This sounds like the blueprint to building a mediocre basketball program. Walk-ons don't expect to earn a scholarship at big time programs.
If Bubu deserves the scholarship, fine, but not as a method to sell the program to future walk-ons. We need to sell the program to can't miss studs.
My previous statement wasn't really worded all that precisely. I'm not saying that you hand out schollies to walk-ons each and every year. But I think when you do have a guy that has played his way into important minutes that you need to think long and hard about rewarding such a player. I think Bubu is getting close to that point. Fred can sell the program to can't miss studs AND give the occasional scholly to a walk on who has made good. Those aren't mutually exclusive events. And I don't think the only reason he's playing is because of our depleted roster. While the numbers game is obviously a factor, you can't tell me that he's looked lost when he's been put in the game. He's acquitted himself well in the minutes he's seen and is more than just a garbage time scrub in my opinion.
The number of available players is down this year, but we do lose DG and Jake at the end of this season and Scotty and Chris Allen at the end 2012. Even if Bubu doesn't develop into a starter, there are still minutes out there for him to play. At some point, you have to have guys on scholarship that are content playing 15 to 20 minutes a game (if not less) & are willing to defer offensively to the "stars" as well as do the dirty work that doesn't show up in the box score. I think Bubu could be one of those guys for ISU.