So heres what I know about UCLA thats not necessarily new

Ben has been a dead man walking since early in the season. Boosters and Alum were just done with him. He even lost the support of Dan Guerrero who always (at ties inexplicably had his back) to soem extent.

So essentially the search has been on all season. They couldnt hire anyone away midseason so theyve been putting out feelers.

For those of you who dont know. Of course UCLA isnt contacting coaches directly. That would be illegal. All coaches do have agents though and UCLA basically has had a headhunting firm that does the outreach for them via the agents.

Their main targets who have shown mutual interest per Tracy Pierson (for those of you who dont know he's a writer for Bruin Report Online. I really respect his info cause he's one of those guys thats really tight lipped about shit unless he knows theres some truth to it. Even though he's an insider he rarely just leaks information recklessly)

are

Pitino
Brad Stephens
Jay Wright (lol)
Shaka Smart and
Billy Donovan

I think Stephens and Shaka are on everyones radar but Pitino (to some extent) and Billy D are the shockers. No secret UCLA pursued Pitino last time around.

But a lot of people wonder why Billy D would leave. He has a lot of reasons to stay but I think there is still a huge allure with being the coach who can bring UCLA back to the promised land. He'd have very little competition recruiting west of the Mississippi, and can still pull in some florida kids.

Because UCLA is a state school the school alone cnat match the 3.5 million salary but the boosters are supposedly ready to pony up and for the right coach will help pay the salary up to 4 million--making whoever is hired one of the highest paid coaches in college basketbal...

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

or another B level program and rebuild.


If you can argue that Tubby's firing is unjust, can we also argue that Ben's firing is too? I guess the difference is UCLA can attract bigger names than Ben where Minn cant.

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

>or another B level program and rebuild.
>
>
>If you can argue that Tubby's firing is unjust, can we also
>argue that Ben's firing is too? I guess the difference is UCLA
>can attract bigger names than Ben where Minn cant.

------------------------------------
2019 CABG Survivor

2016 OK Survivor Champion

be about it or be without it

RIP GOATs

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

I'm sure the man wants to coach still but I enjoy his commentary too much for him to return to the bench.

I think JVG wants NBA. Limited upside to taking the UCLA job.

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He's a stickler for details which is good but the details of cbb--including recruiting are so different.

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

I think Pitino has such a great thing going in Louisville, a school with its own considerable history (not researching, but I wouldn't be surprised if Louisville had more titles, Final Fours, and a better win percentage in the post-Wooden era).

Donovan is such a fascinating choice. He's done so well in Florida, but he will always be second banana to football. I wonder how much that even bothers him though. He's had opportunities to go elsewhere and make big money, yet he's stayed. I wonder if UCLA will be too big to pass up.

Stevens and Smart are both guys that, again, I wonder if they're not content where they are. Catching them both on a second round exit is a plus, but again, they are gods in zero pressure situations that still get the types of recruits they want and still win every year. They've never even floated out there an inkling of considering other jobs. But again, UCLA isn't other jobs.

Wright obviously would take it in a New York minute.

I've heard Lorenzo Romar's name tossed out there a bunch as well.

My movies: http://russellhainline.com
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>I think Pitino has such a great thing going in Louisville, a
>school with its own considerable history (not researching, but
>I wouldn't be surprised if Louisville had more titles, Final
>Fours, and a better win percentage in the post-Wooden era).
>
Not researching either but by my estimation titles is two to one in favor of Louisville, Final Fours is I believe tied at six & win percentage is I'd guess might be in Louisville's favor but then again much of that was in The Metro/ConferenceUSA vs Pac-10.

That being said, UCLA is a better program by a hair.

>Donovan is such a fascinating choice. He's done so well in
>Florida, but he will always be second banana to football. I
>wonder how much that even bothers him though. He's had
>opportunities to go elsewhere and make big money, yet he's
>stayed. I wonder if UCLA will be too big to pass up.
>
>Stevens and Smart are both guys that, again, I wonder if
>they're not content where they are. Catching them both on a
>second round exit is a plus, but again, they are gods in zero
>pressure situations that still get the types of recruits they
>want and still win every year. They've never even floated out
>there an inkling of considering other jobs. But again, UCLA
>isn't other jobs.
>
>Wright obviously would take it in a New York minute.
>
>I've heard Lorenzo Romar's name tossed out there a bunch as
>well.

