Any intel on Stanford?

[hurleyfor3]

I'm back from the game.

CU jumped out to a 9-0 lead at which point JD called timeout. Stanford got it as close as 8 in the second half but never seriously threatened. Imagine the Duke-Miami game but some 30% less embarrassing. Wednesday night's Miami team would have won by at least 30 (the Buffs won by "only" 21).

They didn't look abjectly terrible, but Stanford did nothing particularly well. They couldn't have gotten more than five or six offensive rebounds all night... statsheet says they somehow got eight. Total rebounds were 45-29, Colorado.

If I were JD I would start freshening up my LinkedIn profile.

[sporthenry]

I'm back from the game.

CU jumped out to a 9-0 lead at which point JD called timeout. Stanford got it as close as 8 in the second half but never seriously threatened. Imagine the Duke-Miami game but some 30% less embarrassing. Wednesday night's Miami team would have won by at least 30 (the Buffs won by "only" 21).

They didn't look abjectly terrible, but Stanford did nothing particularly well. They couldn't have gotten more than five or six offensive rebounds all night... statsheet says they somehow got eight. Total rebounds were 45-29, Colorado.

If I were JD I would start freshening up my LinkedIn profile.

I would say he is done. 2-4 in a relatively bad Pac 12. No big name recruits coming in next year. He had decent talent but never seemed to put it all together. Even this year, apart from last night, he had lost 3 Pac 12 games by a combined 15 points and lost to NC State by 9 points (while Duke lost by 8 points). Wonder if they'll be a seat opening up on Duke's bench for him.

[emack32]

If the next coach has to be a former Blue Devil(which I don't think is the case), I would put Amaker and Brey as the two best candidates. I agree with the sentiment that an assisatant coach with no head coaching experience should not be considered. There is nothing like being at the head of a prgram or a team for that matter.

[Durham Thunder]

If the next coach has to be a former Blue Devil(which I don't think is the case), I would put Amaker and Brey as the two best candidates. I agree with the sentiment that an assisatant coach with no head coaching experience should not be considered. There is nothing like being at the head of a prgram or a team for that matter.

Brey I think is not a great coach- good, not great. With as many decent teams as he's had, he's had some lousy tournament performances. Amaker should certainly start to get some offers from the big boys. Hey, Ben Howland has destroyed UCLA's credibility since 2008- they should give Amaker a call if they boot Howland in the next couple years.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Brey I think is not a great coach- good, not great. With as many decent teams as he's had, he's had some lousy tournament performances. Amaker should certainly start to get some offers from the big boys. Hey, Ben Howland has destroyed UCLA's credibility since 2008- they should give Amaker a call if they boot Howland in the next couple years.

Maybe Stanford knocks on Tommy's door...

[Wander]

If the next coach has to be a former Blue Devil(which I don't think is the case), I would put Amaker and Brey as the two best candidates. I agree with the sentiment that an assisatant coach with no head coaching experience should not be considered. There is nothing like being at the head of a prgram or a team for that matter.

Brey's teams are never very good defensively - I don't follow Notre Dame closely enough to say if it's because of the type of players recruited or X's and O's, but it's consistent enough where it's clearly something systematic.

Amaker's had success largely because his teams are just more talented and athletic than others in the Ivy League. Good for him for making that happen at Harvard and he deserves credit for it, I don't think that would translate well to Duke (and he didn't do great at Michigan).

I don't see any reason to keep it in the family. Maybe by the time K retires there will be a worthy Duke guy, but there isn't one now, and no one's even close IMO.

[emack32]

No one will ever come close to K!

[Cameron]

Brey's teams are never very good defensively - I don't follow Notre Dame closely enough to say if it's because of the type of players recruited or X's and O's, but it's consistent enough where it's clearly something systematic.

Amaker's had success largely because his teams are just more talented and athletic than others in the Ivy League. Good for him for making that happen at Harvard and he deserves credit for it, I don't think that would translate well to Duke (and he didn't do great at Michigan).

I don't see any reason to keep it in the family. Maybe by the time K retires there will be a worthy Duke guy, but there isn't one now, and no one's even close IMO.

I agree with this. To be completely frank, there is not one current head coach in the K tree that I would want to see succeed him. Not ever.

