UCLA offered to double Jay Wright’s deal...he said no

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

If Dixon and Cronin were “Tier II” guys, what does that make Wojo?  Not even on the radar screen, is what.

Dixon and Cronin are good coaches. Saying Wojo isn't as good as them at this point in his career is not an insult.

[Cheeks]

This has nothing to do with the conference as a whole and you know this

Nothing?  Disagree.  Part of your job satisfaction as a coach is going to be tied to a degree to the conference.  Your conference helps with recruiting, with visibility via television deal, etc.

So, no, to suggest nothing is wildly wrong in my view. 

[GooooMarquette]

Nothing?  Disagree.  Part of your job satisfaction as a coach is going to be tied to a degree to the conference.  Your conference helps with recruiting, with visibility via television deal, etc.

So, no, to suggest nothing is wildly wrong in my view.

+1

I suspect it is mostly about Nova and Philly...but the status and visibility of the BE is also a very real factor. Hard to know exactly how much of a role each played, but they are definitely intertwined.

[avid1010]

Nothing?  Disagree.  Part of your job satisfaction as a coach is going to be tied to a degree to the conference.  Your conference helps with recruiting, with visibility via television deal, etc.

So, no, to suggest nothing is wildly wrong in my view.

So Mark Few stays at Gonzaga because of the conference as it offers him help with recruiting and visability?

[Cheeks]

So Mark Few stays at Gonzaga because of the conference as it offers him help with recruiting and visability?

I answered the question regarding Wright.  Let’s put it this way, if Philly mattered only for him then would he stay if he was at Penn or St Joes’..being in the Ivy League or A10?  I don’t think so.  I believe when someone says it has NOTHING to do with it, they are wrong.  For Wright, the conference matters to a degree for the same reason the PAC 12’s level might also matter.

Mark Few has said he loves the size, the geography, the way of life in Spokane.  Good for him....those were his drivers.  The answer doesn’t have to be the same for everyone just like any other job, where different benefits or situations are more important to some than others.

[Warrior Code]

If you are happy and getting paid enough ($3.5 mil is enough), I don't see the appeal of leaving a successful program that you have won two national championships with.     It is just money.    It isn't like he has to buy his suits second hand or his cars used.

Agree with this. He already has more than most could spend in a lifetime. At a certain point more isn't better, more is just... more.

[avid1010]

I answered the question regarding Wright.  Let’s put it this way, if Philly mattered only for him then would he stay if he was at Penn or St Joes’..being in the Ivy League or A10?  I don’t think so.  I believe when someone says it has NOTHING to do with it, they are wrong.  For Wright, the conference matters to a degree for the same reason the PAC 12’s level might also matter.

Mark Few has said he loves the size, the geography, the way of life in Spokane.  Good for him....those were his drivers.  The answer doesn’t have to be the same for everyone just like any other job, where different benefits or situations are more important to some than others.

You said part of your job satisfaction as a coach is the conf...I pointed out a coach who that doesn't apply to.  You have no clue how much the BEAST has to do with Jay staying other than the obvious...that it isnt so bad that he felt he had to leave. You also refernced other schools...not sure Jay wouldn't remain at Nova if it were in one of those conferences. 

 I happen to think it is a great conference to be a basketball coach in...would certainly hope coaches truly view it that way as well.

[avid1010]

Agree with this. He already has more than most could spend in a lifetime. At a certain point more isn't better, more is just... more.

Yes...the thought of growing old on the Nova campus and community as a legend would do it for me. 

[Herman Cain]

I always love this argument.

1.  Plenty of people love to live and work in California...supply and demand. 

2.  How do you know it's more risk?  A 15 year deal worth a ton of $ could certainly be less risky...especially if he only plans to coach 10 more years.  I would bet the word "risk" never came into the discussion.

3.  I would guess the words family, loyalty, legacy, happiness, etc... came into play.

4.  Jay is my favorite coach in all of college bball.

I was only responding to the economic question some posed as to why someone would turn down an offer for twice the current salary. Net, Net it is the same dollars.

