I love talking hoops with everyone on here. I really do. I just hope we don't have too many more of these posts. For the sake of all of us. Rhode Island is done, and teams are starting to drop out of the tournament. I think we are making some progress.
Before we start, I know that the loss of a roster and recruiting class is concerning. However, it is all relative and it goes both ways. For example, Hurley and Rhode Island have the best player between both classes. So if he decides to move on, it is certainly possible that his players and/or recruits follow him. They certainly seem to love him and they are very loyal to him.
Speaking of Hurley, it was another good season but this Duke team can win it all when they are playing like that. Hurley is a competitor. His entire family is. He was born for it. He is upset about the loss, and he knows in order to win these types of games, he has to move up another level to have a chance.
I am confident now in saying that the new coach will be a current head coach. She wants a sitting head coach and while there are a few quality assistant candidates, the timing is not right.
I am also confident in saying that Hurley is probably target #1. Always has been. What I am not sure about is the Pitt-UConn split. Most in the coaching industry think UConn is the favorite. Pete Thamel and a few other media members think Pitt has the edge. At one point, it seemed like UConn was almost a done deal. I still think they are the favorite right now, but it seems to be a closer race. Pitt seems to be right in the mix here. With Hurley, I would think some progress will be made in the next 48-72 hours on either side.
The one coach that seems to be sliding into the 2 spot (or 1a) is more of a wildcard right now. There is a reason I can't share a lot here. Please do not ask or speculate about this one. Trust me, I share everything that I possibly can on this board. When the time is appropriate (soon), I will share details.
Then there is the Schmidt, Becker, Musselman, Jent tier. For some reason, the stories on Jent could not be more conflicted. His name keeps resurfacing for whatever reason, and then I get a confirmation that he is not a serious candidate. I feel pretty confident that Jent is not going to be a finalist. Musselman also has some interest but I think it is just modest from both sides. Moving him from the west coast is a risk for both sides. So in reality, I would say it is Schmidt and then Becker in that third tier, with Musselman right behind.
This is crunch time now. Things seem to be progressing a little ahead of schedule. I know I mentioned the week of April 1 for a public hire, but I think it may be sooner. I could see it happening within the next week now. Heather is going to be quite busy now. It will be an around the clock grind until the press conference is over
I can confirm the report of the team meeting that went south. That was the start of the transfer requests. Heather has been busy and is not concerned with the requests right now. The main objective is to hire the right coach and the majority will return. From what it sounds like, Parker is probably the most likely to leave. He may be the only one that is likely gone regardless.
If the new coach could get Marcus, Malik, Terrell, Shamiel, Ryan, and Bryce back, that would be a nice accomplishment. Khameron would not hurt things either. If you have those seven, you can add a couple of grad transfers, a JUCO, two decommitments from other schools, and a pure transfer. Give or take the numbers, but just a general framework. If you can start with those seven, the right coach can be MUCH more competitive next year.
So things are moving along now. We are in the 4th quarter. I also feel confident that she is going to end up with a bigger name. A lot of the mid major and assistant coaches are fighting an uphill battle in this one.
Again, I will share and answer what I can. Just know that I omit things for a reason. Please respect that and just trust me. I may have a couple of updates tomorrow.
Before we start, I know that the loss of a roster and recruiting class is concerning. However, it is all relative and it goes both ways. For example, Hurley and Rhode Island have the best player between both classes. So if he decides to move on, it is certainly possible that his players and/or recruits follow him. They certainly seem to love him and they are very loyal to him.
Speaking of Hurley, it was another good season but this Duke team can win it all when they are playing like that. Hurley is a competitor. His entire family is. He was born for it. He is upset about the loss, and he knows in order to win these types of games, he has to move up another level to have a chance.
I am confident now in saying that the new coach will be a current head coach. She wants a sitting head coach and while there are a few quality assistant candidates, the timing is not right.
I am also confident in saying that Hurley is probably target #1. Always has been. What I am not sure about is the Pitt-UConn split. Most in the coaching industry think UConn is the favorite. Pete Thamel and a few other media members think Pitt has the edge. At one point, it seemed like UConn was almost a done deal. I still think they are the favorite right now, but it seems to be a closer race. Pitt seems to be right in the mix here. With Hurley, I would think some progress will be made in the next 48-72 hours on either side.
The one coach that seems to be sliding into the 2 spot (or 1a) is more of a wildcard right now. There is a reason I can't share a lot here. Please do not ask or speculate about this one. Trust me, I share everything that I possibly can on this board. When the time is appropriate (soon), I will share details.
Then there is the Schmidt, Becker, Musselman, Jent tier. For some reason, the stories on Jent could not be more conflicted. His name keeps resurfacing for whatever reason, and then I get a confirmation that he is not a serious candidate. I feel pretty confident that Jent is not going to be a finalist. Musselman also has some interest but I think it is just modest from both sides. Moving him from the west coast is a risk for both sides. So in reality, I would say it is Schmidt and then Becker in that third tier, with Musselman right behind.
This is crunch time now. Things seem to be progressing a little ahead of schedule. I know I mentioned the week of April 1 for a public hire, but I think it may be sooner. I could see it happening within the next week now. Heather is going to be quite busy now. It will be an around the clock grind until the press conference is over
I can confirm the report of the team meeting that went south. That was the start of the transfer requests. Heather has been busy and is not concerned with the requests right now. The main objective is to hire the right coach and the majority will return. From what it sounds like, Parker is probably the most likely to leave. He may be the only one that is likely gone regardless.
If the new coach could get Marcus, Malik, Terrell, Shamiel, Ryan, and Bryce back, that would be a nice accomplishment. Khameron would not hurt things either. If you have those seven, you can add a couple of grad transfers, a JUCO, two decommitments from other schools, and a pure transfer. Give or take the numbers, but just a general framework. If you can start with those seven, the right coach can be MUCH more competitive next year.
So things are moving along now. We are in the 4th quarter. I also feel confident that she is going to end up with a bigger name. A lot of the mid major and assistant coaches are fighting an uphill battle in this one.
Again, I will share and answer what I can. Just know that I omit things for a reason. Please respect that and just trust me. I may have a couple of updates tomorrow.
