Coaching changes 2020

[sivad40]

Not sure how it bodes for the future of women coaches in the NBA to see two of the "new hires" dump their new employers within a year to coach NCAAW.

To play devil's advocate, they did leave the NBA go to top tier NCAAW programs when things are running right.

 

[Dillon77]

Not sure how it bodes for the future of women coaches in the NBA to see two of the "new hires" dump their new employers within a year to coach NCAAW.

To play devil's advocate, they did leave the NBA go to top tier NCAAW programs when things are running right.

In regards to Kara Lawson and Duke, writer Steve Wiseman of the News & Observer reported that Celtics co-owner Steve Pagliuca, who also is a Duke Board of Trustees member, supports Lawson’s hiring at the school, sources said.

As for Notre Dame, I've got to think that Niele Ivey told the Grizzlies that the proverbial "one job she'd leave for was head coach at Notre Dame." ND AD Jack Swarbrick just called a bit earlier than expected.

Plebe's point is taken, but assistant coaches (or even head coaches) can't predict when "that slot" will become available.

 

[domerduck]

Not sure how it bodes for the future of women coaches in the NBA to see two of the "new hires" dump their new employers within a year to coach NCAAW.

Plebe's point is taken, but assistant coaches (or even head coaches) can't predict when "that slot" will become available.

I also think the virus may have affected the calculus of both hires which we don't know what that means in the future for either women coaches in the NBA nor leaving to go back to college. The Ivey hire was a closer refit than Lawson, and I am sure the salary worked out well in Niele's favor. The Kara hire is a geat one but more out of left field, but logical nonetheless considering the Duke Trustee/Celtic-owner connection. Given future budgets for both college coach hires and NBA assistant coaches given how the pandemic has affected things, I am not sure I see these moves as precedents for whether women coaches will succeed in the NBA. . I'd say Becky Hammon is still destined to be an NBA head coach and I don't think she would leave the NBA for a college. If she does than I think Plebe's prediliction may be forboding, but until then these two hires are more situation driven vs anything else.

 

[DefenseBB]

Not sure how it bodes for the future of women coaches in the NBA to see two of the "new hires" dump their new employers within a year to coach NCAAW.

On the bright side for Women, there is virtually no chance a P5 school will try to hire Lindsey Gottlieb away from the NBA.....

 

[Plebe]

On the bright side for Women, there is virtually no chance a P5 school will try to hire Lindsey Gottlieb away from the NBA.....

It's funny you quip this, because I had typed out but then declined to post a riposte along the lines of, "So at this rate the only women left to advance up the NBA ranks might be Becky Hammon and ... Lindsay Gottlieb?"

 

[triaddukefan]

On the bright side for Women, there is virtually no chance a P5 school will try to hire Lindsey Gottlieb away from the NBA.....

There was some scuttlebutt about Gottlieb being on Duke's radar.

 

[DefenseBB]

There was some scuttlebutt about Gottlieb being on Duke's radar.

Bullet dodged!

 

[Crazyhorse]

JC Carter moves on to Texas Arlington, Morgan Toles is back at FSU.

Morgan Toles Returns to Florida State Women’s Basketball

 

[UConnCat]

Beth Cunningham to Duke as assistant coach.

 

[eebmg]

Beth Cunningham to Duke as assistant coach.

ND/Duke just took a step up

 

[UConnCat]

Beth Cunningham to Duke as assistant coach.

Tia Jackson will also be on Kara’s staff as an assistant coach. She was an assistant at Duke and most recently at Miami. She was the head coach at Washington for a short time.

 

[DefenseBB]

Beth Cunningham to Duke as assistant coach.

Thanks for this bit of news and a polite tip of the cap to @Plebe for alerting to this post I have to say this is very good news to me and I hope all those naysayers who weren’t not thrilled with Beth as a HC candidate are thrilled to have garnered her as an assistant. Good for Kara to steer clear of the last 10 years of anyone associated with Tennessee...I am curious to hear what @Dillon77and @Orangutan have to say as I am sure they are happy for Beth but now what to think about the ND-Duke rivalry? Score is 0-0 in the Niele-Kara head to head with ND having the better recruits and in-house talent....for now

 

[UConnCat]

Thanks for this bit of news and a polite tip of the cap to @Plebe for alerting to this post I have to say this is very good news to me and I hope all those naysayers who weren’t not thrilled with Beth as a HC candidate are thrilled to have garnered her as an assistant. Good for Kara to steer clear of the last 10 years of anyone associated with Tennessee...I am curious to hear what @Dillon77and @Orangutan have to say as I am sure they are happy for Beth but now what to think about the ND-Duke rivalry? Score is 0-0 in the Niele-Kara head to head with ND having the better recruits and in-house talent....for now

I do wonder if Lawson's staff would have looked different if she were making these hires in April or May rather than the end of July in the midst of a pandemic. BC is unemployed so that helped. Plus, she is an experienced coach, most notably as an assistant at the school that has dominated the ACC since joining. On her way from South Bend to Durham BC might carry some extra motivation after being replaced on the Irish staff.

