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Renardo Sidney, basketball’s latest cautionary tale

Renardo Sidney, Brandon Mitchell

Mississippi State forward Renardo Sidney (1) goes underneath Arkansas guard Brandon Mitchell (25) for a layup during the first half of their NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, March 3, 2012, in Starkville, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

AP

The sad tale of Renardo Sidney is one that every single Division I basketball prospect should be told.

As a middle schooler, Sidney was a can’t miss talent. In eighth grade, he was considered the best player in the country in his age group. Most expected him to eventually become the next great one-and-done player, possibly even the No. 1 pick in the 2010 NBA Draft.

In high school, Sidney bought into his hype, moving from his native Mississippi to California in an effort to get more exposure and compete against the best that the LA area had to offer. But all that ended up happening was that Sidney and his family not-so-subtly lined their pockets, enough that it drew the attention of the NCAA. UCLA got scared off. USC did as well. Sidney ended up enrolling at Mississippi State, where the NCAA suspended him for a full season plus nine games of the following season for the illegal benefits and the lies he told to try and cover it up.

By the time Sidney finally saw the court in college, he was far too overweight to play enough significant minutes. He seemed to lack the motivation to improve, both in regards to his conditioning and his off-court temperament. His second year at MSU, Sidney got into a pair of fights with teammates, including an ugly brawl with Elgin Bailey that was caught by ESPN’s cameras in Hawaii.

The irony?

If Sidney had given half the effort to getting in shape that he did in trying to drop Bailey with a haymaker he may have heard his name called by David Stern in the first round of Thursday’s NBA Draft.

Because for all the excess fat -- Sidney weighed in at 304 pounds with 22.4% body fat, the second-highest in the database hosted by Draft Express -- and the horrendous conditioning, the talent Sidney has was still evident. He was nimble, quick even, with good feet for a man his size. He had touch around the basket and range on his jump shot. His wingspan (7'4.5" at the combine) and his vertical (30" without a step, a good number for a 6-foot-10 power forward that’s actually in shape) should give you a glimpse of just what kind of player Sidney was earlier in his career.

Instead, Sidney has now burned through his second agent since the draft process started and has seemingly accepted the fact that his talent has officially been wasted.

“This whole NBA process is really tough and with me dropping two agents, it really doesn’t look good for me right now,” Sidney told Brandon Marcello of the Clarion-Ledger. “Like you said, it sounds like I’m lost. I can admit that I’m lost. I’m just trying to find my way back and see on Thursday what happens.”

So keep this in mind, recruits. Remember what happens when you buy into your hype and when you expect everything yo be handed to you. Guys like LeBron James and Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant are exceptional talents with undeniable athletic gifts, but they also work incredibly hard at their craft. LeBron didn’t win a title until he developed a post-game. You think that happened by accident? Durant is a three-time NBA scoring champ because he’s 6-foot-10 with the perimeter skills of a shooting guard. You think that he was born with range out to 30-feet and the ability to handle the ball like a player eight inches shorter?

If I could ask Sidney one question right now, it would be ‘Where all the hangers-on and yes men are right now?’. Where are the people that told you how good you were? Where are the people that were funneling money to your family? Where are the runners and the agents and the shoe companies? Where is everyone who told you that you made it because a couple of websites wrote about you as a 14 year old?

They certainly aren’t going to be with you during the draft.

“I want to be around family when the draft comes on,” Sidney told Marcello. “I didn’t want to be alone.”

So if you are Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker or Julius Randle -- or anyone that made this list, for that matter -- keep that in mind. Bookmark this page.

Remember the plight of Renardo Sidney the next time someone tells you that you’re the next NBA superstar.

Rob Dauster is the editor of the college basketball website Ballin’ is a Habit. You can find him on twitter @robdauster.