DeCourcy on Crean to Kentucky

[Dish]

In Kentucky's search, Crean should rise to the top
March 22, 2007


If Kentucky is smart about the business of hiring its next basketball coach, it will place itself in the position to be brushed off by Florida's Billy Donovan and Texas' Rick Barnes -- but not to be turned down by them.


It seems almost inevitable Kentucky will pursue one or both of these men to replace Tubby Smith after he resigned to become head coach at Minnesota. What UK does not need, however, is for the public to believe it was rejected by its first or second choices.

If the university feels compelled to go after Donovan or Barnes, it must do so quickly and discreetly. There is no need for UK to win the press conference or win over the message boards with this hire. The only pressure is to get the right guy. That guy probably is Marquette's Tom Crean, whose recruiting, coaching, and public relations savvy are suited to the unique demands of the Kentucky job.

Donovan and Barnes certainly would be outstanding hires. Each is every bit as equipped to deal with Kentucky as Crean. However, each has a job that is overwhelmingly lucrative, where the best recruits can be landed and where the pressure to win is not as intense as it is at Kentucky. The whole notion that being at a "football school" is a detriment has been destroyed by their success and by the rise of Ohio State under Thad Matta.

The best players are not objecting to signing at such programs. Indeed, for Texas, the allure of Barnes is that he can sign players such as T.J. Ford, LaMarcus Aldridge and, of course, Kevin Durant. So long as elite recruits are happy to choose "football schools," and so long as football success is generating the money to pay these coaches handsome salaries, there is no need for any of them to accept the additional responsibilities and pressures of coaching at basketball-first school such as Kentucky.

Kentucky remains a destination job. It is a place where McDonald's All-Americans can be landed, national championships can be won and huge paychecks can be direct-deposited. UK people will believe they have the best job in college basketball to offer, and they have the right to believe that. There is no program that is more passionate about basketball success.

Any notion that UK fans are unreasonably demanding is unreasonable, but their passion adds layers of difficulty to the coach's job, and the coach doesn't see a corresponding escalation in salary or recruiting base. In short, there's no good reason for Donovan or Barnes to leave his current job for Kentucky.

Crean coached in the state as an assistant at Western Kentucky and has excellent relationships with members of the state's media. He took a program to the Final Four that had not been there in more than two decades. He has recruited such gems as Dwyane Wade, Travis Diener, Steve Novak and Dominic James to Marquette. And as an assistant, he helped recruit a national championship team at Michigan State. This is one of the few jobs for which he might leave Marquette. The Wildcats would be lucky to have him.

[NavinRJohnson]

I must say he makes a strong case...The biggest factor as I see it, and the reason you can't really use his perceived lack of success at MU as a reason not to hire him,  is access to those McDonald's guys that he just doesn't have at Marquette (not a knock on MU, as it is the same at most schools around the country). If he is getting the sit down's with the Durants, Odens and Hansbroughs of the world that he just can't get at MU, he will get his share and the success at UK will be relative to the success at MU based on the talent pool available to him. If you simply took MU's current roster and plunked a Greg Oden, or Tyler Hansbrough or Joakim Noah down in the middle of it, you could make a case that MU would probably be preparing for a game on Saturday. At UK he can get those guys. At MU he can't.

All of that said, if they do make him an offer, I think he should take it, although I'm not sure he would (at least I hope not).

[muwarrior87]

that being said, his contract at MU is really appealing and I don't see him abandoning this program with all the time he has invested in it, with what he's getting paid here, and with the length of his current contract. At UK, it's unlikely that he'll still be there if they do not make a deep run into the tournament within 2 years of his hiring. And in regards to landing those big name players, they don't always pan out and if Marquette's program continues to grow, it wouldn't surprise me if we landed someone like Green in a couple of years that would definitely be a big name player that could end up here.

[SoCalstu09]

Whenever I hear these things, I answer one question?

WWWD? (what would Wade do?)

[rocky_warrior]

Whenever I hear these things, I answer one question?

Soo...what's the answer??? 

[MarquetteVol]

DWade would remember the hand that fed him.

Respect his roots.

Finish the job he started.

At least that's my answer!

[mosarsour]

Mark my words, Crean's gone.  The head coaching position at Kentucky is too big to pass up.

[augoman]

I agree..., if it's offered, and MU's contract is 'loose' enough, he is gone.  If so, hate to see him go, but I still think it won't be him.

[The Lens]

Mark my words, Crean's gone.  The head coaching position at Kentucky is too big to pass up.

Do you really think UK wants him?  Their message boards would blow up.  Real or not it's starting to look like one of the national perceptions of Coach Crean is that DW made him. 

And on the UK Scout board that Headwaters2 guy has been pretty spot on and he says TC will not be the coach.

[NYWarrior]

Do you really think UK wants him?  Their message boards would blow up.

That's largely because they expect to get Donovan.  Until he says no, nobody passes muster.  Still things might look real different over there if Donovan, Gillispie and Cal say 'no'

might just break that way.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Mark my words, Crean's gone.  The head coaching position at Kentucky is too big to pass up.

