Ollie Discrimination Lawsuit

[CL82]

I dispute that his success came easily in 14. That was a tough lineup to get there. The part that’s hard to comprehend is that KO had to be the hardest worker in the NBA because he hung onto his career by his fingernails as a fringe player. Do we know that he stopped putting in the effort or it was just a matter of failing?

KO's first two seasons were great. It is sad that his UConn tenure has to end this way. Again though, that's on KO.

 

[Pudge]

I loved coach Ollie from 5 minutes into that Michigan State opener until about 3 minutes ago. I'm a bit appalled him and his lawyers are playing that card. All he had to do was place nice at the negoatiating table and he would have walked away with something and could have pivoted to a nice assistant coaching job in the NBA. Now he's reaching and i mean reeeeaching. Not only is it completely asinine but a poor reflection of character. Really sad how this had to unfold. Man this is bumming me out. Thanks for 2014 coach, but racial discrimination??!? And comparing your leave to the great calhoun SOLELY based on skin color. Geez Louise. Lost for words right now.

Agree 110%

(Which is mathematically impossible)

 

[JB75]

OK but just cause the NCAA thinks there’s enough evidence doesn’t mean I’m gonna 100% blindly agree with- if You’ve been following college sports the last 20-30 years I’m fairly certain the NCAA has made some decisions that you don’t agree with - with that being said it’s all good let’s go down to our home away from home and smack nova on Saturday. Kurt king getting suspended for the rest of the year for accepting a plane ticket ? you agree with that one ? just making a point

 

[Dogdeacon]

We have to assume both sides are rational and pursue a strategy that yields the most $.

UConn: Not offering a settlement because they had cause to terminate (this has now been PROVEN) and they think they'll win arbitration and they think the odds + costs of losing a lawsuit are less than any viable settlement

Ollie: Here the calculus is rougher, he pursues lawsuits at no cost and that discipline is leading to legal strategies taxing the other side, pursuing throw ___ on a wall. Add the burden of Ollie's divorce settlement creating a deficit hole that only his old contract could have supported.
Ollie's choices & litigation indicate that Ollie knows the expected value of winning a portion of salary are greater than the ongoing damage he does to his reputation and hire-ability. The double edged sword of this is that means it is very likely the poor performance, violations and cause are so bad that he isn't getting a job anyway so he might as well burn every bridge to get any possible portion of his now long gone salary.

The situation is Ollie recognizes his poor performance means he'll never coach again, so there is nothing to lose by slinging mud. It is unfortunately indicative of how very bad he was at his job that his best chance of getting any future money from coaching is any and all litigation against his former employer.

Someone with nothing to lose can be dangerous, but UConn also has known this from the get-go and still pursues a no settlement strategy.

 

[Madmannsucks]

Hey, I'm a Jets fan. Todd Bowles has a worse record than Rex Ryan did. He hasn't been fired yet. Can Rex file a discrimination suit against the Jets?

I don't know. Because Ryan got his money, so why would he sue?

 

[BlueMAB]

I don't know. Because Ryan got his money, so why would he sue?

He's also not a member of a protected class.

 

[CL82]

OK but just cause the NCAA thinks there’s enough evidence doesn’t mean I’m gonna 100% blindly agree with- if You’ve been following college sports the last 20-30 years I’m fairly certain the NCAA has made some decisions that you don’t agree with - with that being said it’s all good let’s go down to our home away from home and smack nova on Saturday. Kurt king getting suspended for the rest of the year for accepting a plane ticket ? you agree with that one ? just making a point

Um you pretty much aren't.

 

[Madmannsucks]

You know what would really make sense. Come up with an agreement ASAP. Work something out(which is what should have been done from day one). The program is back to almost being relevant again. Make this story stop now. For those he think he won't find work...Really, ask Jim Lavin, or Michael Vick, or Randy Moss, or Michael Irvin, John Calipari....and on and on.

 

[Madmannsucks]

He's also not a member of a protected class.

Actually his age would qualify him.

