WKU Basketball: Stansbury Breaks Silence, Suspends Robinson “Indefinitely”
On Monday afternoon, head basketball coach Rick Stansbury broke his, and the program’s, silence on the Mitchell Robinson saga that has been toiling with WKU fans since early Friday morning.
His statement can be seen below, courtesy of Chad Bishop from WBKO (considering the statement hasn’t been posted to WKU’s official site as of publication):
“WKU freshman center Mitchell Robinson is suspended indefinitely from the program for a violation of team rules,” Stansbury said “Mitchell is a good kid, but the team will always be more important than one individual player. He needs to understand the value of structure and accountability in his life, and his return will be dependent upon requirements that will be handled internally. My focus is on our team, and I’m excited about this group as we prepare for next week’s trip to Costa Rica.”
A couple of things here.
First, WKU fans can breathe a sigh of relief. They’ve finally heard from the program, they know the “official” stance of the coach and, at least for now, Robinson is still a Hilltopper, just unable to play.
I also applaud Coach Stansbury’s efforts to make a statement, both figuratively and literally, by telling the program’s highest-ever recruit that he isn’t above the Towel (#OneTowel, anybody?). This sends a strong message to his team who’s ready to go for Costa Rica that he’s focused on them, not whatever drama is happening elsewhere, and it also sends a message to those on the recruiting circuit of what Stansbury and WKU are all about. For better or for worse.
Also, an “indefinite” suspension could mean quite literally anything. Remember Grayson Allen being suspended indefinitely last year? Yeah, that turned out to be one game. So, will Robinson miss all of the Costa Rica trip? Will he miss any of it? Will he miss a full semester? A full year? Or will he miss nothing? All of this remains to be seen.
As much as Stansbury said in his statement, unfortunately, there’s still a lot up in the air. Robinson can still leave the program and there really isn’t a definitive answer as to what will happen with him.
Something is better than nothing, I suppose, and this is simultaneously a big something and, perhaps, even a bigger nothing.
What did you make of Stansbury’s statements? Do you agree with his decision? Do you think this officially pushes Robinson out the door or will he come to the Hill after all? Let us know in a comment below, via Twitter at @TheTowelRackWKU or on our Facebook page.
