Arizona head coach Sean Miller and his attorneys met Monday with school administrators, and his fate could be determined “sooner than later,” 247 Sports reported via sources.
Miller did not coach the team in Saturday’s 98-93 overtime loss to Oregon and was not with the team during Monday’s practice. Former Washington head coach Lorenzo Romar, a Miller assistant, has coached the team in Miller’s absence.
An ESPN story released Friday says the FBI has wiretapped conversations of Miller discussing a $100,000 payment to Deandre Ayton, the 7-foot-1 Bahamian native who is in the mix for the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft.
Yet 247Sports reported there are inconsistencies in ESPN’s reporting relating to the timeline of the alleged conversations. ESPN initially reported the conversations took place in 2017 before correcting the report several times to finally say they occurred in 2016. Ayton committed to Arizona in September 2016 and arrived on campus this past June.
“I believe it is in the best interest of our team that I not coach the game tonight,” Miller said in a statement prior to Saturday’s game. “I continue to fully support the University’s efforts to fully investigate this matter and am confident that I will be vindicated. For now, my thoughts are with our team. They are a great group of young men that will support each other and continue their pursuit of winning a Pac-12 championship.”
Whether or not Arizona parts ways with him, Miller could pursue legal action against ESPN. He also could still walk away from Arizona with more than $10 million, although the language of his contract has also become the source of controversy.
Arizona is currently a projected No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, per ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.
