OT: Dave Leitao back to DePaul?

[tzznandrew]

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bas...y-considering-bringing-back-dave-leitao-coach

This would be an interesting development, and I wonder how well he could succeed there again, 10 years later. I have my doubts.

 

[mauconnfan]

Saw that on ESPN before. He was 58-34 there which is really good in comparison.

 

[imno1]

Well after Purnell I'm sure Depaul looks back at Leito's coaching years as the good old days

 

[FfldCntyFan]

He was the last coach that left DePaul voluntarily (to UVA). He has to look like Popovich when compared to those who followed him.

 

[huskiesNhoos]

we hated him at uva...terrible in game coach, and he ran his players into the ground. We had so many injuries in practice that we could barely field a team some nights. Players didn't like him, and the only reason he had some success at UVA before getting canned was the fact that he had Sean Singletary and JR smith

He would be great as an assistant again, working with the players and was a decent recruiter

 

[Palatine]

I said at the time that moving to UVA was an awful move for DL. It was.

DePaul is a sleeping giant and he had just turned the corner. If you make DePaul the place for city kids -like Ray Meyer did- you're looking at deep NCAA runs almost every year.

 

[UCweCONN]

I said at the time that moving to UVA was an awful move for DL. It was.

DePaul is a sleeping giant and he had just turned the corner. If you make DePaul the place for city kids -like Ray Meyer did- you're looking at deep NCAA runs almost every year.

One problem with your theory. Kids no longer want to stay to play in the city they live. They want to get away. Also, I don't think it's good for kids to stay local with all their high school friends. Bad things happen. Leitao is now in his mid-late 50's. When I rebuild a program, I'd want a guy in his 30's or 40's. I would be thrilled with Leitao coming back to UCONN as top assistant/recruiter. Give Miller the boot if necessary.

 

[alexd]

It would be fun to watch Depaul overtake PC.

 

[Waquoit]

They have a shiny, new arena opening soon.

 

[don356]

It's still depaul, and you are not going to get a lot of front line guys for that job regardless of the arena. Not to mention keeping the city kids there often involves convincing them to stay around what is a very, very dangerous place for kids out of the projects. It's probably a good idea as he knows the area, school and would likely take it. I'm not sure there are a lot of current fits out there. Most chicago kids want the heck out of that city.

 

[Fishy]

DePaul is a terrible job for a thousand different reasons. If you play it straight, I think you'll lose.

To win there, you need to recruit Chicago. To recruit Chicago, you need to be tied into one of the most insular and twisted high school basketball scenes out there. To get Chicago kids into school, you need an admissions department with the moral flexibility of a Third-World despot. To keep Chicago kids in school, you need a support staff the size of NATO. Chicago high school coaches run fiefdoms and the inner city schools struggle to produce academically-eligible athletes. Players with promise are spirited away to privates and preps very early.

Once you navigate every mine field to get your team into uniform, you still have to figure out how to win.

 

[Matrim55]

DePaul is a terrible job for a thousand different reasons. If you play it straight, I think you'll lose.

To win there, you need to recruit Chicago. To recruit Chicago, you need to be tied into one of the most insular and twisted high school basketball scenes out there. To get Chicago kids into school, you need an admissions department with the moral flexibility of a Third-World despot. To keep Chicago kids in school, you need a support staff the size of NATO. Chicago high school coaches run fiefdoms and the inner city schools struggle to produce academically-eligible athletes. Players with promise are spirited away to privates and preps very early.

Once you navigate every mine field to get your team into uniform, you still have to figure out how to win.

Yeah, there could be a 30 for 30 just on the rise of Chicago basketball & the fall of DePaul over the last three decades. It'd be fascinating.

It's also worth mentioning that Illinois is starting to recruit top Chicago kids for the first time in 25 years. Not necessarily the Anthony Davis or Jahlil Okafor-level talents, but the ones a cut below that are finally thinking about good old State U.

And those are exactly the kids Leitao will need to get for DePaul to be competitive. It's not going to be easy.

