Cronin to UCLA
- Thread starter Pantherranger
- Start date
Good coach, but it's a bit of a strange fit. Good for him.
Not a disaster. He's a really good coach. He will win a lot there. Just not quick enough and not enough for them.
Hahaha - that was like Plan D. I'm curious how well he will be able to recruit especially since the mystique of going to UCLA has lost some of its shimmer.
He has an awful NCAA Tourney record. This was a desperation hire and he fleeced them for money by realizing they needed to hire someone. $4m for a coach who has 1 Sweet 16 and only made it passed the Round of 64 5 times in 13 years?? He's at least their 5th pick as coach - Pitino, Calipari, Jamie, Barnes....and those are just the ones we knew about. There were a number of NBA coaches that turned them down, too.
2020 rivals recruits #1, 2, 9, 12, 15, 22, 26, 33, 53, 57, 58, and 75 are all from California. Several more are from Seattle, Las Vegas, and points not far away.
In theory you can win there still. Great facilities, great weather. In theory.
In theory you can win there still. Great facilities, great weather. In theory.
A good coach with the right assistants will do fine at UCLA . His kinfolks said Mick , California is the place you oughta be so he loaded up the truck and they moved to Beverly Hills , that is swimming pools , movie stars ....
Cronin can always tell the loyal alumni and Hollywood elite donors that his grandfather was a munchkin in the wizard of oz movie
I was shocked how poorly he faired against good competition. Cronin coached for 7 years at Cincy before the old Big East broke up and 6 years since. He took over for Andy Kennedy, who was the interim for Huggins. Kennedy went 21-13. Cronin's first year was 11-19.
In his BE time, he finished above 9th place in the conference 2 times; a 4th place finish and a 6th place finish.
He had 4 conference losing records, 2 winning records, and 1 .500 record.
His conference records: BE=57-57 / AAC=86-22. He racked up wins in a weak conference.
He's an average coach and he'll be average at UCLA. Which means he'll be out before you can blink.
He's only won a lot in a weak conference. So I disagree, until he actually proves he can win. His BE record was terrible.
Mostly agree. That said, I think Cincinnati is harder to win at then people realize (at least since about 1963).
They have one win over a higher ranked team in the history of the NCAA tournament (Cronin coached that team.) ONCE EVER!! One final four since 1964. No Elite Eights since 1996. In 16 years as head coach, Bob Huggins went to two sweet 16s. That is compared to five in 12 years at West Virginia.
True, but joining the Big East should have helped them raise the bar for recruiting. It worked for football. They had success from joining the Big East in football, as we all know.
Huggins never coached Cincy in the BE. He was in three conferences during his time there, but got let go before they joined the BE.
Disagree. He's been to the tournament 9 years in a row. He's a very good coach. I can't comment on what he inherited situationally and personal-wise from Andy Kennedy, as I honestly don't recall.
The fun part is that we'll get to see how he does with a very talented lineup. I could see top players not fully buying into his style.
Cronin and Dixon overachieved in the regular season with inferior talent. The time Pitt had two semi studs in Young and Blair, we reached the Elite Eight. You don't win National Championships with 3 star players.
How does it feel to be the 4th or 5th choice Mick??
I was actually 5th. Five is my lucky number.
I should have been the first choice # 1 for UCLA.
Huggy and I are like twins people say we look alike too.
This ought to be interesting. 4 mill a year doesn't seem to be a lot of cash for UCLA to pay.
Just spell the name right on my check !How does it feel to be the 4th or 5th choice Mick??
I was actually 5th. Five is my lucky number.
I should have been the first choice # 1 for UCLA.
Huggy and I are like twins people say we look alike too.
They supposedly reached out to Bennett and got a flat no thanks as well per the LA Times.
Well, I disagree with you. I used his numbers to formulate my opinion (posted in this thread). Check them out.
He beat up on out-of-conference teams and struggled mightily in conference until they went to the AAC. He missed the NCAA Tourney in 4 of 7 years on the Big East. So 6 of his appearances are from the AAC.
Tell me why you think he is a “very good coach”.
I think he’s a much better than average coach. He will do OK but will it be anywhere near good enough!
Out here in LA, they are calling this hire “The Doomsday Scenario.”
I tried to respond to your exact questions. He missed the tournament his first three years at Cincinnati then made it 9 years running. That’s good coaching. I’m not knowledgeable enough to comment on what he inherited his first 3 years, post-Kennedy. I’m judging him based on once it truly became his program.
The AAC has been a very good conference at the top the past two years. UCONN has won a title out of the AAC.
We don’t have to agree. Like i said, we’ll get to see how he fairs in LA. There will be no need to speculate.
Listening to WLW on Sunday the scuttlebutt was he was gone. And that he did not win in the NCAA because they didn't have a front line with enough muscle.
He should be able to recruit in LA and to be candid, the play in the PAC 12 has been bad recently.
I always saw a parallel b/w Cincy and Pitt when JD and Cronin were coaching. Both had a good amount of success without much NBA talent. Stephenson and then Kilpatrick who has had a very Sam Young-ish NBA career so far. That's probably even less than Pitt's produced to the NBA under JD.
If I were a UCLA fan, I wouldn't be thrilled with it either.
They weren't very excited about Dixon or Barnes either were they?
Those Hollywood idiots gave the Hollywood job to Cronin?
This was my job dream job, the Hollywood job, another Godfather movie, everything, everything.
Mick?
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“And I said to myself, This is the business we’ve chosen”
The irony of it all is the UCLA students, and the Hollywood types, don't even know that a city in the middle of the country called Cincinnati actually exists???
Most CA''s don't know that people really live in the "middle of the country. "
Most CA''s don't know that people really live in the "middle of the country. "
It really does seem like UCLA and Pitt's Administration and decision makers are cut from the same cloth.
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