Am I the only one that finds this list woefully unimpressive? Could we find any more square pegs for this position? None of them seem to have a tie to Pitt or a region we recruit. None of them have any experience coaching at this level....or recruiting at this level. Maybe I'm missing something......but there is not a single name on this list (save possibly the Butler guy) that I would be excited about. This just looks like we're trying to cheap our way on this one.
Possible coaches that have been identified
- Thread starter Pitt88
- Start date
Ya, but they play "faster".
I agree fully. Odds are the program is about to take a major step back in perception and results. This was made official when Miller declined.
Keith Benjamin is meeting with Barnes right now a deal is expected to get done by the end of today my sources have confirmed
No, I would like to think we have some rational people that want to see who is actually hired and the staff he brings in before running around like our hair is on fire.
I want to see that too ..but it has become pretty clear that whoever is hired likely has a significantly worse resume than Dixon.
That doesn't mean the new guy can't do great , but whether it is drew, keates, wade, or enfield, it is a total crapshoot.
Honestly, at this point I put drew on top for me, but would strongly consider knight over guys like wade and keates.
No, just clueless about college bball. There are plenty of good coaches. Many kid major coaches have moved into P5 jobs and had a lot of success.
And many more have failed. That is all that I, and anyone else who are trying to act like this is easy are saying.
Of course, based in resume you will probably not be happy. My eyes were open - I saw the crowds decline, I saw the recruiting drastically decline, I saw the lack of player development, I saw the lack of leadership and team chemistry. Knight is not as good as Wade, Keatts, Drew, Enfield, or Beard.
You're wrong right out of the gate, starting with "...but it has become pretty clear that..."
Nothing is clear at all. Some half-assed lists compiled by people taking stabs in the dark does not constitute "pretty clear" at all.
Could Knight take a team that finished 9-23 then win the conference the next year after losing 4 starters from that 9 win team? Could Knight take a team that finished 12-18, go 30-5 the next season, win the conference, then beat a 5 seed in the NCAA tournament as a first year head coach.? I'll give anyone 10,000-1 odds Knight couldn't come close in either situation.
Thank goodness there are some knowledgable basketball people on this site. My 5 year old has a better grasp of the game than some of these posters.
We are in the year 2016. Not 2010. A lot has changed. Are u going to penalize a good young coach because he has not coached as long? Are u going to base it on win %, the last 5 years, tournament achievements?
You mean the guy who was calling or offense elite earlier this year while we lit up cupcakes like Central Arkansas State? Yeah, he really knows basketball.
You're looking, at 3 NCAA tournaments and an average record of 10-8 over the past 4 seasons in-conference.
Even if you're essentially spotting the next guy a NCAA Tourney appearance and a 10-8 record in his first season, do any of these candidates seem reasonably possible to have the same first 4 years as the previous 4 years?
They all seem like massive coin flips with unspectacular upside and enormous downside.
Let's be honest....the board tone has gone from "make a change, it's not that hard to improve over what we've had recently" to "well we might have a small rebuild coming up" in the span of like 5 days.
Even if you're essentially spotting the next guy a NCAA Tourney appearance and a 10-8 record in his first season, do any of these candidates seem reasonably possible to have the same first 4 years as the previous 4 years?
They all seem like massive coin flips with unspectacular upside and enormous downside.
Let's be honest....the board tone has gone from "make a change, it's not that hard to improve over what we've had recently" to "well we might have a small rebuild coming up" in the span of like 5 days.
If the shoe fits. Our defense and lack of guards has been the bigger issue anyways for awhile.
Interestingly, there were savants on this board who said our gaudy stats were padded due to weak competition and that we wouldn't look elite when we played better competition. I wonder who one of those posters was...
Lots of quality options being discussed unless you're one of the fantasy basketball guys who would only be happy with Sean Miller or Gregg Marshall.
Really?
You ready for criticism? I hope you have your eyes open and ears unclogged.
-The leadership of the Pitt basketball program is a flat out disgrace. Jamie Dixon cant get along with Barnes. Players skipping practices, going to casinos and parties. Knight blaming Dixon and the staff he was handcuffed and couldnt recruit or coach correctly because of Dixon and others. Everyone blaming each other.
-This team took a shot on the chin by Purdue and eventually got knocked out. Jamie Dixon couldnt get any type of rotation set for the entire season, and no one understood that piss poor lack of execution and rotation in the NCAA Tournament. Maybe he wanted to lose on purpose to get out of town, since he already knew he was done here. Everyone blamed everyone. Zero accountability or responsibility, only finger pointing. The way this team folded like a cheap tent the back stretch of the season, once again mind you, is the result of piss poor leadership from the coaches on this basketball team.
-Barnes already showed the door to one of them. Dixon is done. Knight should shut his mouth right now instead of blaming people for his shortcomings. Excuses are for losers, and right now, he is in the loser circle. He did nothing to elevate this program unless we are talking about coming in 2nd place for recruits.