 

[superjohn]

CL82- in my mind its ticky tack and they were trying to find a reason to say goodbye. I mean , if I look hard enuff u can find dirt in anybody. Things aren’t black and white. Always room for gray. I’m sure you understand that if Ollie was winning and things were going fine this would never have come about - let’s just be honest with ourselves and say he got fired because of his performance and yes I do believe what he did was ticky tack - we can agree to disagree. Just like when Kurt king accepted a plane ticket to go home to see his family over holiday break and got suspended for the rest of The season. Sometimes commonsense needs to be applied- u sound like you’re defending those crooks at the NCAA - comical

Let’s just focus on nova and end this thread. This topic/conversation is played out

You keep posting that it's ticky tack and flimsy and then in the same breath want the discussion to end.
I can't stand the NCAA but that doesn't mean you just ignore their rules. UConn was already under the microscope because of past indiscretions, it's why Ollie's contract was drafted the way it was. Ollie agreed to the terms of the contract and then breached the contract. Paying for impermissible outside workouts isn't ticky tack and lying to the NCAA is never ticky tack. Again, you can think the NCAA sucks but knowingly breaking their rules and lying to them is just stupid and endangers the school you work for.

 

[SouthBayHusky]

NEXT

 

[bobbyinaz]

I think we are all in agreement that future job opportunities for KO will be limited based on EVERYTHING that's happened.

My questions to those smarter than me on this is:

Does the Racial Discrimination lawsuit allow KO to not only seek the $10MM he claims to be owed but, can it include future earnings? Can this filing be his & his attorneys thinking that since he is likely un-hireable going forward they should pursue damages to future earnings?

 

[svetbird]

Hey, I'm a Jets fan. Todd Bowles has a worse record than Rex Ryan did. He hasn't been fired yet. Can Rex file a discrimination suit against the Jets?

I'm a Bills fan. Can we both sue Rex for fraud since he both guaranteed Super Bowls and impersonated a NFL coach

 

[CL82]

We have to assume both sides are rational and pursue a strategy that yields the most $.

UConn: Not offering a settlement because they had cause to terminate (this has now been PROVEN) and they think they'll win arbitration and they think the odds + costs of losing a lawsuit are less than any viable settlement

Ollie: Here the calculus is rougher, he pursues lawsuits at no cost and that discipline is leading to legal strategies taxing the other side, pursuing throw ___ on a wall. Add the burden of Ollie's divorce settlement creating a deficit hole that only his old contract could have supported.
Ollie's choices & litigation indicate that Ollie knows the expected value of winning a portion of salary are greater than the ongoing damage he does to his reputation and hire-ability. The double edged sword of this is that means it is very likely the poor performance, violations and cause are so bad that he isn't getting a job anyway so he might as well burn every bridge to get any possible portion of his now long gone salary.

The situation is Ollie recognizes his poor performance means he'll never coach again, so there is nothing to lose by slinging mud. It is unfortunately indicative of how very bad he was at his job that his best chance of getting any future money from coaching is any and all litigation against his former employer.

Someone with nothing to lose can be dangerous, but UConn also has known this from the get-go and still pursues a no settlement strategy.

I think KO's optimization strategy would have been to portray himself as a good guy who got caught up in confusing NCAA rules. UConn likely would have written something in support of that, but stressed that compliance is important. His representation's scorched earth campaign was a tactical mistake in that:

​

1) It failed to get a desirable result for Kevin;​

2) It severely damaged KO's public reputation among UConn fans;​

3) It burned bridges with people who could have and would have helped him;​

4) It will give employers pause in hiring him; and​

5) It poisoned the negotiation well making a negotiated settlement unlikely.​

As I've said handling the high profile client is different from handling a regular case. It seems as if his representation didn't grasp that. Of course it's possible that they did and KO instructed them them to pursue their scorched earth strategy.

I have a quibble or two in how UConn's representation handled this case but by and large they have made the right decisions and look to be about to prevail. There is a natural tendency to mistake false equivalency as being fair minded. "Well they are both at fault" sounds measured but isn't automatically correct. This is one of the times that it isn't.

 

[JB75]

I know- I get it rules are rules -just saying , NCAA sucks we all know this

 

[JMick]

You know what would really make sense. Come up with an agreement ASAP. Work something out(which is what should have been done from day one). The program is back to almost being relevant again. Make this story stop now. For those he think he won't find work...Really, ask Jim Lavin, or Michael Vick, or Randy Moss, or Michael Irvin, John Calipari....and on and on.

