Rebuild?

[whaler11]

Yet somehow, every year, athletic departments make the decision to fire head coaches given the potential they may lose kids. Hell some may argue retaining to current Head Coach you'd be at more risk to lose guys on the roster.

UConn is never going to have the successes we had under Calhoun. Aside from Duke, Kentucky, UNC and Kansas, no other program in the country is going to sustain that level of success for two decades either.

I'm of the belief that even though we won't be Calhoun's UConn, we're still a program that should consistently make the NCAAs. That's clearly not the case given our current predicament.

Can anyone provide a single example of a schools in football or basketball that kept a coach to keep his recruiting class and it worked out?

Every example I can remember was a bust.

Mike London and Romar being the two most obvious and recent examples.

 

[Robertelamin]

If we can’t find grass greener than Kevin Ollie they should disband the athletic department.

My God - do some of you stay in bed all day because you might slip and hit in your head in the shower?

Well you work in risk management...I was thinking the same thing honestly.

 

[BlueDogs]

In this current situation it might take 3 years to rebuild/restock

If Ollie is fired expect half current roster to leave (JA, TL, AA, DO, AG, one of Whaley/polley/Carlton) and all the incoming recruits to look elsewhere.

The incoming coach would have to fill the roster with players like Pitt this year or BC 2-3 years ago. You lose any recruiting Chill has been working on as he would be leaving and you have to start from scratch with a new staff, new recruiting strategy as you would have to show/ get schools/ coaches to believe in the new UConn regime and vision for future before they allow/ guide their players to UConn. And let's not forget the AAC and the next coach won't be a big time name given the budget concerns with the state.

Recipe for disaster. Have to ride it out with KO and give him next year with the incoming class and see what players end up committing for the 2019 class. With Chill on the prowl the roster has a good chance of replicating past UConn rosters the fans have been accustomed to

We have a disaster on our hands, the recipe is already in place. I don't think there is but two or three players worth keeping. If JA leaves, he'd be a fool. He's nowhere near NBA ready, and he is regressing under KO. It's more likely he leaves with KO in place to avoid more damage to his future. He should be praying for new leadership and a system that can elevate his game.

 

[BUConn10]

I agree with the sentiment of OP in general. Recruiting at the highest level which UConn has earned the right allows for massive turnover relatively quickly, it's just the nature of basketball where the peak of talent outweighs mean depth in terms of how far you can go in the tourney.

As for how this pertains to our situation, I'd say our talent pool is currently pretty bare, might require a year or two just to get back to par before we can judge fully.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

We can't afford the buyout, so I think this is a moot point.

 

[djct1999]

This rebuild will take more than a year. I simply don't see this administration making the type of hire that would win at all costs. Anything is possible and sure, a quick rebuild would be great. The more realistic scenarios though are far more dire. The ceiling for this program in this conference is much lower than it was 7-8 years ago.

 

[husky429]

We can't afford the buyout, so I think this is a moot point.

Yes we can.

 

[djct1999]

We can't afford the buyout, so I think this is a moot point.

I couldn't really "afford" a new boiler in my basement, but you know what, when the thing went, I was left with no choice. While I agree that the school surely doesn't want to waste 10million or whatever the amount is, I am just as confident that they can buy him out if desired. The school is not a prisoner here.

 

[TouchdownHusky]

Pitino.

 

[whaler11]

We can't afford the buyout, so I think this is a moot point.

I don’t think they want to deal with the optics even if they have the money.

That is a different point than what I keep seeing that there needs to be some Edsall style rebuild. The sport doesn’t work like that.

 

[Fishy]

With Ollies NBA connections you would think he could bring in more recruits by simply naming "who he personnally knows" in the league.
You can't underestimate how the American conference in killing recruiting.

The American Conference didn’t kill recruiting until the recruiting effort started taking escalators and then elevators and then no longer even wanted to do that.

It was obviously a headwind, but the name on the front of the uniform overcame that to some degree....until the name on the front of the uniform was the only thing recruiting for us.

 

[Danzz]

The overall talent on the team is not great but I think there are coaches who could get them to play better and make us actually be competitive.

It is too early to say that our overall talent is not great because a lot will depend upon the development of our young players. We are missing the obvious: shooters and a true PG. It may be more of a question of a bad mix at this point.
This team is not hopeless and we are not as bad as the Arkansas and Auburn losses.
The KO question is another story.

 

[borninansonia]

The American Conference didn’t kill recruiting until the recruiting effort started taking escalators and then elevators and then no longer even wanted to do that.

Is lack of effort sufficient reason to fire the coach for cause, meaning no big buy-out? In my companies, everyone under contract can be fired for lack of effort, no buy-out.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

I don’t think they want to deal with the optics even if they have the money.

That is a different point than what I keep seeing that there needs to be some Edsall style rebuild. The sport doesn’t work like that.

Optics meaning the school is spending $10M to can a coach in the face of state budgetary issues or in the sense that he won a title a few years ago and for those that don't follow the program it would seem to be a rash move?

 

[whaler11]

Optics meaning the school is spending $10M to can a coach in the face of state budgetary issues or in the sense that he won a title a few years ago and for those that don't follow the program it would seem to be a rash move?

I meant more of the first. When you are fighting the state for every penny it’s not a great look regardless of how it’s funded.

