outside the family.......

[jibsey]

Who on this board knows the intensity of KO? Does he have the same unrelenting drive and motivating ability that Hurley obviously has? Anyone know him personally, because we need a Calhoun type of guy and I don't know if that is KO.

 

[johnhuskies95]

Who on this board knows the intensity of KO? Does he have the same unrelenting drive and motivating ability that Hurley obviously has? Anyone know him personally, because we need a Calhoun type of guy and I don't know if that is KO.

You don't stick for as long as he did in the NBA without unrelenting drive.

 

[Scoe]

One name that intrigues me is Frank Martin he can recruit, and knows how to find talent. He was an assistant at Northeastern and recruited JJ Barea to go there. He has the same type of Demeanor as JC.

 

[champs99and04]

It seems like people are looking for a reason not to like Brad Stevens. The man took a group of 2 and 3 star recruits to the NCAA Championship two straight years. He's like seventeen years old and has spoken highly of UConn's program before. I think his first option would be to build Butler into a powerhouse, but if it looks like that's not going to happen over the next two years I think he'll pounce on the first big time job that becomes available, and all the other elite programs seem set for now.

Also, why are people under the impression that Stevens will not be able to recruit? Obviously it's going to be a lot easier to recruit at a school like UConn than at Butler, assuming we don't get left out of the whole musical chairs thing, and even then, schools like Georgetown, Villanova, and Marquette have been able to maintain success in the Big East without the benefit of a football program.

If you think Stevens plays boring basketball, then I guess you just don't like watching selfless players who can move the ball, use screens, and hit open shots (i.e. the opposite of our current offense). And keep in mind, Stevens has been able to accomplish this with a very limitd recruiting class. Just imagine what he could accomplish with players like Oriakhi, Drummond, Kemba, Gordon, Okafor, Lamb, Napier, etc. I really believe we could be talking about the next Coach K here. But hey, anybody who plays in the NBA for 15 years can make an excellent college coach. In fact, I can't think of a single successful coach in today's game that DIDN't play in the NBA. Oh wait, I just named ten off the top of my head. .

 

[johnhuskies95]

Article on Ollie: http://www.newstimes.com/uconn/arti...-a-difficult-UConn-stretch-3354005.php#page-1

 

[businesslawyer]

Maybe Sean Miller wants to coach in a power basketball conference. Because he ain't in one now.

 

[uconnfan68]

Maybe Sean Miller wants to coach in a power basketball conference. Because he ain't in one now.

UofA to Uconn is a relatively lateral move. Flagship schools. One might argue our BB is better, but they have a lot of intangibles out there (warm weather, nice weather, great weather).

 

[Ts5034]

Sean Miller is a Big East guy and an east coast guy so i think he would seriously consider the jump just for those reasons. Throw in a high level job like Uconn and that may seal the deal. He would be my choice if they were going to hire outside the program but i still think Ollie is getting the job.

 

[orangehomer]

if you want to re-start outside the "family", i would probably suggest paulie gualtieri or perhaps silvio dante.

 

[MidTown Husky]

What is Sean Millers connection to the east coast? Didn't he go to Pitt or something? Don't want to hire another Randy Edsall where he always has one foot out the door waiting for Dixon to leave

 

[AJC88]

If Calhoun says Ollie is the guy, then I'm fine with it. I think Coach has done enough to merit our trust as a fanbase.

 

[caw]

It seems like people are looking for a reason not to like Brad Stevens. The man took a group of 2 and 3 star recruits to the NCAA Championship two straight years. He's like seventeen years old and has spoken highly of UConn's program before. I think his first option would be to build Butler into a powerhouse, but if it looks like that's not going to happen over the next two years I think he'll pounce on the first big time job that becomes available, and all the other elite programs seem set for now.

Also, why are people under the impression that Stevens will not be able to recruit? Obviously it's going to be a lot easier to recruit at a school like UConn than at Butler, assuming we don't get left out of the whole musical chairs thing, and even then, schools like Georgetown, Villanova, and Marquette have been able to maintain success in the Big East without the benefit of a football program.

