The Search Reloaded

[forensicbuzz]

This is just me speculating.

My thoughts originally was that Bobinski had two directions he could go with this hire: bring in a seasoned P-5 level guy and pay $3+M/year or go for one of the up-and-coming mid mid-major guys and hope his ability to fine diamonds held. I think he took the 2nd path with Drew. I believe he thought he could get him for about $1.5M/year and if it didn't work out as planned, he'd be out from under the Hewitt/Gregory buy-out and could then go after that 1st option. When Vandy came sniffing, I think Bobinski upped the offer to about $2.3M due to pressure to get it done.

Now, Bobinski is back to the 1st path and having to do something more quickly. I would not be surprised to see him bring someone from a P-5 school (this really is only for football, because the Big East is still a huge basketball power, part of the reason that Mack is less likely to move; Xavier is now a high-major program). I don't purport to know who the best or viable candidates at this level are, but I think Bobinski throws the money necessary for a "big fish" to make up for the Drew debacle (not that that was necessarily his fault).

 

[jeffgt14]

I just can’t understand how you can’t even get Chris Mack to talk to you when you’re more than doubling his salary. He’s under contract for another 5 years so unless he moves on for another job he won’t get close to that kind of cash. What job opening is likely coming up that he’s holding out for?

 

[dtm1997]

I just can’t understand how you can’t even get Chris Mack to talk to you when you’re more than doubling his salary. He’s under contract for another 5 years so unless he moves on for another job he won’t get close to that kind of cash. What job opening is likely coming up that he’s holding out for?

What number do you think Chris Mack makes? Why do you think the data you've seen from a private school head coach is accurate data? Why do you think it's not super easy for a school to amend a contract with a salary increase to keep predators at bay? What's the biggest & best job in the state of Ohio?

 

[dtm1997]

 

[LargeFO]

Besides being African-American how are they much alike?

 

[dtm1997]

Besides being African-American how are they much alike?

Cuonzo is ok, not great at Xs & Os, although probably better than Hewitt on a standalone basis. There's also talk that Martin doesn't interact well with a school's community. Might care a bit less about that if he's recruiting well and getting us 18-20 W's a year for a few years.

 

[D-man44]

Besides being African-American how are they much alike?

Good recruiter below average X and Os however he is better at X and Os than Hewitt.... Plus his team this year kinda underperformed with all the talent he had

 

[ramblinwreck1378]

Good recruiter below average X and Os however he is better at X and Os than Hewitt.... Plus his team this year kinda underperformed with all the talent he had

They were a 4 seed in the tournament - and played that game without Wallace and Bird, two top contributors accounting for about 26 ppg. Not to mention JB probably played his worst game of the season - I don't blame that tourney loss on Martin.

 

[Peacone36]

I blame some other losses on him though. Saw them play a couple times. They didnt run much. They just out talented people

 

[D-man44]

They were a 4 seed in the tournament - and played that game without Wallace and Bird, two top contributors accounting for about 26 ppg. Not to mention JB probably played his worst game of the season - I don't blame that tourney loss on Martin.

They lost to richmond and san diego state blew them out with the talent they had this year those games shouldn't have been close

 

[smokey_wasp]

Cuonzo strikes me as a poor man's Capel. I don't think his ceiling is very high, but he could probably get us back to respectability fairly quickly. I could talk myself into being happy about it. But if he does come here, keep in mind he will have had head coaching stints of 3, 3, and 2 years. I wouldn't expect him here much longer, but maybe he can give the next guy something more to work with. Basically, I think he would be another "bridge" hire, but one that is more accomplished and a better recruiter than Gregory was.

 

[kg01]

Cuonzo is ok, not great at Xs & Os, although probably better than Hewitt on a standalone basis. There's also talk that Martin doesn't interact well with a school's community. Might care a bit less about that if he's recruiting well and getting us 18-20 W's a year for a few years.

If he "earned" that rep at TN, I wouldn't hold that against him. They never appeared to accept him/family as far as I can tell. Not surprising that a southern state school's fanbase didn't exactly endear themselves to a black HC.

 

[dtm1997]

Cuonzo strikes me as a poor man's Capel. I don't think his ceiling is very high, but he could probably get us back to respectability fairly quickly. I could talk myself into being happy about it. But if he does come here, keep in mind he will have had head coaching stints of 3, 3, and 2 years. I wouldn't expect him here much longer, but maybe he can give the next guy something more to work with.