As to the risk. The risk is more a summation of the various points your making. He has a great job at a great university where he already has won 2  Natties and been to another final four,with the real possibility of many more. Living in a great place for his family and where he is the King forever.  Why give that up to climb another mountain that only leads to the same place you are already at and enjoying.

[Nukem2]

I was only responding to the economic question some posed as to why someone would turn down an offer for twice the current salary. Net, Net it is the same dollars.

As to the risk. The risk is more a summation of the various points your making. He has a great job at a great university where he already has won 2  Natties and been to another final four,with the real possibility of many more. Living in a great place for his family and where he is the King forever.  Why give that up to climb another mountain that only leads to the same place you are already at and enjoying.

That’s, hopefully leads to a similar place.  Quite a gamble, especially in the John Wooden shadows.

[avid1010]

I was only responding to the economic question some posed as to why someone would turn down an offer for twice the current salary. Net, Net it is the same dollars.

As to the risk. The risk is more a summation of the various points your making. He has a great job at a great university where he already has won 2  Natties and been to another final four,with the real possibility of many more. Living in a great place for his family and where he is the King forever.  Why give that up to climb another mountain that only leads to the same place you are already at and enjoying.

Right...i was responding to any perceived economic risk...im guessing he could have gotten a contract from ucla that would have made it risk free from a financial perspective.

Outside of dollars...no reason to leave that i can think of.

[Lennys Tap]

This has nothing to do with the conference as a whole and you know this

Actually, it may have a little to do with it. For a powerhouse program like Villanova, the porridge of the Big East is neither too hot nor too cold - but just right. The conference is strong enough to keep them in national conversation and weak enough for them to dominate it. Perfect spot for Jay - he can win championships without having the pressure of a killer regular season schedule.

The other 9 head coaching jobs in the Big East are, at least right now, stepping stones to the top 4 conferences.

[MUDPT]

Maybe he thought that he had a better chance of making $3.5 million+ over the next 10 years at Nova then making $7 million over the next 5 years at UCLA.  And no, I don't want a lecture on the present value of the money.

[MU82]

Report has surfaced that Barnes lied his arse off about the whole UCLA thing.

https://www.latimes.com/sports/ucla/la-sp-ucla-mick-cronin-coaching-search-20190429-story.html

After a series of back-and-forth discussions, Barnes agreed to take the job for just short of $6 million per season, with the Bruins footing his $5-million buyout, according to two people familiar with the talks. But Barnes subsequently had a representative contact UCLA, asking for more money.

UCLA pulled out of the discussions at that point, even after Barnes said he would accept the previously agreed-upon terms in an attempt to salvage the deal.

Barnes told reporters in the following days that he momentarily thought he was going to become the Bruins’ coach and that the holdup had been UCLA’s unwillingness to pay his buyout.

So the narrative that had built for a little while -- that at least in this case, the new school wasn't willing to pay the buyout -- turned out to be a lie that Barnes told to try to save face.

In other words, coaches are still just about total free agents, contracts still aren't worth the paper they are written on, and buyout clauses are still a joke.

As for Barnes, it will be interesting to see how this affects things for him at Tennessee. What does he tell recruits? "Come to Tennessee! I prefer UCLA, but I want you to prefer us!" What does he tell his players about loyalty and giving their all for Vols Nation? "It was just business," is probably the leader in the clubhouse.

In the end, Barnes tried to extort UCLA, failed, and then went back with his tail between his legs begging to get the original terms -- so he's not even a good extorter. Glad they told him to take a hike.

[Cheeks]

You said part of your job satisfaction as a coach is the conf...I pointed out a coach who that doesn't apply to.  You have no clue how much the BEAST has to do with Jay staying other than the obvious...that it isnt so bad that he felt he had to leave. You also refernced other schools...not sure Jay wouldn't remain at Nova if it were in one of those conferences. 

