Tuesday, February 12, 2008

The story behind the story

The story behind the story is the one we rarely access but Steve Sneddon gives it a good shot in the following article. It is interesting that Coach Mark Fox came to the decision that Hanson could no longer be part of the team despite no criminal violations. Maybe the simple truth truly is that Hanson needed to get out of Reno -- although he doesn't or didn't feel that way.

Tyrone Hanson begins long road back
Steve Sneddon
RENO GAZETTE-JOURNAL
February 10, 2008


WARNER, Okla. -- Junior college basketball is filled with players hoping for a second chance.

Hundreds of them, still holding out hope they can get back to major college basketball, or get there for the first time.

Tyrone Hanson, who is enrolled at Arkansas-Fort Smith Community College, is trying to make a return, after being dismissed from the Nevada men's basketball team on Oct. 30.

"I feel like I'm back in high school again, really," said Hanson, who is redshirting this season and will play for Arkansas-Fort Smith as a sophomore in 2008-09 season.

For now, Hanson practices and watches his team play games at home and on the road. On the road, the Lions travel, by van, to places like Connors State College in Warner, Okla., which has a population of about 2,000.

"After playing in front of thousands, now, it's like small gyms, like I'm back in high school," said the former Pack player, who sat for an interview in Warren two weeks ago. "The level of the competition is real good. There's a lot of Division I guys on my team. I'd say about five of them. The team is real good. Guys work hard."

Hanson is starting over.

He was dismissed from Nevada following a tumultuous series of events in Reno that started with the homicides of three college-aged men at a Halloween party in the early morning hours of Oct. 28. Hanson, who turns 21 today, was robbed and beaten at the party.

Nevada coach Mark Fox said Hanson was not removed from the team for being involved in a fight, but for disregarding instructions not to go to the party after an earlier team policy violation.

Fox helped Hanson, who said the earlier violation was a positive test for marijuana, transfer to Arkansas Fort-Smith. The Lions' coach is former Nevada assistant Josh Newman...
Go here for the remainder.

The story gets deeper with this article "I can hear the screaming, I can hear the guns" Do click on the link and read further.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hanson was already in trouble for testing positive for pot, a good source told me he had been in some trouble before, he was specifically ordered by his coach to not attend the party and then he ignored his coaches order and went anyway. Add to that the fact that he was involved in the initial confrontation that lead to the deaths of three popular local young men and he needed to go. The pressure on Hanson and the team would have been a huge distraction and he violated the coaches trust. He was a sure starter this season and he would have made a difference, but the team is better off that he's gone. In the long run it's probably better for Hanson as well.