Not that 60 is terrible but I think uclA wants someone to build the program and be there long term.

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

under-40 mid-major wonderkinds that everyone else wants & saving that I'd roll with Donovan.

I'd rather Pitino than Wright or Romar but then again those two don't even warrant mentioning.

Nobody in the PAC 10

Roy -wont happen
k- nope
Cal- nope
Self- eh

Any other old big east/ Acc/ or big 10 coaches?

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

We've seen what they can do.
Those dudes wouldn't get paid the big bucks. I think uclA has a good idea of who they want/can get or they wouldn't have been so done with Ben for so long--then make it official so quickly.

>I think Pitino has such a great thing going in Louisville, a
>school with its own considerable history (not researching, but
>I wouldn't be surprised if Louisville had more titles, Final
>Fours, and a better win percentage in the post-Wooden era).
>
>Donovan is such a fascinating choice. He's done so well in
>Florida, but he will always be second banana to football. I
>wonder how much that even bothers him though. He's had
>opportunities to go elsewhere and make big money, yet he's
>stayed. I wonder if UCLA will be too big to pass up.
>
>Stevens and Smart are both guys that, again, I wonder if
>they're not content where they are. Catching them both on a
>second round exit is a plus, but again, they are gods in zero
>pressure situations that still get the types of recruits they
>want and still win every year. They've never even floated out
>there an inkling of considering other jobs. But again, UCLA
>isn't other jobs.
>
>Wright obviously would take it in a New York minute.
>
>I've heard Lorenzo Romar's name tossed out there a bunch as
>well.

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

unc, kentucky, kansas, duke or indiana.

<--- Big Baller World Order

My movies: http://russellhainline.com
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Firing Ben to get those guys is lateral.

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/-college-basketball-mens-tournament/news/20130325/ucla-ben-howland/

It is difficult to discern the exact moment when Ben Howland's career turned, when he transformed from seemingly the ideal coach to lead the program that John Wooden made famous to a guy UCLA will pay a reported $3.5 million just to go away after 10 seasons in Westwood. But if you were to venture a guess, if you were to try to pinpoint the beginning of Howland's end, a good place to start would be in late July 2009.

In 2003, he took over a program adrift after the Steve Lavin era, created tough, defensive-minded teams centered on players from Southern California, and ushered the Bruins to a remarkable three consecutive Final Fours from 2006 through 2008. He also won four conference titles, including one this past season, and yet UCLA still fired him. It was a strikingly swift and steep fall from grace.

There has been much conjecture about what happened, how a coach with Howland's knowledge of the game and early successes could have plunged so far, so fast. Some have said he couldn't relate to modern players and his system didn't appeal to recruits and fans.

But there is also a simplified explanation: Howland changed. And that change really came into focus in the summer of 2009.

That July, Howland did what college coaches often do: He pulled a scholarship from a recruit he no longer wanted. The recruit was Kendall Williams, a long-armed, athletic guard from Los Osos High in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., who also had played in the same AAU program that once produced Darren Collison, a key contributor on all three of Howland's Final Four teams. Like Collison, Williams was disciplined and smart, an ideal player for Howland's conservative, defensive-first system. Like Collison, Williams grew up rooting for UCLA, and he verbally committed to the Bruins early in his sophomore year. He also told other schools recruiting him, including Stanford and Florida, to stop, that his devotion to UCLA would never waver.

Howland's commitment to Williams proved to be far less solid. By Williams' junior year, when the 6-foot-3 guard was no longer ranked among the top 100 recruits in the nation, the Bruins interest in him cooled. This was no secret; UCLA assistant coaches openly recruited other point guards and told some prospects' parents that Williams would never play for the Bruins. Williams' father, Robert, spoke to a UCLA assistant coach in the spring and early summer of 2009, and he asked if the Bruins were still committed to Kendall. Each time he was told that Howland still wanted Kendall at UCLA.

