No matter how some NCAA sub-committee thinks the world works, there really wasn’t any way they weren’t going to connect. None at all.
I knew Ed Martin to a small degree before he died in 2003. He was always hanging around high school gyms and came across as a nice guy and a big fan. People who knew him better swore by his generosity and said he had a great passion to help kids who often hailed from disadvantaged backgrounds navigate the very precarious process of getting to college hoops and then the NBA.
He was also accused by many of steering players to this high school or that college, which on the macro level isn’t a big deal if the kid benefits.
There was a reason just about any college coach or pro sports agent looking for Motor City recruits tried to have a relationship with him. At least until he was indicted in 2002 for running an illegal gambling operation and later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder money.
At best, he was a kind-hearted Robin Hood. There are plenty of those in youth basketball.