 

[tcf15]

@GoodmanESPN: DePaul has agreed to deal in principle with Dave Leitao, sources told ESPN. He will return to Chicago.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

I think Depaul is a solid job, and there is no excuse for the coaches that have been there to do as bad as they have. The local talent pool is deep, and while Chicago high school basketball presents some challenges, every job has its challenges.

Also, being on Fran Haith's staff may have ended his coaching career if he didn't leave.

 

[gtcam]

if its true he is headed there, I wish him only the best
always liked the guy
regardless what some at uva feel, he's a good basketball man
he did quite well with DePaul in what was a competitive Conference USA (2 NITs and 1 NCAA in 3 years)
at uva, as I remember he won a regular season title and CoY honors

 

[noeynox]

DL is one of those guys that you just consider part of the UConn family. Part of the Jim Calhoun coaching tree. Wish him the best and hope he does well there.

 

[huskymedic]

@GoodmanESPN: DePaul has agreed to deal in principle with Dave Leitao, sources told ESPN. He will return to Chicago.

BrianHamiltonSI4:00pm via Twitter for iPhone
DePaul will hold a news conference Monday to introduce Dave Leitao.

BrianHamiltonSI 4:11pm via Twitter for iPhone
"In the end, Dave surfaced as our No. 1 choice." -- #DePaul AD Jean Lenti Ponsetto, officially announcing Dave Leitao re-hire.

 

[Tenspro2002]

DL is one of those guys that you just consider part of the UConn family. Part of the Jim Calhoun coaching tree. Wish him the best and hope he does well there.

It would be nice if someone from JC's tree could do something worth a damn (Ollie excepted). I think that's one issue preventing JC from being considered truly in that Coach K class of coaches.

 

[Walker11]

It would be nice if someone from JC's tree could do something worth a damn (Ollie excepted). I think that's one issue preventing JC from being considered truly in that Coach K class of coaches.

Coach K has had his reputation for years. His coaching tree has just started showing a pulse recently.

 

[noeynox]

Hey, JC's tree has a guy that won a national title. K's tree bore fruit to Jeff Capel. To be fair JC's guys never got close to top jobs, DT is the only exception.

 

[CallMeBruce]

It would be nice if someone from JC's tree could do something worth a damn (Ollie excepted). I think that's one issue preventing JC from being considered truly in that Coach K class of coaches.

This is why I'd like to see Pikiell get more considering for the St. John's job.

 

[gtcam]

It would be nice if someone from JC's tree could do something worth a damn (Ollie excepted). I think that's one issue preventing JC from being considered truly in that Coach K class of coaches.

I think people like KO, Steve Pikiell, Dave L, C Hobbs (had some real nice seasons at GW) are representative - as much as Coach K's

 

[nadav]

we hated him at uva...terrible in game coach, and he ran his players into the ground. We had so many injuries in practice that we could barely field a team some nights. Players didn't like him, and the only reason he had some success at UVA before getting canned was the fact that he had Sean Singletary and JR smith

He would be great as an assistant again, working with the players and was a decent recruiter

Decent recruiter? He landed Ray and Rip for us. Sorry it didn't work out at UVA for you guys, but he was instrumental in our 99 title. Let's show Dave the proper respect.

 

[huskiesNhoos]

Decent recruiter? He landed Ray and Rip for us. Sorry it didn't work out at UVA for you guys, but he was instrumental in our 99 title. Let's show Dave the proper respect.

He was a decent recruiter at uva as a head coach, not referencing his time at uconn. I was all for the uconn family connection when he went to uva, but the fact is he did not do a good job there. On top of that he's not a particularly nice guy. Could have just been the few times I was around him, but the players didn't like him either (was part of the reason he got let go).

I'll always appreciate what he did for Uconn, but beyond that Im not really a fan of his

 

[nelsonmuntz]

He was a decent recruiter at uva as a head coach, not referencing his time at uconn. I was all for the uconn family connection when he went to uva, but the fact is he did not do a good job there. On top of that he's not a particularly nice guy. Could have just been the few times I was around him, but the players didn't like him either (was part of the reason he got let go).

I'll always appreciate what he did for Uconn, but beyond that Im not really a fan of his

Leitao got on the wrong side of UVA hoops' biggest booster, and there was no surviving that situation. THAT is why he was fired.