In February, Arizona Wildcats athletic director Dave Heeke announced that the UA had “initiated the process to terminate” assistant basketball coach Mark Phelps.
The impetus for the move was not specified other than Heeke said the UA is “committed to the highest standards of integrity and ethical conduct” and “the decision to remove Coach Phelps immediately is a direct result of that commitment.”
ESPN later reported that Phelps was being accused of an NCAA violation “regarding former Arizona recruit Shareef O’Neal’s academic transcripts.”
Phelps’ attorney, Donald Maurice Jackson, denied any wrongdoing by Phelps at the time, and released a statement Saturday to claim defamation against Heeke and say that Phelps’ firing was an effort for Arizona to help offset NCAA sanctions that could be coming as result of the federal investigation into college basketball that saw former UA assistant Book Richardson receive a three-month prison sentence for bribery.