Bzdelik

[DevilHorns]

Some background (taken from a comprehensive post from the Wake forum)

Colorado
2009-10
Freshman Alec Burks was named to the Freshman All-America team. He was the top scoring freshman in the league and was the first CU player ever voted Freshman of the Year in the Big 12. He was also a member of the All-Rookie team and honorable mention all-Big 12 and set the school record for scoring by a freshman. The only freshman in the nation to score in double figures in every game he finished. (Came out of one game early with a sprained knee).
Burks and Cory Higgins each scored more than 500 points, marking just the third time in school history that two players had scored 500 or more points in the same season.
Colorado was the only school in the Big 12 with two players among the top seven in the league in scoring.
Three players named to the Academic All-Conference team in basketball, the most ever by a CU basketball team.
Swept Nebraska for the first time since 2003-04
All five starters were Bzdelik recruits (2 juniors, 2 sophomores, 1 freshman)
CU committed its fewest turnovers since 1997-98
Led the Big 12 in free throw percentage for the first time ever
Finished third in the nation in free throw percentage
Marcus Relphorde earned Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors, the first CU player to do so since 2004

2008-09
Freshmen and sophomores (all Bzdelik recruits) accounted for 72.3 percent of the team scoring
Held opponents to 67.5 points per game marking the first time since 1979-81 that CU held opponents to less than 70 points in consecutive years

2007-08
Bzdelik guided Colorado to a 91-84 win over Baylor in the Big 12 Championship, the first 12 seed to beat a 5 in Big 12 history.
Colorado improved in every shooting category-field goal, 3-point field goal and free throw percentages-from its effort in 2006-07, the year before Bzdelik arrived
Nine of 20 losses were by an average of 4.8 points.
Defense held opponents to 64.4 points per game, the fewest points allowed in 46 years.
Committed 13.4 turnovers per game, the fewest in 28 years
Second year at Colorado (2008-09), 11 of 22 losses were by single digits, an average of 4.5 points per game
His first signed recruit at Colorado was Cory Higgins, the son of former NBA player Rod Higgins. Higgins, who will be a senior next year, has scored 1,391 career points and ranks ninth on the school’s career scoring list.
Inherited a team that had gone 7-20 overall, 3-13 in the Big 12 and finished in last place

Air Force
Record of 50-16, the best two-year record in school history
The only Air Force coach to win 24 or more games in back-to-back seasons.
Went 31-1 at home including 15-0 his first year and 16-1 in 2006-07

2006-07
Led the Falcons to the 2007 NIT Final Four.
Set a school record with 26 victories
Led the Mountain West with 316 three-point field goals (also a school record)
Led the league in free throw percentage at .783
Set the school record for field goal percentage at 49.03
Had the second-best free throw percentage in school history at 75.5
Posted double-digit wins over Wake Forest , Stanford , Texas Tech and George Washington
Led AFA to a 17-1 start to the season
Led the Falcons to a No. 18 national ranking
Team was second in the nation in scoring defense (56.0 PPG)
Team was second in the nation in fewest turnovers per game (10.3)
Team was ninth in the nation in scoring margin (+13.0) and fewest fouls per game (15.0)

2005-06
Led Air Force to a 24-7 record and the school’s four appearance ever in the NCAA Tournament.
Led the nation in scoring defense (54.7 PPG)
Lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to Illinois , 78-69
Team won its final six games of the regular season
Led the Mountain West with 276 three-point field goals and a .404 3-point percentage
Fourth in the nation in three-point field goal percentage (.404)
Fifth in the nation in fewest turnovers per game (10.8)
Led the MWC in free throw percentage at .745
Led the MWC in steals and steals per game (8.03)
Air Force won for the first-time ever at UNLV
Defeated two ACC teams ( Miami , Georgia Tech)

Maryland- Baltimore County
1986-87: cited by the Sporting News as having “One of College’s Biggest Turn Arounds” in the school’s inaugural season in Division I.

Denver Nuggets
Named head coach of the Nuggets in August, 2002. Inherited the youngest team in franchise history and shattered the franchise record for scoring defense by more than five points per game, giving up only 92.4 per game.
Spent 15 seasons in the NBA as both a coach and scout; two and one-half seasons as head coach of the Denver Nuggets. Engineered one of the biggest turnarounds in NBA history during his second season in 2003-04, leading the Nuggets to the playoffs for the first time since 1994-95 while posting a 43-39 record. The 26-game improvement over the previous year was the sixth-best in NBA history.
Became the first NBA coach, since the adoption of the 82-game schedule, to lead his team to the playoffs the year after winning fewer than 20 games
In 2000, recognized by USA Today as one of the NBA’s top five assistant coaches
In Sports Illustrated’s 1998 pro basketball issue, he was voted the best advance scout in the NBA by the league’s general managers
“According to NBA coaches and GM’s, Bzdelik is the most thorough and perceptive scout in the business.” Sports Illustrated

[dyemeduke]

I live in Colorado and my two passions are Duke baskeball and University of Colorado sports. I don't need to explain the failures of C.U. football and basketball in recent years. My wife's sister is good friends with the Bzdelik family so I know a bit about their personal situation.

