How long does Geno plan to keep coaching?

[bballnut90]

Beware the poisoned fruit of the coaching tree. It rarely works out in sports.

This 100%. Watching Tennessee decline the past decade is a prime example.

Berube would be my top pick out of the UCONN tree, but taking over UCONN still seems like a tall task considering her coaching experience has been at tiny programs. No one else stands out to me, though it's worth keeping an eye on Ralph despite a tough first 2 years (largely out of her control.)

Rizzotti would be an underwhelming choice. She just got fired by George Washington a couple years ago and hasn't accomplished anything notable since 2010.

The best way to maintain an elite level IMO is shell out big bucks and hire a big name which means going outside the family. Curious to see which route UCONN goes when Geno eventually hangs it up.

 

[sun]

I can't argue with Jen Rizzotti as a possible replacement for Geno. However, I doubt Jen would leave her current position as President of the Connecticut Sun to be the HC at Uconn! For a hooper like Jen, which is the most prestigious; President of the Sun or Head Coach at Uconn. I doubt she'd leave the Sun.....for a college coaching position, even if the college is Uconn....but Jen Rizzotti would be great....

UConn's BB coaches are the highest paid state employees. Geno earns about 10 times more than the estimated earnings of the President of the CT Sun which is believed to be about the same as Chris Dailey earns as Assistant Head Coach. In 2020, Dailey was earning about $313,000.
Geno's last 5 year contract extension was for $15 million.
Median compensation for a WNBA President is estimated to total about $314,500.

https://www.glassdoor.com/Salary/WNBA-President-Salaries-E12482_D_KO5,14.htm

Rizzotti would be an underwhelming choice. She just got fired by George Washington a couple years ago and hasn't accomplished anything notable since 2010.

Jen was an assistant coach for Team USA at the Tokyo Olympics. That was part of her agreement when she became the Sun's President. She's been involved with coaching various Team USA's for many years.

• As of Oct. 26, 2022

A member of eight previous USA Basketball coaching staffs and the 2011 USA Basketball National Coach of the Year, WNBA Connecticut Sun president Jennifer Rizzotti was named the 2022 USA 3x3 Women's Series team head coach before being announced as the 2022 USA 3x3 Women's AmeriCup head coach.

Coach Rizzotti most recently served as an assistant coach for the 2019-20 USA Basketball Women's National Team through the Tokyo Olympic Games, where she helped the USA capture the gold medal with a perfect 6-0 mark. She also served in 2021 as an assistant coach for the USA AmeriCup Team that claimed gold with a 6-0 record............more

Jennifer Rizzotti

www.usab.com

 

[hard2please]

i nominate tonyc

 

[tower1]

This 100%. Watching Tennessee decline the past decade is a prime example.

Berube would be my top pick out of the UCONN tree, but taking over UCONN still seems like a tall task considering her coaching experience has been at tiny programs. No one else stands out to me, though it's worth keeping an eye on Ralph despite a tough first 2 years (largely out of her control.)

Rizzotti would be an underwhelming choice. She just got fired by George Washington a couple years ago and hasn't accomplished anything notable since 2010.

The best way to maintain an elite level IMO is shell out big bucks and hire a big name which means going outside the family. Curious to see which route UCONN goes when Geno eventually hangs it up.

I think Shea Ralph is the best known and would do good in recruiting. And get Mosley as assistant. They use to be a great duo. I might of mispelled her name. Or go outside the program for best available.

 

[Steelerone]

As long as he wants.

You've got that right, 68. I think that what happens each year is that Geno starts thinking about retiring after the end of the season. Then a new group of players come in and he is re-energized for another year. Especially when the younger players show promise. At that point he feels that it is his responsibility to bring that to fruition.