He's going to have a very hard time getting a job. All of those guys were top of their profession.... Ollie is not. This isn't helping him. Who would hire someone that is suing his former employer for racial discrimination when it's clear that no discrimination on that basis occurred?

 

[Madmannsucks]

He's going to have a very hard time getting a job. All of those guys were top of their profession.... Ollie is not. This isn't helping him. Who would hire someone that is suing his former employer for racial discrimination when it's clear that no discrimination on that basis occurred?

The point everyone is looking past without consideration is simple. He was treated differently than others in similar capacities. That is probably not going to be summarily dismissed in my opinion.

 

[BlueMAB]

Actually his age would qualify him.

Good call, my mistake.

 

[JMick]

The point everyone is looking past without consideration is simple. He was treated differently than others in similar capacities. That is probably not going to be summarily dismissed in my opinion.

But the circumstances are different.

 

[CL82]

The point everyone is looking past without consideration is simple. He was treated differently than others in similar capacities. That is probably not going to be summarily dismissed in my opinion.

The point is he didn't timely file. He had a choice whether to pursue this claim or to utilize arbitration of his just cause dismissal. He and his representation chose the latter. I doubt the court will let him have his cake and eat it too.

 

[Madmannsucks]

The point is he didn't timely file. He had a choice whether to pursue this claim or to utilize arbitration of his just cause dismissal. He and his representation chose the latter. I doubt the court will let him have his cake and eat it too.

Think he had till yesterday.
Ollie had until Monday to file a complaint with the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, according to the complaint. His claim, known as "emergency injunctive relief," seeks to allow him to proceed with his discrimination claim while also continuing the arbitration process with the university.

 

[CL82]

Think he had till yesterday.

But instead of filing, he asked for a court mandated extension of the time to file. Is that right? If so, I doubt he gets it.

 

[Madmannsucks]

Good call, my mistake.

Guess I would be your lawyer...1000 dollar retainer please.

 

[BlueMAB]

The point everyone is looking past without consideration is simple. He was treated differently than others in similar capacities. That is probably not going to be summarily dismissed in my opinion.

I'm not looking past it, it's the reason I think they should offer a small settlement, that said, I do believe UConn has a good story to tell with respect to the NCAA treatment while I'd be shocked if Ollie had any other examples of a pattern of discrimination by the AD to support his case.

 

[Dogdeacon]

I think KO's optimization strategy would have been to portray himself as a good guy who got caught up in confusing NCAA rules. UConn likely would have written something in support of that, but stressed that compliance is important. His representation's scorched earth campaign was a tactical mistake. 1) It failed to get a desirable result for Kevin. 2) It severely damaged KO's public reputation among UConn fans. 3) It burned bridges with people who could have and would have helped him. 4) It will give employers pause in hiring him. 5) It poisoned the negotiation well making a negotiated settlement unlikely. As I've said handling the high profile client is different from handling a regular case. It seems as if his representation didn't grasp that. Of course it's possible that they did and KO instructed them them to pursue their scorched earth strategy.

I have a quibble or two in how UConn's representation handled this case but by and large they have made the right decisions and look to be about to prevail. There is a natural tendency to mistake false equivalency as being fair minded. "Well they are both at fault" sounds measured but isn't automatically correct. This is one of the times that it isn't.

Reasoned observations. On KO's optimization strategy even though we know via his litigation and coaching performance over the past three years that he is not a 'good guy' they still could have tried to sell and advocate that way.
If they pitched that to KO and he rejected it, I'd conjecture that he did so;
1. Due to the hubris of getting paid handsomely without working diligently for 2+ years,
2. Because he knew that it wasn't true & either his logic or conscience didn't allow consideration of that approach and
3. Expected value of that strategy was lower, including a mea culpa means 25-50% of remaining $, that was untenable as his offers to UConn indicate Ollie can only settle for the full value given the personal and professional holes he has dug. In this analysis he failed to see the benefit of spin for future coaching prospects & income.
All reasonably possible as he continues to ignore any impact of this post-settlement other than an ever distant fantasy of complete vindication. Nothing in recent Ollie past indicates that he recognizes what to stop doing when in a hole.