 

[Plebe]

Tia Jackson will also be on Kara’s staff as an assistant coach. She was an assistant at Duke and most recently at Miami. She was the head coach at Washington for a short time.

Tia Jackson's tenure at Washington was an unmitigated disaster (I'm sure @nwhoopfan can expound on this), but she seems to have fared better in the assistant's chair.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Tia Jackson's tenure at Washington was an unmitigated disaster (I'm sure @nwhoopfan can expound on this), but she seems to have fared better in the assistant's chair.

Yeah, not remembered fondly. She had a nice pedigree upon on arrival, but proved to be not HC material.

 

[DefenseBB]

I do wonder if Lawson's staff would have looked different if she were making these hires in April or May rather than the end of July in the midst of a pandemic. BC is unemployed so that helped. Plus, she is an experienced coach, most notably as an assistant at the school that has dominated the ACC since joining. On her way from South Bend to Durham BC might carry some extra motivation after being replaced on the Irish staff.

As a chuckle to your observation, at least Kara did not reach out to another former HC and assistant and one she knows far too well to join her in Duke Blue vs. the old Tennessee Orange. Do I need to say the name?

 

[Dillon77]

Thanks for this bit of news and a polite tip of the cap to @Plebe for alerting to this post I have to say this is very good news to me and I hope all those naysayers who weren’t not thrilled with Beth as a HC candidate are thrilled to have garnered her as an assistant. Good for Kara to steer clear of the last 10 years of anyone associated with Tennessee...I am curious to hear what @Dillon77and @Orangutan have to say as I am sure they are happy for Beth but now what to think about the ND-Duke rivalry? Score is 0-0 in the Niele-Kara head to head with ND having the better recruits and in-house talent....for now

Sorry for not getting involved in this earlier, but my attention has been a bit further up I-95 for the past few days (weeks?).

In any case, congrats to Beth Morgan-Cunningham for landing this position. It's a fine job for Beth and a good hire for Kara:
- Since Beth was a HC at VCU for quite some time, she's known to be quite good at addressing all the "back-office" aspects of being a head coach, which Muffet often gave her full credit for taking off her plate (or doing better). This will be invaluable for a new head coach.
- As Cat noted, Beth's been a member of a coaching staff that has had a very good run in the ACC (Until last year, they ripped it...) Beth and Neile have both scouted and written up more ACC game plans than they can remember.
- Needless to say, she knows ND's offense, particularly the wing position, which she coached for years (K-Mac, Maddie Cable, first two Mabreys, Sam Brunelle). Expect a Blue Devil clamp on Sam this season.
- Beth does not get rattled. Keeps her eye on the prize, just like the smooth shooter she was. Makes subtle, undramatic suggestions during games that help.

Kara has said when she was assigned to an ND game on ESPN and went to campus a few days early, she really liked spending time with MM's staff and talking about everything involved in a program. You've got to think she spent lots of time with both Niele and Beth.

A lot of time and effort has been spent at the Bench regarding the "Coquese Washington for Beth Morgan Cunningham" decision and all agree it's up to the new HC to choose her staff. However, Beth has a lot of supporters on the Bench and in the ND community, and everyone will be pleased for her getting an exceptional position. (Maybe not so much that it's at Duke, buy hey....)

If things go well for Duke and, in turn, Beth, it could help her get back in the HC game in a few years.

In the meantime, knock on wood, the Durham-South Bend trips just got even more interesting.

 

[CocoHusky]

Sorry for not getting involved in this earlier, but my attention has been a bit further up I-95 for the past few days (weeks?).

In any case, congrats to Beth Morgan-Cunningham for landing this position. It's a fine job for Beth and a good hire for Kara:
- Since Beth was a HC at VCU for quite some time, she's known to be quite good at addressing all the "back-office" aspects of being a head coach, which Muffet often gave her full credit for taking off her plate (or doing better). This will be invaluable for a new head coach.
- As Cat noted, Beth's been a member of a coaching staff that has had a very good run in the ACC (Until last year, they ripped it...) Beth and Neile have both scouted and written up more ACC game plans than they can remember.
- Needless to say, she knows ND's offense, particularly the wing position, which she coached for years (K-Mac, Maddie Cable, first two Mabreys, Sam Brunelle). Expect a Blue Devil clamp on Sam this season.
- Beth does not get rattled. Keeps her eye on the prize, just like the smooth shooter she was. Makes subtle, undramatic suggestions during games that help.