 

[bballnut90]

UConn's BB coaches are the highest paid state employees. Geno earns about 10 times more than the estimated earnings of the President of the CT Sun which is believed to be about the same as Chris Dailey earns as Assistant Head Coach. In 2020, Dailey was earning about $313,000.
Geno's last 5 year contract extension was for $15 million.
Median compensation for a WNBA President is estimated to total about $314,500.

https://www.glassdoor.com/Salary/WNBA-President-Salaries-E12482_D_KO5,14.htm

Jen was an assistant coach for Team USA at the Tokyo Olympics. That was part of her agreement when she became the Sun's President. She's been involved with coaching various Team USA's for many years.

• As of Oct. 26, 2022

A member of eight previous USA Basketball coaching staffs and the 2011 USA Basketball National Coach of the Year, WNBA Connecticut Sun president Jennifer Rizzotti was named the 2022 USA 3x3 Women's Series team head coach before being announced as the 2022 USA 3x3 Women's AmeriCup head coach.

Coach Rizzotti most recently served as an assistant coach for the 2019-20 USA Basketball Women's National Team through the Tokyo Olympic Games, where she helped the USA capture the gold medal with a perfect 6-0 mark. She also served in 2021 as an assistant coach for the USA AmeriCup Team that claimed gold with a 6-0 record............more

Jennifer Rizzotti

www.usab.com

She's clearly well respected in the WBB community and has an extensive history coaching collegiately and with USA basketball, but her results as a head coach have been mediocre over the past decade. If you took away the UCONN connection, she wouldn't be on any wishlists as Geno's successor.

 

[wingsfan055]

I also echo beware the coaching tree (look at Georgetown on the men's side for a recent example of what not to do), especially in UConn's case as Geno has very unique methods in terms of coaching, strategy, etc. that may not be what is needed in this new generation of wcbb. Keep the values & standards the same, but the next coach needs to be his/her "own "coach that will be EFFECTIVE with recruiting, talent development, strategy & coaching in today's game.

 

[sun]

She's clearly well respected in the WBB community and has an extensive history coaching collegiately and with USA basketball, but her results as a head coach have been mediocre over the past decade. If you took away the UCONN connection, she wouldn't be on any wishlists as Geno's successor.

Do you actually think that Jen should have led UHart or GW to a national championship?
Those programs haven't done any better without her.
To characterize Jen's coaching record as "mediocre" is not being objective.
Just look at how many seasons that her teams played in the post season.
Her conference record was .654 (183 - 97) at UHart & .625 (30 - 18) at GW.
She made it to the NCAAT with both teams & 4 times with UHart.
That's not mediocre at all.
As a matter of fact, it's outstanding especially considering that she was made a Team USA coach.
If her coaching career was so mediocre, how do you explain her selection & her career as a Team USA coach?
Team USA coaching opportunities are far & few between and only offered to a select few.
You think that everyone else in the business has made a mistake about the quality of her coaching & BB knowledge?
Not getting a new contract at GW is part of the life of a Div. 1 coach when working at a bottom tier mid-major school.
It seems to have worked out for the best considering her new job in CT while also raising a family here.
Jen has more Division 1 coaching experience & record of success than any other ex-UConn player turned coach.

Jennifer Rizzotti - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[TCC Kid]

If Geno stays on after this year---he's good forEVER!

 

[Rowdy831]

First I don't see Geno stepping down any time soon. He is getting a little older but he still has the sparkle in his eye and he enjoys working with the girls. The real question to me is will he retire before Tara and basically let her have the all time winningest coach on her mantle?

As far as his replacement goes that will be a hard one. I would think they would need to go after a seasoned coach that has been successful and not Geno light. He is a legend and it isn't fair to the person who follows him to be mentored by him, selected by him, and then expect them to replace him. Tennessee did try the secession plan approach and it just didn't work.

