Just moved up to 35th at kenpom, ahead of buzz!

[Marcus92]

Bingo. Georgia game actually qualifies as a "Top 50 Adjusted" game, whereas last nights does not.

Gotcha. Thanks for the correction.

[The Lens]

Tony Bennett is winning big at UVA, a school that prides itself on academics.  He's squeaky clean, comes from a great coaching family, was an outstanding college player and played in the NBA.  He's my #1 draft choice right now. 

Stevens & Donovan may never go back to college
Cal, Pitino & Roy don't fit for various reasons

The only others who make sense are Self & Jay Wright.  I doubt Jay will leave Nova now and feel somewhat the same about Self.  Plus Tony is only 47; 7 years younger than Self, 8 years younger than Wright. 

[Loose Cannon]

If I'm Duke I'm hiring Tony Bennett and no one else.  Before Tony I thought their ideal candidate was Billy Donovan.

If they stick in the tree, they're asking for trouble.

The last buzz ( 3 Months ago) on their Board was looking for Brad Stevens

[LAZER]

Tony Bennett is winning big at UVA, a school that prides itself on academics.  He's squeaky clean, comes from a great coaching family, was an outstanding college player and played in the NBA.  He's my #1 draft choice right now. 

Stevens & Donovan may never go back to college
Cal, Pitino & Roy don't fit for various reasons

The only others who make sense are Self & Jay Wright.  I doubt Jay will leave Nova now and feel somewhat the same about Self.  Plus Tony is only 47; 7 years younger than Self, 8 years younger than Wright.

Sean Miller would be another name.

[brewcity77]

The last buzz ( 3 Months ago) on their Board was looking for Brad Stevens

I'd be surprised. I don't think Stevens was ever enamored with the recruiting process and is a much better fit in the pros than in college.

[Loose Cannon]

I'd be surprised. I don't think Stevens was ever enamored with the recruiting process and is a much better fit in the pros than in college.

All good points.

[wadesworld]

How many college coaches out there are more "established" than Tony Bennett?  Not many, and those that are aren't leaving for Duke (Rick, Self, Roy, Cal).  Jay Wright is the most interesting name, with Miller being the second.  Not sure Miller would leave Arizona.  Duke may be the only job Wright would leave Nova for, but even that...

Stevens?  No way he leaves the NBA to bow down to 16 year old kids again.  Doubt Donovan would be interested either, though he's a lot more likely than Stevens.

How often do college coaches go from one very successful program to another very successful program within the same conference?  I can't think of many times it's happened.

Are there any college coaches with connections to coach K through USA basketball?

[LAZER]

How many college coaches out there are more "established" than Tony Bennett?  Not many, and those that are aren't leaving for Duke (Rick, Self, Roy, Cal).  Jay Wright is the most interesting name, with Miller being the second.  Not sure Miller would leave Arizona.  Duke may be the only job Wright would leave Nova for, but even that...

Stevens?  No way he leaves the NBA to bow down to 16 year old kids again.  Doubt Donovan would be interested either, though he's a lot more likely than Stevens.

How often do college coaches go from one very successful program to another very successful program within the same conference?  I can't think of many times it's happened.

Are there any college coaches with connections to coach K through USA basketball?

By established, I meant successful. And there are obviously plenty of coaches more successful than Bennett, the question of whether or not they take the job wasn't posed by the original poster.

[brewcity77]

As far as established coaches, I agree that Tony Bennett, Jay Wright, and Sean Miller would be the most viable candidates for the job.

Looking further down the scales, I suppose I could see Chris Mack, Chris Collins, or maybe Dana Altman getting some consideration.

The dark horse in my opinion would be Bill Self. Kansas is a great program, but might be a step behind Duke/UNC/UK in terms of coaching perceptions. He can recruit and already has a NC, and his name has been floated in the past (Oklahoma State, his alma mater). He might be willing to part ways with the Jayhawks for the right opportunity.

[wadesworld]

By established, I meant successful. And there are obviously plenty of coaches more successful than Bennett, the question of whether or not they take the job wasn't posed by the original poster.

I guess it depends on what someone considers as "success" for a high major head D1 men's basketball coach.  Is someone who caught lightning in a bottle and made a miracle FF run with a mid major but never made it past the 2nd round or won their mid major conference more successful than a guy who has won the top conference in the country multiple times and has multiple top 2 seeds but has lost in the E8 a couple times?

I guess I just question that there are that many more successful college coaches out there.  Bennett has been incredibly successful at UVA.

[LAZER]

I guess it depends on what someone considers as "success" for a high major head D1 men's basketball coach.  Is someone who caught lightning in a bottle and made a miracle FF run with a mid major but never made it past the 2nd round or won their mid major conference more successful than a guy who has won the top conference in the country multiple times and has multiple top 2 seeds but has lost in the E8 a couple times?

I guess I just question that there are that many more successful college coaches out there.  Bennett has been incredibly successful at UVA.

Ultimately what I'm trying to say is that if I'm Duke, Bennett is not at the top of my list.  He would be a nice hire, but for me I would be calling Stevens, Donovan, Wright, Miller, and maybe a couple others before him.

[bilsu]

Would it make sense for Bennett to leave Virginia to go to Duke? He has been very successful at Virginia. I think Virginia would be even more successful if Duke fell down slightly with Coach K's retirement. It also would not surprise me if Roy Williams retired before Coach K. Both Duke and North Carolina could end up being less successful than Virginia.