Kara has said when she was assigned to an ND game on ESPN and went to campus a few days early, she really liked spending time with MM's staff and talking about everything involved in a program. You've got to think she spent lots of time with both Niele and Beth.

A lot of time and effort has been spent at the Bench regarding the "Coquese Washington for Beth Morgan Cunningham" decision and all agree it's up to the new HC to choose her staff. However, Beth has a lot of supporters on the Bench and in the ND community, and everyone will be pleased for her getting an exceptional position. (Maybe not so much that it's at Duke, buy hey....)

If things go well for Duke and, in turn, Beth, it could help her get back in the HC game in a few years.

In the meantime, knock on wood, the Durham-South Bend trips just got even more interesting.

A Blue Devil clamp on Sam? Hardly necessary. Sam shot 30% (6 of 20) and had 8 turnovers in her last match up with the Blue Devils. Beth's best strategy might be to give Sam more touches.

 

[CocoHusky]

As a chuckle to your observation, at least Kara did not reach out to another former HC and assistant and one she knows far too well to join her in Duke Blue vs. the old Tennessee Orange. Do I need to say the name?

Coach Jumper?

 

[KnightBridgeAZ]

Yeah, not remembered fondly. She had a nice pedigree upon on arrival, but proved to be not HC material.

She played for Vivian at Iowa and I think she coached briefly at Rutgers as an assistant after her Washington stint. She was awful at Washington.

People often forget that HC and Assistant Coach are fundamentally different positions, with different (but overlapping) skill sets.

 

[Dillon77]

A Blue Devil clamp on Sam? Hardly necessary. Sam shot 30% (6 of 20) and had 8 turnovers in her last match up with the Blue Devils. Beth's best strategy might be to give Sam more touches.

Maybe that was Beth's strategy that game (she saw the future?)?

 

[WestsideWaltz]

Tia Jackson was considered one of the top assistants in the nation when she signed with UW and it was thought to be a slam dunk. She made enemies everywhere and had a dismal w/l record. Very shocking because she was well loved at UCLA and many thought she would be the new head coach there.

 

[nwhoopfan]

Tia Jackson was considered one of the top assistants in the nation when she signed with UW and it was thought to be a slam dunk. She made enemies everywhere and had a dismal w/l record. Very shocking because she was well loved at UCLA and many thought she would be the new head coach there.

I remember thinking it was a good hire when it happened. That probably more than anything is why I am always cautious of a first time head coach. Until you've proven you can do it...you haven't proven you can do it.

 

[Orangutan]

Thanks for this bit of news and a polite tip of the cap to @Plebe for alerting to this post I have to say this is very good news to me and I hope all those naysayers who weren’t not thrilled with Beth as a HC candidate are thrilled to have garnered her as an assistant. Good for Kara to steer clear of the last 10 years of anyone associated with Tennessee...I am curious to hear what @Dillon77and @Orangutan have to say as I am sure they are happy for Beth but now what to think about the ND-Duke rivalry? Score is 0-0 in the Niele-Kara head to head with ND having the better recruits and in-house talent....for now

Happy for Beth. I still dislike Duke. But Kara and Beth being there does make them slightly less unlikable. Especially as opposed to JPM who I found immensely unlikable.

 

[UConnCat]

Kara has said when she was assigned to an ND game on ESPN and went to campus a few days early, she really liked spending time with MM's staff and talking about everything involved in a program. You've got to think she spent lots of time with both Niele and Beth.

Seems not, though sounds like Kara had her sights set on Beth and called Muffet early on.

"Cunningham admits there wasn’t a deep relationship between her and Lawson. They may have talked for 10 minutes at a shootaround if Lawson was broadcasting a Notre Dame game. But there was a mutual respect there."

Was the decision not to be on Niele's staff mutual?

“The reason I came back was for Coach McGraw to begin with,” Cunningham said. “With her stepping aside, I was ready for that next chapter.”

“I can’t imagine being at a better place right now than this environment. Duke is one of the most prestigious schools in the world,” Cunningham said. “From an athletics and a school perspective, you can’t find a better brand than Duke.”

Has ND WBB ever issued a formal statement on Beth's departure?

Former Notre Dame player and coach Beth Morgan Cunningham headed to Duke

Kara Lawson was named Duke’s new women’s basketball coach on a Saturday, July 11.

www.southbendtribune.com