 

[Zanzman]

Do you actually think that Jen should have led UHart or GW to a national championship?
Those programs haven't done any better without her.
To characterize Jen's coaching record as "mediocre" is not being objective.
Just look at how many seasons that her teams played in the post season.
Her conference record was .654 (183 - 97) at UHart & .625 (30 - 18) at GW.
She made it to the NCAAT with both teams & 4 times with UHart.
That's not mediocre at all.
As a matter of fact, it's outstanding especially considering that she was made a Team USA coach.
If her coaching career was so mediocre, how do you explain her selection & her career as a Team USA coach?
Team USA coaching opportunities are far & few between and only offered to a select few.
You think that everyone else in the business has made a mistake about the quality of her coaching & BB knowledge?
Not getting a new contract at GW is part of the life of a Div. 1 coach when working at a bottom tier mid-major school.
It seems to have worked out for the best considering her new job in CT while also raising a family here.
Jen has more Division 1 coaching experience & record of success than any other ex-UConn player turned coach.

Jennifer Rizzotti - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Her recruiting was weak thats why GW let her go

 

[UConnCat]

Some crazy takes in this thread. Glad we can once again focus on basketball match-ups and games.

 

[billnaples]

Rizzotti, Berube, Ralph are the clear leaders from the Geno "tree". Had she never left UH I would have bet on her, Now not sure. Shea might have a problem if I remember her husband is an assistant on her staff, not sure about nepotism issue at UConn. Berube has done well with
a program that takes a distant back seat to academics. I know all our gals have graduated and have had great grades with the support they get now but Carla has that Princeton background for several seasons and has been taking her team to the Dance. So she gets it done. Anyone else out there? Maybe. But I like the idea of a coach with home already there,

 

[faithfulfan]

I'd guess he'll stay for his recruits, as long as he has his health!
This was a tough year, hopefully next years undefeated team will put some gas back in his engine!

 

[Skeets]

Geno's time to retire is coming soon. CD will retire with him, while a gap year, 1 or 2 years would definitely help the program. I think the new coach will be Sue Bird. She has all of the experience and knowledge regarding basketball a player could have. As a legendary point guard what could be better. Also, she has the personality, personal poise and charisma to carry on with the program excellence that Geno and CD have developed. Finally, Sue Bird would be a great recruiter; and she would be able to attract young women to the Uconn program. Wouldn't she embody the Uconn tradition? Who could resist Sue Bird? Sue Bird is the next generation person to carry on the Uconn tradition and give it a great new dimension and direction. Go Sue

Maybe Sue could drag DT into one of the assistant positions. They may or may not be a great coaching team, but they would be entertaining. Anyone got better name recognition?

 

[BRS24]

Maybe Sue could drag DT into one of the assistant positions. They may or may not be a great coaching team, but they would be entertaining. Anyone got better name recognition?

IMHO, Sue and Diana have bigger goals than coaching college hoop.. When asked about whether she'd ever coach, DT once said, I'm gonna be an owner, or something similar. Now that Sue is retired, and Megan's career may be winding down, they may want to focus on the business(s) they've formed.

 

[cancontent]

Maybe Sue could drag DT into one of the assistant positions. They may or may not be a great coaching team, but they would be entertaining. Anyone got better name recognition?

Entertaining for sure, but former WNBA legends succeeding as coaches has had mixed results. Whalen and Thompson are the most recent examples. Swoopes is another one a few years removed from them.

Personally, I'd like to see Sue continue to focus on her venture with Together. Her impact has been impressive so far. Women's sports overall needs her more than UConn in my opinion.

 

[MSSportsGuy]

Geno should stay as long as he wants and if he enjoys it and the team is successful, he has no reason to consider retiring.

I have long believed high level professionals across all walks of life should take stock on should they stay in a role rather than just if they want to. I don't think that is applicable here since UConn is still the #1 or maybe 1B program in America at worst but self examination is sometimes needed. Money is no object for him, his legacy will likely go unmatched, and how much does his family and extended family play a part? Would he prefer to stop worrying about the stress and grind and just enjoy his family and many non biological daughters he has relationships with? Go to the beach and never worry about practicing or recruiting again? Spend time giving back even more to the communities he's called home? There are still plenty of things he could do and make an impact on the world.

