Rook Check takes a look at the progress of NBA Rookies throughout the season.
There had been rumblings over the internet for about the past month that Michael Beasley was involved in the incident at the NBA Rookie Transition Program. He was originally listed in a report by ESPN, but that report was later edited to remove the section involving Beasley, the #2 pick in the draft who just happens to be working with ESPN on a series of features on his life as a rookie. The rumors persisted, but nothing solid ever came out. Then last week a photo made it's way around the internet that showed Beasley with Mario Chalmers, with Chalmers holding something that looked very much like a marijuana cigarette, though the origins of the photo remain unknown. 
Tom Ziller alluded to it in this morning's Essentials, but in case you missed it, the NBA has decided to fine Mario Chalmers and Darrell Arthur $20,000 for their Rookie Symposium shenanigans. Losing 20 large stings, but the upside is that neither rookie will be suspended. Chalmers should thrust himself into community initiatives, should provide more than the amount of appearances required by the collective-bargaining agreement (yes, many of those "feel good" appearances actually are contractually bound), should be a keynote speaker at next year's rookie program about how a momentary lapse can lead to weeks of humiliation.If Arthur and Chalmers really wanted to restore their good names, they could make a public show of doubling their fine, giving the NBA their $20K and giving another $20K to a local drug abuse prevention program. It'd be a small fraction of their annual income -- Arthur will make $977,00 this year; Chalmers, $700,000 -- but would provide priceless PR to help change the negative first impression they've already made with their new fans.
And then, close to the end of the season, the players' association and league quietly should either make the fine go away or make it become a very public chartable donation.
As the backlash from a brilliant decision to host a hotel party at the beginning of the NBA's rookie orientation camp fades, both players involved have come clean ... sort of. I mean, both players (Darrell Arthur and Mario Chalmers, ex-Kansas teammates) admit they were in the hotel room. And they admit they allowed the ladies in. But the weed? Oh no, no weed for them, absolutely not, no way."Everyone who knows me knows I am a good person and I pride myself on doing the right thing," Chalmers said. "I am embarrassed this happened. I broke the rules, but I did not smoke marijuana."Arthur gets his remorse on in the Memphis Commercial-Appeal:
"About the marijuana," Arthur said, "I didn't have any. I didn't have anything to do with marijuana or anything like that. I'd like to clear that up."It doesn't appear the league will test the pair, which seems inconsistent with NBA policy, which allows offseason tests if there is reason to believe toking has occurred. I'm not saying the NBA should proactively test and punish summertime smokers. But if other guys are getting hit with violations and eventual mandatory suspensions, it's only fair these dudes get their lumps, too.
According to the Kansas City Star, ESPN's initial report concerning the Darrell Arthur-Mario Chalmers weed and women bust at the NBA's rookie orientation mentioned a third player at the scene of the crime: #2 pick Michael Beasley. The Star reports Beasley's name has since been scrubbed from ESPN's accounts.There is a good deal of disagreement among the greater community of citizen judges when it comes to grown adults and marijuana. Some think it's not a big deal, others want heads lopped off. It's a similar sentiment when you break it down to a sporting population: many would argue it's fine in the offseason, others see it as an unforgivable offense for someone making so much dang money. The NBA, for whatever reason, is at center stage in this war over whether we should give two shakes to whether our athletes burn.Heat rookie Mario Chalmers, left, and Grizzlies rookie Darrell Arthur were thrown out of the NBA's rookie transition program Wednesday after reportedly being caught with marijuana in their hotel room. They wouldn't be the only athletes to be booted or suspended for a foolish act, though.
Robert Laberge, Getty Images
Nebraska wrestler Paul Donahoe, above, was one of two athletes kicked off the Huskers wrestling team on August 12 after nude pictures of them appeared on a pornographic website.
Carlos Osorio, AP
Georgia linebacker Darius Dewberry, center, was suspended after vandalizing a hospital. Dewberry, the sixth Bulldog to be disciplined in the offseason, broke a parking lot barrier and four potted plants in early August.
