NEW YORK– It was a wild day here in Federal Court Monday as the mountain of evidence against former aspiring agent Christian Dawkins and former Adidas consultant Merl Code continued to grow during the second college basketball corruption trial.
Testimony by Munish Sood, a financial advisor from Princeton, N.J. who was a partner in Dawkins’ new sports management company and is now acting as a cooperating witness, clandestine FBI videos and intercepted wire taps took direct aim at Arizona coach Sean Miller, painting a damaging picture of the way he and his staff conduct business.
They also painted a particularly unflattering portrait of associate head coach Book Richardson, who has already pleaded guilty to taking $20,000 in cash bribes from financial advisers in exchange for using his position to influence players on his own team to retain the services of the advisers paying the bribes.
During a telephone call, which FBI wiretaps intercepted on June 2, 2107, Dawkins and Sood discussed how much it would cost for them to sign Ayton as a client once he turned pro. Sood testified on Monday that he and Dawkins were already paying then-Arizona associate head coach Book Richardson to influence Wildcat players and recruits to sign with their firm.
“Richardson already made it clear you’re going to get, or we’re going get, the No. 1 pick next year,’’ Sood said during the call. “It’s going to be more money than what Book said, I mean because I talks to Sean,’’ Dawkins told Sood. “Sean’s the one who fronted the deal. So, it’s going to be some money, but I mean we’ll have to figure that out.’’
ESPN reported last February that Miller discussed with Dawkins paying Dawkins $100,000 to play for the Wildcats, a report Miller has denied.
Sood, who pleaded guilty to three felony counts related to the case, testified Richardson accepted a $5,000 bribe during an initial meeting in June 2017. In return he promised to steer current and future players, including Ayton, Rawle Alkins and Allonzo Trier to Dawkins’ company. At one point during the recording, Richardson told Sood and undercover FBI agents that Dawkins told him, “I wish I was a pimp and you were a prostitute, you’d make millions for me,’’ Richardson said. He also chastised Richardson for paying recruits out of his own pocket. “You’re making a quarter of a million dollars and you’re broke,’’ Dawkins said.
Dawkins and Sood’s highest priority was Ayton. Before Ayton ever played a game for Arizona, Richardson and the others were discussing his future representation. Richardson said in an August,2017 meeting, Ayton’s mother “was loyal to someone else” when it came to picking an agent and he eventually signed with agent Nima Namakian.
Sood testified Richardson took an initial $5,000 from the firm and another $15,000 in July, money that he wanted for the recruitment of another elite prospect, point guard Jahvon Quinerly from Hudson, NJ Catholic. Richardson said he paid Quinerly’s mother $10,000 out of his own pocket and he told Quinerly he’d give him $5,000 if he committed to Arizona.
“So how’s this work?’’ the mother wanted to know. “I want to live in Tucson.’’
At first, Richardson tried to talk her out of it, saying the weather was too hot. Then, he came up with an alternate solution. “You got to find a job. … This is what I’ll do,’’ he said. “This is what I can do for you to put you in a situation to move to Tucson. … I don’t want the NCAA messing with us. You should take one or two more visits and then shut it down. And then as soon as you do that, you commit.”
Quinerly committed to Arizona in Aug. 2017.But after Richardson was among 10 arrested by the Feds in September, Quinerly decommitted and signed with for Villanova. Quinerly hardly played and announced after the season he was transferring to another school.
Sood testified the men set up a business agreement with Alkins the summer. Richardson also said during the recording he was making $2,000 monthly payments to Rodney Labossiere, Alkins cousin, who was living with him in Tucson to keep the player in line.
If that wasn’t bad enough, Richardson is on video claiming LSU coach Will Wade informally tried to lure him away from Arizona to help in the recruitment of Tigers’ 6-9 freshman Naz Reid, a former McDonald’s All American from Roselle, NJ Catholic who played one year for LSU’s SEC regular season champions before declaring for the NBA draft.
Richardson claims on tape Wade told him, ‘Look, there’s a deal in place. I got $300,000 for him.’’ Richardson then says, “I said, listen, bleep, give me half that and I’ll make sure that happens.’’
Richardson also had some choice words about SEC recruiting. “In that league, I’ll give a guy to sign $20, $30, $40 grand. But if I’m recruiting against Mississippi State, all bets are off.’’