-And you want to blame me for the team folding under Dixon's leadership and coaching ability? Who coaches the basketball team here, me or Jamie Dixon? Thank You Barnes, for reducing the buyout and getting this guy the heck out of Pittsburgh. He has no heart for Pitt basketball or winning Championships any more. And good riddance to that. Goodbye Dixon.
-Ill tell you one thing right now. Kevin Keatts does not put up with bullshit. He will throw your ass right off the team. I saw that message delivered to Isiah Epps at Hargrave when he was talking about being a 1 and done player and breaking rules. Keatts suspended that idiot faster than snapping fingers for stepping out of line. That's what a leader does. That's why Keatts is a Champion. That why Keatts will turn Pitt into a Champion. And I hope Barnes has an open mind to flush out anyone that doesnt understand the concept of team play. The letter i does not exist in the word team. Dixon doesnt get that, Im not sure Knight does either.
I'm not penalizing the coach. I'm simply stating that if the goal was a clear upgrade, it isn't going to happen.
They might be quality.. But don't kid yourself. They are 100% unproven.
I mean, we are pimping will wade as a great replacement after one year?
One year of what? He turned around a team that was 24-40 before he got there, and when he left they were 40-25 and set up for the NCAA this year. Then he did a very good job this year at VCU.
CHRIS BEARD of Arkansas-Little Rock
****You'll like what you read about this guy.****
1) As you said, he took over a 13-18 Trojans team and turned them into 30-5 in one season, including a 1st round upset over Purdue last weekend. We can all agree that is an unbelievable turnaround.
2) He took over a 9-17 Angelo State team (D2) in the summer of 2013, then immediately turned them around to 19-9, then followed that up with 28-6 (going to the 3rd round of the D2 tourney, losing by 2 to a Tarleton State team that went to the F4). Again, another unbelievable turnaround.
3) His Ark-LR team's style: Phenomenal overall defense (notably horrible 3FG% and very poor overall FG% by opponents), force a lot of turnovers, great ball control (very low turnovers), and they shoot very well from 3.
4) How much of that identity existed last year, before he was the coach? None of it except the good ball control. Their D last season was actually horrible, so going from that to one of the best in the nation is pretty crazy. They also had numerous efficient 3-pt shooters this year, but none last year.
5) Can he recruit? He convinced a 4* player to commit to UALR over Kansas, Texas, and NCState (seriously, read that again), although that had a lot to do with that player's relationship with an assistant, but he is the best recruit ever committed to UALR (the school where Derek Fisher played). It's really hard to find anything beyond that, but it appears they have a ton of first-year JUCO's and transfers on the squad this year (I count 5), so Beard is more than willing to go that route to fill a roster in a hurry.
6) The overall team roster geographic-footprint of UALR is in the south and southern mid-west (TX, AR), but there are two international players, so I have no idea if he can recruit Pittsburgh's typical PA-NY-NJ-VA-MD-OH-DC area, but I guess that's a big part of who your assistants are (again, see 5 above regarding their best recruit ever).
-The guy can coach. I posted my only 2 concerns with Beard.
-1) He bounces from team to team a lot.
2) How good can he recruit here
-Yes, I like him and would support the hire. Obviously not my 1st choice.
Go take a seat next to the water cooler then since we are trying to have an intelligent basketball conversation.
I would be more concerned with #2, but I think he would adapt quickly like Howland did.
I don't see it. I see a whole lot of reaches/gambles. Maybe anyone is a bit of gamble, per sey.....the majority of these guys have no ties to the school or the area. One is got Texas roots, another California. This is just a stepping stone for them. If we're going to go with a reach, why not one with the possibility of turning into a Jamie Dixon. I don't see any of those on the list
But seriously, what the **** are you talking about here? You need to refilll your psych meds.
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Sigh....
The point seems to be missed...these guys might be great. Dixon was a guy who even in his last 4 years was above average in the acc and big east., and before that among the best around
The point seems to be missed...these guys might be great. Dixon was a guy who even in his last 4 years was above average in the acc and big east., and before that among the best around
Sure, except he jumped from the NCCAA (a really really low division of college hoops) to D2 to D1, all within 4 seasons -- that's a testament to his success, not his in-stability. If he continues jumping upward along that path into an ACC school and can win, it's not like he has much higher to go from there. Even if he does jump higher within a couple years (let's say to Kansas - just making this up) then it means he did an amazing job for Pitt.
Key word "trying".
That post at best was verbal diarrhea completely irrelevant to what I said and at worst a chilling look into the mind of a sociopath who thinks I'm blaming him for the faults of this years team.
-Perhaps you should look up the definition of savant the next time you use it. The point is, no one saw this tidal wave of failure coming back in September. Now with facts out in the clear, and who knows what else has been going on behind the scenes, enough is known already to understand why the complete failure happened at Pitt this season.
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