AAC coaching news
- Thread starter the Blades
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Cincy is lucky they hung onto Cronin, he is a very good coach.
It's curious to me why Mike Dunleavy would want to coach Tulane. He doesn't appear to have any connection to New Orleans and I can't imagine they offered him a ton of money. Maybe he is bored but his accepting the Tulane job is a head scratcher.
It's curious to me why Mike Dunleavy would want to coach Tulane. He doesn't appear to have any connection to New Orleans and I can't imagine they offered him a ton of money. Maybe he is bored but his accepting the Tulane job is a head scratcher.
Also missed this one a few days ago:
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets hire Josh Pastner as head coach
and as the coaching carousal turns:
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets hire Josh Pastner as head coach
and as the coaching carousal turns:
Also this on Pastner from Yahoo: The most confusing hires of the college basketball coaching carousel
And then there is the temporary insanity that seems to have gripped the Atlantic Coast Conference – specifically Georgia Tech and Pittsburgh. The hires there, made by a pair of respected athletic directors, boggle the mind. Mike Bobinski at Georgia Tech fired Brian Gregory and replaced him with Josh P-P-P-Pastner. Let’s just say that Memphis fans were happier to see Pastner go than Tech fans were to see him arrive – the only thing keeping him employed was a bloated buyout, part of a silly 2013 raise that gave him a salary of $2.65 million a year. Bobinski hired a guy whose well-appointed program over the past two years had not performed as well as the guy he just fired.
And then there is the temporary insanity that seems to have gripped the Atlantic Coast Conference – specifically Georgia Tech and Pittsburgh. The hires there, made by a pair of respected athletic directors, boggle the mind. Mike Bobinski at Georgia Tech fired Brian Gregory and replaced him with Josh P-P-P-Pastner. Let’s just say that Memphis fans were happier to see Pastner go than Tech fans were to see him arrive – the only thing keeping him employed was a bloated buyout, part of a silly 2013 raise that gave him a salary of $2.65 million a year. Bobinski hired a guy whose well-appointed program over the past two years had not performed as well as the guy he just fired.
I read that article on Pastner. He seems like a good guy but his coaching abilities have taken a pounding in both Memphis and national media. He got a lot of money for nothing at Memphis and now, despite being fired by Memphis, he effectively steps up in profile to a power conference. The guy lives a charmed life. My guess is he probably interviews well and propounds excuses well for the poor performances of his teams the past few years. And there are some excuses. He lost players to injury and transfers. But now he is telling Georgia Tech's fans it isn't going to happen for a while so be patient. Question is how long a leash he will have.
Correct Russ, I didn't read anything about him being fired and the $10 mill, was the talk all year, that saved a bad marriage. Especially in stories I read when the fanbase had enough after the Uconn blow out in Memphis. Now GT comes along and does Memphis a huge favor as he gets to a so-called P-5 job ....but if Tubby Smith (Big 12) takes the Memphis job so much for the P-5 thing, since he is leaving a P-5 to go to the American...He could similarly follow Tulsa's Frank Haith's (SEC) path out of a P-5. But I guess with some of these coaches it's more about the job and school than the conference affiliation.
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Was he technically fired- no. Was he constructively fired? Yes. When the fans, media, and the school's administration not only do not back you on specific things you ask to be backed on but effectively treat you like a leper of the coaching ranks, your *** is fired. Fans stopped attending Memphis games in protest of Pastner not being fired. If you feel and look fired, it's sort of like an animal that walks and quacks like a duck. Must be a duck.
I don't agree..... money talks and bullsh*t walks, if GT doesn't give Pastner a landing spot... Memphis was stuck with him a few more years..... just like Uconn and Warde were stuck with Pasqualoni about a year and half to long... so they didn't have to pay 2 head coaches and until his buyout got acceptable.
Makes you wonder if it wasn't like a trade deadline fire sale in baseball, where the team who thinks they could be in contention picks up part of the players salary of a team that is totally out of it...I wonder if Memphis was " shopping him around " and their AD was willing to hand the GT boss some backroom future considerations on top of it....LOL !!! .....because as the Yahoo article says there seemed to be some " temporary insanity " on GT's part....
The reports I read indicate Memphis bought Pastner out for $1.2 million and change. What that tells me is he was functionally fired. A quid pro quo was reached: "you walk, we buy you out." That is how I read between the lines. Watch what they do, not what they say. Pastner was sent packing and that deal was reached before he ever accepted GT offer. It was likely negotiated with GT offer on table but not yet accepted.