Here's my thoughts. Jeff is a really good coach. He is an excellent X and O guy. He is a man who is bright and has great character. I am very sorry to see him leave Boulder and head to Wake.

He took a miserable C.U. program and showed good improvement. I have never questioned his coaching ability but his ability to recruit big time players has not yet been proven. It is probably far easier at Wake than at C.U. but I am not convinced that he is able to recruit the players needed to succeed at an A.C.C. - Wake level.

I like him and wish him well, except when they play Duke. He is an honest, bright guy who doesn't tolerate much bad conduct or bad attitude from his players. He's the anti-Calipari.

I'm exactly like you buddy - love CU (alum) and Duke bball. For all those wondering, we all pronounce his name "bizz-dell-ick", not "buzz".

Coach Bz is a great coach though, and I really hate the fact that he's leaving, especially considering that he does have the team improving. All CU bball fans were hoping for coach to land a solid big man this recruiting cycle, and getting that big would really help the team next year. Now, we may not sign any recruits this year. Timing of this couldn't be worse.

He is not a great recruiter though - he's not horrible, but he's definitely not great. He is an excellent talent evaluator, game-day coach, strategist, and scout. He knows basketball really well, and he tries to build basketball programs right. However, I wonder how his demeanor will work at Wake. When he was with the Nuggets (and I loved his coaching job with the team), he and Carmelo often seemed at odds. Still, the teams played hard for the most part, and he did a great job preparing the team. When he got to CU, he practically ran off the entire team, as many were told they would not be on the court or their behavior warranted a transfer. He almost literally rebuilt the program, getting rid of kids with attitude problems. Here's an unconfirmed recruiting story: Wesley Witherspoon visited CU once, and he was acting a little haughty and brash while on campus. Coach Bz didn't like it and stopped recruiting him. Wake is a big time program, with many players with attitude problems. I wonder how he will do with this.

I don't understand why Wake is hiring Bz, as it seems like they could do better. However, Bz is a great coach...but this might not transalte to success at Wake. CU will miss him.

[Devil07]

From reading about Coach Bzdelik it seems that he's a bit of a disciplinarian. I wonder how much of this hire had to do with some of the attitude problems the Wake teams have had in the past two years. I've heard numerous times of serious problems with Teague and Johnson last year and this year's team seems to have quit (in particular Aminu seemed to be mailing it in towards the end of the season). It may be that Wellman is looking for an attitude adjustment for the program.

I also initially thought this was a weak hire and I still think it leaves something to be desired. That being said, I will be interested to see how he fills out his staff. It sounds like Bzdelik is a pretty solid bench coach but a weak recruiter. If Wake can bring in a young, strong recruiter to put on his staff this could work out well. Of course, that's a big if and even then, keeping good assistants is always tough. I sincerely hope that Bzdelik ends up working out, but I do wonder if this is a bit of a settle. He'll probably put up some solid teams, but you just have to wonder whether he's got the potential to really elevate Wake to be a consistent upper-echelon team.

[brevity]

I like him and wish him well, except when they play Duke. He is an honest, bright guy who doesn't tolerate much bad conduct or bad attitude from his players. He's the anti-Calipari.

I wonder how other SEC schools reacted when they learned John Calipari would be joining their league.

I can see how Wake Forest's hire of Jeff Bzdelik doesn't give the ACC an instant boost like Virginia's hire of Tony Bennett (a National Coach of the Year not long ago). But these early accounts give us a picture of a high-character guy with pro and college experience, more like a respected elder statesman than the rising star. As hinted in my earlier paragraph, there are worse things.

[Olympic Fan]

Tom Butters got a recommendation from Bobby Knight, a very good one. It turned out well, don't you think?

Pardon me for hijacking the thread, but I've been frustrated by the misunderstanding about the Coach K hire that has been perpretrated. While Butters certainly deserves credit for the choice -- it was his responsibility after all as AD -- the real moving force behind the hire was a former Duke player turned associate athletic director named Steve Vacendak.

Vacendak played high school basketball for a guy named Jack Gallagher, who later worked as a scout for Bobby Knight. It was Gallagher who introduced Vacendak to Krzyzewski. Vacendak got to know Coach K and even sat in on a staff meeting to prepare for an Army-Navy Game.

When Bill Foster stepped down, Gallagher called Vacendak and recommended Krzyzewski. Vacendak realized that he was the right man and went to Butters with the suggestion. Butters reaction was, "Let me get this straight. You're pushing me to hire a coach whose name I can't pronounce and has a losing record?"

Vacendak kept pushing and Butters decided to call Knight ... for a second time.

The thing is that Butters had already called Knight, first to ask him if he might be interested in the job (he expected a no and got it, but he had to ask), then to ask for any recommendations. Knight recommended Bob Weltlich, a former assistant who was at Ole Miss. After talking to Vacendak, Butters called Knight back and asked about Krzyzewski -- at that point, Knight gave K a glowing recommendation, calling him the best young coach in the country.