If you think Stevens plays boring basketball, then I guess you just don't like watching selfless players who can move the ball, use screens, and hit open shots (i.e. the opposite of our current offense). And keep in mind, Stevens has been able to accomplish this with a very limitd recruiting class. Just imagine what he could accomplish with players like Oriakhi, Drummond, Kemba, Gordon, Okafor, Lamb, Napier, etc. I really believe we could be talking about the next Coach K here. But hey, anybody who plays in the NBA for 15 years can make an excellent college coach. In fact, I can't think of a single successful coach in today's game that DIDN't play in the NBA. Oh wait, I just named ten off the top of my head. ****.

My issue with Stevens is that he isn't a Northeast guy. Now, don't get me wrong, maybe it doesn't matter for him (I don't know the man), but he seems like he would jump at Kansas or Indiana in a heartbeat, even from a program like UConn or Syracuse or even Duke/UNC. That's just the impression I get from him.

Hurley is a NE guy and I don't think there is a better program in the country that he would necessarily leave for (and be asked). UNC likes to stay in family, IU/KU/UK and UCLA all seem outside the box for a coach like Hurley. Syracuse has their next coach. Duke could make sense, but moreso for Bobby than Danny, assuming K stays around long enough for Bobby to get experience. I wouldn't be shocked to see Bobby head coach somewhere in the near future.

Miller would be a good replacement, and of course someone to call, but I'm not sure he leaves UofA for UConn. It's a pretty good program, he has two great classes there and he gets paid top dollar there. The only thing going for UConn is it's a NE school and he is from the east coast. UConn may be a marginally better program (I mean UofA is solid).

Amaker would be interesting, though this situation mirrors Michigans, which wasn't really a great idea for Amaker.

 

[HeGotGame]

Miller almost left 'Zona to go to Maryland last year. UConn and are Zona are better jobs than Maryland, he is from the east coast, played at Pitt, was an assistant at Pitt, his wife is from the east coast.

JC is a BIG supporter of Sean and will support him to the administration.

If Uconn came calling he will listen. It would more or less be a lateral move school wise, but now he has a chance to be back closer to home and coach in the conference he played in.

Also, he is not afraid to take over for a legend considering he took over for Olsen.

 

[cytolliver]

i dont think sean miller would come to uconn. Nor do i think he is the right fit. A name i wasnt thinking of that was brought up here was Frank Martin, if he does have Northeast ties i'd think he would be a good candidate. Other candidates mentioned like Hurley, Stevens, and Smart all deserve looks atleast. As long as the program isnt handed over to ollie without a search im fine with it. As long as the university goes through a comprehensive search for a new hc when calhoun calls it quits, i am sure the right person will be selected.

 

[freescooter]

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

Agreed, although Gutheridge went tow 2 final Fours in his 3 years I think. he was really a transitional guy who never planned to be there long term. And for what its worth, every one of those guys had more experience as a coach than Ollie.

As far as Ollie's NBA experieince, its nice but it absolutley does not make you qualified to be a head coach at a major porgram. There is a huge difference between being a player with limited responsibilites and being the head coach. A backup point guard can say whatever he wants to the local reporter, who will likely clean it up. the Head Coach at UCONN is going to be on the radio, tv, appear before the various alumni groups, help with fundraising, so he better be a good speaker, organize a coaching staff, develop game strategies, oversee the recruiting, so he better be well organized, a great judge of coaches and player talent, know how to delegate. An NBA point guard has to know when to pass and when to shoot...

 

[aceboon]

Miller almost left 'Zona to go to Maryland last year. UConn and are Zona are better jobs than Maryland, he is from the east coast, played at Pitt, was an assistant at Pitt, his wife is from the east coast.

JC is a BIG supporter of Sean and will support him to the administration.

If Uconn came calling he will listen. It would more or less be a lateral move school wise, but now he has a chance to be back closer to home and coach in the conference he played in.

Also, he is not afraid to take over for a legend considering he took over for Olsen.

I know I will catch heat for this but I don't agree with the statement that UConn right now is a better job than Maryland. Obviously we've won more than them in the past 20 years, but its not like their FSU, they've had success and won a title during that span, and they had a good history prior to Williams. Plus they're located in arguably the best recruiting area in the country, you put the right coach in there(Miller for instance) and you can have a top 10 recruiting class every year just locking down DMV & BMore. The amount of talent that Gary Williams get out there because he couldn't be bothered with it is staggering. Then when you factor in them being in a stable conference situation I would give them the edge as a better job.

