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Report: Marshall Henderson to return to Ole Miss at the start of practice

Marshall Henderson’s indefinite offseason suspension is over.

According to a report from CBSSports.com‘s Gary Parrish, the Ole Miss shooting guard will be participating in the first practice of the season on Friday.

That doesn’t guarantee that Henderson will be playing in the Rebel’s first game, however. Ole Miss AD Ross Bjork told USA Today‘s Dan Wolken that the number of games that Henderson will miss this season has not been determined, but most expect Henderson will be forced to sit early on as a result of his off-the-court behavior this summer.

Henderson was suspended from the team on July 10th for multiple violations of team rules, which reportedly was the result of failed drug tests. He’s had a number of run-ins with police during his time in Oxford, and Ole Miss put him in touch with Chris Herren, a former star basketball player that ruined his career because of an addiction. He’s now a motivational speaker.

Andy Kennedy made it clear that he wasn’t going to kick Henderson off of his team, rather he was going to try to help Henderson grow up and mature by allowing him a chance to earn his way back on the team. Henderson, who was a prolific and, at times, embarrassingly candid tweeter, has not tweeted since the day after his suspension. He’s kept a low profile around campus, with nothing more than a couple of pictures from a tailgate and a photo of his drinking a beer on a boat making the internet rounds.

Even with Henderson on the roster, Ole Miss looks like a longshot to make the NCAA tournament. Without him, reaching the NIT wouldn’t be a given.

Who knows if Henderson has actually matured, but he’s doing a good job of making it seem that way publicly.

But one thing Henderson told me this summer will always stick out:

“I think if anything it can help me. I can kind of, maybe not exactly change my ways, but it can seen as if I did. Just keep my nose clean for the meantime, and they can be like, ‘Oh, look, he matured.’”

Only time will tell.

Follow @robdauster