Maryland just became a player in the ACC, this year, with the Dez Wells news. (Getty Images)

Dez Wells is eligible to play immediately at Maryland -- this wasn't believed to be the case. Now what should the Terps expect? And what does it say about the NCAA for doing this? There is other eligibility news to discuss, as Indiana is now appealing two nine-game suspensions for its freshmen. Will the NCAA double back on that decision, too? It's a different kind of circumstance, though.

Also, games start in two days. So Jeff Goodman and Gary Parrish cherry-pick their favorites for the weekend ahead. And with this being the final pod before the start of the season, we reset their Final Four and national champion picks, for posterity's sake.

Rundown:

  • From the beginning: Right to the Dez Wells news, which broke minutes before we recorded this pod.
  • 5:30: From good news to bad, as Indiana's pair of freshmen won't play the first nine games of the season. Unless Indiana wins its appeal. Can Indiana win its appeal?
  • 10:25-11:30: This is me sounding like an idiot.
  • 11:30: More on the nature of AAU/NCAA teams' relationships and the problems within.
  • 15:05: I reference the Goodman and Parrish pieces. If you missed them, Parrish here and Goodman here.
  • 16:15: Setting the table for the awesome weekend of hoops ahead, specifically Friday, which is loaded with good games.
  • 20:52: Is it me, or do we have more suspensions to start this season than in years past? Scroll through the blog the past three weeks, and you'll see plenty -- and there's plenty we haven't made it a point to dedicate a blog post to.
  • 23:30: One last time, our Final Four picks and national title winners. For the record, Goodman is switching a team and, of course, my picks are downright idiotic, per these two Einsteins.

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