MACtion: The Emoni Bates Saga Ends The Weirdest Way It Could ... With Him Officially Transferring To Eastern Michigan
And there it is. I summed up the last few years of the Emoni Bates saga here yesterday:
This is the only way it could have ended. Going back home to Ypsilanti - still not 100% positive I say that city name right - where the whole thing started. You may remember that Emoni Bates' dad started his own high school in this city where he played his last season. Now he's back. This time playing for a MAC school.
That still doesn't sound right. Emoni Bates, former No. 1 recruit, former Gatorade Player of the Year, is playing for Eastern Michigan. You may ask why? Simple.
This was the not so quiet secret when it came to Bates. There was always something. Teams backed off and that's how you end up playing for Stan Heath (STAN HEATH!) and EMU. As for what it means for Bates? Well it's obviously a gamble. If he kills it at EMU and looks like former No. 1 recruit his draft stock is back. If he's just average? Well, we may end up with a documentary on him and the downfall.
All I know is we have some college basketball MACtion. I'm going to be entertained as hell watching EMU, who actually has a damn good guard in Noah Farrakhan. There's the recipe for success at EMU, it's just a matter of Bates living up to the hype. On one hand he's going home, where he's beloved and will have a fanbase there. At Memphis he was part of every criticism, that dwindles at EMU.
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This was the only way this could have ended. Emoni Bates at EMU. What a bizarre world.