But then, in late July, Howland pulled Williams' scholarship, doing so during a meeting with Robert and Kendall Williams. Robert Williams was so upset by Howland's decision that when the coach tried to spin his decision as mutually beneficial, Robert stopped him. He demanded that Howland state out loud exactly what he was doing: He was going back on his word.

Howland had the right to change his mind about Williams, but how he did it peeved several of Southern California's most prominent AAU coaches. They believed Howland purposely waited until the end of the summer recruiting calendar to drop Williams, thus assuring that he couldn't be evaluated by other Pac-12 coaches before the November signing period. Williams had been loyal to UCLA, and Howland repaid that loyalty by preventing him from going to Stanford or Cal or another Pac-12 school. Instead, Williams signed that November with New Mexico.

Many of the area's AAU coaches already disliked the conservative offensive system that Howland ran, feeling it didn't showcase their players' talents to NBA scouts. Howland's long-time friendship with David and Dana Pump, the twins who ran the Double Pump AAU program, also irked some coaches, as they felt the Pumps used their relationship with Howland to poach players from other AAU teams. Howland's mistreatment of Williams, however, was an even bigger issue. It led several AAU coaches to conclude that Howland couldn't be trusted, and they began advising their best players not to consider UCLA.

This had a stunning effect: Howland and his staff struggled to recruit Southern California. Of the 10 players the Bruins have signed since the Class of 2010 (Williams' class), only one (2011 signee Norman Powell) hails from Southern California, and he is from San Diego. Howland supporters have claimed that a lack of elite local talent forced him to look elsewhere and necessitated moves like the hiring of Korey McCray from the renowned Atlanta Celtics AAU program to be a Bruins assistant coach, which opened new recruiting grounds in the East. But there was no shortage of talented local players; many just wanted nothing to do with Howland and UCLA.

"I had a good relationship with Ben," says Elvert Perry, coach of the Inland basketball program based in Riverside, Calif. "But I know lot of coaches who did not and for a lot of reasons."

Howland's three Final Four teams were built around local players, many of them not among the nation's top rated recruits, including Collison, Josh Shipp, Arron Afflalo, Ryan Hollins, Russell Westbrook and others. They had low profiles and were mostly selfless, perfect for the kind of team Howland needed for his system to work. But by 2010 even those kinds of players were no longer enamored with UCLA.

Imagine Indiana forced to recruit out of state. Imagine Michigan and Michigan State shut out of Detroit or Texas unable to acquire players from Houston or Dallas. UCLA is located in one of the most fertile territories for players in the country, yet Howland was unable to take advantage. "A lot of coaches on the West Coast will be sad to see Ben go," said one Pac-12 coach. "He leveled the playing field."

Even with the Williams fiasco, there were still a few talented players who likely would have gone to UCLA had Howland and his staff shown enough interest. Allen Crabbe, another guard in the Class of 2010, wanted badly to play for the Bruins, a fact made clear to UCLA's coaches when Crabbe was at Los Angeles' Price High. But Howland never offered Crabbe a scholarship, and he ended up at Cal, where this season he was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year.

Spencer Dinwiddie, a Class of 2011 guard, attended Woodland Hills (Calif.) Taft and he, like Crabbe, favored the Bruins despite the criticisms he heard about Howland. But UCLA only showed interest in Dinwiddie after he visited Colorado before his senior year and only after other guards turned the Bruins down. "I was their fallback option," says Dinwiddie, Colorado's leading scorer and an All-Pac-12 first-team selection this season.

The Ben Howland who took over the UCLA program in 2003 would never have dropped Williams, nor would he have been so fixated on landing highly ranked recruits that he would have passed on Williams and Crabbe and Dinwiddie, local players who had dreamed of playing for the Bruins and who resembled those that he'd won with in the past.

Why Howland shifted his focus is a mystery. Perhaps watching Memphis' Derrick Rose carve up his team in the 2008 Final Four led Howland to believe he needed the elite of the elite to win a title. No one would mistake Williams, Crabbe and Dinwiddie for Rose. But Howland lacked the personality and people skills to manage high-maintenance players.

