outside the family.......

[businesslawyer]

'Bama fans like him.

Given discussions on this board, would I be going out on a limb to guess that there are probably some 'Bama fans who disagree with others on absolutely everything?

 

[caw]

Calipari would be a perfect fit at UConn.

If a lot of UConn supporters didn't hate the guy, he would have been but he is not leaving UK for UConn anyway.

Brad Stevens is a terrible choice for UConn. He would not recruit well at UConn and I'm not ready to play the boring Stevens style of basketball. Hurley is being groomed for another job. He will be a great coach wherever he ends up but it won't be UConn.

Really, what other job? I can't think of a better job than UConn that will be opening up soon unless UCLA gets rid of Howland? It won't be UNC, Cuse, Kansas, Indiana or UK, they seem set for 10 years or so. Duke won't open up for a few more years and imagine will have someone with closer Duke ties. Bobby Hurley could end up there if he gets his own ship first and proves himself.

 

[Excalibur]

Given discussions on this board, would I be going out on a limb to guess that there are probably some 'Bama fans who disagree with others on absolutely everything?

True, but the general consensus remains that he was a good hire. That could change quickly, of course.

 

[Kitaman]

I really don't think anyone else is in the mix. Ollie was brought in at a salary much less than he is used to. He is sitting on the bench surrounded by tons of college coaching experience. Public comments about him being the heir apparent have not been disputed, corrected or denied, by Calhoun or UConn for that matter. Why did he accept the coaching position if he is not promotable? Meaning he could have easily been named a head coach at a lesser Div 1 team and certainly a Div 2 team if it just about coaching college ball. He is loyal to UConn, but I don't think enough just to have a better view of the games.

Its his to lose or reject, is how I see it. For those that want him to coach right away could be detrimental to his standing, particularly if he loses. He's still in school and his teacher(s) are some good ones.

 

[johnhuskies95]

Um I actually have, my wife is from Alabama and I use to live in TN so I have a lot of friends who are big bama fans and I have not heard one negative comment about him other than he is extremely strict disciplinarian.

How many have you talked too? I am guessing none

Half of my family is from Mobile. My Aunt is on the board at Alabama. So yes, I have talked to many Alabama fans.

They like him enough, but a lot compare him to Mark Richt in football. He's a solid coach who runs a good program, but he just lacks the necessary X's and O's to win big.

 

[gandydancer]

Frank Martin

 

[freescooter]

Everyone needs to cool down with smart. I'm sure he's a fine coach and will probably have a great career but he did only make one run last year. If they lost in the sweet sixteen nobody would be talkin about him si does winning one more game really make him that much better of a coach? What has larranega done after their final four? Not saying I wouldn't want smart, but people are too high on him after makin one nice run

Um, he's 23-6 this year and probably getting another bid. And his team went to the Final Four last year,not the Sweet 16. And beat the #1 seed along the way. Not exactly the same as losing in the Sweet 16 in my book. If he makes another decent run this year, and the Final Four would be asking quite a lot for a CAA team under any circumstances, I think he has to get a look by better teams. You might question a 1st round loss, but depending on who, you might not. As far as Larranaga goes, he went tow 2 more NCAA tournaments with Mason, which is in my mind a decent accomplishment in a 2-3 bid league. last year they won their opening round game against Villanova. and he has Miami at least in contention to make a run. the loss to Maryland hurt, but they could finish with a record similar to ours in his first year.

 

[zls44]

Hurley would be a fine hire. Rick Barnes...shoot me

 

[businesslawyer]

Calhoun came from OUTSIDE the family. That was a good hire.

His influence will be felt at UConn for a long time no matter who sits in his spot on the bench.

I don't have a firm position on this, but while it's true that Calhoun came from outside the family, it would seem inarguable that the calculus of hiring from without or promoting from within is different when the program is succeeding as opposed to when it is not succeeding. And our program is succeeding under Calhoun and was not succeeding under Perno.

 

[HeGotGame]

Half of my family is from Mobile. My Aunt is on the board at Alabama. So yes, I have talked to many Alabama fans.

They like him enough, but a lot compare him to Mark Richt in football. He's a solid coach who runs a good program, but he just lacks the necessary X's and O's to win big.

Richt has been to the Conference Championship game in the best conference in college football in 5 out of his 11 years at UGA, if our program is as successful as the UGA football program is right after Calhoun leaves I will be ecstatic.

 

[freescooter]

I really don't think anyone else is in the mix. Ollie was brought in at a salary much less than he is used to. He is sitting on the bench surrounded by tons of college coaching experience. Public comments about him being the heir apparent have not been disputed, corrected or denied, by Calhoun or UConn for that matter. Why did he accept the coaching position if he is not promotable? Meaning he could have easily been named a head coach at a lesser Div 1 team and certainly a Div 2 team if it just about coaching college ball. He is loyal to UConn, but I don't think enough just to have a better view of the games.

Its his to lose or reject, is how I see it. For those that want him to coach right away could be detrimental to his standing, particularly if he loses. He's still in school and his teacher(s) are some good ones.

He wants to become a head coach. Yoou have to start somewhere and starting as Calhoun's assistant is not a bad place. but it is a huge jump from assistant coach, recruiting coordinator to Head Basketball Coach at a Big East school, let alone UCONN. Jamie Dixon did it at Pitt, but he had 15 plus years as an assistant, including 9 as Howland's top assistant at NAU and Pitt. Not exactly the same as Ollie's 2 seasons at UCONN. I guess you could say Boeheim did it, but again, he had 7 years as an assistant and it was a different era.

