When PBS Newshour anchor Gwen Ifill announced Tuesday night that the broadcast would feature a segment on the University of Kentucky’s decisive winning season and the NCAA title this year, I gulped.
“Oh no,” I winced. “Is PBS going to do a number on the UK men’s team and the talented freshmen-sophomore guys who dominated Kansas Monday night?”
Would the Lexington Fire Department have to be called to 600 Cooper Drive to extinguish a burning sofa set ablaze on the sidewalk of the KET broadcast center in protest over what was reported in the PBS story?
Not too worry—it was a very fair piece featuring a discussion of the NBA’s one-and-done rule by Lexington Herald-Leader sports reporter Jerry Tipton and Kevin Blackstone, a professor of journalism and ESPN commentator.
Why avoid discussing something that every basketball fan in the country is talking about?
The one-and-done rule is not Coach John Calipari’s rule; it was written by the National Basketball Association. Coach Cal would like to change it to keep kids in school for at least another year. Stop and think about that for a moment—Davis, Kidd-Gilchrist, Teague—back for their sophomore year?
I thought PBS did a good job with the story. Here’s the link—you can decide for yourself.
Watch Post Kentucky, Assessing NBA’s One-And-Done Rule on PBS. See more from PBS NewsHour.