It all flowed from there -- Vacendak hammering Butters to hire K, Butters unable to shake the idea that the young Army coach was the right hire, but worried about the numbers and the perception. Knight, who didn't recommend K originally (probably thinking that a school the stature of Duke wouldn't hire such an unproven young coach -- he was originally pushing K for the Iowa State job), pushing him strongly.

Butters and Knight deserve the credit they get for the hire ... but Duke fans should understand the pivotal role that Steve Vacendak played in the decision and give him credit too.

PS Hearing Bzdlick compared to K makes me laugh -- not only because of the difference between hiring a 33-year-old up-and-comer with a 57-year-old never-was. But it also reminds me of what I call the Burleson Theory -- back in the early 1970s, NC State hit the jackpot with a skinny, unpolished big man from the mountains of North Carolina. Post-Burleson, Norm Sloan brought in a parade of skinny, unpolished big men, hoping to hit the same jackpot -- from Mike Burma to Bill Lake to Glen Sudhop and a half dozen more. He found that Burleson was a once-in-a-generation find.

I suspect that Coach K is a once-in-a-lifetime find ... and if you try to duplicate the magic, you're going to get burned.

[CrazieDUMB]

From the article posted on the main page about WF retaining all five recruits:

"The news follows a whirlwind tour by Bzdelik and his two remaining assistant coaches, Battle and Rusty LaRue."

Wake sure is racking up some cool names. I'd play for Battle and Rusty LaRue. Although I don't think I could imagine having a coach whose name I couldn't pronounce...

[flyingdutchdevil]

From the article posted on the main page about WF retaining all five recruits:

"The news follows a whirlwind tour by Bzdelik and his two remaining assistant coaches, Battle and Rusty LaRue."

Wake sure is racking up some cool names. I'd play for Battle and Rusty LaRue. Although I don't think I could imagine having a coach whose name I couldn't pronounce...

Nice

At least this coach's name is easier to spell

[SoCalDukeFan]

Pardon me for hijacking the thread, but I've been frustrated by the misunderstanding about the Coach K hire that has been perpretrated. While Butters certainly deserves credit for the choice -- it was his responsibility after all as AD -- the real moving force behind the hire was a former Duke player turned associate athletic director named Steve Vacendak.

Vacendak played high school basketball for a guy named Jack Gallagher, who later worked as a scout for Bobby Knight. It was Gallagher who introduced Vacendak to Krzyzewski. Vacendak got to know Coach K and even sat in on a staff meeting to prepare for an Army-Navy Game.

When Bill Foster stepped down, Gallagher called Vacendak and recommended Krzyzewski. Vacendak realized that he was the right man and went to Butters with the suggestion. Butters reaction was, "Let me get this straight. You're pushing me to hire a coach whose name I can't pronounce and has a losing record?"

Vacendak kept pushing and Butters decided to call Knight ... for a second time.

The thing is that Butters had already called Knight, first to ask him if he might be interested in the job (he expected a no and got it, but he had to ask), then to ask for any recommendations. Knight recommended Bob Weltlich, a former assistant who was at Ole Miss. After talking to Vacendak, Butters called Knight back and asked about Krzyzewski -- at that point, Knight gave K a glowing recommendation, calling him the best young coach in the country.

It all flowed from there -- Vacendak hammering Butters to hire K, Butters unable to shake the idea that the young Army coach was the right hire, but worried about the numbers and the perception. Knight, who didn't recommend K originally (probably thinking that a school the stature of Duke wouldn't hire such an unproven young coach -- he was originally pushing K for the Iowa State job), pushing him strongly.

Butters and Knight deserve the credit they get for the hire ... but Duke fans should understand the pivotal role that Steve Vacendak played in the decision and give him credit too.

PS Hearing Bzdlick compared to K makes me laugh -- not only because of the difference between hiring a 33-year-old up-and-comer with a 57-year-old never-was. But it also reminds me of what I call the Burleson Theory -- back in the early 1970s, NC State hit the jackpot with a skinny, unpolished big man from the mountains of North Carolina. Post-Burleson, Norm Sloan brought in a parade of skinny, unpolished big men, hoping to hit the same jackpot -- from Mike Burma to Bill Lake to Glen Sudhop and a half dozen more. He found that Burleson was a once-in-a-generation find.

I suspect that Coach K is a once-in-a-lifetime find ... and if you try to duplicate the magic, you're going to get burned.

Thanks for the info on Coach K's hiring. Steve Vacendak was a favorite player at Duke and I guess has done far more for the school than he is given credit.

However I don't think that Wake is trying to duplicate the Coach K hiring. Bzdelik is an older experienced coach who will probably impose some needed discipline at Wake. He did well at Air Force and got them to the NCAA Tournament. He has coached in the NBA. A relative of mine who lives in Denver and follows sports very closely thinks he is a good coach. They do have a z in their last name, coached at a military school, and had losing records before they were hired. But the differences far outweigh the similarities.

SoCal