Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy defends Marshall Henderson
OXFORD, Miss. — When asked Tuesday if he considered kicking his star player off the team, Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy defended Marshall Henderson.
"As is typical with Marshall things get sensationalized, quite frankly," Kennedy said. "There have been a lot of different speculation and based on his rights and based on respect for those rights, we can't delve into anything. But here's a kid though that has not been arrested, knock on wood, and has certainly owned some of his mistakes. He was suspended for an internal matter. It wasn't something that we had to involve authorities outside of our roof, and we'll deal with it internally."
Henderson was suspended on July 10 for what the school classified as a violation of team rules. According to police reports obtained by USA TODAY Sports this summer, Henderson had three run-ins with police in Oxford, Miss., including one stop in which Henderson was found in possession of marijuana and cocaine.
That suspension remains technically ongoing, though Henderson practiced with the team Monday just like he has since classes began in August. What remains unclear is just how many games Henderson will miss once the season starts, though Kennedy's comments suggested that would be the athletic director Ross Bjork's call.
"I think it's ongoing based on how he progresses," Kennedy said. "Honestly, I hate to say this because I'm a parent and I feel like I'm a parent to these 13 guys and as soon as I start bragging about something he may take a step backwards but he's been 100 % compliant as it relates to the things that have been put in place."
Kennedy was the only member of the basketball program that spoke to the media on Tuesday. A decision has not been made when Henderson will submit to an interview for the first time since the team's loss in the NCAA Tournament round of 32.
He said that day that he wanted to be a leader for this team, on which he is the only senior. Henderson said that his troubles (which included a 2009 arrest on forgery charges, and serving jail time in 2012 after testing positive for cocaine, marijuana and alcohol while on probation) were behind him, and he felt that he could now be that type of player for Ole Miss.
"Marshall's play has not changed," Kennedy said. "Again when you see him today he's the same guy from an emotional standpoint, from an energy standpoint. He's taken a leadership role as it relates to he's always going to be the way that he is when it relates to passion and being engaged and being on that edge from a position standpoint. The thing that I've been the most proud about is that he's winning the sprints at the end, he's encouraging the young guys when they make mistakes."
Henderson was named the AP' SEC newcomer of the year and the SEC Tournament MVP after leading the conference in scoring (20.1 points per game) and setting an NCAA record with 394 3-point attempts.
Hugh Kellenberger also writes for the Jackson (Miss.) Clarion-Ledger.