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

[Cheeks]

Reported this morning.

Those of you worried about the conference and bleeding coaches, here is an example where it didn't happen.

[Galway Eagle]

Pretty sure His wife went to nova and bleeds blue and white. Only job their fans seem worried he'd leave for is the 76ers now that they're actually good

[rocket surgeon]

  smart man  UCLA's a whole different fish bowl...more like a shark tank

[Cheeks]

Quirky tax law in Californiastan May have ultimately undone the Jamie Dixon choice.

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

[NickelDimer]

This says more about Wright and Nova than it does the conference. Either way it's good news

[LAZER]

This coaching search is still such a sh*tshow...and it's over.  So they were willing to double Wright's salary, but wouldn't take care of Barnes or Dixon's buyout? Now they're Assoc AD is almost saying Cronin is half the coach Wright is? Trying to figure out why he would come out with this.

[#UnleashSean]

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

[GoldenWarrior11]

Wright is a Philly guy.  Despite popular belief, it is possible for schools to hire young head coaches and provide a professional experience that encourages them to reject overtures from bigger schools from across the country. 

"Don't mess with happy".

[Johnny B]

That's pretty crazy to turn down that kinda cash

[MU82]

That's pretty crazy to turn down that kinda cash

He has a lot of cash already and he'll have a lot more coming in for a lot of years.

He has his own little fiefdom right where he is and he faces considerably less pressure than he would at UCLA.

He loves Philly.

He loves Nova.

He has won and can continue to win national titles right where he is.

He is in a better basketball conference than UCLA is.

He is very happy.

Yep ... what a crazy fool!

[Johnny B]

He has a lot of cash already and he'll have a lot more coming in for a lot of years.

He has his own little fiefdom right where he is and he faces considerably less pressure than he would at UCLA.

He loves Philly.

He loves Nova.

He has won and can continue to win national titles right where he is.

He is in a better basketball conference than UCLA is.

He is very happy.

Yep ... what a crazy fool!

im not saying he is crazy. I am saying from a common persons perspective the idea of turning down another 3.5 mill a year is seemingly crazy. its good for jay though. stay at nova become a legend. Also I highly doubt the Pac-12 will remain trash for long. Just to many Huge market teams etc. I suspect UCLA and Arizona will return to form. And I think other teams like USC, UW, U of O. and Cal will step it out as well. Doubt the Big east remains clearly better than the pac for long

[MU82]

im not saying he is crazy. I am saying from a common persons perspective the idea of turning down another 3.5 mill a year is seemingly crazy. its good for jay though. stay at nova become a legend. Also I highly doubt the Pac-12 will remain trash for long. Just to many Huge market teams etc. I suspect UCLA and Arizona will return to form. And I think other teams like USC, UW, U of O. and Cal will step it out as well. Doubt the Big east remains clearly better than the pac for long

Well, since you literally said, "That's pretty crazy to turn down that kinda cash," and Wright was the one who turned it down, I guess I was pretty crazy to take the leap and assume you were talking about him.

But sure. I'd rather have $3.5 million more coming in every year than I do now. Most "regular" people would.

When it comes to big-time sports, the money isn't "real" and the people getting it aren't "regular." When you have tens (or hundreds) of millions of dollars, another few often isn't worth sacrificing happiness for. Some of the jocks who make things about only the money often end up sad they did. When you can be wildly rich whether you choose Option A or Option B, you might as well choose the one that makes you wildly rich and wildly happy.

As for whether the Pac-12 will surpass the Big East eventually, you don't know and neither do I. For many, many years now, it has been behind, usually well behind. I'll deal with the here and now. You are free to deal with whatever time period you wish. It has little to anything to do with Wright's decision anyway, I imagine. It was one minor point I threw out there among many others.

[tower912]

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.   

[MuMark]

Mark Few basically did that every year until people finally stopped pursuing him.

Some guys are just wired differently........kind of cool to know some coaches don't just go for the  biggest offer.........even though there is nothing wrong with that if money is what drives you.

[MU82]

Mark Few basically did that every year until people finally stopped pursuing him.

Some guys are just wired differently........kind of cool to know some coaches don't just go for the  biggest offer.........even though there is nothing wrong with that if money is what drives you.

Yep.

And to be fair, some are driven only partly by the money, or maybe even not all that much by the money. Some would look at the likes of "fallen bluebloods" like UCLA and Indiana as the ultimate challenge, and they like challenging themselves that way.

But there is a lot to be said for being content. To some, that's a dirty phrase because they equate "contentment" with indifference or accepting inferiority. Guys like Few and Wright have shown that a coach can be content, can be an extremely competitive person, and can be successful on a national scale.

They are the rare beasts that have it all -- and, equally importantly, they know they have it all -- and they are to be celebrated IMHO.

[Herman Cain]

the combination of the additional federal taxes Medicare taxes and increased state income taxes ,on his entire income, not to mention the cost of living it is really not a huge pay increase and a lot more risk and headache.

[Jockey]

Also I highly doubt the Pac-12 will remain trash for long. Just to many Huge market teams etc. I suspect UCLA and Arizona will return to form. And I think other teams like USC, UW, U of O. and Cal will step it out as well. Doubt the Big east remains clearly better than the pac for long

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.

[Uncle Rico]

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.

As Arizona basketball and UCLA basketball goes, so does the PAC-12 in general. 

[Lennys Tap]

Reported this morning.

Those of you worried about the conference and bleeding coaches, here is an example where it didn't happen.

Yeah, well, there's the rest of the conference - and then there's Villanova.

[GooooMarquette]

im not saying he is crazy. I am saying from a common persons perspective the idea of turning down another 3.5 mill a year is seemingly crazy.

I could just as easily see a common person saying "he already makes $3.5 million, so if he's happy he'd be crazy to change."

i.e. - don't mess with happy.

[dgies9156]

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.

Look, if anyone thinks the UCLA offer won't come up in Coach Wright's next contract negotiations, then you also still believe we're the number 2 team in the country going into next year.

Wright's "people" will be sure to make this offer a centerpiece whenever his contract is renewed. He'll get his pound of flesh out of Villanova. I promise you he understands the concept of "net present value!"

[avid1010]

the combination of the additional federal taxes Medicare taxes and increased state income taxes ,on his entire income, not to mention the cost of living it is really not a huge pay increase and a lot more risk and headache.

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.

[rocket surgeon]

This coaching search is still such a sh*tshow...and it's over.  So they were willing to double Wright's salary, but wouldn't take care of Barnes or Dixon's buyout? Now they're Assoc AD is almost saying Cronin is half the coach Wright is? Trying to figure out why he would come out with this.

  and that's why the associate AD is, the associate AD, but still makes ya wonder.  once you get to the level of jay wright money, but can't tweek the barnes or the dixon deal a little bit?

the barnes thing has got to hurt tennessee recruiting a little bit

[TSmith34, Inc.]

Quirky tax law in Californiastan May have ultimately undone the Jamie Dixon choice.

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

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

[Silent Verbal]

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