 I happen to think it is a great conference to be a basketball coach in...would certainly hope coaches truly view it that way as well.

You don’t think knowing he is going to win the conference every year, get a high seed doesn’t factor for Few?  I suspect it does, but for others they may want a better conference, more notoriety, etc.

[Lennys Tap]

You don’t think knowing he is going to win the conference every year, get a high seed doesn’t factor for Few?  I suspect it does, but for others they may want a better conference, more notoriety, etc.

You don't think Villanova dominating the "New Big East" isn't a factor for Jay Wright? Few and Wright's situations aren't exactly the same but they're far from dissimilar.

[The Lens]

The conference does matter.  It's looked at as a Power 5 but JW is treating as his personal WCC.  He's Mark Few with the benefit of the doubt.  Why leave?

[Cheeks]

You don't think Villanova dominating the "New Big East" isn't a factor for Jay Wright? Few and Wright's situations aren't exactly the same but they're far from dissimilar.

They are vastly dissimilar.  Gonzaga has absolutely no competition in their league.  Nova does.  The situations are not close.

[Herman Cain]

Actually, it may have a little to do with it. For a powerhouse program like Villanova, the porridge of the Big East is neither too hot nor too cold - but just right. The conference is strong enough to keep them in national conversation and weak enough for them to dominate it. Perfect spot for Jay - he can win championships without having the pressure of a killer regular season schedule.

The other 9 head coaching jobs in the Big East are, at least right now, stepping stones to the top 4 conferences.

The other perfect temperature porridge that Villanova has is its Big 5 Membership. Every year they have 4 games locked into the schedule that are not total cupcakes ,yet still  readily winnable, two of the games are technically away games ,yet in their home town, and thus they have a very built in  head start on a solid NET ranking for the OOC part of the season. So even this year when they had a bit of a dip early on they never really plummeted too far in the computer ranking.

I would agree that the Big East ( and every other major conference) is a stepping stone to a blue blood, fallen blue blood, or near blue blood. However, unless there are special circumstances like Buzz had, no one from our league is going to a pedestrian team at the other major conferences.  8 out of the 10 Big East Coaches have varying degrees of cushy sinecures.  The two that don't, The Johnnies and DePaul, could if they had better athletics administrations. Part of the reason our conference is cushy for coaches, is that the Big East  is an ideally landing spot for quality transfers. So even if a coach misses  badly in a year on high school recruiting, the chances of stocking the pipeline with transfers is very much there. Creighton has it down to a science.

[79Warrior]

Tell us again how horrible it is to live amongst all those liberals, the first hundred times were so enrapturing.

No kidding. Broken record.

[Jon]

Wondering why you think this. There have been many huge market teams for decades. You say that teams like USC, UW, Oregon, Cal will step it up. With Arizona's troubles and UCLA's fall from blue blood-ness, this is just a mid-major conference. I see no evidence they are getting better.

What incredible insight.

What is genuinely hilarious is that the Big East is no better.

[Shooter McGavin]

This year there maybe little difference between the Pac 12 and Big East.  But every other year the new Big East has been in existence they have not been similar, with the Big East being the better conference by numerous objective measures including post season bids and success.   

Jon, curious why you feel this way. 

[avid1010]

You don’t think knowing he is going to win the conference every year, get a high seed doesn’t factor for Few?  I suspect it does, but for others they may want a better conference, more notoriety, etc.

If conference matters...I don't think it's a selling point for the Zags.

[Cheeks]

“I know I’ll get in trouble for that, but it’s the truth,” Wright said. “I just love what it stands for. Everybody from the Northeast being in New York for this tournament. …

“The Big East tournament is one of the greatest basketball tournaments in the country.”

- Jay Wright

[LAZER]

What incredible insight.

What is genuinely hilarious is that the Big East is no better.

No better?  I think there's pretty significant evidence to the contrary.