OT: Thad Matta to Butler
- Thread starter RutgersNo1
- Start date
Is this hire comparable to Seton Hall hiring P.J. Carlesimo instead of Shaheen Holloway? I thought Jeff Boals of Miami of Ohio, a Thad Matta protégé, was a shoo-in for the job.
Two Final Fours, five time B10 titles, and only 54. Sean Miller to Xavier also. Get the coaches and they get the players.
Not remotely close but at best break even since end of the season.
I know Willard doesn't get credit for cleaning up the mess at SHU, but he did a solid job.
Matta is an upgrade over Jordan at Butler.
Holloway is probably at best a wash in comparison to Willard. There will be an adjustment period stepping up from the MAAC.
Sean Miller is an upgrade at Xavier.
I think there has been some market adjustments on Hurley at UConn. He has not delivered much based on experience and expectations and has recruited well, but has lost 2 Top 100 recruits via the portal this past week. Clearly, every recruit they've landed has seemingly been a 4* or better, but on the surface, those 4 star kids have been clearly "misses".
And when you have Patrick Ewing at Georgetown going winless in league, it absolutely cannot be close to the best coached league in CBB.
Wild cards are St John's and DePaul, who appear to have accumulated a lot of physical talent, but it doesn't translate to GameDay consistently.
It’s all subjective, but it’s a strong accomplished coaching conference except for Ewing. Of the bottom three, two (Holloway and Stubblefield) have a limited resume.
Wright (Villanova)-Elite top 5 coach in the country
McDermott (Creighton)
Cooley (Providence)
Matta (Butler)-Two FF’s/5 B10 titles
Miller (Xavier)-422-156 w/11 NCAA 4 Elite 8’s
Smart (Marquette)-9/11 seasons made NCAA 1FF
Anderson (St. John’s)-415-265 lifetime
Hurley (UConn)-Can recruit but mixed results
Holloway (SHU)-Short resume/perfect situation
Stubblefield (DePaul)-First year coach
Ewing (Georgetown)-Terrible looking for exit
It might be that your bias is blinding you. But that happens to the best of us.
He's been a winner everywhere he went and I believe it was a back problem that drove him from being Ohio State's HC .
Thad's final season as the Ohio State HC was the only time in Matta's entire coaching career that one of his his teams had failed to win least 20 wins.
Butler picked a winner, looking at the way Matta's career went before he was forced top give up being a HC.
Thad's final season as the Ohio State HC was the only time in Matta's entire coaching career that one of his his teams had failed to win least 20 wins.
Butler picked a winner, looking at the way Matta's career went before he was forced top give up being a HC.
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He was trending down at Ohio state the last few seasons . Then the loss to rutgers was the last straw.
This is a great hire for butler
Matta's back was supposed to be the reason he wasn't doing as well as he should have been and why Ohio State and him decided time to hang it up..
It could ave been other health problems, but I seem to remember towards the end of his time at Ohio State back problems were mentioned as hindering his coaching.
Yes, the back was the official reason . Now matta is “ back “ at butler
He stepped down but they were dissatisfied with his recent results..make your own conclusions on what actually happened
Matta is a huge pickup and he immediately puts the back as a player in the Big East...Holloway is among the 4 bottom coaches in the league and the distance between top 7 and him is pretty large
Here lies the problem with the Big 10:
- Big East recent hires are Archie Miller / Holloway and Thad Motta
- Big 10 hires 2 unknowns at Penn State and Minnesota and a hum hum in Kevin Willard at Maryland.
Neither of these Big 10 hires excites anyone’ and each reeks of continued mediocrity
- Big East recent hires are Archie Miller / Holloway and Thad Motta
- Big 10 hires 2 unknowns at Penn State and Minnesota and a hum hum in Kevin Willard at Maryland.
Neither of these Big 10 hires excites anyone’ and each reeks of continued mediocrity
Not that it ultimately matters to me but it’s odd how so many crap on Willard. Once he got it figured out he had SHU in the tournament every year. He also won the league one year. I don’t necessarily love the hire for Maryland but he did a very good job at SHU.
Assume you mean Sean Miller. Archie went to URI. While I get your point, I hope Xavier did their due diligence on Sean. Stories coming out of UA were not good and hard to believe Book Richardson was doing things that Sean was unaware of.
IMO, Willard is a very good coach although he has some "warts" which most coaches have. He cleaned up Gonzo's mess and had a consistently winning team that was getting in the dance. From a SHU standpoint, he ran a predictable offense (which got exposed in the NCAA's, never gave the impression that he was here for the long haul (but 12 years is a good run), and made a lot of odd excuses, like BE scheduling.
He has the resources he's always wanted at Maryland and I expect him to do well in the B10. The light is brighter now and expectations will increase. He has a thin skin when it comes to fans and the media, so it will be interesting to see how he handles that. He also needs a strong alpha leader in the locker room.
Agree...Miller has a dirty past and hard to believe he's found the light. I expect him to do well until he gets caught again.
No one cares about infractions . Look at the schools that were in the final 4 . Look at guys like Miller and pitino . Just win
They also have teams that are good 3 point shooters and players that can create and make shots off the dribble.
Phil,
Always a good debate between successful rereads and up and comers.
In think Penn State got a winner.
GTown a loser.
Xavier probably a winner.
Holloway is less exciting than Patrick was, may prove to be a good hoe but definitely an up and comer not yet proven.
MN I don't know yet.
Archie Miller is a name but I have a way and see attitude towards that one.
MD has resources and history. Willard may excel there. Or maybe not.
Guess I'm saying I don't think it is so clear cut.
Loyal
Always a good debate between successful rereads and up and comers.
In think Penn State got a winner.
GTown a loser.
Xavier probably a winner.
Holloway is less exciting than Patrick was, may prove to be a good hoe but definitely an up and comer not yet proven.
MN I don't know yet.
Archie Miller is a name but I have a way and see attitude towards that one.
MD has resources and history. Willard may excel there. Or maybe not.
Guess I'm saying I don't think it is so clear cut.
Loyal
Just think he’s an old-school B1G type coach whose teams have played that way for the most part at OSU for 13 or so seasons…whereas the Big East, for the most part, is a quicker, smaller game. He’s been very successful and recruits well so it will be interesting to see if he adjusts more to today’s game.
Penn State’s Micah Shrewsbury’s name was floated for the Butler job. Is Butler a better job than Penn State at this point?
I work in PA with a bunch of PSU guys. Basketball is so far down on the pecking order in State College. Wrestling and Ice Hockey get more attention much of the time.
Due diligence, unless the coach being hired has a show cause from NCAA, is mainly looking at the
W & L record
Sean's Ws as the UofA HC made him hirable even with the trouble surrounding his Wildcat program.
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