What hoops coach should Bulldogs target now?
Wow, what a day was Tuesday. It started out well, with me thinking Georgia was moving quickly toward settling on a new basketball coach. It ended very late, with John Calipari going to Kentucky for an obscene amount of money (later confirmed to be 8 years for $31.65 million), Mike Anderson deciding to stay at Missouri and Georgia left sitting there red-faced without a coach.
Based on the information I’m getting, I don’t think Wednesday is going to be a very productive day for the Bulldogs either. Not a lot of moving and shaking planned is my understanding. In the meantime, Georgia AD Damon Evans is set to leave for Detroit and the Final Four on Thursday morning. So if anything is going to happen on the coaching search, I’d bet now it’s going to come down up there.
So the million-dollar question is — maybe that should be $2 million — who IS going to be the Bulldogs’ new coach. It’s a good question, and a hard one.
I honestly don’t think even Evans even knows at this point. I think he has been very deliberate and methodical to date, an approach you may or may not agree with. Anderson didn’t work out, so now he merely moves on to the next guy on his list. You’d figure that to be Oklahoma’s Jeff Capel, but the silence and lack of buzz surrounding that particular name has been perplexing. I can say this with some certainty: Anthony Grant would have been up soon thereafter. But he got snatched by Alabama well before the Dogs got around to him. A difference in evaluations, it would seem.
In the meantime, don’t discount the possibility that some of Georgia’s potential candidates could still be playing games. No, I’m not talking about those guys in Detroit. But you may want to glance up toward New York City where Scott Drew’s Baylor Bears are still playing in the NIT. And the guy he’ll face in Thursday’s finals, Penn State’s Ed DeChellis, isn’t bad either.
Some other coaches the Bulldogs may be considering: Southern Cal’s Tim Floyd, Clemson’s Oliver Purnell, UNLV’s Lon Kruger, Butler’s Brad Stevens and Dayton’s Brian Gregory. Some they aren’t: Miami’s Frank Haith and FSU’s Leonard Hamilton. And there’s at least a couple of possibilities with no current team affiliation: Billy Gillispie, no longer of Kentucky, and Russ Pennell, no longer of Arizona. Dare we even bring up again the biggest name of all? You know, BOB KNIGHT?
So it would seem there are plenty of viable possibilities still out there for Georgia. But are there any that will get the Bulldog Nation excited? Have I missed some possibilities? And how would you rate Evans’ coaching search so far?
I’ll leave you with some links:
Reaction to Kentucky’s hiring of Calipari has been all over the board. Lexington-Herald columnist John Clay writes that the Big Blue Nation is dancing in the streets over it. Then there’s column by ESPN’s Pat Forde. Personally I like the take on it by Ryan Parker. For him it’s all about “Caliparication.” . . .
Indications are that quarterback Matthew Stafford blew away a private workout Tuesday for the Detroit Loins. . . .
The No. 1-ranked Diamond Dawgs won again. It was their fourth win in a row, 6-5 over Clemson. The two teams will play again Wednesday night over on the other side of Lake Hartwell.
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196 comments Add your comment
John
April 1st, 2009
10:20 am
Let’s face reality: UGA hoops is a place where coaching careers come to die, save Tubby Smith. Look at the coaching circus we’ve had over the years: Jim Harrick & Son, the Ron Jirsa implosion, and Felton. No “successful” division one hoops coach currently hunkering down at a major university is jumping at the chance to move to Athens. In the end, Evans will be forced to hire another mid-major hoops coach.
David
April 1st, 2009
10:25 am
Bobby Knight? A team full of high recruits? Really? He never had them at Indiana and never had them at TT. So why would he all the sudden get high recruits at UGA?
Damon should’ve used the search frim to contact the prospects and gauge interest AHEAD of time. Not give them the same list we all have. Give him time and see what happens. But it does look dubious at best. Adams at the helm is a MUCH bigger liability against GA than you might think, believe me.
Take it easy
April 1st, 2009
10:35 am
How much despair was there when Parcells turned down Blank? How did that turn out?
This is not to say that the Falcon and UGa basketball situations are equivalent, but every sports fan with a memory ought to recognize how illogical it is to presume that we are screwed if we wind up with an up-and-comer or a retread-who-has-learned-his-lesson instead of an a-lister.