You are right about the second though - some of the national media will bury the schools and fan base for it. I don’t know if they care about that - I wouldn’t.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

I meant more of the first. When you are fighting the state for every penny it’s not a great look regardless of how it’s funded.

You are right about the second though - some of the national media will bury the schools and fan base for it. I don’t know if they care about that - I wouldn’t.

I can already see the ESPN narrative now. UConn fires national champion winning, former alumni head coach, pays out $10M when CT is facing money problems. If UConn hadn't "left" the Big East to pursue football money they wouldn't be in this position, etc. We would be dragged through the mud.

Meanwhile (not apples to apples obviously) but A&M fires Sumlin who was a successful coach and buys him out for over $10M, hires Jimbo for $75M and is lauded for their "commitment to football".

It's such bs. It makes me just hate college sports.

 

[kcc1442]

@ConnHuskBask

Whaley, polley, Carlton are 4 year role players every team needs.

You also lose Akinjo, Matthews, and possibly Kisunas. Who are you filling 7 open spots with for 2018 and literally 0 PGs on the roster.

Any prep/ high school and AAU program would advise their players to stay away from UConn until the new staff shows their plan/ vision. Recruiting would get worse and being in the AAC won't help matters.

Grass isn't always greener on the other side. UConn is in a bad situation right now but things would get a lot worse by cutting bait with KO and there no guarantee the next coach would be able to turn UConn around in 2 years given the conference and roster circumstances and the coach would be mid tier given KO buyout and state budget

Who are these coaches that are coming in? You don't think they have their noses in places. Connections, and kids that they have been recruiting for years.

I'm not taking any side here. But you're making it seem like not one D1 recruit would consider coming to a basketball tradition rich state flagship school for a free education at a top 30 public university in the U.S. In a top 7 conference in the country. Come on. The next coach will find some players he can coach up to compete. NYC doesn't get blown up if KO gets fired does it?

 

[RabidHusky]

If you don't/can't recruit shooters your rebuild may never get off the ground. Being able to put a system in place that gets those shooters open looks would also help. Year two should see drastic improvement in any case.

If you have a cannon you should fire it.

Our first play should be a double screen for Adams to shoot a 3. TL has been productive shooting over people in the paint. CV needs some double screens too. Mama and Whaley can rebound and improvise as can Carlton and Cobb.

 

[Kemba429]

Didn't they win like 9 games the year before he left? Couldn't have been that great lol

Markelle Fultz. Pretty sure its the HC or something, not chill.

 

[The Funster]

I think most fans are expecting too much. First off the players on our roster would actually have to learn how to play with an offensive philosophy. That is far too much to expect from any college player. I mean, c'mon, they have to be walked through things like cutting and passing. These skills are totally foreign to our current roster. Bring in a head coach NOW, I say, so hbe can start teaching the basics to the new kids and then he can slowly add new recruits who ACTUALLY know how to cut and pass and screen and shoot. I think within 5-6 years these offensive skills can become hallmarks of our program.

 

[Padutch5]

KO will have to convince the best of this group to stay at the end of the season. Then he'll have to convince the "committed " 2018 kids to stay committed and after that he'll have to develop what he has. In addition to that, it wouldn't hurt to
Add one quality grad. Transfer big ( heavy emphasis on "quality"). If he can some
How make it to next season without losing much and adding the new kids, we should be better next year. The possibility of these things actually happening would be almost miraculous.

I think you have part of the equation. He also needs to teach them to pass, keep moving (we have an awful lot of standing waiting for the ball) and block out. I actually think we have the talent Tyler Phommachanh be a lot better than we have shown, what we seem to lack is the coaching piece.

 

[Chief00]

I can already see the ESPN narrative now. UConn fires national champion winning, former alumni head coach, pays out $10M when CT is facing money problems. If UConn hadn't "left" the Big East to pursue football money they wouldn't be in this position, etc. We would be dragged through the mud.

Meanwhile (not apples to apples obviously) but A&M fires Sumlin who was a successful coach and buys him out for over $10M, hires Jimbo for $75M and is lauded for their "commitment to football".

It's such bs. It makes me just hate college sports.

I hear you, but quite frankly you can’t let the media narratives determine what decisions you make. If some of these guys were so great making decisions they would be out doing things rather than reporting on what somebody else does.

 

[The Funster]

I hear you, but quite frankly you can’t let the media narratives determine what decisions you make. If some of these guys were so great making decisions they would be out doing things rather than reporting on what somebody else does.

Right on chief. Most of those yahoos are no more knowledgable than the casual fan.

 

[intlzncster]

I don’t think they want to deal with the optics even if they have the money.

Funny, I haven't thought about the optics in a long time. How much of that is still a factor? It would be a bad look for sure. But usually, those with the deepest pockets win out in these situations. If big boosters want him gone, he's likely gone.

I wonder if DB would ask for JC's blessing, and if so, would JC give it.

 

[methodology]

Who are these coaches that are coming in? You don't think they have their noses in places. Connections, and kids that they have been recruiting for years.

I'm not taking any side here. But you're making it seem like not one D1 recruit would consider coming to a basketball tradition rich state flagship school for a free education at a top 30 public university in the U.S. In a top 7 conference in the country. Come on. The next coach will find some players he can coach up to compete. NYC doesn't get blown up if KO gets fired does it?

The next coach if KO is fired would be a mid major type coach because of monetary issues. Probably wouldn't have the connections/ track record to recruit near the level of KO