[Galway Eagle]

Is there anyone in the DLeague or Oversees or a Canadian college coach they'd look at? Feel free to laugh but I'm just trying to think outside the box here.

[murphmurphy]

Simple answer for Duke, BUZZ!  It was probably his plan all along.

[auburnmarquette]

The Georgetown win is now our best win of the season, according to KenPom. The same would be true if we beat Seton Hall on the road.

I'd respectfully disagree on best win. I know what you mean, they were the highest ranked team we beat, but I believe it's only our third best win on kenpom when accounting for where games were played.

1. Georgia we were 1 point underdog on the road and it was a 10 point upset win. (I am going to Auburn-UGA tonight hoping UGA pulls off a road win to make that even better)

2. Vandy we were only 47th, but on a neutral court we were just a 3 point favorite and won by 24.

3. Georgetown at home we were a 6-point favorite, so the 10-point win was nice and we controlled most of the game well, but would still put it as our third best win so far.

3.

[The Lens]

Would it make sense for Bennett to leave Virginia to go to Duke? He has been very successful at Virginia. I think Virginia would be even more successful if Duke fell down slightly with Coach K's retirement. It also would not surprise me if Roy Williams retired before Coach K. Both Duke and North Carolina could end up being less successful than Virginia.

Duke's commitment to basketball is 2nd to none.  It would be a coach's dream.  Coach K has his own satellite radio show.  Coach K had the AMEX deal.  Duke affords coaches a lot more opportunities that other schools can't or won't match.  And with a hire like Bennett, they could keep those rolling.

[Marcus92]

I'd respectfully disagree on best win. I know what you mean, they were the highest ranked team we beat, but I believe it's only our third best win on kenpom when accounting for where games were played.

1. Georgia we were 1 point underdog on the road and it was a 10 point upset win. (I am going to Auburn-UGA tonight hoping UGA pulls off a road win to make that even better)

2. Vandy we were only 47th, but on a neutral court we were just a 3 point favorite and won by 24.

3. Georgetown at home we were a 6-point favorite, so the 10-point win was nice and we controlled most of the game well, but would still put it as our third best win so far.

Yeah, JayBee already corrected me on that one. Still, a good win to start the conference schedule. Now let's get one on the road against Seton Hall.

[auburnmarquette]

oops, sorry for repeating JayBee, but yes a nice win. hopefully the UGA win gets even better if they can upset Auburn tonight

[GGGG]

Do you know how difficult it is going to be for Duke to hire someone outside the Duke family?  If it doesn't work, the athletic director will be run out of town and the coach is going to have an incredibly short leash.

They will give it to some Coach K protege...and if that doesn't work out, THEN they will give it to an outsider.

[Frenns Liquor Depot]

I think they will follow what K wants.. be it someone from the family or not. 

[Marcus92]

After John Wooden's 10 national titles, UCLA fans witnessed a succession of 5 head coaches in 13 seasons (and zero titles).

After Dean Smith's 3 national titles, North Carolina went through Bill Guthridge, Matt Doherty and 11 years without a title before Roy Williams won his first.

After Bobby Knight's 3 national titles, Indiana discarded 3 head coaches in 9 seasons (Mike Davis, Kelvin Sampson and Dan Dakich) before hiring Crean. No national title since 1987.

The record isn't good for schools looking to replace a coaching legend. If history is any guide, the Duke men's basketball program is in for some rough years after Coach K retires.

[Marcus92]

The best succession success stories in college basketball are probably Tom Izzo (an assistant to Jud Heathcoate at Michigan State) and Rick Pitino (picked up off the NBA scrap heap to follow Denny Crum at Louisville).

You could conceivably add a couple others. Tubby Smith won a national title with Pitino's recruits at Kentucky. And Kevin Ollie did the same at UConn after Jim Calhoun retired. But Tubby never made another Final Four and eventually resigned. The jury's still out on Ollie, whose team is off to a 5-7 start this season.

[GGGG]

Gene Bartow did a decent job following up John Wooden at UCLA.  He was a "hot" coach, hired away from Illinois after earlier leading Memphis to the Final Four.  In two years he went 52-9, won two conference titles and one final four.  However he wasn't a Wooden guy, had trouble dealing with the boosters, and left to be replaced by a former Wooden assistant Gary Cunningham. 

Probably a great example of why its hard to replace a legend.

OTOH, I was just watching the Belk Bowl and they were talking about Justin Fuente replacing Frank Beamer as the Virginia Tech head coach and how well that is going.  Part of that is because the "in house" candidate, defensive coordinator Bud Foster, isn't a big ego guy and was retained by Fuente.

So it *can* work under the right circumstances. 

[auburnmarquette]

After John Wooden's 10 national titles, UCLA fans witnessed a succession of 5 head coaches in 13 seasons (and zero titles).

After Dean Smith's 3 national titles, North Carolina went through Bill Guthridge, Matt Doherty and 11 years without a title before Roy Williams won his first.

After Bobby Knight's 3 national titles, Indiana discarded 3 head coaches in 9 seasons (Mike Davis, Kelvin Sampson and Dan Dakich) before hiring Crean. No national title since 1987.

The record isn't good for schools looking to replace a coaching legend. If history is any guide, the Duke men's basketball program is in for some rough years after Coach K retires.

Exactly! You can't be the coach after the legend.

[The Equalizer]

Exactly! You can't be the coach after the legend.

Gotta give Tim Duryea his five years before you make that statement.