Please, though, no more Harricks. That hire smelled from the get go.
John
April 1st, 2009
10:36 am
With Calipari moving to Kentucky, any hopes of the new hoops coach keeping some of the best metro Atlanta talent within the confines of Georgia just vanished. Besides, who wants to coach at a school where the Lady Dogs, Gym Dogs and now the Diamond Dogs draw more fans than its mens basketball team? Word to the wise: the next coach will need more than four years to turn this program around. Otherwise, you’re asking for a devine intervention considering the program is essentially on life support.
Poopy Pants
April 1st, 2009
10:36 am
We’re doomed
Mobile Dawg
April 1st, 2009
10:39 am
Willie Martinez ! OK, some of you probably won’t think that was funny. Why do so many people think we have to have a big name to make a splash.
Put a search committee together, find a top notch assistant at a solid program with a good work ethic, good values, solid background, and a good personality. Hire him, support him, and let him grow with the program. If Adams can’t get it done, get rid of him, that’s his job. He’s failing miserably.
blufftondawg
April 1st, 2009
10:40 am
Don’t forget that the baseball program went after Danny Hall and every other coach who did NOT want the UGA job before hiring Donn Perno. How did that work out.
We don’t know if anderson, grant or mark few were even on damon’s list of coaches to go after. We are all speculating at this point. There might be some coaches who DO want the UGA job. Gary williams isn’t real popular in maryland, and there are probably other coaches who have been approached and are willing to talk. Damon will go to the final 4, make himself visible and go to his room. I’m sure he will come back from Detroit with a coach.
For the record, i thought dennis was a good hire when he arrived – just as i will probably think this hire is a good one. dennis had 5 yrs to recruit just 3 or 4 good players and he didnt do it. Let’s wish damon some good luck!! Somebody who WANTS the job will knock on his door.
DawgGirl32
April 1st, 2009
10:46 am
Wow. We haven’t even hired a coach yet and people are already predicting the end of the world? There have been plently of coaches hired that no one has heard of that have been very successful. Mike Smith anyone? There’s really no need to jump to conclusions yet. Just let our AD do his job. You can say all you want about how no one will want to come here because it’s just a football school and all that but they said the same thing about Florida in the 90s and Tennessee more recently. Too many debbie downers.
Dawg Fud
April 1st, 2009
10:49 am
well, we pissed away our opportunity to get Anthony Grant. he would have been perfect for UGA. now Bama has him. look for them to elevate their program exponentially.
reservoirDAWG
April 1st, 2009
10:49 am
Hire the coach from Norcross High. They have won 3 of the last 4 state championships.
AltamahaDawg
April 1st, 2009
10:50 am
Oh palez Kent! TN hired a coach from UW-Milwaukee with some personal baggage that could have just as easily backfired. Stick to your male modeling.
otisfirefly
April 1st, 2009
10:51 am
DOMINIQUE!!!!
DOMINIQUE!!!!
DOMINIQUE!!!!
Ramblinwreck1378
April 1st, 2009
10:52 am
Bob Knight is not going to Georgia. Everyone please stop that rumor right now. He would never think about coming to a school with such poor basketball prestige, as well as the fact that football is absolute king at Georgia (45-42) and their basketball facilities are sub-par to say the least relative to other programs in the country. Also, shut up about Jeff Capel too. He’s not coming either. Get over yourself, you’re basketball program will always suck. Get ready for beat downs in both football and basketball next year.
Brew
April 1st, 2009
10:55 am
Stevens or Miller are great choices, but I would doubt Miller would come given what he’s got going on at Xavier. Drew would be good as would Gregg Marshall at Wichita St. (remember his time at Winthrop). Reggie Theus or Steve Alford would be a step up.
Bob Knight would be a great short-term solution. He could revitalize a totally dead program, and make the job more attractive when he left in 3-4 years. Heck, even Bobby Cremins could improve the standing of the program. He’s old, but he can coach.
dawg
April 1st, 2009
10:57 am
Chip,
Why was the ajc so stuck on Capel and Anderson? Give the fans some other choices like none of the above. Now, With UK getting all the attention right now, bringing in Knight (if he’s still interested)might not be that bad of an idea. It would certainly still a little thunder away UK, and their hopeful new savior. If that don’t happen, why hasn’t anyone mentioned Jay Wright of Villanova? Quite frankly, he’s hotter than Capel or Anderson, and his team is in the final four!
turkey
April 1st, 2009
10:58 am
And you wonder why Florida is so far ahead of Georgia. When Donovan was thinking of leaving Florida Jeremy Foley already had a replacement in mind and did not need a “search commitee”. The Georgia AD is a joke and a bad one at that.
