May 16, 2008

DALLAS (Ticker) -- Darrell Arthur, a starting forward on Kansas' national championship winning team, should not have eligible for college, Dallas TV station WFAA reported.

Arthur, who scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in the Jayhawks' overtime win over Memphis in the NCAA title game last month, had grade changes made to maintain his eligibility while at nearby South Oak Cliff High.

WFAA documented three instances of where Arthur had grades altered, including when he was a freshman in 2002-03. Former math teacher Winford Ashmore told the station that he was approached by former principal Donald Moten and current basketball coach James Mays about raising Arthur's grade.

When Ashmore refused, Arthur was taken out of the class, and later received a 70 on his transcript, the report stated.

"Since Darrell Arthur really did not pass algebra, which means he did not clear the (NCAA) clearinghouse, that also means that he really should not have been eligible for a Division I major college scholarship," Ashmore told WFAA.

Mays is refuting the story, stating that Arthur had a 3.0 grade point average at Kansas this past semester.

It is unknown how this allegation will affect Kansas, which claimed its first national title since 1988. This is the latest bit of bad news in an already tumultuous offseason for college basketball, coming in the wake of news that Southern Cal freshman star O.J. Mayo received cash and gifts dating back to high school for future representation.

A first-team All-Big 12 selection as a sophomore, Arthur averaged 12.8 points, 6.3 rebounds and a team-leading 1.3 blocks in 40 games. The 6-9 forward declared for the NBA draft on April 17, but chose not to hire an agent.

Without representation, Arthur could return to school if he pulls his name out of the draft by June 16.