I think this is the reality. I'm fine with a high risk/high reward guy like McCall because if he succeeds, we might have a monster, fails & he was cheap. Martin's only making $1.2Mil with no contract now. Give him 4yr/$8Mil with a favorably structured buyout, let him get a few good seasons & recruiting rebuilt & chances are he leaves us in a decent, possibly good spot, leaving on his own to coincide with Hewitt & BG being fully paid off. Kelsey might be an OK coach, but seems like an easy out for MBob, leaning on the Sean Miller & Chris Mack recommending their boy.

In order, my preference is:
1) Matt McCall
2) Cuonzo Martin
3) Pat Kelsey

 

[DSGB]

Capel would have to decline our job again. I would get in touch with him and make contract parameters known and see what happens. Apologize and say we had to do our due diligence and see what happens. Pride be damned.

 

[deeeznutz]

Cuonzo strikes me as a poor man's Capel. I don't think his ceiling is very high, but he could probably get us back to respectability fairly quickly. I could talk myself into being happy about it. But if he does come here, keep in mind he will have had head coaching stints of 3, 3, and 2 years. I wouldn't expect him here much longer, but maybe he can give the next guy something more to work with.

Honestly we just need to get back to respectability until we're out from under the Hewitt contract. Once we're past that (assuming we don't screw up by giving new coach a big buyout and then end up firing him), we can worry about getting "good" again. By that point we won't look like such a joke and we'll actually have decent money to spend on a coach. I think Cuonzo could get us to that point, if not farther.

 

[kg01]

Cuonzo strikes me as a poor man's Capel. I don't think his ceiling is very high, but he could probably get us back to respectability fairly quickly. I could talk myself into being happy about it. But if he does come here, keep in mind he will have had head coaching stints of 3, 3, and 2 years. I wouldn't expect him here much longer, but maybe he can give the next guy something more to work with. Basically, I think he would be another "bridge" hire, but one that is more accomplished and a better recruiter than Gregory was.

I'd say look deeper into those stints. The first stint was a rise to a bigger school. Nothing wrong there. At TN, politics and (for lack of a better term) noise basically forced him to look elsewhere otherwise he'd still be there. At Cal, again, oddness would've led him to look elsewhere. It's not like got the Quitrino-itch and kept leaving places.

Capel would have to decline our job again. I would get in touch with him and make contract parameters known and see what happens. Apologize and say we had to do our due diligence and see what happens. Pride be damned.

That's assuming Capel actually had interests other than trying to force Duke to pay him more or name him HCIW.

 

[Peacone36]

I think this is the reality. I'm fine with a high risk/high reward guy like McCall because if he succeeds, we might have a monster, fails & he was cheap. Martin's only making $1.2Mil with no contract now. Give him 4yr/$8Mil with a favorably structured buyout, let him get a few good seasons & recruiting rebuilt & chances are he leaves us in a decent, possibly good spot, leaving on his own to coincide with Hewitt & BG being fully paid off. Kelsey might be an OK coach, but seems like an easy out for MBob, leaning on the Sean Miller & Chris Mack recommending their boy.

In order, my preference is:
1) Matt McCall
2) Cuonzo Martin
3) Pat Kelsey

1-Matt McCall
2-Kevin Keatts
3-Martin
4-Laranaga/Forbes/Dooley/Kelsey

 

[dtm1997]

1-Matt McCall
2-Kevin Keatts
3-Martin
4-Laranaga/Forbes/Dooley/Kelsey

I only used currently floated names, but I'd agree with this.

 

[gtdoceulaw]

Of all the possible candidate names at this time, I prefer Matt McCall as well. Imagine if MM had finished his 2nd year at UTC and had taken them to consecutive post-season tourneys? We might be in another bidding war for his services. As such we don't have any competition right now for an upward trending coach, with a successful coaching pedigree from having served under Billy Donovan.

Regarding Coach Martin from Cal, if our AD was going to try to bring a coach from the west coast eastward, I would hope that he'd entertain reaching out to the UCI head coach who previously had successful stints as an assistant at academically rigorous institutions (WF and Stanford). I also believe he played college ball in Va. So he certainly knows the ACC and might be willing to come back home.

 

[YlJacket]

I'd say look deeper into those stints. The first stint was a rise to a bigger school. Nothing wrong there. At TN, politics and (for lack of a better term) noise basically forced him to look elsewhere otherwise he'd still be there. At Cal, again, oddness would've led him to look elsewhere. It's not like got the Quitrino-itch and kept leaving places.



That's assuming Capel actually had interests other than trying to force Duke to pay him more or name him HCIW.

That could be the case or it could be that McBob left Capel for Drew. We don't know. But I agree with the poster that if I am McBob Capel would have to overtly turn me down right now with a $2+M offer. If we did indeed offer Drew $2.4 M I would white out the name, write in Capel and send it to him by fastest pony express.