Dave Telep of ESPN did a really nice job on all the dirty recruiting that’s happening behind the scenes in college basketball. ESPN has tucked it behind the Insider wall, but if you don’t have Insider, I’ve pulled three choice quotes (it’s a very long piece):

Let’s say you make $200,000 a year as an assistant coach. There’s incentive to remain in good standing with your employer and pressure to get players. The more you deliver, the better you likely will be compensated. Some are being hired away to be head coaches.

With those kinds of incentives, many will dip into their own pockets to deliver recruits. During numerous conversations with college basketball coaches, I learned of at least one assistant who keeps a separate checking account in another part of the country to elude NCAA investigators. The purpose of the slush fund is to assist with unofficial visits and any extra expenses that players may incur while trying to qualify academically. For instance, if a player might need money for a summer school or an online course, the fund would spring into action.

That’s equally interesting and depressing.

The unofficial visit is the most powerful recruiting weapon in the arsenal of a major college. It is also the most abused recruiting practice in the game today, and it is extremely difficult to uncover wrongdoing because of a lack of evidence. One member of the NCAA focus group tasked with cleaning up college basketball acknowledged that unofficial visits are a major problem area for the NCAA, and it is aware of the corruption but can do little to address the problem, largely because of the untraceability of cash.

Cecil Newton nods his approval.

One of the go-to moves by a college to get a player on campus is to have his coach, mentor, street agent or parent book a flight and hotel on his credit card. At this point, the player and his representatives already know they will get the money back. It’s common for a school to reach out to someone close to the player and arrange repayment. If a college coach hands an AAU coach cash to pay for his player’s trip, how can the NCAA trace that?

Here’s my question: This piece is undeniably fantastic. I love glimpses into this kind of shady stuff. But could it have been better if Telep roped in ESPN’s standout investigative team to try and snuff out some of these details and puts names and schools to the allegations?

The Insider’s Guide to Dirty Recruiting [ESPN]