On the day that sanctions were officially handed out to Ohio State, the University of Miami got the tiniest sliver of good news after talking to the NCAA. Basketball player DeQuan Jones can return to action immediately. He was suspended by the school for the entire season after his name surfaced in the Nevin Shapiro scandal.
The move comes just two days after Jones' family announced they had hired an attorney to fight the suspension.
Shapiro, the convicted Ponzi schemer and allegedly crooked booster, claimed that he was asked for $10,000 to secure Jones' commitment to the program. Both Jones himself and his mother have denied the allegations.
In the Yahoo! Sports report, Shapiro said that the money was returned two years later, and he did not believe that the player knew about any cash request on his family's behalf.
"UM has not shown us any evidence whatsoever that DeQuan has broken any rule or done anything wrong, and yet they suspended him for the entire season with no explanation," attorney Jason Setchen told the Herald earlier this week. "They hung this young man out to dry, and it is really wrong. We feel that is a very, very harsh and draconian penalty for someone who has not been proven guilty of anything. The school says they are playing it safe until the NCAA investigation Is over, but in the meantime, DeQuan is missing his senior season and his reputation has been besmirched by allowing this to fester."
The school claims Jones was only suspended as a precaution while the investigation into Shapiro's allegations were underway.
According to a quick blurb from CBS Sports, the school has consulted with the NCAA and agreed that Jones will be able to return to the University of Miami basketball program for the remainder of the season.
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