 

[RockyMTblue2]

I can't argue with Jen Rizzotti as a possible replacement for Geno. However, I doubt Jen would leave her current position as President of the Connecticut Sun to be the HC at Uconn! For a hooper like Jen, which is the most prestigious; President of the Sun or Head Coach at Uconn. I doubt she'd leave the Sun.....for a college coaching position, even if the college is Uconn....but Jen Rizzotti would be great....

If money matters to her she'll be packing the car 10 minutes after the UConn phone call.

 

[CL82]

Beware the poisoned fruit of the coaching tree. It rarely works out in sports.

As Connecticut knows well, although even that failed effort produced a national championship for us on the men’s side.

Being a legacy player as the primary reason for hiring, a coach is foolish. Too often the coach’s successor is an assistant brought on expressly to ease the transition. That fails fairly routinely. But if you have an alumna, who is also a successful coach with the traits you’re looking for, it makes little sense to exclude them, just because they’ve been in the program previously.

That said, I’m not sure what to make of this board’s obsession with talking about Geno’s retirement. Enjoy him while he’s here. They’ll be plenty of opportunity to whine, worry, and postulate after he has made the decision to leave.

 

[Next 12]

I want Geno to coach until he reaches the Holy Grail, the winningest coach in Women's college BB history. His only impediment is Tara. When she retires, he will be free to reach the Holy Grail, as there is NO-ONE that is coaching now to challenge it. Uconn owns almost every record in Women's college BB that exists and this is the top one. GO GENO!!! GO HUSKIES!!!!

 

[huskeynut]

Geno's time to retire is coming soon. CD will retire with him, while a gap year, 1 or 2 years would definitely help the program. I think the new coach will be Sue Bird. She has all of the experience and knowledge regarding basketball a player could have. As a legendary point guard what could be better. Also, she has the personality, personal poise and charisma to carry on with the program excellence that Geno and CD have developed. Finally, Sue Bird would be a great recruiter; and she would be able to attract young women to the Uconn program. Wouldn't she embody the Uconn tradition? Who could resist Sue Bird? Sue Bird is the next generation person to carry on the Uconn tradition and give it a great new dimension and direction. Go Sue

I guess you have not been paying attention. Sue Bird has made it very clear she does not to coach. Diana has said the same thing.

Your reasoning is faulty. Personality, charisma is not near enough to carry a program forward. The head coach job is so so much more. The head coach position it a lot more difficult than personally. Evaluating recruits, X's and O's, skill drills for developing recruits, matching recruits with program needs. Just the tip of the iceberg.

Being a head coach is a totally different world than being a star athlete. And I doubt that UConn would consider a cabndidate with no coaching experience. This is not about being a Sue Bird fan. It is what is the right move for the program.

 

[visitingcock]

As Connecticut knows well, although even that failed effort produced a national championship for us on the men’s side.

Being a legacy player as the primary reason for hiring, a coach is foolish. Too often the coaches successor is an assistant brought on expressly to ease the transition. That fails fairly routinely. But if you have an alumna, who is also a successful coach with the traits you’re looking for, it makes little sense to exclude them, just because they’ve been in the program previously.

That said, I’m not sure what to make of this boards obsession with talking about Geno’s retirement. Enjoy him while he’s here. They’ll be plenty of opportunity to whine, worry, and postulate after he has made the decision to leave.

I'm not sure why it's a hot topic at this time. Sure, he will retire in the next few year. I don't think catching/passing Tara's number have anything to do with his decision as some have said. His legacy as the most successful coach ever is firmly established without that little ornament. He knows the truth and so does everybody else. But why discuss this now as he leads your team into the tournament?

I can't see this being Geno's last tournament. Especially in light of the fact that he has the championship favorite team for nest year with a healthy Paige/Azzi/Aliyah nucleus. I could see him wanting one (or two) more. After Paige matriculates? Maybe. After Azzi? Maybe.

Retirement is the ammunition of your rivals in recruiting. Why feed it on this board? - at this time?

 

[Big Fan]

One year longer than Tara

 

[visitingcock]

One year longer than Tara

I really doubt he cares about that very much. He and everybody else know that he has had MUCH more success than Tara.