There were high expectations this season as Howland brought a four-man recruiting class to Westwood that was ranked No. 1 in the country. For all their hype, none of the players were from Southern California. Some seemed immune to defense, disinterested in rebounding, and too concerned with personal glory. In February, after senior Larry Drew hit a game-winning shot to lift UCLA over Washington, 59-57, star freshman Shabazz Muhammad didn't immediately celebrate with his teammates. He was too miffed that Drew hadn't passed him the ball.

In a few days or weeks, UCLA will have a new basketball coach. We don't yet know what kind of offense he will run or what kind of recruits he will target or if he knows the game as well as Howland. No matter, words will surely be written declaring the new coach the right fit for the Bruins at this point in time.

Ben Howland knows this better than anyone. He was once that perfect fit, and now he is not.

He changed, and so UCLA had to make a change.

Keating was basically the good cop to Howland's bad cop to the players and most of the people who dealt with the program - Howland is, I still think, basically a good and hardworking person, but an asshole, and Keating helped keep him in check and really helped with the ego management portion of running a team. The 08 team after that carried over a ton of older players still did well (that was the Love & Westbrook Final Four team) but the ego management started to fray that year, and it really fell apart after that.

Part of the reason I take the BRO basketball stuff with a pound of salt is cause of their continued employment of Greg Hicks, who has really close ties to the Pumps, and was one of the first people to push the idea that guys like Kendall Williams "weren't Pac-10 players" and I believe at the time said that it wasn't a big loss. Nevermind that his program was basically built on guys like that to begin with (underrated bruisers like Luc, Mata, Aboya, even Afflalo sorta falls into that even if he was a McD's AA guy). Howland really fucked him his AAU relationships which is why he had to really try and make it up with some of his assistant coach hires.

Throw in his on court inflexibility and it was all down hill the last few years.

>Keating was basically the good cop to Howland's bad cop to
>the players and most of the people who dealt with the program
>- Howland is, I still think, basically a good and hardworking
>person, but an asshole, and Keating helped keep him in check
>and really helped with the ego management portion of running a
>team. The 08 team after that carried over a ton of older
>players still did well (that was the Love & Westbrook Final
>Four team) but the ego management started to fray that year,
>and it really fell apart after that.
>
>Part of the reason I take the BRO basketball stuff with a
>pound of salt is cause of their continued employment of Greg
>Hicks, who has really close ties to the Pumps, and was one of
>the first people to push the idea that guys like Kendall
>Williams "weren't Pac-10 players" and I believe at the time
>said that it wasn't a big loss. Nevermind that his program was
>basically built on guys like that to begin with (underrated
>bruisers like Luc, Mata, Aboya, even Afflalo sorta falls into
>that even if he was a McD's AA guy). Howland really fucked him
>his AAU relationships which is why he had to really try and
>make it up with some of his assistant coach hires.
>
>Throw in his on court inflexibility and it was all down hill
>the last few years.

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

Is a) Williams would've been a great fit in uclas system Long with a bunch of local type guys who transferred to UNLV and NM st like drew Gordon.

But b) the biggest irony in all this is after Ben lost the second time to Florida--one of the biggest complaints about him that'd you'd read by alums and big uclA fans was that there wasn't enough star power 5 star talent at uclA. He'll I even made that argument. Early in his career Ben was all about good fit guys who weren't always the most sought out recruits but after those runs where they just couldn't win it all--everyone was saying he needed the big 5 stars and he got them--but at a cost.

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

>But b) the biggest irony in all this is after Ben lost the
>second time to Florida--one of the biggest complaints about
>him that'd you'd read by alums and big uclA fans was that
>there wasn't enough star power 5 star talent at uclA. He'll I
>even made that argument. Early in his career Ben was all about
>good fit guys who weren't always the most sought out recruits
>but after those runs where they just couldn't win it
>all--everyone was saying he needed the big 5 stars and he got
>them--but at a cost.

