Auriemma Confused by Davis Call Complaint

Little League World Series dynamo Mo'ne Davis said last month that she wants to play basketball for UConn and Geno Auriemma before graduating to the WNBA. In recent days, she has appeared at a WNBA playoff game and thrown out the first pitch at a Dodgers game. So it doesn't seem out of the ordinary for Auriemma to call Davis to congratulate her on a fantastic Little League season.

Except that some people had a problem with it.

A friend of Auriemma's who had been contacted by the NBA's 76ers asked him to make the call "because [Davis] loves basketball, and congratulations or something seem in order," Auriemma explained. The Little League communications office agreed that Auriemma would call and leave message but Davis was in the room and was handed the phone.

"The conversation lasted like two minutes and we hung up," Auriemma said. "And then I was told a school turned us in for a recruiting violation because we are not allowed contact of July 1 before her junior year of high school. ... That's the world that we live in."

The school lodging the complaint doesn't have to publicly identify itself, Auriemma said, adding that he's never even seen Davis play basketball.

"Under normal circumstances, I would probably not know anything about her until she was in ninth grade," Auriemma said. "I have no idea if the kid is very good, kind of good, not good at all or a superstar or can even reach the basket. How is that a violation?

"So what does this mean? If a kid wins a swimming contest somewhere and is wearing a [UConn] sweat shirt and I call to congratulate her in seventh grade, is someone now going to say you are not allowed to do that? Well, why not? Isn't that unbelievable?

"There are guys playing college basketball driving around in cars worth more than my house and we're worried about a phone call to a little girl?"

The man makes a good point.

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