[Doctor Joe]

I would not be as quick to discount hiring an assistant coach. While I'm sure there are other examples, Roy Williams did pretty good for himself at Kansas without any head coaching experience. They will need to keep all the options open when that fateful day arrives - - hopefully not for a while.

If the next coach has to be a former Blue Devil(which I don't think is the case), I would put Amaker and Brey as the two best candidates. I agree with the sentiment that an assisatant coach with no head coaching experience should not be considered. There is nothing like being at the head of a prgram or a team for that matter.

[DevilWearsPrada]

Agreed. At this point, barring a miraculous career turnaround, there is no way that Johnny Dawkins will ever coach at Duke again, unless it is as an assistant. And I hardly believe Johnny would ever return in that fashion after the disappointing run in Palo Alto.

Another poster hit it on the head. There is a lack of fire within that program, starting with the man sitting in the first seat on the bench. I don't doubt Johnny's desire to win for one second -- his career as a player at Duke should tell you all there is to know about the passion that man has for the game of basketball -- but he just doesn't seem to have that "it factor" about him, that I-know-I-am-good-and-this-is-how-we're-going-to-beat-you persona that I think all the really good head coaches do. Even Brad Stevens, who is as mild-mannered as they come, exudes an air of great confidence and fervency amidst all that stoicism. The fire within is plainly evident. And that certainly rubs off on the players and the Butler program as a whole.

The atmosphere at Stanford, which has only won 31 of its 76 Pac 12 games under Dawkins, is dead. I'm beginning to think that Johnny Dawkins just doesn't have any emotions. It's hard to get your team ready to play when you are that tranquil. It really is.

I couldnt leave you a comment, so I will here!! WELL Said, and Spot on!! As you said, JD had great Passion while being a basketball player at Duke. Johnny was my Dad's all time favorite player. JD restored Duke Basketball to its prominence!

I love Brad Stevens!!! Having seen him at the 2010 Final Four, put several !!!!!! on it!

TRANQUIL.... thats a good descriptive adjective! However, being tranquil as a Head Coach does not bring The Intensity and Passion that the team needs to feed to have the desire to Win!!

A song comes to mind! I love this song and play it on all Game Days!!!! Rod Stewart's P A S S I O N !!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mdq0_zZOFLg

Its GAME DAY!!!! We all need PASSION!!! Lets Go Duke!!! And the best to Johnny D! You are a Class Act!

[IBleedBlue]

I think the next coach is actually sitting on the bench right now. How about Nate James as next head coach?
He can haul recruits left and right as we have seen in the past 3-4 years. Getting elite level talent will not be a problem if Nate James becomes head coach. He might even compete with John Calipari in that category.
As per the actual coaching and game management, I believe he will be gain that experience sitting on the bench before coach K retires.

[Duke09]

if you're Kevin White, I can't think how his first call isn't Brad Stevens and then Shaka Smart. Shaka will likely be somewhere else by the time K retires. Stevens, I'm less sure about

[moonpie23]

i think it's interesting how many folks in here are ready to hand the reins to Brad when K retires... i'm not passing judgement, just an observation. man, is it a done deal already?

[Duke09]

i think it's interesting how many folks in here are ready to hand the reins to Brad when K retires... i'm not passing judgement, just an observation. man, is it a done deal already?

I think it's natural to ask who is the best coach that would be willing to move to Durham. I think that is a short list and is topped by Stevens. The AD has 3 routes: 1) Best coach who will move ala Stevens and Smart 2) Best guy in family 3) best assistant. I don't think Duke will be hiring an assistant unless its promoting someone from the bench.

[sporthenry]

i think it's interesting how many folks in here are ready to hand the reins to Brad when K retires... i'm not passing judgement, just an observation. man, is it a done deal already?

I agree, it is interesting. All I know is that K will have a lot to say about it and there is no guarantee Stevens will even come here. But it appears we get Stevens and UNC gets Shaka Smart and the world is at peace again.

[JasonEvans]

Stevens is a fabulous coach, no question about it. He gets the most out of his players and that is a huge part of being successful at any school.

