OPINION

By Mike DeCourcy

updated 9:09 p.m. ET June 9, 2009

Mike DeCourcy

If a basketball prospect were to take out the following "situations wanted" advertisement -- let's presume on Craigslist, because we want this column to be relevant to this generation -- how many college coaches would pick up the phone?

Exceptionally skilled 6-10, 260-pound forward looking for new future. Ranked among top 10 prospects in 2009 recruiting class; McDonald's All-American, Jordan Brand Classic. Competed for top West Coast high school. If the NCAA clears me to compete, I'll play in the post or facing the basket. You may need to kick-start me, but I'm ready to be coached. The SoCal schools backed out, but not every star wants to be in L.A.

That is Renardo Sidney, in a paragraph.

That's a lot to ignore.

"When they called -- who's not going to take him?" Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury said. "We were very excited they had a change of heart and decided to come back home. We understand there are some issues he has to get through."

Sidney will forever be a product of Fairfax High in Los Angeles, the second high school he attended after his family moved across the country. But he grew up in Jackson, Miss., at which time the Bulldogs had no dream of recruiting him because there was no NBA draft age minimum and Sidney looked every bit the preps-to-pros prospect. Then he moved to the L.A. area, and the Bulldogs still had no dream of recruiting him because it seemed unlikely he'd head back to Mississippi.

Then both UCLA and USC withdrew from his recruitment, and Sidney wearing a Bulldogs uniform became a bit more realistic. A bit.

He since has signed a letter of intent with Mississippi State, but Stansbury knows it's not as simple as Sidney showing up to start class and take his rightful position in the starting lineup.

Sidney's recruitment has been complicated ever since the family moved to California, reportedly with the assistance of Sonny Vaccaro, who then was working for Reebok. Which is why Sidney's family retained the services of attorney Don Jackson of Montgomery, Ala., whose firm -- The Sports Group -- has successfully represented other athletes facing questions about their NCAA eligibility. Jackson said he is providing the NCAA with "all information it is reasonable to present," although he said a request for four years' worth of the family's bank records was out of bounds.

In some ways, the past several months have been a smash for the Bulldogs. They rallied to secure an NCAA Tournament berth by winning the SEC Tournament championship. Star center Jarvis Varnado, the best shot-blocker in college basketball last season, entered the NBA draft but withdrew weeks ahead of the deadline. And then came the signings of Sidney and Sudanese center John Riek, who should give the Bulldogs a powerful post rotation.

But Stansbury has not appreciated the popular reaction to his decision to sign Sidney and, to a lesser extent, Riek.

"Why shouldn't Sidney be at Miss State?" Stansbury said. "Back home, getting away from the negative publicity. He'll be playing on a team that's won championships. He'll play on a team with a big guy, so he doesn't have to play center. Why shouldn't he be at Miss State?

"Basically, what we know about him is he's a good kid. I think he's really matured a lot in his time out there. His size, strength and skill speak for themselves."

Stansbury said Mississippi State hadn't bothered to recruit Sidney for years because of the expectation he would attend a school on the West Coast but began following him when his mother, Patricia, "sent word back that we needed to recruit him because they wanted to come back home.

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"We said to ourselves he is from Mississippi, so we need to do it and if something doesn't work out there, we'd be there. It worked out basically as we planned."

It might seem getting Sidney through the NCAA's eligibility process is the only hurdle -- and, given the current climate, a heck of a hurdle at that -- but even if he's good to go in November, there'll be one other item to manage.

The only reason Sidney does not leave high school as the No. 1 player in his class is his penchant for delivering performances that are less than enthusiastic. Some have attempted to make excuses for him in that regard, but the obvious truth is players such as Derrick Favors of Atlanta have been far more consistent in their effort.

Stansbury wants a shot at changing that part of Sidney's game.

"If they're going to play for us, they're going to play hard," Stansbury said. "That's what our program has been built on. We'll turn his energy up and get him in the best shape of his life."

This will happen only if the NCAA allows Stansbury to coach Renardo Sidney. Will it happen? For now, that answer is classified.

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