It would be hard to argue that the transition from Chico State women's basketball coach Lynne Roberts to Molly Goodenbour was easy for any of the parties involved.
Proof of this came early into the season when Erin O'Connor and Jennifer Borror were dismissed from the team amid allegations of verbal abuse. This notion was reinforced when Haley Ford left the team.
But like many of the program's faithful fans, I was stunned when we received the news that Amber Simmons, arguably the best player in the history of the program, wanted out.
Almost a month later, Simmons still is not released, and because of her decision to bring an attorney into the equation, it could be much longer.
Instead of attempting to solve the matter cordially, the decision to bring in an attorney forced Athletic Director Anita Barker to refer the issue to the university's legal counsel, no doubt lengthening an already difficult process.
Over the last few weeks, Barker has consistently stated that she is waiting on a list of schools Simmons would like to attend in order to give those schools permissions to contact her.
It doesn't sound overly complicated.
After waiting for the list for weeks, it came, written by a lawyer. Hence our situation today.
Barker made the point that the processes she is standing by prevent other schools from stealing athletes from other programs. That's good policy.
After the time and money invested in a player like Simmons, the university isn't going to send out an advertisement saying, "Hey come take our best player."
For reasons like these, Barker wanted a list of schools that she could approve, which she is allowed to do, so they could contact Simmons.
If Barker did not approve, Simmons would have the right to an appeal process. If it got to this point, I could see the necessity of involving an attorney in the matter.
It's obvious that Simmons does not like Barker, mainly because the athletic director stands behind Goodenbour.
This is not a reason to forego the reasonable request of providing a list of possible schools to Barker, nor is it a reason to hire an attorney.
Ryan can be reached at rklocke@theorion.com
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See these related articles:
- Zingg: University to address Simmons' transfer
- Player hires attorney
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