John Amis, AP
Josh Jarboe, an incoming freshman player at Oklahoma, was dismissed from the football team August 1 by head coach Bob Stoops after a video of him rapping about guns and shooting people appeared on the Internet.
You Tube
Oklahoma guard Jenna Plumley was suspended indefinitely on July 14 following an alleged petty shoplifting incident. Police said Plumley was stopped by store personnel at Wal-Mart with cosmetics in her possession.
Alonzo Adams, AP
Former Florida State star Peter Warrick was charged with grand theft in 1999 after he reportedly attempted to fleece a department store in a pricing scam with then-teammate Laveranues Coles. Warrick received a two-game suspension from the Seminoles and Coles was kicked off the team.
Mark Foley, AP
Ex-MLB outfielder Ruben Rivera was voted off the Yankees by his teammates following a spring training game in 2002. Rivera took Derek Jeter's glove and bat and sold them to a sports memorabilia dealer, reportedly for $2,500.
Peter Cosgrove, AP
Florida safety Jamar Hornsby was kicked off the team in May after being charged with using a credit card issued to Ashley Slonina, a student who died in an October 2007 motorcycle accident. Hornsby was accused of using the dead woman's credit card 70 times for a total of $3,000 in charges.
Doug Benc, Getty Images
In July 2007, tennis player Anastasia Rodionova became the second player on the WTA Tour to be disqualified from a match when she smacked a ball toward fans rooting for her opponent at the Cincinnati Women's Open.
STRDEL / AFP / Getty Images
Five Alabama players, including lineman Marlon Davis, pictured, were suspended in October 2007 for a violation of school policy involving the receipt of textbooks. Following the incident, the university launched an investigation into the distribution of textbooks to athletes on scholarship in all sports.
Marc Serota, Getty Images
After receiving pushback from the federal government for visa issues, Iranian center Hamed Haddadi (or Ehadadi or Hadadi, depending on the source; the league is going with "Haddadi") got permission to join the NBA, and Memphis has signed him. It's not known whether it's a guaranteed deal, based on the Grizzles' press release.
Watching Darrell Arthur slip out of the lottery and deep into the end of the first round (he went #27) wasn't a whole lot of fun during Thursday's draft. ESPN's panel repeatedly reported that rumors of a mysterious kidney ailment circulated among the teams last week, leaving franchises uncertain of Arthur's health and unlikely to risk a decent pick on him. Via TrueHoop, Scott Cacciola of the Memphis Commercial-Appeal gets Arthur to explain the apparent real cause of concern.Arthur won't be endorsing Claritin anytime soon. He blamed the anti-allergy medication for bloodwork that indicated kidney problems. Arthur said he took the drug at the Pre-Draft Camp in Orlando earlier this month, then the rumors spread.Arthur says the misinformation had been cleared the day prior in tests with Washington, but that information didn't get out. But ... Arthur was on T.V. for like an hour! Couldn't his agent or handler have just hijacked Doris Burke's microphone or Stephen A. Smith's interview set and demanded Ernie Grunfeld tell the truth?
Jerryd Bayless did not have a Darrell Arthur-like plummet in the draft, but he still fell pretty far, relatively speaking. When he finally got taken at number 11 overall, it was easily seven spots later than where he -- and many prognosticators -- thought he would have landed."I think they are crazy," Bayless said when asked what he would say to people who don't think he can play both guard spots. "That's what I think."Now, of course, Bayless did not fall nearly as far as Gil, who ended up in the second round. And it's also tough for Bayless to be that upset, considering that he landed in a pretty perfect spot, getting to run the point for Portland.
[...]Bayless appeared visibly upset that he went that low, after it was predicted in mock drafts that he could be picked as high as No. 4 by Seattle or realistically No. 7 by the Los Angeles Clippers.
"I have 10 teams to prove wrong now," Bayless told ESPN radio. "I'm going to definitely go out and try to do that. Hopefully everything works out."
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