That said, I would really like to see him recruit at a slightly higher level before handing him the keys to the Duke bus without any reservations. As near as I can tell, he is yet to sign a top 50 recruit at Butler. Heck, he has really only signed one top 100 recruit. He is an expert at finding diamonds in the rough -- kids who were not highly touted in high school but who blossom into better than expected collegiate players -- but I would love to see him at least occasionally pluck a kid who has a shot at being a Mickie Dee.

I think he has raised the program's profile to the point where he should be able to do that some time in the next few years.

--Jason "seeing as K ain't going anywhere for another 5+ years, there is plenty of time for Stevens to show he can recruit at the next level" Evans

[Duvall]

i think it's interesting how many folks in here are ready to hand the reins to Brad when K retires... i'm not passing judgement, just an observation. man, is it a done deal already?

I can't see how that follows. The chances of anyone posting on this thread having an impact on that decision are remote at best.

[Billy Dat]

Stevens is a fabulous coach, no question about it. He gets the most out of his players and that is a huge part of being successful at any school.

That said, I would really like to see him recruit at a slightly higher level before handing him the keys to the Duke bus without any reservations. As near as I can tell, he is yet to sign a top 50 recruit at Butler. Heck, he has really only signed one top 100 recruit. He is an expert at finding diamonds in the rough -- kids who were not highly touted in high school but who blossom into better than expected collegiate players -- but I would love to see him at least occasionally pluck a kid who has a shot at being a Mickie Dee.

I think he has raised the program's profile to the point where he should be able to do that some time in the next few years.

--Jason "seeing as K ain't going anywhere for another 5+ years, there is plenty of time for Stevens to show he can recruit at the next level" Evans

Co-sign this in a huge way. I am actually shocked at how many people, who presumably enjoy K's fire and passion, are so interesting in handing the program over to a guy who seems to lack a pulse. Plus, "The Butler Way" is a "system" that Stevens hand selects "types" for rather than amassing assets and seeing how best to deploy them. If it's Shaka or Stevens, I am Shaka's up tempo frantic pressing style all day over Butler's careful precision. Also, don't count out Tommy who is being born again at Harvard and is going to get offered a big program job again soon.

[sporthenry]

Stevens is a fabulous coach, no question about it. He gets the most out of his players and that is a huge part of being successful at any school.

That said, I would really like to see him recruit at a slightly higher level before handing him the keys to the Duke bus without any reservations. As near as I can tell, he is yet to sign a top 50 recruit at Butler. Heck, he has really only signed one top 100 recruit. He is an expert at finding diamonds in the rough -- kids who were not highly touted in high school but who blossom into better than expected collegiate players -- but I would love to see him at least occasionally pluck a kid who has a shot at being a Mickie Dee.

I think he has raised the program's profile to the point where he should be able to do that some time in the next few years.

--Jason "seeing as K ain't going anywhere for another 5+ years, there is plenty of time for Stevens to show he can recruit at the next level" Evans

I would agree that he hasn't shown much in the way of recruiting at a top level. You would think after 2 straight championship games, even with recruiting lagging a bit, that it would start to get better. But I think it also shows how hard it is to get top recruits and perhaps shows the problem with rankings as they tend to overrate BCS recruits. Sometimes I think committing to Duke or UNC often times doubles your chance to make the McD AA game.

But when you look at ESPN's top 100, it isn't like Gonzaga or VCU or other mid majors are dominating it either. Zaga is a top 10 team with 1 top 100 player. I think that being able to recruit top players makes coaches jobs easier and perhaps giving Stevens the Duke name will help but I don't really care how he builds a winning program be it getting Jabari Parker or going after underrated players and players overseas like Stevens and Few has shown to be successful.

[g-money]

Also, don't count out Tommy who is being born again at Harvard and is going to get offered a big program job again soon.

Along these lines, I wouldn't count out Jeff Capel just yet either, assuming he gets another shot at a HC gig before Coach K retires. The dude has coaching in his blood.

However, I'm not sure how critical this decision actually is. Sorry to be fatalistic, but whoever succeeds Coach K will likely be steamrolled within t<5 years by the unrealistic expectations of the alumni base. (As an alumnus myself, I feel at liberty to predict this.) I'm not sure if I'd be fighting to be first in line.