened. That is why the "clarification" next week....................


Whatever happens, I think we can be assured that Clinch is going to miss games. Coach Hewitt is sending a message about defense TO THE TEAM, but he's not doing it by benching Lewis Clinch. My opinion is that he's very strategically finding alternative line-ups that work as if Lewis was not available. Now coincidentally, those line-ups appear to be more effective defensively without Clinch in the game. Convenient? Yes. The reason Lewis is sitting - don't think so...........................Stay tuned..............