TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Tampa Surgery Linked To Investigation Of UConn Recruit

ADVERTISEMENT

By BRETT McMURPHY | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 27, 2009

Updated: 03/27/2009 10:23 am

TAMPA - Josh Nochimson, the former University of Connecticut student manager turned sports agent, paid several thousand dollars for a surgery on UConn recruit Nate Miles in December 2007 in Tampa, the Tampa Tribune and Tampa's 1010 CBS Sports Radio reported.

Dr. M. Christopher MacLaren, then with the Tampa Bay Bone and Joint Center, said he performed surgery on Miles, a recruit from Toledo, Ohio, at the Tampa Bay Surgery Center.

Citing HIPAA laws, MacLaren would not disclose what surgery was performed, but told the Tribune Thursday the average cost of the surgery ranges between $8,000 to $10,000.

MacLaren said Nochimson told him that he was going to pay the entire amount, though MacLaren did not witness the actual transaction.

"Miles had no health insurance, I do know that," MacLaren told the Tribune. "Josh called me and said how much is this going to cost. I said I don't know the exact cost, I don't do the billing. I gave him the number for the billing department."

After the surgery MacLaren later checked with the billing office to see if the payment was made. "I remember this to a 'T.' I asked 'Did we get paid?' " MacLaren said. "They told me, 'yes, we got paid.' "

If Nochimson, who had been certified by the NBA Players Association as a players' agent 19 months earlier, paid for Miles' surgery, that could have made Miles ineligible to play basketball at any NCAA university, according to NCAA rules.

At the time of the surgery, Miles had already committed to UConn, but was still trying to qualify academically, according to a Hartford (Conn.) Courant report on Miles' recruitment. MacLaren said he was unaware Nochimson was an agent.

MacLaren's revelations, initially reported by J.P. Peterson on "Happy Hour with J.P." on Tampa's 1010 CBS Sports Radio, are the latest reports linking Nochimson, Miles and UConn.

On Wednesday, Yahoo! Sports broke the story that Miles was given lodging, transportation, meals and representation by Nochimson and that a UConn assistant coach knew about the relationship between the player and the agent. The comprehensive story cited interviews, documents obtained under Freedom of Information laws and other sources.

Nochimson was considered a representative of UConn's athletic interests by the NCAA and was prohibited from having contact with Miles or giving him anything of value, Yahoo reported. Documents obtained by the Web site showed numerous pages of phone and text message correspondence between Nochimson and Miles.

Miles was expelled from UConn in October 2008 without ever playing a game for the Huskies after he was charged with violating a restraining order in a case involving a woman who claimed he assaulted her. He played this season at a junior college in Idaho.

When MacLaren performed the surgery in Tampa on Miles, the 6-foot-7 forward was still waiting to get accepted into UConn. He signed with UConn on June 13, according to the Hartford Courant.

MacLaren told the Tribune Nochimson and Miles flew from Toledo to Tampa the day before the 8 a.m. surgery was performed. They spent three days in Tampa before returning to Toledo, MacLaren said. It's unknown who paid for the airline tickets or their hotel rooms.

Nochimson told MacLaren, the 40-year old surgeon was recommended by the International Management Group's Sports Academy and Pro Training Center in Bradenton.

MacLaren, now with Westchase Sports Medicine, is subspecialty trained in sports medicine and arthroscopic surgical reconstruction of the shoulder and knee.

"Nochimson got my number from IMG," MacLaren told the Tribune. "He said I had a reputation for getting good results and wanted to know how long it would be until Nate could get back to playing.

"Nochimson told me he was a friend of Nate Miles, that Nate came from a broken family. He was Nate's mentor and took him under his wing and took care of him. The quote was 'Nate will be going to UConn next year. He's a top recruit.' That was the urgency of having to surgery to get him ready."

Yahoo reported in the spring of 2008 that Nochimson arranged a multi-week stay for Miles at IMG. That would have been just months after his surgery in Tampa.

"Josh called and said 'I've got a guy, Nate Miles, who I need to place down there to prepare for his professional career [in case he didn't qualify academically at UConn],' " IMG's Director of Basketball Mike Moreau said through a spokesman, Yahoo reported.

Miles told Yahoo that Nochimson had nothing to do with his attendance at IMG. Moreau, he said, "is lying to you if he said that." When asked what incentive Moreau had to lie, Miles ended the interview with Yahoo.

At IMG, Miles was treated to state-of-the-art coaching, skill development, training and nutrition. IMG wouldn't disclose to Yahoo who paid Miles' tuition, which runs several thousand dollars a week for most of its individual basketball programs.

Miles gained his eligibility and enrolled at UConn for a summer session in June of 2008. On Sept. 22, a 19-year-old female student turned Miles into campus police, alleging he physically and sexually assaulted her. She said he ground his nails into her leg when she wouldn't have sex with him, slapped her and became possessive of her. The campus police arrested Miles on Sept. 25 and issued a restraining order.

Within 16 minutes of being served the order, Miles called the woman. He was charged with a felony for violating a restraining order and referred to counseling which could lead to the charges being dropped. The case is pending in Connecticut superior court.

On Oct. 2, before UConn held its first official practice, the university expelled Miles. He is now at College of Southern Idaho, a junior college in Twin Falls, Idaho.

Since Yahoo's initial report, the NCAA has began an investigation into Nochimson, Miles and UConn, several media outlets reported Thursday.

Reporter Brett McMurphy can be reached at (813) 259-7928.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT