Tubby Smith reportedly out at Minnesota, Rich Pitino to replace

• gorocks99

  

  http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/blog/eye-on-college-basketball/21948116/tubby-smith-out-at-minnesota
  
  It will be interesting to see what direction the program goes in now. He underachieved given expectations but he wasn't really bad given the program's historical standing.
• Hb31187

  

  Yeah he by no means was a great coach. But as you said, Minnesota isnt exactly a basketball powerhouse. But with the talent hes had in recent years, hes easily under achieved
• wkfan

  Does Minnesota really expect to get a better coach than Tubby Smith?
  
  Minnesota isn't even as football school..they are a hockey school for cryin' out loud! Basketball is third, at best and might even be behind women's hockey!
  
  But...they should have never won a basketball game after 1972, IMO.
• vball10set

  gorocks, I know we've touched on this before, but iyo, do you think Shaka Smart would/should be a candidate? I have to assume Minny would be interested, but do you think the interest would be mutual??
• Gblock

  they have also had some injuries
• sleeper

  

  Minnesota is talented; no way Tubby should have done anything short of a sweet 16 appearance with that team. Tubby deserves to be fired.
• reclegend22

  

  gorocks99;1414124 wrote:It will be interesting to see what direction the program goes in now.

  Saul?
• sleeper

  

  If they get Shaka Smart, they will be ridiculous.
• reclegend22

  

  sleeper;1414183 wrote:If they get Shaka Smart, they will be ridiculous.

  As in good or stupid?
• Pick6

  

  Shaka would go to UCLA over Minni.
• gyea36

  I'm wondering if firing decisions like this one are made if they already have some type of verbal agreement with another coach that they desire...
• gorocks99

  

  vball10set;1414137 wrote:gorocks, I know we've touched on this before, but iyo, do you think Shaka Smart would/should be a candidate? I have to assume Minny would be interested, but do you think the interest would be mutual??

  They will ask him. VCU's ex-AD (the one who gave Shaka his big break) is now at Minnesota in the same position, and Shaka is from Wisconsin so he's not going to shriek at the possibility of coaching up north.
  
  That said, I have no reason to think Shaka would leave VCU for anything less than $3m a year given that he's an incredibly hot commodity on the coaching market, and I also have no reason to think that the U of M will dish out that kind of cash to get him.
  
  Flip Saunders may be a more viable name. Also (in pipe dream land) Jay Wright is being mentioned, as is Buzz Williams.
• gorocks99

  

  gyea36;1414201 wrote:I'm wondering if firing decisions like this one are made if they already have some type of verbal agreement with another coach that they desire...

  Apparently, there is already a verbal agreement in place from another coach for the job. So, yes, in this case.
• se-alum

  

  Would Cobbs and Iverson still have been on this team if they hadn't transferred, eligibility wise?
• gorocks99

  

  se-alum;1414215 wrote:Would Cobbs and Iverson still have been on this team if they hadn't transferred, eligibility wise?

  Cobbs yes, Iverson no. Iverson was a senior this year so if he wouldn't have had to sit out a year transferring to CSU he would've used up his eligibility last year.
• Azubuike24

  

  Right now, Tubby Smith is a TERRIBLE coach. Minnesota should absolutely expect to get someone better. Thinking different is basically saying they shouldn't have a program. Tubby wasn't even a good coach when he got to Minnesota.
• WebFire

  Rumor is John Gruden is getting an interview.
• Midstate01

  

  Azubuike24;1414325 wrote:Right now, Tubby Smith is a TERRIBLE coach. Minnesota should absolutely expect to get someone better. Thinking different is basically saying they shouldn't have a program. Tubby wasn't even a good coach when he got to Minnesota.

  
  They've had 20 win seasons 5 of the last 6 years. They have AWFUL facilities. He had nothing to play with. Considering all of that, he did ok. It's not like they have nc expectations.
• gorocks99

  

  WebFire;1414356 wrote:Rumor is John Gruden is getting an interview.

  awwww yissssss
• Midstate01

  

  WebFire;1414356 wrote:Rumor is John Gruden is getting an interview.

  
  Pointless since cowher already bought a house in minnetonka
• Azubuike24

  

  Midstate01;1414358 wrote:They've had 20 win seasons 5 of the last 6 years. They have AWFUL facilities. He had nothing to play with. Considering all of that, he did ok. It's not like they have nc expectations.

  They should be able to find someone with more potential. Tubby is complacent, he's basically there to collect a check and to maybe make a difference in a player's life and develop their game a little. Sounds great, but not if you're out actively trying to keep up with IU, OSU, MSU and the rest of the country. If that's your goal is to have a strong, recognizable figurehead atop the program, he was a great hire...a decade ago. It was time for that to go.
  
  I also find it funny that for as much as his character is brought up, how many player indiscretions did he have at Kentucky and Minnesota. The answer? Plenty. While his character is completely upstanding, it's a prime argument for absolving a coach for constant player problems. Certain coaches get absolutely crushed in the media and by the fans when they have players get in trouble, yet Tubby had quite a few of his own without much mention of it.
  
  Les Miles comes to mind. He's gotten lambasted for some of the off-the-field problems he's had. As much as I dislike him, look at Ben Howland just this week?
• reclegend22

  

  gorocks99;1414205 wrote:They will ask him. VCU's ex-AD (the one who gave Shaka his big break) is now at Minnesota in the same position, and Shaka is from Wisconsin so he's not going to shriek at the possibility of coaching up north.
  
  That said, I have no reason to think Shaka would leave VCU for anything less than $3m a year given that he's an incredibly hot commodity on the coaching market, and I also have no reason to think that the U of M will dish out that kind of cash to get him.
  
  Flip Saunders may be a more viable name. Also (in pipe dream land) Jay Wright is being mentioned, as is Buzz Williams.

  Any connection between Wright and Minnesota? I know he went to school at Bucknell, but have no idea as to his background in the coaching ranks and do not care enough about him to look it up. He's had a lot of success, though. An underrated coach IMO.
• Azubuike24

  

  ccrunner609;1414478 wrote:Minny is a place where coaches go to retire or build a resume.

  I can agree with this, to an extent. The same is true for just about every D-1 program, sans about 15-20 of them. If that's the case, and I'm calling the shots for a "stepping stone" job, why not get an up-and-comer and just hope for a rise to success, even if it means starting over in 5 years. That's why the Tubby hire was kind of "WTF" at the time. He was clearly on the way down, but in ability and desire to succeed.
• Azubuike24

  

  Article from Gregg Doyel when Tubby was hired in March of 2007. Major props.
  
  http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/story/10080776
  
  Now he's Minnesota's problem. And Tubby will have problems at Minnesota, believe me. I'll hang him with his own words, because a few years back Tubby said something to the Dallas Morning News that should scare the absolute hell out of the state of Minnesota:
  
  "All we promise (potential recruits) is an education and the opportunity to be part of the winningest college basketball program in America," Smith said in March 2005.
  
  At Minnesota, he'll promise recruits an education and the opportunity to be part of one of the worst college basketball programs in the Big Ten.
  
  He'll be fired by 2012.
• Azubuike24

  

  Al Nolen retweeted former teammates comments about Tubby. Pretty freaking harsh...