Tubby is a well travelled coach but he can coach. The highlight of his career was the 1998 Elite 8 game against Duke when Kentucky was down by 20 points in the second half and unleashed a full court press which erased the Duke lead. Kentucky would go on to win the game and the national championship.
I hear ya on the fanbase wanting him out, here's a website they even set up:
"Having apparently reached a breaking point after the University of Memphis' 80-71 loss at six-win South Florida on Saturday, one Tigers fan has set up a GoFundMe.com account to help pay off the remaining four years of coach Josh Pastner's contract. As of 9:30 this morning, the page's creator, Christian Glazer, has raised $10 of the $10.6 million needed to buy out Pastner."
And another " If Memphis were to fire Pastner, it would have to pay him $10.6 million a buyout, which would be the highest paid buyout in college basketball history
But no GT insanity...no deal.....UM couldn't have sent him walking for $1.2. ESPN’s Andy Katz reported Friday that Pastner’s contract at Georgia Tech is expected to pay him $11 million over six years — an average of roughly 1.8 million per season .Pastner will make another $620,000 from Memphis over the next two years, which would put him at roughly $2.4 million for two seasons — So Pastner gets another couple of years ( he only had 4 left with Memphis ) of coaching guaranteed.
But overall you'd have to say Memphis is the biggest winner by not firing him :
" Embattled head coach Josh Pastner got a fresh start at Georgia Tech and the University of Memphis, having saved roughly $9.3 million in electing last month not to fire Pastner, gets to search for just its third head coach in the last 16 seasons."
Now Tubby leaves Texas Tech and a so-called P-5 .....for The American which is becoming a very diverse conference with a list of who's who in well know coaches.
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The best way to summarize the Pastner situation is that he got money for nothing, as Dire Straits discussed in this song:
The Georgia Tech offer was insane and it did bail Memphis out, and the only way you can really justify is by saying Pastner is a good guy who is well liked in the profession, handles media well, and has shown an ability to generally remain positive in the face of withering criticism, but his coaching record over the past few years has been very suspect. The money he got from both Memphis in the buyout, and GT on the new contract, was for nothing.
The Georgia Tech offer was insane and it did bail Memphis out, and the only way you can really justify is by saying Pastner is a good guy who is well liked in the profession, handles media well, and has shown an ability to generally remain positive in the face of withering criticism, but his coaching record over the past few years has been very suspect. The money he got from both Memphis in the buyout, and GT on the new contract, was for nothing.
WOW that right there... is some old school MTV video-ing... !!! Probably right in the beginning before it become Reality Television, is that station even still around ???
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Shrewd negotiations by the Georgia Tech AD. He knew Memphis wanted to end the Pastner era, so they negotiated a deal where Memphis pays a portion of Pastner's salary for the first two seasons he's in Atlanta.
That helps Georgia Tech because they have to pay Gregory's buyout AND Georgia Tech is STILL paying Paul Hewitt's buyout and he was fired FIVE seasons ago.
Yup, that happened.
Another thought is if Pastner stays true to his mediocre form..... he may yet add to the list GT coaches that get paid when they're not even coaching for them. Time will tell how shrewd GT was because when you guarantee another coach money ( 11 more million of GT's cash for 6 yrs), it could be the AD who makes the buy out list ......... if Josh doesn't improve on the 21 wins , this year, of the guy ( Brian Gregory) they just fired.
Tubby has drama right away at Memphis.....basically he's got to keep the father of the Lawson brothers.... ( who parlayed his sons into his first college job strait out of high school coaching) on the the payroll or his sons... the 2 leading returning scorers ( Dedric and KJ)..... could walk:
Tubby Smith's decision on Lawson could have major impact on program
If it doesn't retain Keelon, Memphis might also lose any hope it has of landing his other two sons, Chandler, who's already considered a top-10 prospect in the class of 2019, and Johnathan (2021). "So what happens now?" Chuck Lawson wrote Saturday. "Does Tubby give in and say, 'Coach Lawson you're my 3rd guy for this year,' or does he say, 'Coach it's been real?' Does he go ahead and make the hire of Saul (Smith), his son who played under him at Kentucky? What's kind of funny, he's trying to replace the father of kids with his son who played for him, kind of ironic."
Tubby Smith's decision on Lawson could have major impact on program
If it doesn't retain Keelon, Memphis might also lose any hope it has of landing his other two sons, Chandler, who's already considered a top-10 prospect in the class of 2019, and Johnathan (2021). "So what happens now?" Chuck Lawson wrote Saturday. "Does Tubby give in and say, 'Coach Lawson you're my 3rd guy for this year,' or does he say, 'Coach it's been real?' Does he go ahead and make the hire of Saul (Smith), his son who played under him at Kentucky? What's kind of funny, he's trying to replace the father of kids with his son who played for him, kind of ironic."
