A defining moment?

At first, there was the initial shock -- the confusion, if you will.\n"Wait, we got Kelvin \nSampson-- who the heck is that?" was the sentiment felt by our fine academic institution March 29 -- the day Director of Athletics Rick Greenspan knighted Sampson head coach of the Hoosiers. \nOh, the guy from the University of Oklahoma. OK, cool.\nNow, with clearer heads and a better understanding of who exactly the man is, the strict practices he runs, his attention to defense and rebounding -- not to mention his rather outstanding winning record -- there's the feeling that he's a pretty good coach. So let's give him a chance and see what he can do with his players on the court.\nBut even before we see what Sampson does in-game, we're being treated to an intriguing and perhaps tenure-defining moment in Sampson's young career here at IU -- the Eric Gordon Jr. saga. \nQuick explanation: Gordon is the No. 1-rated shooting guard in the nation, according to rivals.com. He's from Indianapolis. He verbally committed to Illinois. He was here on an unofficial visit last weekend. And, of course, this situation has enraged Illinois fans and spurred rumors that Sampson is ruining his relationship with other Big Ten coaches (Illinois coach Bruce Weber is at the top of the list). \nYes, I know there is an unwritten rule among coaches that once a guy verbally commits to another school, that's it. Don't recruit him anymore. It's a done deal.\nBut doesn't Sampson deserve some sort of exemption from this? After all, he came in late on the recruiting game, and Gordon's camp indicated it didn't initially consider IU because of the "coaching situation." With Sampson in place, Gordon decided to keep his options open. \nThis isn't 100 percent IU coming after Gordon. There's some obvious interest on his side as well.\nFurthermore, don't we want our basketball coach doing this? Would you rather he just feel sorry that he got here late, not try at all and think "better luck next time?" I'd hope not. \nAnd as far as potential rivalry implications between IU and Illinois, (assuming Sampson lands Gordon) as a fan, you want this.\nSure, we have Purdue, but for the most part it's only really a rivalry because Purdue happens to be another university in our conference that's in-state. \nIt's more of a playful thing -- a fun little rivalry.\nIf Sampson lands Gordon, (or both Gordon and Derrick Rose -- the other star guard who visited last weekend) Illinois will have a reason to hate us. And in turn, we'll throw it right back at them. This has Jesus-Lucifer rivalry potential. (Well, maybe not that far, but you get the picture.) \nThis, my friends, would be awesome.\nBut, let's not get ahead of ourselves. We've lost out on these so-called "sexy" recruits during the Mike Davis years (see Josh Smith to the NBA, Sean May to the University of North Carolina, etc.) and there's no overriding indication why we should believe Gordon will be in an IU uniform next season. \nEither way, this would be a big signing, perhaps an early defining moment in Sampson's tenure in Bloomington.\nGet it done, Kelvin.