 

[johnhuskies95]

Richt has been to the Conference Championship game in the best conference in college football in 5 out of his 11 years at UGA, if our program is as successful as the UGA football program is right after Calhoun leaves I will be ecstatic.

Okay? I'm just telling you what I've been told from people who are Alabama fans.

 

[uconnell]

Brad Stevens is a terrible choice for UConn. He would not recruit well at UConn and I'm not ready to play the boring Stevens style of basketball. Hurley is being groomed for another job. He will be a great coach wherever he ends up but it won't be UConn.

 

[businesslawyer]

Brad Stevens is a terrible choice for UConn. I'm not ready to play the boring Stevens style of basketball..

What is your number so I can make sure I watch how you do against Syracuse Saturday night?

Because if you mean you'd prefer not to watch it, I'm fairly certain that won't enter into the decision making process at all. I was in DC last March and saw Stephens team beat ODU and Pitt back to back. Watching it was fine. His players are capable of setting and utilizing screens.

 

[Jaker]

If Rick Barnes gets hired, I will stop sending checks to the program.

 

[RuffRuff]

Rick Barnes will never leave Austin, which is perhaps the best college town in the US. I could argue a more attractive job than Uconn for many of the peripheral reasons. Talk about just a horrible idea to begin with.

Agreed on Shaka - not ready to blow that guy after one nice run. He doesn't feel BE to me.

I like Hurley and his NE ties. He has that rough neck blue collar work ethic and grit that feels very Calhoun like. Nice B lister for now.

I'm still not feeling Ollie - he still feels like an ex NBA player trying to be a college coach. That learning curve will take some time. That fit isn't there right now.

Sean Miller would be the most ideal fit out there if he wants to leave a pretty cushy place out in the warm desert for a program that could have some challenges ahead of it.

 

[ford82]

Get out of here with Rick Barnes. That was a joke right? Dude can't coach for . Also, I agree he wouldn't leave Austin. I don't think Frank Martin is the right choice either.

Miller is not going to leave Arizona for UConn. I don't know why people keep mentioning him.

I like Hurley, but he really doesn't have that much D1 head coaching experience.

The people who don't like Stevens might be right about his recruiting and style of play, but I guarantee you if he wanted the job he would get it.

 

[HobokenHusky]

I think Hurley would be a great hire. The fact of the matter is, UConn is not going to be able to pull a desirable head coach away from any major player in college basketball. As far as a recruiting draw goes Calhoun is the only thing bringing in recruits from all over the country to Storrs, CT. So that Calhoun can make you a pro. The tri-state area has a ton of basketball talent, especially NJ, and Hurley would have a more-than-direct pipeline into the area. The fact that he is recruiting players to Wagner speaks volumes of these abilities. Add that to the fact that he also appears to be a very good coach, and I think he is a top candidate.

 

[superjohn]

I think Dan Hurley is going to be a great coach, what he's already done at Wagner is incredibly impressive and he is extremely plugged in to the recruiting scene. He reminds me a lot of his father who is very similar to Calhoun. I like Ollie I just think it could be a very dangerous proposition handing him the reigns after just a few years of assistant coaching experience. I can flat out say that I think Dan Hurley would be really successful as our next coach, I can't confidently say that about Ollie.

 

[Danzz]

Slow day. Started to think outside the box. If UConn decided to go outside the family post-Calhoun, what are people's thoughts about Danny Hurley? I think he is doing a great job at Wagner, is young, would potentially stay for a long time and would recruit the hell out of the northeast. In my opinion, although he is not a better coach than Brad Stevens, I feel he is a better fit. Any thoughts?

Amazing how quick many people on this board have jumped off the Ollie bandwagon. I know you said "if" but a lot of others come up with coaches names that have no chance of coming here. We may think Uconn is wonderful but a lot of coaches may want to try to follow JC.
BTW, I still want Ollie. He has shown that he can recruit and his experience at running NBA teams from PG is a better internship than any college job. He has had enough time to figure out the political lanscape at Uconn and he deserves a shot.Hobbs, not so much.

 

[chrisn671]

If either Sean Miller, Brad Stevens, or Anthony Grant want to come here and we choose Kevin Ollie over them, I'm going to have to seriously question the administration's objectives.

 

[ford82]

I like Kevin Ollie alot, being an NBA point guard is a benefit, but it is not a better internship than being a head coach at the college level.

 

[Excalibur]

He wants to become a head coach. Yoou have to start somewhere and starting as Calhoun's assistant is not a bad place. but it is a huge jump from assistant coach, recruiting coordinator to Head Basketball Coach at a Big East school, let alone UCONN. Jamie Dixon did it at Pitt, but he had 15 plus years as an assistant, including 9 as Howland's top assistant at NAU and Pitt. Not exactly the same as Ollie's 2 seasons at UCONN. I guess you could say Boeheim did it, but again, he had 7 years as an assistant and it was a different era.

For every Jamie Dixon there's a ton of Brian Mahoneys, Bill Guthridges, Craig Eshericks and Mike Davises.

 

[Inyatkin]

Ollie will always be in the mix because he's presumed to be Calhoun's choice. It doesn't mean he'll get the job, but he will be a factor.
Also, Danny Hurley might be great, but the idea of him bringing his brother along? Bobby Hurley sitting on UConn's bench?

 

[Jaker]

I like the idea of Hurley, but as long as Bobby does not come along.