 

[sun]

The NCAA's expansion of the coaching staff is a clear sign that WCBB has become a much bigger business than it ever has before. The additional costs, international recruitment efforts, transfer portal responsibilities as well as coaching all of the players is being acknowledged as requiring more effort & more staff to remain competitive on the court & to be financially sustainable. That should be the major consideration at this point in Geno's career, how to keep Geno from retiring sooner rather than later by doing everything possible to make his job easier and not more difficult.
UConn should take advantage of the new rule or it could fall behind in being able to prepare players for elite competition. Geno relies on his staff, and if he could use more staff then he should be able to get it as way to spread out more of the responsibilities. Geno has alluded to shortcomings with the staff as part of the problem with this year's team. With more incoming players next year UConn should hire more staff. Other schools are doing it and they have much younger coachers. As the nature of the game & the business of WCBB changes, if a school stands still it's like falling behind.
The NCAA will soon begin paying prize money for women's March Madness, & WCBB will become an even more important way for successful programs to earn money to pay for sports. Especially for schools that don't receive huge amounts of TV money.

 

[visitingcock]

The NCAA's expansion of the coaching staff is a clear sign that WCBB has become a much bigger business than it ever has before. The additional costs, international recruitment efforts, transfer portal responsibilities as well as coaching all of the players is being acknowledged as requiring more effort & more staff to remain competitive on the court & to be financially sustainable. That should be the major consideration at this point in Geno's career, how to keep Geno from retiring sooner rather than later by doing everything possible to make his job easier and not more difficult.
UConn should take advantage of the new rule or it could fall behind in being able to prepare players for elite competition. Geno relies on his staff, and if he could use more staff then he should be able to get it as way to spread out more of the responsibilities. Geno has alluded to shortcomings with the staff as part of the problem with this year's team. With more incoming players next year UConn should hire more staff. Other schools are doing it and they have much younger coachers. As the nature of the game & the business of WCBB changes, if a school stands still it's like falling behind.
The NCAA will soon begin paying prize money for women's March Madness, so WCBB will become an important way for successful programs to earn money to pay for sports.

Is this a fact? An NCAA plan that I missed? Or is this something you surmise from the growth of TV viewers this year? Wouldn't argue with you. Just curious.

 

[sun]

Is this a fact? An NCAA plan that I missed? Or is this something you surmise from the growth of TV viewers this year? Wouldn't argue with you. Just curious.

Yes I believe that it has already been passed. I posted a link about it on Page 1, post #7 of this thread.
This led to Shea Ralph hiring Katie Lou as a new assistant coach at Vandy which was a previous topic.

NCAA to increase number of coaches in multiple sports

The NCAA voted to increase the number of coaches allowed in baseball, softball, ice hockey and men's and women's basketball.

www.espn.com

 

[cgshuskie]

Huskynut you misrepresented what I said in my post. I didn't say or infer that personality and charisma is all that is needed to be a HC. Also, while Sue Bird may have said she doesn't want to be a coach, I'm hoping she can be persuaded. DT is a different story. I don't think she (DT) would be a great HC at Uconn. However, Sue very much has the knowledge of how college level (D1) basketball works. She may be the exception!!! She knows the X's and O's, evaluating recruits and skill drills, player development programs, and other aspects of the craft. I'm sure that you understand that, as a point guard and leader of teams, she has mastered all of these abilities. As a pro coaches representative on the ball court, she knows how to run a team, re franchise. My point is that, above all else, she has the knowledge and experience plus the personal qualities to be an upper level basketball (executive) leader or head coach. I digress....

 

[Rowdy831]

How about Lindy LaRocque. She is the current coach at UNLV, was an assistant with Tara at Stanford and has family ties to the NE, and she can coach. UCONN was nothing when Geno arrived and I think they will need another young coach when he leaves that can build their own legacy. Lindy is in her early 30s so she should have a long future ahead of her and I think she will be at a bigger, better place when Geno finally throws in the towel.