MBB Coaching Carousel 2021

[Steven43]

Roy to Texas. It’s gonna happen. Texas mad about Mack Brown and Roy has Big 12 roots.

Texas fired Mack Brown — no reason to be mad. And isn’t Roy about 100 years old?

[SupaDave]

Wojo is out. Shaka is in.

Honestly, this is one of those situations where I feel both programs think they are better than they are.

We know Shaka can get the recruits - but he just can't get over the hump.

Texas always seems to think they deserve better. Rinse and repeat.

Marquette has the history but can they even sniff it again?

Wojo really hasn't built a brand for himself - it will be interesting to see where he lands.

[burnspbesq]

Judging from this morning’s Austin paper, the money boys at UT think Chris Beard of Texas Tech is a done deal, and his $4 million buyout if he leaves Lubbock for another Big 12 school will be handled somehow.

The hubris is thick around here.

[MChambers]

Goodman just said Smart to Marquette is a done deal.

So Chris Beard to Texas? That would make me very happy.

You’re just glad Beard might get out of Lubbock!

[jwillfan]

Mike Woodson to Indiana

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Mike Woodson to Indiana

...

Huh.

[CrazyNotCrazie]

Former NBA head coach and current Knicks assistant Mike Woodson is getting the Indiana job. He played there in the late 70s (he is now 63). Interesting hire - clearly a placeholder as they couldn't get their top choices.

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...sketball-coach

Meanwhile, his fellow Knicks assistant Kenny Payne has turned down the DePaul job.

[beach rev]

Mike Woodson to Indiana

Here’s the link:

https://apple.news/Afs3WrVZFRl2oO-czaeaT8A

[miramar]

Wojo is out. Shaka is in.

Honestly, this is one of those situations where I feel both programs think they are better than they are.

We know Shaka can get the recruits - but he just can't get over the hump.

Texas always seems to think they deserve better. Rinse and repeat.

Marquette has the history but can they even sniff it again?

Wojo really hasn't built a brand for himself - it will be interesting to see where he lands.

I am surprised that Marquette replaced a coach with a losing conference record and no NCAA victories in seven seasons with someone who has done the same in six.

Texas is a different story. They have billionaire boosters who don't mind spending their money, and they have a new $300 million arena to fill in a year. If they get Chris Beard then the move makes sense, but if not we may have once more, with feeling a few years down the line.

[Aladuke]

Former NBA head coach and current Knicks assistant Mike Woodson is getting the Indiana job. He played there in the late 70s (he is now 63). Interesting hire - clearly a placeholder as they couldn't get their top choices.

https://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...sketball-coach

Meanwhile, his fellow Knicks assistant Kenny Payne has turned down the DePaul job.

Six years is one heckuva placeholder deal. I need his agent.

[CrazyNotCrazie]

Just read the front page article about Indiana hiring Woodson. They compare Indiana hiring Woodson to Carolina choosing Doherty over Majerus, saying that " Indiana chose an Indiana guy over several other coaches who have already succeeded in college." I have not followed this hire as closely as others, but from what I understand, top college coaches weren't banging down Indiana's door asking for this job. So I'm not sure who these other coaches are the front page is referring to? I know that Majerus was an odd guy but he was a brilliant coach, and I don't think there was anyone available who would compare to him, so it was not a very valid comparison.

They do rightfully acknowledge that by hiring Thad Matta as something of a General Manager for the program, they are providing Woodson with a lot of support to help him to succeed. I think that was a really smart move, as long as expectations are set such that Woodson isn't constantly looking over his shoulder, worried that he will be fired and Matta slide into his seat.

https://www.dukebasketballreport.com...ght-dean-smith

[Edouble]

Just read the front page article about Indiana hiring Woodson. They compare Indiana hiring Woodson to Carolina choosing Doherty over Majerus, saying that "Indiana chose an Indiana guy over several other coaches who have already succeeded in college." I have not followed this hire as closely as others, but from what I understand, top college coaches weren't banging down Indiana's door asking for this job. So I'm not sure who these other coaches are the front page is referring to? I know that Majerus was an odd guy but he was a brilliant coach, and I don't think there was anyone available who would compare to him, so it was not a very valid comparison.