Bo Williams
April 1st, 2009
11:02 am
The problem is not just UGA’s. The rest of the SEC will become demoralized because it simply will not be able to compete with KY. That leaves the great players, even in Ga., to look to KY, and the rest of BB royalty (Duke, UNC, Indiana, Kansas, UCLA), in an effort to be relevant. Do you really think they want to come (other than the odd one here and there) to Ga. just to try to beat Ole Miss, Auburn, etc, in BB. Coaching prospects see this as well. To make things work, there isn’t any competitive rivalry between these schools in BB.
gdawginkalamazoo
April 1st, 2009
11:04 am
Chip, I got a baaaad omen about this, Oh Damion, Damion!
Chris
April 1st, 2009
11:05 am
Chip…….We aren’t getting Capel from Oklahoma. If I am at Xavier, Butler, teams always in the NCAA tournament, I am not coming to Athens where Football is King and the Basketball arena is a drag. I know Adams isn’t going to allow it to happen which after the Harrick fiasco I don’t know why his input should matter. We need instant credibility, somebody who will bring a spotlight to the program, and get us immediate exposure. That person is willing to come and has made his interest public. We should hire Bob Knight right now.
KYBulldog
April 1st, 2009
11:10 am
Maybe Adams needs to hire a new search agency for another $100,000. If money is short, he can always cut a few more faculty jobs.
Bill M.
April 1st, 2009
11:12 am
Why not Petrino? Offer him 4mil. for 8yrs. With a promise that Ga. build need arena.
gdawginkalamazoo
April 1st, 2009
11:12 am
Should have been talking to these target guys the day Felton was even thought about being fired. That is the mistake. This wait till the season/dance is over deal might turn into a bad Mickey Gilley song.
All its does is give the guys what Anderson got. Leverage to stay in a good situation and make more money. Duh! Who wouldn’t take their current job and a 50% pay raise for doing the same damn thing. Also Anderson actually put a lot of work into that program to get them where they are. I say take a look at the guy from Arizona. That is a tradition BB school. Let their administrators pay for their mistake. Don’t bother with Gillespie. If he couldn’t recruit at Kentucky then something is amiss.
Sarge
April 1st, 2009
11:23 am
UGA is willing to pay their new coach 2.1 million, which is higher than UNC, Duke, Uconn, etc… pay their coaches. Obviously it is a rebuilding effort, but Atlanta is a great place to draw talent from and a big time coach would actually recognize and do just that.
2.1 million, an administration clearly behind you, a significant talent pool down the street, and a great place to live and raise a family…..don’t be surprised if UGA goes after someone not on the radar right now and who is a big name….that amount of money would make the new coach one of the top paid coaches in the country. I think the Vilanova coach might be in play….what about Izoo, you think he might be ready for a change of scenery….don’t give me the uga history of the past, it is what it is (bad), but Evans is looking to build a significant future. Btw, we have some of the finest practice facilities for bball in the country, as well as coaches offices….if you haven’t seen the pictures of the new facilities take a look.
Freddy OTL
April 1st, 2009
11:24 am
Chip:
Care to contrast this post with your 3/9/2009 post? Remeber that one where you told us why Damon Evans WILL land a top coach? You sounded like UGa’s PR department then and it is your credibility that is now in question.
Listen to national opinion about the Georgia program before taking the UGa Athletics party line next time. If UGa is so great, Mr. Evans truly offered Anderson $2 million per year, then what does Anderson’s commitment to Mizzou for $1.5 million a year tell us (this, of course assumes that the $ 2 million/year offer was legit, I heard Anderson’s agent disputes this).
To Dawg Nation, would you rather spend $2 million a year on your Hoops Program OR give Coach Richt an EXTRA $1-$2 million to turn the Dawg ftball team’s defense into a Top 3 SEC unit? I think I know the answer, we all know.