Do you really think UK wants him?  Their message boards would blow up.  Real or not it's starting to look like one of the national perceptions of Coach Crean is that DW made him. 

And on the UK Scout board that Headwaters2 guy has been pretty spot on and he says TC will not be the coach.

Yet they are ok with John Biehline as their head coach....two NCAAs in 5 years. 

It's funny watching the criteria change from coach to coach.   

I'll bet whomever is named coach, some will have a fit and others will rally behind him.  I remember when USC hired Pete Carrol, an NFL has been retread and their boards and fans were FURIOUS.  The first year the team sucked and they were beyond furious.  The LA Times was filled with hate letters, etc.

Now they will all tell you they supported him from day one because he's successful.

[The Lens]

His NIT year came after he replaced 4 starters and a very key reserve and he still finished with a winning record in the Big East, played tough in the BET and was very much on the bubble for the NCAAs and now he's in the NIT finals.  Chicos you have to admit, the dude can flat out coach.  His team was picked for 12th in the BE and greatly exceeded expectations. He's a "coach 'em up" type coach.

[ChicosBailBonds]

His NIT year came after he replaced 4 starters and a very key reserve and he still finished with a winning record in the Big East, played tough in the BET and was very much on the bubble for the NCAAs and now he's in the NIT finals.  Chicos you have to admit, the dude can flat out coach.  His team was picked for 12th in the BE and greatly exceeded expectations. He's a "coach 'em up" type coach.

I believe he can coach, not saying he can't.  I just laugh when people say 4 NCAAs in 8 years but it's ok for Biehline to have 2 NCAAs in 5 years.  I mean, what the hell is the difference?

Remember, we were picked for 12th last year and finished 4th...but because we lost to Alabama apparently all of that was for not?  According to some, apparently so.

The criteria and expectations seem to change from coach to coach which is an interesting study is psychology.  It would be fun to label these coaches as A, B, C and then have posters say who they like and don't like based on COACHING, rather than their personal hangups against them.

[Niv Berkowitz]

Bielein is going to Michigan.

[NYWarrior]

Bielein is going to Michigan.

if Michigan really gonna pay their hoops coach more than their football coach?

his buyout is more than $1M (2?).   

[tower912]

The word in Michigan is that U of M wants Stallings from Vandy.  He is considering.    TC to Vandy?

[DAtruth]

pitino made cat fans fall in love with the 3 ball..i believe that is why they like the idea of biehline...i am shocked that people think tc's job-salary is so great..its all relative..for mu he has a great deal-job...but nowhere near the salary that uk can offer..especially if succussful early..theyd lock him up for life..mu's long term deal would look meager to a long term deal with the cats

[NYWarrior]

TC to Vandy?

Even the professionally promiscuous Kevin O'Neill turned down the Vandy job 

[Litehouse]

..especially if succussful early..theyd lock him up for life..mu's long term deal would look meager to a long term deal with the cats

That's the catch though, if he's successful early.  UK might pay him more, but if he doesn't live up to their lofty expectations, he could be out in 3 yrs and be exhiled to someplace like SMU as tainted goods making less than a quarter of what he makes now.  He's got a stable gig at MU that pays at the high end of the market.  I don't blame Crean one bit if he goes to UK, but he definitely would be taking a risk.

[BigSky]

Stallings is the 3rd highest paid coach in the SEC(over $1.3 million)...if Michigan wants to bring the $2million plus a year...Michigan is behind the times in facilities and high major coach pay...There is a lot of money at Vandy so that number could go up for Stallings.

Stallings has a huge ego, and is a restless guy, the only reason anyone would have a chance with him any year.  He'll always have to be the academic school at Vandy going up against UF, UK, UG, UT, ...just in his half of SEC.  However, he is learning how to do it in recent years after it took him a while.

If it were me, it wouldn't be much of a contest, I'd take Vandy over Michigan any day, but it isn't me. 

[mugoose]

no effing way Crean leaves for Vandy. That is a ridiculous notion.

[Avenue Commons]

This is one of the few jobs for which he might leave Marquette. The Wildcats would be lucky to have him.

I think that it boils down to this. Crean owes it to himself to listen if Kentucky came calling. It'd hurt to leave him, but unlike the other jobs (OSU, U of I, Virginia) I would understand why an ambitious coach would be interested in the Kentucky job.

[Avenue Commons]

TC to Vandy?

Even the professionally promiscuous Kevin O'Neill turned down the Vandy job 

I take it that you were kidding that Crean would leave MU for Vanderbilt. Vandy had a good year, but overall their program is a step or two below ours. And I don't mean that as a knock on them, just an honest assessment.

[NYWarrior]

I think that it boils down to this. Crean owes it to himself to listen if Kentucky came calling. It'd hurt to leave him, but unlike the other jobs (OSU, U of I, Virginia) I would understand why an ambitious coach would be interested in the Kentucky job.

well said.

[tower912]

TC to Vandy was a joke.  I forgot my emoticon, or whatever they are called.   No way he goes to Vandy.