Grantland Article-Interesting Read about Crean

[keefe]

Why wasn't Tom Crean at the draft?

Clearly Mr Crean had something better to do.

[Abode4life]

In-Laws are alums as well as other in-law family members. There have been rumblings starting two years ago about his coaching ability. I agree with chicos that this year they are young and talented and people know it, but if he doesn't make final four in next three years calls for replacing him will grow loud.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Why wasn't Tom Crean at the draft?

Explained in several articles, not sure why Titus couldn't track that down.  He is an Ohio State grad, maybe incapable?   

[Jay Bee]

Explained in several articles, not sure why Titus couldn't track that down.  He is an Ohio State grad, maybe incapable?   

Why do you think 99%+ of the media couldn't track down the real buyout provisions of Crean's deal? They are grads from all over the country. I know you're a big fan of media with a "big, well known name", but maybe most of them are incapable?! 

CNN with 'Belcher Report' on their broadcast is sad, but media has been - on a whole - bad for a looong time.

Titus is a gimmick anyway. Entertainer. Media doesn't let facts get in their way.. why should he?

[4everwarriors]

Why wasn't Tom Crean at the draft?

Likely chose to stay home and polish DWade's apples instead.

[warriorfred]

This entire thread is comment bait, and yet I cannot resist.

After MU lost to Stanford in the tournament (to Stanford's Assistant Coach, who made all the correct second half adjustments), very few people on this Board were sad to see him leave.  If Crean had stayed at Marquette another year or two after that loss, he would have been on the hot seat.

If Crean does not produce a Final Four at Indiana by the end of the 2014/2015 season, it will not matter what his buy-out is, he will be coaching somewhere else.  The expectations at indiana exceed what he is capable of producing.

[Lennys Tap]

Likely chose to stay home and polish DWade's apples instead.

Home polishin' something.

[LAZER]

He's not on the hot seat. Could get warm next year, could get hot the year after that.

[ChicosBailBonds]

This entire thread is comment bait, and yet I cannot resist.

After MU lost to Stanford in the tournament (to Stanford's Assistant Coach, who made all the correct second half adjustments), very few people on this Board were sad to see him leave.  If Crean had stayed at Marquette another year or two after that loss, he would have been on the hot seat.

If Crean does not produce a Final Four at Indiana by the end of the 2014/2015 season, it will not matter what his buy-out is, he will be coaching somewhere else.  The expectations at indiana exceed what he is capable of producing.

If I win, you make a $500 donation to the Juvenile Diabetes Fund.  If you win, name the payout.   He will be at IU after the 2014\15 season regardless of whether he goes to a Final Four. 

Let's put the bet on now...I've won every IU Crean bet put on this board and this one is going to be the easiest.

[WarriorInNYC]

Explained in several articles, not sure why Titus couldn't track that down.  He is an Ohio State grad, maybe incapable?   

I'm not an Ohio State grad, but I'm having trouble tracking down these several articles where this is explained.  Could you post them?

[Avenue Commons]

Tom Crean is a clown. Goofy looking clown.

Anyone that defends that clown is a clown.

Are you a clown?

I love the word "clown."

[ChicosBailBonds]

I'm not an Ohio State grad, but I'm having trouble tracking down these several articles where this is explained.  Could you post them?

Herald Times article....you need a username and password. 

The other one, if I recall, was the Indy Star....I believe this article if memory serves.  http://www.indystar.com/article/20130628/SPORTS0601/306280049/

In a nutshell, he had two guys there were likely top 15 picks and didn't want to take away from their moment or be positioned as being with one over the other.  Leading up to the draft, he was constantly getting questions in the media "if you were a GM, who would you pick" and he continually deflected that question because it is a no win answer.  So leading up to the draft, he stayed back.  Also trying to help get Watford a gig per my peeps at IU. 

If he had gone, then nimrods would have cut on him as grabbing the spotlight.  If he doesn't go, nimrods will cut on him for not being there.  What Titus was trying to do was stir up some fake controversy like those players didn't want him there.  Of course, that gets shot down about 2 minutes after Victor gets drafted with his interview and his comments about his college coach, etc.

It is what it is.   Titus has a big hard on for TC and he freely admits it. 

[CTWarrior]

I read this yesterday and didn't post because it is basically a rehash of all the stuff that's been said here for many years.  I pretty much agree with everything in the Crean section, except TC is nowhere near the hot seat right now.  I also think it is pointless to speculate if the seat will be hot in the future, because it depends entirely on how as yet unplayed seasons pan out.  I guess it's interesting that someone outside the Marquette family with a national forum is thinking that way, though in an earlier preview Titus meantioned that he will take every opportunity to take a shot at Crean.

For me the money quote was

"They're willing to give Crean a pass on all sorts of bad decisions ... because he took over a proud program and turned it into a preseason no. 1 team in just a handful of years.   They're convinced that no other coach could've pulled that off, as if getting Cody Zeller to commit to one of the top five all-time programs that's also close to home was some miracle."

[muarmy81]

I recently moved to IN and have had some good conversations with the multitude of Hoosier fans here.  Basically, the younger generation of fans have been very happy with the success but because of last year's underachieving they are coming back to me and asking about Crean's ability to coach.  (I've always told them that Crean is a great marketer for the program and he runs a great program but isn't a strong X's and O's coach)  The older fans are not happy with his performance but I guess that's the price you pay when you grow up with Bobby Knight and multiple National Championships.