They do rightfully acknowledge that by hiring Thad Matta as something of a General Manager for the program, they are providing Woodson with a lot of support to help him to succeed. I think that was a really smart move, as long as expectations are set such that Woodson isn't constantly looking over his shoulder, worried that he will be fired and Matta slide into his seat.

https://www.dukebasketballreport.com...ght-dean-smith

Yeah, coaches are not banging down the doors at Assembly Hall for a shot at the IU job. Woodson is a carbon copy of the Sidney Lowe hire that NCSU rolled the dice on a few years back: alum with NBA coaching experience, but no college coaching experience, who played and won under their school's legendary coach.

There is no Majerus-type candidate out there for the IU job. FWIW, I think UNC knew they could run Doherty out of town in a few seasons if he didn't work out, and at that point Roy wouldn't be able to say no a second time. Roy was loaded at KU back then. I always speculated that Dean and Co. thought Roy would win his natty at KU and at that point he would feel better about leaving if Doherty was struggling..

[Spanarkel]

Yeah, coaches are not banging down the doors at Assembly Hall for a shot at the IU job. Woodson is a carbon copy of the Sidney Lowe hire that NCSU rolled the dice on a few years back: alum with NBA coaching experience, but no college coaching experience, who played and won under their school's legendary coach.

There is no Majerus-type candidate out there for the IU job. FWIW, I think UNC knew they could run Doherty out of town in a few seasons if he didn't work out, and at that point Roy wouldn't be able to say no a second time. Roy was loaded at KU back then. I always speculated that Dean and Co. thought Roy would win his natty at KU and at that point he would feel better about leaving if Doherty was struggling..

Woodson won 47 and 53 games with the Hawks in successive years, and 54 with the Knicks, while Lowe never won more than 23 games in an NBA season.
That looks like more than a distinction without a difference to me.

[JasonEvans]

Woodson's job is to stop the bleeding and get Indiana back to being relevant in the Big Ten and nationally... then they can make a splashy hire in a few years when he is ready to retire.

It won't be easy. Recruiting is a major problem for IU.

2021 - 0 top 25 recruits, 0 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2020 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2019 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2018 - 1 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits
2017 - 0 top 25 recruits, 0 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2016 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits

The path to being upper-half of a top conference while only occasionally landing a top 50 recruit is a really tough one.

Compare the past few years to Indiana's recruiting profile earlier this decade
2014 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits
2013 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 4 top 100 recruits
2012 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 3 top 100 recruits
2011 - 1 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits

[TywinBlue]

Mike Woodson is the Hoosier edition to the recent Chris Mullen disaster at St. Johns(NY):

The university did not realize that the job was not as good as it had been a decade before; the alumni wanted a touchstone to the glory days of their youth and all involved wanted to keep the search to someone who has "crimson and cream" in their blood and then selected someone who had never coached a college team before.
The prodigal son Steve Alford was never given an interview.

After a few years when Mullin realized he was over his head, St. Johns hired Mike Anderson who is doing a fine job.

I wish Mike Woodson well, but every other team in the BIG TEN is happy IU took this route.

[Spanarkel]

Mike Woodson is the Hoosier edition to the recent Chris Mullen disaster at St. Johns(NY):

The university did not realize that the job was not as good as it had been a decade before; the alumni wanted a touchstone to the glory days of their youth and all involved wanted to keep the search to someone who has "crimson and cream" in their blood and then selected someone who had never coached a college team before.
The prodigal son Steve Alford was never given an interview.

After a few years when Mullin realized he was over his head, St. Johns hired Mike Anderson who is doing a fine job.

I wish Mike Woodson well, but every other team in the BIG TEN is happy IU took this route.

How many seasons was Chris Mullin a head coach at any level prior to his SJU hiring?

Mike Woodson reached the Eastern Conference Semifinals 3 times in an 8(and 1/3) year NBA coaching career.

I am not sure how the two situations are really analogous. What am I missing?

[ElliottHoo]

How many seasons was Chris Mullin a head coach at any level prior to his SJU hiring?

