It's so bizarre that the same guy wrote this: "A return works for both [parties],” he wrote in an email. “Marcus will be one year from completing undergraduate studies and more improved as a basketball student to better his chances later for whatever level of basketball he reaches" would be foolish enough to start drama in the first place instead of just saying "We expect Marcus will return" from the get go. Nobody would fault him for getting a honest review from the NBA with an eye on returning. Based on his rolling stone past, he was ripe for rumors with an ominous first response.
That kind of fear makes Baldi grow from a poltergeist that just knocks pictures off the wall and slams an occasional door to straightup throwing people down the stairs and taking kids through walls to other dimensions.