And the Purdue fans...well, they don't like the "Tanned Clapper" as they call him.

[Benny B]

I recently moved to IN and have had some good conversations with the multitude of Hoosier fans here.  Basically, the younger generation of fans have been very happy with the success but because of last year's underachieving they are coming back to me and asking about Crean's ability to coach.  (I've always told them that Crean is a great marketer for the program and he runs a great program but isn't a strong X's and O's coach)  The older fans are not happy with his performance but I guess that's the price you pay when you grow up with Bobby Knight and multiple National Championships.

And the Purdue fans...well, they don't like the "Tanned Clapper" as they call him.

Not one of my in-laws (95% Indiana natives/IU grads) cares for Crean.  They care about IU basketball and have more reverence for Mike Davis than they do Crean.  The spectrum of coaching respect starts with the General, McCracken, Davis, Alford (note though this observation is pre-UCLA hire), Crean, Sampson.

That should tell you something right there that there's more respect for Alford as a coach than Crean.

Of course, Chicos will chime in here shortly to quash my IU credentials by telling you how the two 30-something IU alums who work for DirecTV couldn't disagree more...

[Milwarriorkee]

If you check out the entire article, the section on the Rodents is interesting too.  Titus is real high on Dekker.....not so much on Bo.  

"Make this your go-to complaint about Bo Ryan basketball this year. Instead of complaining about how slow the Buzzcuts play or how ugly their games are, when someone asks why you don't like Bo Ryan basketball, just say, "His starting small forward shot 8 percent from the 3-point line last season."

[GGGG]

If you check out the entire article, the section on the Rodents is interesting too.  Titus is real high on Dekker.....not so much on Bo. 

"Make this your go-to complaint about Bo Ryan basketball this year. Instead of complaining about how slow the Buzzcuts play or how ugly their games are, when someone asks why you don't like Bo Ryan basketball, just say, "His starting small forward shot 8 percent from the 3-point line last season."

I think Sam Dekker is a very good player.  However he did play 22 mpg last year...versus Evans' 29.  And was a turnstile on defense.  I understand why Bo played Evans as much as he did.  And yeah while Evans shot 8% from three, he only took 24 threes...which was 8th on Wisconsin's shot-happy team.

[dgies9156]

Look, I'm thankful for what Tom Crean did for us. Think about it. He recruited DWade and got us to the Final Four. He hired Buzz, who continued the success and built on it. We may have something really special in the works now.

That said, the article is right in that Crean is coaching at a school that expects to be in the Final Four every year. They are very Dukeish or Kentuckyish -- expecting to win at least two or three titles in a four year span. Indiana hasn't done that in years and, to some degree like us, the fan base is starting to wonder, "why?"

Any of us who survived the era from Hank to the Piano Man knows what's it like to watch a proud program fold. To Crean's credit he rebuilt it and got it to the edge. But to use another analogy, this one from the NBA, is Tom Crean to Indiana what Doug Collins was to the Chicago Bulls? Collins got the program close but it took Phil Jackson to push the Bulls over the top and get the first of the NBA Championships.

It sure looks like the Collins/Jackson analogy played out at Marquette and may soon play out at Indiana!

[Lennys Tap]

Herald Times article....you need a username and password. 

The other one, if I recall, was the Indy Star....I believe this article if memory serves.  http://www.indystar.com/article/20130628/SPORTS0601/306280049/

Two is a couple. Several is more than two or three. A couple, a few, several.

So, one "mystery" article and one linked article that, at least in the part that's free, offers no explanation.

[Coleman]

Clearly Mr Crean had something better to do.

Half price special at Bloomington Tan Salon

[CreightonWarrior]

Remember when Crean bought his whole staff Hummers?

[4everwarriors]

You sayin' he gave his entire staff Hummers?

[CreightonWarrior]

You sayin' he gave his entire staff Hummers?

Maybe I should say remember when Marquette bought his entire staff hummers. I think 05 or 06?

[GOO]

This entire thread is comment bait, and yet I cannot resist.

After MU lost to Stanford in the tournament (to Stanford's Assistant Coach, who made all the correct second half adjustments), very few people on this Board were sad to see him leave.  If Crean had stayed at Marquette another year or two after that loss, he would have been on the hot seat.

If Crean does not produce a Final Four at Indiana by the end of the 2014/2015 season, it will not matter what his buy-out is, he will be coaching somewhere else.  The expectations at indiana exceed what he is capable of producing.

Agreed 100%.  He was getting heat and even Strong had some words for him from what I've heard after Stanford.  The question of could MU do better was out there for us fans, no doubt.   I think Crean was in the frying pan and the burner was already on simmer.  He knew it.  Add in that he was a bit of a prick and not generally liked, and the recipe was there for some quick frying.

It was time for a change for both sides.  And it worked out well for him and for MU. Change is risky, especially for MU, and I love what Crean did especially early on in his tenure at MU.  But in the end it was time for him to move on and for MU to move on.

If we knew we would have had a guy like Buzz take over, given what we know now, it would have been a more joyous leaving by Crean, on MU's part, even if he left with little dignity.  

[4everwarriors]

Maybe I should say remember when Marquette bought his entire staff hummers. I think 05 or 06?

Pretty pathetic when you gotta actually pay for a Hummer.