The part that really didn't work out with that was
a) He had no idea how to open up his system to accommodate stars - we still basically played the same style no matter who he recruited. This was basically the only year we opened it up and that was more by necessity than choice
b) He had no idea how to manage egos, else so many guys wouldn't have transferred out
c) You can't build a team on just stars - just cause you can get some 5 stars doesn't mean you need Josh Smith and the Wear twins as your bigs (ugh)

Fuck these guys.

I'm willing to bet money Howland just didn't want to pay these
niggas

That article is wild suspect

Nah

Not buying it
----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

***
when I come around, they frown
then wanna dap me down
but when I leave?

Honestly doesn't mean all that much to me. And definitely a lot less than it does to sports writers/hacks who think it means he's absolutely entrenched. UCLA is still a top job, call me crazy but I absolutely expect him to accept an offer if the money's right, which I expect it will be

Not sure if that is just code for Stevens being too
white bread

Meanwhile, Shaka look like every LA nigga I know

----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

They could send over John wooden's son, or whoever, to tell him white bread dudes can be happy in LA too

UCLA guys have to be comfortable not running the
show in terms of personality

This is why I'm not buying Pitino

He's too much of a dictator/mob boss

He needs an empire he can control

----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

I read he has an out-clause. Why would he have one at KU? Bigger dreams? He is probably 1c. on their wish list behind Donovan and Pitino. Then it's onto the younger guys.

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Don't know much about him except he gives me a sleazy car salesman feel. He can clearly recruit But can he coach?

>Don't know much about him except he gives me a sleazy car
>salesman feel. He can clearly recruit But can he coach?



----------------------------



O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"




"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."

(C)Keith Murray, "

Memphis plays uptempo ball, while still playing pretty good D, that sorta style will sell well to So Cal kids and fans used to the Showtime and Lob City style.

Plus he's young, pretty photogenic (don't discount this in LA), and what separates him from Smart and Stevens a bit is he coached in the Pac-10 and knows the area and how to recruit it.

The things he'd have to overcome is his Arizona ties (not a deal breaker) and the fact he hasn't made a deep tourney run, which would probably be the hardest sell. Of course, our fans thought Rick Neuheisel would be a great football coach and that Jim Mora would be a terrible one, so our fans are idiots anyway.

but i think it'd work. because he's got everything else you'd want in a coach.

<--- Big Baller World Order

thatd be a major fail for UCLA--esp since hes an arizona guy and looks like he joined the hair club for men.

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

My movies: http://russellhainline.com
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he's a Beyonce you keep on staff to relate to teenagers

It's weird because he's the perfect "get recruits" assistant. He should be the one with Drake and Ross in the cell phone, wining and dining recruits while a guy like Jaime Dixon or Howland (along with developmental assistants) coaches up the players. Memphis was so desperate when Cal left that they skipped mad steps with him. That team is abhorrent as it relates to strategy.

----------------------------

Young, restless, talk so reckless

You ain't gotta be a good coach or even be EyeTalian

he's actually a really good coach with nothign but minor violations coming out of all that stuff at mizzou

his father was a big time Texas AAU coach and Pastner has been in that game since he was a kid, he was basically recruiting when he was a walk on at Zona.

He came on to get some chops on the bench like Rod does in Kentucky. I wouldn't be surprised to see some of his old-head nba friends' kids start popping up on memphis' radar but he doesnt have the roots in AAU that Pastner has. He's a name

----------------------------

Young, restless, talk so reckless

At only 35 with only a decade of coaching at the collegiate level, assistant or otherwise, he can improve his Xs and Os. But he brings so much to the table for a program like UCLA:

1. A terrific recruiter in Memphis-- if he can get the athletes he does in Memphis, think about what he could do at UCLA.
2. An uptempo flashy style-- great for LA, great for UCLA, great to attract the type of talent UCLA wants.
3. A hard worker at practice, a guy who doesn't really take games off, a chemistry builder. It would've been very easy in the post-Cal era for Memphis to fall off, and although it doesn't have a NCAA title run under its belt, four years in and it's already back to 30 win seasons and relative NCAA tourney success. The team simply keeps improving.
4. As an Arizona player/assistant, he's already got Pac-10 connections, recruiting-wise and otherwise.

