Sidelines
That English has
a decision at all
is tellingF Carl English is still 50-50, he could already be good as gone.
If, after looking around at the prospect of another year of UH, he still has any doubt, maybe he should go.
Think about it.
If being Carl English doesn't convince him, what will?
This is the time of his life. English could come back, play ball, be great, have the kind of year most people could only dream of.
He could win. Be part of another good team. Or a great one.
Everyone loves him.
His coach loves him. Ever hear Riley Wallace talk about English?
Ever had a coach talk that way about you?
He could be with his friends. Play basketball. Go to school. Go to the beach. Go to the hoop.
He could be in college for another year. Who wouldn't want that?
Everyone in the workforce would love to go to college for a year. I have the greatest job in the world, and I'd love to be in college for another year.
(Yes, he'll have already graduated. Exactly. Who wouldn't love to be back in college for another year and already have the degree out of the way!)
When he is old and gray, with his grandchildren around him, these are the days he'll tell them about.
The times with the team. The guys. Sitting around, stretching. Joking.
Being unbeatable.
Being the king.
You've seen English, seen him hit a big shot, and the Stan Sheriff Center explodes, and he pumps both fists at once, downward, in a yes! muscleman flex. And he lets out a shout, and has that smirk on his face. You know the one. And on his way down the court you can see those lips flapping as he tells his defender how easy that was, and how easy the next one will be, and how he's unstoppable, all night.
What a great feeling that must be.
And it'll never be quite that same way again.
You'd think he'd hold on to that for as long as he could.
LET'S FACE IT, this is no Ashley Lelie situation. This is not a guy who is going to be shaking hands with David Stern.
And English is smart enough to know it.
He could easily end up in the land of foreign languages and bounced checks. (Luckily he's Canadian, so the metric system won't baffle him.)
And if he chooses that over this, if he's even thinking about it, then he's already gone.
This seems like a no-brainer, and yet he's still thinking, and that says something.
And that's OK. That's how things go, sometimes. No, it's not what we'd do, not you or me. But if he thinks he's had enough, then he has. If he feels it's time to move on to the rest of his life, then it is.
He'd have his degree, and his four years and more memories than any of us know.
If he's looking for reasons to stay, he has plenty staring him right in the face.
If he's still looking, then maybe that's the biggest sign of all.
Kalani Simpson can be reached at ksimpson@starbulletin.com