Southern Cal gets more bad news but worst yet to come

When Tim Floyd passed on the opportunity to move to Arizona -- and it was his job if he wanted it, regardless of what anybody tells you -- it seemed like a huge moment for Southern California basketball. At the time, DeMar DeRozan had not yet declared for the NBA Draft, nor had Daniel Hackett or Taj Gibson. So even though it was perhaps premature, there was some belief that the Trojans could challenge for the Pac-10 title next season, if not more.

And then it started falling apart.

Quickly.

DeRozan, Gibson and Hackett each left school. Then Solomon Hill, rated as the No. 58 prospect in the Class of 2009, decommitted and signed with Arizona. Then Renardo Sidney, rated as the No. 7 prospect in the Class of 2009, had to be turned away from USC because of his sketchy background. Then Floyd was accused of giving cash to O.J. Mayo's former handler. And now, on an otherwise quiet Tuesday, Noel Johnson has asked for and been granted a release from USC, meaning the Trojans have lost their top three scorers, top three recruits and been accused of major violations in the past six weeks.

Daniel Hackett's off to the NBA -- just one more downer for Tim Floyd. (US Presswire)

Only Jon and Kate Gosselin are having a rougher go of it.

"Any time you have a kid that is starting his freshman year, you want him to go into a calmer setting rather than having a cloud over [his] head," Lynbert Johnson, the father of the prospect rated as the 56th-best in the Class of 2009, told Scout.com's Evan Daniels on Tuesday morning. "[USC] was his No. 1 choice because he liked the school, coach [Tim] Floyd and [assistant] coach [Bob] Cantu. But the fact remains that you can't move that cloud."

No, you cannot.

And that cloud doesn't appear to be going anywhere.

Truth is, the NCAA is still a ways off from levying charges, but the anticipation of that day has already greatly altered the program. It's possible, of course, that DeRozan, Gibson and Hackett would've each turned pro no matter what, and those suggesting as much probably have a point. But there's no denying that USC's ongoing troubles with the NCAA gave the players extra incentive to leave before the you-know-what hits the fan, and it absolutely played a role in the school's decision to not beg for additional problems by enrolling Sidney -- a McDonald's All-American whose amateur status is in doubt thanks to a story in the Los Angeles Times that reported how the Sidney family rented a home for an estimated $4,000 to $5,000 a month.

Now Johnson wants out, too.

Add it up, and Floyd will have the worst roster he has possessed since, well, one of those years with the Chicago Bulls, I guess. It's basically Dwight Lewis, a bunch of role players and a few so-so recruits, assuming the ones who remain committed actually enroll. And the following season could be worse. So while it seems possible that Floyd will survive the Mayo mess in terms of his job (if only because some of the allegations are probably unprovable, and it's always hard to show what a man knew and did not know), it's already obvious that his program will have a tough time enduring the "cloud" regardless of how all this shakes out.

Bottom line, the worst is still to come for USC.

But the Trojans are already well on their way to bad.