Editor’s note: Since this article’s publication, the NCAA announced James Wiseman will be eligible to play starting Jan. 12. In addition, Wiseman must pay $11,500 to a charity of his choice.

Let’s face it; the NCAA stinks, man. I say this in a casual way, but at this point, what’s really left to say? It stinks, and the biggest reason for it is because the NCAA fails to acknowledge its biggest flaw. 

In sports, just like life, blanket punishments for infractions aren’t good practice. This is because not one case or scenario is ever the same. You see people argue the three strike penalty in law for the same reason. Blanket punishments take out the scenario and strictly look at the outcome.

Anyone with a pulse knows that an infinite amount of scenarios can result in the same outcome. The NCAA is the king of blanket punishments, and this is why it always seems to be messing things up.

The latest example is the James Wiseman case. Wiseman, a freshman basketball player at the University of Memphis and potential number one pick in next year’s NBA draft, is currently ruled ineligible.

Here’s the situation. As a high school athlete, Wiseman’s mother accepted a loan from Wiseman’s AAU coach, who happened to be Penny Hardaway, to cover moving expenses. Anyone who has dealt with moving knows it can be financially stressful, and Hardaway, caring for his players both on and off the court, decided to help out a player’s family. A kind gesture.

However, Hardaway, being a Memphis alum, had donated money to the university in the past. Hardaway then became the head coach of Memphis’ men’s basketball team, where Wiseman followed him.

In the eyes of a normal human, this all makes perfect sense. However, in the blanket-punishing eyes of the NCAA, this is a booster giving money to a recruit and the recruit agreeing to attend the university. That’s a no-no in NCAA blanket land.

Therefore, the NCAA will be suspending Wiseman from action, and Memphis has ruled him ineligible to try and limit the damage.

I understand the NCAA’s concerns. Paying a recruit to choose a school has no place in college athletics. But this simply isn’t the case here. The rule is in place to stop a certain action from happening, and that action didn’t happen. So what’s the issue?

You guessed it, blanket punishments. The scenario clearly points to no foul play. But because the NCAA feels the need to look at the result and ignore the intent, another student-athlete has to get into a legal battle instead of focusing on his future and, you know, being a college student.

This lunacy from the NCAA needs to stop. Not only is it detrimental to the athletes it impacts, but it also hurts the product. Who wants to see the potential future number one pick on the sidelines? A guy by the name of No Body. 

Let’s stop with the idiotic blanket sentencing already. The NCAA has drug enough student athletes through the mud. Make rulings on a case by case basis and inject a little bit of common sense while you’re at it. You can still protect against foul play, but you can also not make a fool out of yourself in the process. Let’s keep the game safe and fun at the same time. We need to be better, and it starts with ridding college athletics of these unnecessary sanctions.