Thanks,
Freddy O
Eagles1x6
April 1st, 2009
11:24 am
Who cares? It’s UGA hoops.
Dgaines
April 1st, 2009
11:28 am
HAHA Georgia.. As I Missouri Tiger fan I laugh at the idea of you thinking you could steal Coach Anderson away from us. Missouri just built a brand new basketball arena, and have the finances and fan base to support a winning program. Just admit it, you are a football school and a second tier basketball school. To some coaches winning now is more important than money. I applaud Coach Anderson for his loyalty to our program, and wish him continued success as he continues to raise the expectations at the University of Missouri. Go Tigers!! and good luck UGA with your coach search.
freshd
April 1st, 2009
11:29 am
why don”t damon and boss hogg(micheal adams) coach the team, that way they can sell the place out every night with all the uga fans who don”t like them. and you won”t have to worry about fla. stealing them away. uga was a fool for not hiring anthony grant.
RAMBLE ON!!!
April 1st, 2009
11:32 am
gdawginkalamazoo you’re correct sir. Keep getting coaches raises is all the search firm and UGAg is doing. Good stuff though. How much $ are ya’ll paying them….kind of like giving GM 18 billion to do what?
Not to mention KY is looking too. I wish we could give you Hewitt. You’ll have to settle for some Asst. Coach from Nobody University. No way in Hell will AZ coach leave, but go ahead and get him a raise too if you’d like.
gdawginkalamazoo
April 1st, 2009
11:35 am
Dgaines, congrat on keeping your coach. Your program is his baby and he wants to see it through. It shows that we were going for a quality coach and quality guy. Doh! I doubt your knowledge of college basketball when you call us a “second tier” program. Second tier? I wish we were that good.
KCDawg
April 1st, 2009
11:36 am
I’m sorry, but some of you people are idiots and have no idea what you are talking about. First, there is no search committee. Damon is working with a search firm that identifies candidates, vets them for interest (yes, Anderson showed interest, even if he didn’t take the job), and does limited background searches to see if there are any major issues that need to be examined. A search firm makes perfect sense for UGA specifically because we fired our coach in the middle of the season and could not talk to any other coaches until after they finished their seasons. But, a search firm could talk to their representatives.
Second, it is obvious that Damon wanted to go after Anderson from the beginning, and he did as soon as he possibly could. So, he struck out. I would much rather have an AD that is willing to swing for the homerun than accept mediocrity like some of you. Granted, this search might not work out the way we want it to. Damon has a lot of Georgia baggage to overcome (Stegasauros, history, ill informed fans, etc.), which certainly makes his job harder, but not impossible.
It amazes me how many people are following this search who never were interested in the basketball team before.
KCDawg
April 1st, 2009
11:37 am
One more thing: stop with the Bobby Knight talk. He is way past his prime and would do absolutely nothing for the program.
gdawginkalamazoo
April 1st, 2009
11:38 am
RambleON! The AZ coach was coach in waiting for Olsen and was suppose to take over for him went he quit/retired. AZ only offered him a 1 yr interim contract not the deal they brought him there to do originally. So he said that his principles just wouldn’t allow him to sign it.
Spoke
April 1st, 2009
11:40 am
We need to quit fooling ourselves into thinking we’re going to get a top-tier coach to come to Georgia. All that happens is that these coaches use Georgia’s interest to get themselves a better deal at their own school, and Georgia winds up getting publicly humiliated by a couple of “name” coaches before making a second-tier hire. My own preference would be for Georgia to take a chance on a promising assistant, like Wojciechowski or Chris Collins at Duke. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain by rolling the dice on an up-and-comer.
Around The SEC East - 4/1/09 | MrSEC.com
April 1st, 2009
11:47 am
[...] Halfway through spring practice, no one has claimed the starting tailback job.UGA: This writer doesn’t believe Damon Evans knows where he’s going to turn next in his coaching search, but one of the guy’s coaching in the NIT’s [...]
Bubbadawg
April 1st, 2009
11:48 am
Chad Warner @Shorter College!! Hire him NOW!!!
