Merl Code, the former college basketball player and Nike and Adidas shoe rep who infamously became the fall guy in the 2017-2018 college basketball corruption scandal. In his explosive new book BLACK MARKET: An Insider's Journey into the High-Stakes World of College Basketball (3/1/22; Hanover Square), Code will tell his side of the story and expose the seedy underbelly of college hoops, and a system that disproportionally affects young athletes of color. Merl's sentencing appeal was recently denied by the Supreme Court in the FBI's investigation into the recruiting scandal. Merl has been sentenced to 6 months, and was to report to prison in February.


BLACK MARKETS is an unprecedented insider account of the profit-driven college basketball programs and the storied coaches who lead them. Code details how NCAA amateurism rules can be used to take advantage of young athletes who are prohibited by the NCAA's bylaws from receiving compensation until they go pro. He shares stories of the families and students and what's at stake for them, and pulls back the curtain on the systemic problem of using players for financial gain in college athletics.