Mike Woodson reached the Eastern Conference Semifinals 3 times in an 8(and 1/3) year NBA coaching career.

I am not sure how the two situations are really analogous. What am I missing?

Yeah, some of the comparisons being batted around are good cautionary tales (like Dunleavy or Avery Johnson), but some are absurd. Mullin not only didn't have any HC experience, he didn't have *any coaching experience at all* before getting the St Johns' gig. The Knicks have made the playoffs 4 times in the last 20 years and Woodson was HC for 2 of them, in his 2 1/2 years as HC. Also, he coached Atlanta for 6 seasons and improved his win-total every single year he was there. On the other hand, he does keep getting fired. The Knicks do dumb, short-sighted things all the time, and the Hawks don't have a reputation for organizational excellence.

IF Woodson is a good coach who kept not getting a fair shake in the NBA *and* gets surrounded with good college assistants, he could be a home run hire for IU. On the other hand, if there's a reason he kept getting fired from HC jobs at odd times, and the support (or his personality) aren't good for making that leap, then it could be a real smoking crater. I'm actually kinda optimistic, but I'm an unusually upbeat person.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Yeah, some of the comparisons being batted around are good cautionary tales (like Dunleavy or Avery Johnson), but some are absurd. Mullin not only didn't have any HC experience, he didn't have *any coaching experience at all* before getting the St Johns' gig. The Knicks have made the playoffs 4 times in the last 20 years and Woodson was HC for 2 of them, in his 2 1/2 years as HC. Also, he coached Atlanta for 6 seasons and improved his win-total every single year he was there. On the other hand, he does keep getting fired. The Knicks do dumb, short-sighted things all the time, and the Hawks don't have a reputation for organizational excellence.

IF Woodson is a good coach who kept not getting a fair shake in the NBA *and* gets surrounded with good college assistants, he could be a home run hire for IU. On the other hand, if there's a reason he kept getting fired from HC jobs at odd times, and the support (or his personality) aren't good for making that leap, then it could be a real smoking crater. I'm actually kinda optimistic, but I'm an unusually upbeat person.

Hey now - Avery Johnson was not a bad coach. In fact, he was the fasted NBA coach to 100 victories. And he had four winning seasons at Alabama.

[Steven43]

Woodson's job is to stop the bleeding and get Indiana back to being relevant in the Big Ten and nationally... then they can make a splashy hire in a few years when he is ready to retire.

It won't be easy. Recruiting is a major problem for IU.

2021 - 0 top 25 recruits, 0 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2020 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2019 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2018 - 1 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits
2017 - 0 top 25 recruits, 0 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2016 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits

The path to being upper-half of a top conference while only occasionally landing a top 50 recruit is a really tough one.

Compare the past few years to Indiana's recruiting profile earlier this decade
2014 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits
2013 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 4 top 100 recruits
2012 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 3 top 100 recruits
2011 - 1 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits

Wow, I had no idea their recruiting has been so anemic for the past six seasons; that’s a real eye-opener.

By the way, what happened in 2015?

[Spanarkel]

Woodson's job is to stop the bleeding and get Indiana back to being relevant in the Big Ten and nationally... then they can make a splashy hire in a few years when he is ready to retire.

It won't be easy. Recruiting is a major problem for IU.

2021 - 0 top 25 recruits, 0 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2020 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2019 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2018 - 1 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits
2017 - 0 top 25 recruits, 0 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits
2016 - 0 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits

The path to being upper-half of a top conference while only occasionally landing a top 50 recruit is a really tough one.

Compare the past few years to Indiana's recruiting profile earlier this decade
2014 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 2 top 100 recruits
2013 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 4 top 100 recruits
2012 - 1 top 25 recruits, 2 top 50 recruits, 3 top 100 recruits
2011 - 1 top 25 recruits, 1 top 50 recruits, 1 top 100 recruits

I am not disputing the above data, but 247 ranks IU's recruiting classes since 2016 as follows:

2016: 23rd

2017: 32nd

2018: 10th

2019: 53rd(looks mediocre but contained IU's arguably two best current players-Trayce Jackson-Davis/Armaan Franklin)

2020: 15th

(2021: one signee to date)