I know there's already been a question about Iowa, but I'll still leave it in with Kentucky.
Any thoughts on who would be a nice fit for either school, or anything else about these vacancies?
Do you think that the UK coach MUST be a big namer, or could a somewhat lesser known coach get hired?
2007-03-25 03:34:50 · 6 answers · asked by Abby O'Normal 6 in Sports ➔ Basketball
I think Lon Krueger, who is the current coach of UNLV who just went to the elite eight might be a candidate for either of those jobs. He is a decent coach who can motivate his players well.
2007-03-25 03:41:24 · answer #1 · answered by Kyle 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I'm a Kentucky fan and I can tell you that most Kentucky fans/big money boosters won't accept anything less then a big name with a proven record. If they weren't aiming for a big name they would've already signed former UK player/UMass coach Travis Ford because he is certainly a fan favorite and has the makings to be a good coach. I think with a big name guy Kentucky is taking less of a risk because, like I said before, there's a proven track record.
With that being said any Kentucky fan who says they don't dream of Billy Donovan coming back to UK (he was an assistant under Pitino) is lieing. I don't think this is likely to happen, so in reality I'd like to see Texas A&M coach Billy Gillespie or Memphis's John Calipari. Either would be a good fit. I'm not crazy about Tom Crean from Marquette but he's been mentioned a lot as well. Plus I don't know if Marquette will let him go anyway.
As far as the Iowa job, I really haven't heard much because everything has been centered on the Kentucky opening and what not. Obviously, given why Alford left, they're going to have to settle for someone who can accept that Iowa initially is a football school. . There's been A LOT of talk about Tennessee's Bruce Pearl and Creighton's Dana Altman. I can see Altman going to Iowa but I really don't see Pearl leaving Tennessee since that would be a step down from what he's built at Tennessee in his tenure there. And usually when guys get into the SEC they don't leave unless they're forced out or moving to another SEC school. It would be a big step for Altman and get him into a major program. And at a bigger school I think he could be successful. Pearl was a mid-major guy before he came to Tennessee so it could definitely work.
And garfield, I'd love to believe his wife was up here to buy a house. But I've also heard that he's bought a horse farm, a blue Mercedes-Benz, and the UHAUL trucks have been parked outside his house since december. I've come to learn don't believe anything until the man signs on the dotted line. But I sure hope I'm proven wrong : )
2007-03-25 04:49:24 · answer #2 · answered by sweetie_tdp 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Would Billy D. come to Kentucky? In a heartbeat!!!
No. 1 reason: E-G-O. He has one, and what coach that might win back-to-back titles at a football school would not want to rebuild one of the top-5 (unquestionably, without a doubt) programs in the country back to glorious standards. King of the Bluegrass.
No. 2: It wouldn't be as hard as everybody believes it would be. Supposedly, Patrick Patterson's top choices are Florida and Kentucky - Wonder where he'd go if Donovan showed up here. And I wonder if Jai Lucas would follow his buddy Patterson here, especially since Jasper is going to transfer (almost a certainity). Patterson, Lucas, Meeks would be a heck of a nucleus to build around.
No. 3: It is a football school. Florida only sold out one non-conference game in its 12,000 seat stadium this year. UK has 23,000 for Midnight Madness. I gurantee there is more people interested in Florida spring football now than the Gators' title run.
No. 4: Florida is going to have to rebuild next year. Have you took a look at the Gators' bench this year? Brandon Hodge is the only who has had any kind of impact.
No. 5: Rumor is he already has, or is in the process of, purchasing a home in Lexington. His wife was up here last week....
And the crazy expectations is a cop out. While overboard sometimes in today's game, all you got do is win at a top program clip. As much as I supported Tubby, he's lost 10-plus 5 of the past 8 years. No Final Fours. And the past two years have been by far his worst. Yes, the expectations should be much higher than that at UK. I would think Donovan believes he could better that.
As for the money, the salaries would probably be similar, but don't you think endorsements and speaking engagements would be so much more in Kentucky? In Florida, you have all kinds of pro franchise, Miami U football, Fla. St., to compete with. Billy D. is just another coach in that state.
In Kentucky? He competes with Rich Brooks and Rick Pitino, and UofL's fanbase is a little more centrally located than UK.
Billy D. is UK's No. 1 choice, and I would be surprised if he turned it down. Afterall, it is one of the pinnacle jobs of the sport, and will always be better than Florida, no matter how many times in a row the Gators kick our ***. Much like N. Carolina and Duke will always be better than Fla. St. UCLA better than USC, Kansas better than Texas and so on.
2007-03-25 03:52:09 · answer #3 · answered by garfieldlvr62 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Anyone taking that Kentucky job is going to have to have a proven track record and get immediate results. Tubby won at least 20 games a year with them for 10 years and it wasn't good enough. Whoever it is will have to bring a championship in the first 4 years at least or keep them in the top 15 consistently to keep that job and the heat off of him.
2007-03-25 03:41:57 · answer #4 · answered by Hendo 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
There aren't that many bigger names than Tubby Smith the ones who are bigger names are staying put with teams they've led for many years Calhon at UConn, coach K at Duke, Olson at Arizona, and Boeheim at Syracuse.
2007-03-25 03:42:46 · answer #5 · answered by wiz and skinz fan 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
You can have anyone but Tom Izzo.
2007-03-25 04:31:34 · answer #6 · answered by TheOnlyBeldin 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