 

[HuskyFan32]

Just throwing his name out there, and I know I'll catch a lot of flack, but how about Rick Barnes? Not the greatest coach, but has had Texas in the NCAAs 12 consecutive years and took them to the final four and then lost in the elite eight twice. Gets some talented players as well, and you'll have to win the big one eventually if you consistently have the talent he has. Not as much potential as some other coaches in my opinion, but he would probably be one of our safest choices for the program's future.

Sure lets get the complete opposite of Calhoun; a guy that gets as much talent as any coach in America, yet never does anything at all with it.

 

[HuskyFan32]

Let me say this: No matter who we get, it will be a downgrade from Jim Calhoun, since JC is the greatest basketball coach in CBB history.

 

[freescooter]

Something that people ought to keep in mind is that the decision will be made by two people who really have no ties to Calhoun. Neither Susan Herbst nor the new AD have any allegiance to him, and while I'm sure they will get his input, neither one owes him anything and both have their own agendas. In fact one could argue that in some ways, he has been nothing but a problem for both since they have been there...So they could well be looking for a new direction for UCONN basketball. that would leave Ollie off the list for certain.

 

[HuskyFan32]

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.

His team this year is 23-6 at Miami with someone else's players. I never said he was an awful coach or that Smart would be a bad hire, Im just surprised by how many people automatically turn to Smart, when in reality he made one nice run (with another coaches players). Doesnt take away from it, but I'd like to see some consistency from him.

 

[RuffRuff]

Not sure how much Miller wanting to be in a power conference argument when you stack up the Pac Ten and the Big East. Pac Ten is down, sure. They have no direction to go but up. The Big East losing Cuse, WV, Pitt and soon to be Louisville, loses a good chunk of it's brank/marketability/legacy. Cuse/Pitt/Ville are top tier programs along with Uconn, WV next step down.

 

[freescooter]

His team this year is 23-6 at Miami with someone else's players. I never said he was an awful coach or that Smart would be a bad hire, Im just surprised by how many people automatically turn to Smart, when in reality he made one nice run (with another coaches players). Doesnt take away from it, but I'd like to see some consistency from him.

He went to the Final four from a mid-major conference with a team that had never gone beyond the 2nd round and now has them 23-6 and on the verge of another NCAA bid. What do you want for consistency? they have a better shot at the NCAA tounament this year than we do for heaven sakes. His records over his 3 years are 27-9, 28-12 (final four), 23-6 so far this year. All he does is consitently win.

 

[HuskyBballFan]

He went to the Final four from a mid-major conference with a team that had never gone beyond the 2nd round and now has them 23-6 and on the verge of another NCAA bid. What do you want for consistency? they have a better shot at the NCAA tounament this year than we do for heaven sakes. His records over his 3 years are 27-9, 28-12 (final four), 23-6 so far this year. All he does is consitently win.

I like Shaka Smart, but the bolded sentence above is not true.

 

[Excalibur]

Agreed, although Gutheridge went tow 2 final Fours in his 3 years I think. he was really a transitional guy who never planned to be there long term. And for what its worth, every one of those guys had more experience as a coach than Ollie.

As far as Ollie's NBA experieince, its nice but it absolutley does not make you qualified to be a head coach at a major porgram. There is a huge difference between being a player with limited responsibilites and being the head coach. A backup point guard can say whatever he wants to the local reporter, who will likely clean it up. the Head Coach at UCONN is going to be on the radio, tv, appear before the various alumni groups, help with fundraising, so he better be a good speaker, organize a coaching staff, develop game strategies, oversee the recruiting, so he better be well organized, a great judge of coaches and player talent, know how to delegate. An NBA point guard has to know when to pass and when to shoot...

I include Guttheridge because he left them so devoid of talent it was painful to watch. I'm just not a fan of promoting assistants, particularly those with little experience.

 

[freescooter]

I include Guttheridge because he left them so devoid of talent it was painful to watch. I'm just not a fan of promoting assistants, particularly those with little experience.

Fair enough. I agree on promoting assistants. It rarely works out long term. Adn if it works short term is makes it all the more difficult to make the necessary change down th line. See Indiana for example.