Dedric Lawson is a very good player, but Tubby Smith is his own man and no head coach should ever be held hostage to these kinds of threats and demands. Unless Lawson the father is a very good coach and nepotism is not the only reason to keep him, he should be dropped, and if that means his sons leave, then you say "don't let the door hit your *** on the way out". I have seen too many cases of nepotism blow up in the real world. When you hire family members based on relationships rather than talent to do a job, it's never going to end well, and it usually ends ugly.
I guess this could apply to him hiring his own son too, but like you said it usually ends bad in a what seems like a shakedown case like this. And if Tubby says yes then Papa Lawson could also start shaking down Memphis into a multi-year coaching deal or even something until his next son ( class of 19' ) is ready for college, so where does it end ? Now if he's the man as far as a coach and recruiter, aside from his sons, it's a different story.
This is a little off topic, but speaking of a father who is the anti-Lawson:
* Son Of Yale Hockey Coach - Chooses UConn Hockey
"I definitely stayed out of the process," Yale HC Keith Allain said. "It's his journey and want it to be his. I would say I was way more hands off than most parents are. I wanted it to be about him. I think this is, without question, the right decision. We're thrilled he's going to UConn."
* Son Of Yale Hockey Coach - Chooses UConn Hockey
"I definitely stayed out of the process," Yale HC Keith Allain said. "It's his journey and want it to be his. I would say I was way more hands off than most parents are. I wanted it to be about him. I think this is, without question, the right decision. We're thrilled he's going to UConn."
It's very ironic that Tubby Smith wants to replace Lawson the father with Saul Smith the son. I remember when Saul Smith played for Tubby at Kentucky and he wasn't a fan favorite. I don't know if he is a better coach than Lawson but since he has coached for Tubby at other schools, it can be expected that he knows Tubby's system and what he wants from his players. Also, his loyalty can be expected as well. Apart from that only his peers and the guards he has coached can say whether he is any good as a coach. This is sort of an interesting controversy. Replacing a relative of a player with one's own relative. But my guess is there are probably more net positives than net negatives if Tubby wants to run his own team and have loyal foot soldiers.......
Yahoo and the rest are trying to link KO again to fill in the ________ NBA job....... now Byron Scott is out from the Lakers so according to them:
" Possible candidates to replace Scott could include Golden State Warriors assistant Luke Walton, former Houston Rockets and New York Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy, Connecticut coach Kevin Ollie and San Antonio Spurs assistant Ettore Messina, league sources said." Also the ESPIn'ers story:
Monday's Lakers Links: Scott had no chance, same may go for his successor
Elsewhere KO told:
Andy Katz ESPN Senior Writer
UConn coach Kevin Ollie said Monday that he has had no contact with the Lakers. He said he will always listen if called but it would take "something very special" to pull him away from UConn. He added his daughter is in high school and his son is at nearby Fordham and family is very important to him. Ollie was recruiting in Indianapolis over the weekend.
" Possible candidates to replace Scott could include Golden State Warriors assistant Luke Walton, former Houston Rockets and New York Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy, Connecticut coach Kevin Ollie and San Antonio Spurs assistant Ettore Messina, league sources said." Also the ESPIn'ers story:
Monday's Lakers Links: Scott had no chance, same may go for his successor
Elsewhere KO told:
Andy Katz ESPN Senior Writer
UConn coach Kevin Ollie said Monday that he has had no contact with the Lakers. He said he will always listen if called but it would take "something very special" to pull him away from UConn. He added his daughter is in high school and his son is at nearby Fordham and family is very important to him. Ollie was recruiting in Indianapolis over the weekend.
Ollie is the only college coach whose name has been thrown out there. If you look at the mixed results of the recent college coaches hired in the NBA, between Fred Hoiberg, Billy Donovan and Brad Stevens, only Stevens seems to be a guy who will be a career coach in the NBA. Ollie does have more "NBA pedigree and culture" experience than all of those guys did, and there is the LA connection but KO seems like he has become more of an east coast guy.
This constant linkage of KO to NBA jobs both helps and hurts in recruiting. On balance I think it helps more because recruits know he is highly esteemed by the NBA which is where they all want to be.
This constant linkage of KO to NBA jobs both helps and hurts in recruiting. On balance I think it helps more because recruits know he is highly esteemed by the NBA which is where they all want to be.