BadgerDawg
April 1st, 2009
11:48 am
I told you all we won’t get Anderson, I’m surprised he even considered but it was probably just a play for more $ from Mizzou. We won’t get Sean Miller either, unless $ talks. He’s at an established program. Stevens from Butler is interesting. That is a stepping stone job. Xavier is not. Gillespie is our best bet. We wouldn’t have had a shot with him but now he’s damaged goods so I think we would.
AltamahaDawg
April 1st, 2009
11:53 am
KC, not to mention, most of the critism in here is largely based of very sketchy, at best, media speculation. Nobody has any idea who has done what. Just a few years ago, we all would have found out who the new coach is when he was announced, caring not how it unfolded, and not had to suffer the relentless dooms day chatter from the now experts on search committees.
gt
April 1st, 2009
11:57 am
I did not read all theblogs, but did anyone else know that Anthony Grant discounted UGA as soon as he found out who was doing the search. Seems he was not impressed with them a year or two ago when he dealt with them. This is according to the Brimingham newspaper, quoting him, MONDAY!
Somebody please get some sense into the Board of Regents and eliminate Batman and Robin before our beloved nation does a total collapse.one can hire an accountant to shuffle money around-an Ad is supposed to DIRECT,TO LEAD.
My final question is-I am thinking of next year- has an SEC team ever gone an entire half without scoring?
GCB
April 1st, 2009
12:03 pm
http://www.gcbbuydirect.com/
lawzoo
April 1st, 2009
12:04 pm
To all the people “wondering” why Jay Wright of ‘Nova hasn’t been mentioned…….you couldn’t drag him down to that DUMP with a pack of ga. mules.
Chief Nock A Homa
April 1st, 2009
12:08 pm
Why isn’t Bobby Knight getting any more play here???
He’ll only be here for three or four years, but what an impact those years will have for a long, long time….
Stands packed, money pouring in, recruits coming, and the list goes on….
Are Adams and Evans afraid they can’t dominate him???
Right On Time
April 1st, 2009
12:12 pm
gt:
yes
lawzoo:
You underestimate how persuasive a pack of ga.mules can be.
lawzoo
April 1st, 2009
12:19 pm
I forgot, Tim Floyd(among ALL the others mentioned) fomerly of the Chicago Bulls, now in L.A. would leave SoCal to go to a suburb of Danielson,Ga. Yea, that’s a possibility. This is beyond hilarious.
Dawg97
April 1st, 2009
12:28 pm
Yeah, I’d love for us to get Jay Wright but why would he come here?
Captain
April 1st, 2009
12:29 pm
A few things:
1) to paul in Jax. Obviously you don’t know your facts, or chose to conveniently overlook them. Vince Dooley DID NOT recommend Ray Goff, Vince Dooley recommended Erk Russell. The Univ Pres Charles Knapp turned that down and in turn said he wanted Dick Sheridan. After much courtship by Knapp Sheridan turned him down. Erk got a rebound offer which he turned down. As Christmas Day approached and with Pat Dye having offered Ray a job on his staff, members of the Ath Board decided to take a chance on Ray. Those are Facts friend.
ON the basketball search….if it were only as easy as some suggest to hire a coach. There is no need to panic at this stage.
Chip, in your list of potential candidates, as well as the lists of other media guys and fans, I wonder why the name Rick Stansbury is never mentioned? The man can flat out coach, has been Miss St HC for 11 seasons, and appears to do an extremely fine job. The facilities in Athens are better, the pay is better, better recruiting area, a young man, experience in the SEC, has won SEC Championships, been to a Final 4. Is that a resume’ with which we could live?
JT
April 1st, 2009
12:30 pm
Tim Floyd wants to get back to the South. Not everybody enjoys Hollyweird Commiefornia.
wild hog
April 1st, 2009
12:35 pm
Let’s bring BOB KNIGHT in he could do wonders for this program
Vern
April 1st, 2009
12:35 pm
To Captain…..BINGO! Stansbury to me is an obvious “stealth” candidate. It may not have the sizzle a lot of folks want, but who cares? Dude can coach. Chip: what negatives does he have?
georgia $mules
April 1st, 2009
12:36 pm
I don’t know, I think a georgia mule carrying a 3millon dollar a year contract could be quite persuasive, even for Wright. Don’t know what he makes now?
braveshater
April 1st, 2009
12:37 pm
It really doesnt matter anyway, FOOTBALL is only 4 months away!