Eventually KO may take an NBA job because Uconn as a non-P-5 can't keep up with the money. Job security is just so much more stable in college, because they are the CEO, GM and coach of their programs. Despite some writers now trying interject that KO would also want to have say over a GM's job. As the article above states Scott or the next guy may have no chance with the Lakers in shambles ( unless KD signs with them which would be a good start).......
but I agree this NBA job thing is always going to be double edge sword until he finally does take an NBA gig. Despite direct quotes from KO you still have writers with an agenda writing their own version of his interest, like they did for OKC, CLE, etc. with quotes from "sources"...not KO...hoping eventually the sh$t they throw against the wall will stick. Which can't help in the negative recruiting department, especially when those writers have coaching friends vying for those same recruits.
but I agree this NBA job thing is always going to be double edge sword until he finally does take an NBA gig. Despite direct quotes from KO you still have writers with an agenda writing their own version of his interest, like they did for OKC, CLE, etc. with quotes from "sources"...not KO...hoping eventually the sh$t they throw against the wall will stick. Which can't help in the negative recruiting department, especially when those writers have coaching friends vying for those same recruits.
The latest:
Tubby switching coach's role breaks NCAA rule
Ultimately, though, Keelon Lawson buckled. He's now accepted a lesser role.....But here's why this remains interesting: a school is prohibited from hiring a person connected to a prospect into a support role within two years of the prospect enrolling, according to current NCAA rules. Memphis' plan is to apply for a waiver
However, an administrator who isn't connected to Memphis, but is familiar with the rule, told CBS Sports he doesn't understand why the NCAA would grant a waiver in this specific situation.
"They're hiring a person connected to their two best players -- one of whom could enter the NBA Draft -- into a support role to keep those players in school," the source said. "That's exactly what the rule was designed to prevent. So why should they get a waiver for this?"
All of the above is interesting but ultimately begs the question of what Keelon Lawson bring to the coaching staff table, apart from and leaving out the fact of his being the father of 2, 3 or 4 talented boys. The NCAA shouldn't give Memphis any kind of waiver absent some showing that he brings some special or unique coaching talents to the table. The NCAA should also require evidence that some other school offered Keelon Lawson a college coaching job knowing none of his kids would follow him to said institution. If he got any such offers and they could be proved I would consider the waiver request only then.
Wow not a great headline:
ESPN- SMU coach Larry Brown's resignation just the latest act of selfishness
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct...shness&usg=AFQjCNFHV1GuHnUh_BTcBbXWLsBZdjT8zA
" Nine months later as Brown announces his sudden resignation, reportedly over a contract dispute, it's time to ask the same question.
What did SMU expect? "
ESPN- SMU coach Larry Brown's resignation just the latest act of selfishness
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct...shness&usg=AFQjCNFHV1GuHnUh_BTcBbXWLsBZdjT8zA
" Nine months later as Brown announces his sudden resignation, reportedly over a contract dispute, it's time to ask the same question.
What did SMU expect? "
Larry Brown's behavior reminds me of a local attorney I know who is still practicing law and is well into his 80s. I asked him, "why don't you just retire?" He gave me an answer that kind of sounded odd/nonsense. He is extremely well off financially and he married money. So I got the straight dope from another attorney who has known the dude for like 40 years: "plain and simple that dude is obsessed with making money and will be to the day he dies. He will never retire unless health events make him do so. He literally lives to see the settlement checks he gets. He gets stoked when he sees them."
Larry Brown is a Hall of Fame coach with nothing to prove, and he seemingly should have retired years ago. Any 75 year old coach asking for a 5 year deal has to be a little crazy. I don't understand what leverage he has to get big head coach money.
He is at this point more attractive as a lead assistant although his ego will likely not allow it.
Larry Brown is a Hall of Fame coach with nothing to prove, and he seemingly should have retired years ago. Any 75 year old coach asking for a 5 year deal has to be a little crazy. I don't understand what leverage he has to get big head coach money.
He is at this point more attractive as a lead assistant although his ego will likely not allow it.
A proven cheater that was getting sloppy. As a local Dallas guy i can tell you its been a let down that SMU has stopped to lows by even employing him. Ever since the Football scandal SMU was squeaky clean and everyone applauded them locally for sticking to their guns that all athletes were held to the same academic standards of normal students but something changed and the football program has altered their academic standards and the rest of sports followed. Larry Brown was a sign they wanted to AGAIN win at all cost giving academic dummies full rides and even cheating to get the dumbest of them in. Shame on SMU, that is what you hear locally.