Obviously Smart or Stevens would be higher on the list, that goes without saying. They don't have the West Coast connection immediately that Pastner would have, but you bring in assistants around them to help recruit and you're rolling. But if those two are content to stay put, Pastner is a compelling choice imo. If UCLA passes on him, he'd be dynamite for USC.

My movies: http://russellhainline.com
My movie reviews: https://letterboxd.com/RussellHFilm/
My beer TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thebeertravelguide

also, I'm not sure he should go to UCLA yet. While he's a promising coach, his teams don't play smart (at least, the times I've watched). I can't imagine trying to learn that aspect of coaching (teaching basketball IQ) while also under the type of spotlight UCLA is under. That seems, to me at least, destined for failure. There's a reason he's yet to win a single game against a ranked opponent in four years as a head coach, even with some impressive recruits and talent on his roster.


-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

And I think scheduling has a lot to do with the lack of wins against ranked teams. He's obviously gonna look like a shitty coach when the only ranked teams he ever faces are coached by Pitino, Izzo, JTIII (regular season), Tubby (early regular season), and Self. I bet with California recruits and strong assistants to grow together with (again, only been coaching in any capacity for a decade), he can continue to improve.

Over half the battle at a school that attracts big time recruits is the recruiting-- it's like Ohio State. Matta's flaws as a mid-game guy are pretty effectively covered up by his personnel, cuz OSU brings em in. Shit, Howland went from shit sandwich to winning the PAC-10 because he had top drawer recruits this year. Pastner certainly could excel in the California/West Coast recruiting game.

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I don't think he improves. He's a decade deep. His two influences are Lute (terrible x and o guy) and Cal (one system, skill development, not an in-game adjustment type.)

The team has improved because Joe Jackson has gotten better. Every summer he's been either on the USA team or deep at the skills camps working on his game. That's Stoudamire's influence. The big men on that team still have no clue and Adonis Thomas is a dumpster fire. If Pastner had improved at all..he'd have had DJ Stephens finding at least two offensive things that he can do well. Maybe he's so bad that he couldn't develop any jumper, but in that case you have him consistently running zipper cuts and such and you teach him how to catch/1-dribble/finish.

He's not coaching against ANYONE worth a damn who runs out 60% of his talent level. Once he hits the Pac 12 and has to schedule a few real non-conf games for TV? Enjoy getting embarrassed by your one marquee opponent, finishing top 3 in the conference and winning every third conference tourney. If that was the existence UCLA wanted then they would have kept Ben. The only difference would be aesthetically.

----------------------------

Young, restless, talk so reckless

and hire an old hear who is excellent at what he lacks as a consultant. Lavin had Keady and that team played smart that year and they made good adjustments.

Pastner's a good dude who is a phenomenal recruiter and

problem is, UCLA doesn't need a phenomenal recruiter (if Ben Howland can get a class like this recent one...) they need a good coach who doesn't suck at recruiting. Honestly, they need the opposite of Pastner, imo. They need a Howland who isn't a huge asshole.

Jamie Dixon is, kinda, ideal in that way. Though he's got a history of NCAA flameouts that makes JT3 look like a brilliant tournament coach, but Dixon isn't happy about going to the ACC, his recruiting is going to suffer because of the move (his base is NYC), and Pitt doesn't yet have that big football money.

I also honestly don't think Jay Wright is as bad an option as people think. He recruits his area well, it'd translate well to SoCal, he plays a fast, guard oriented offense and he quietly really improved his X and O coaching recently with some changes in his staff.

I dont know the up and coming assistants, but that seems smart. Just spit-ballin: what about trying to poach Altman? He's only in his third year at Oregon, so that might be tough to sell and Phil will counter any offer, but he's got the west coast connections and isn't really tied to Oregon as an alum or anything.

-----------
It's only funny till someone gets mad. Then it's hilarious.

I like Pastner, a lot of people wanted him out of town, but he constantly gets good recruits here. Is he a good x's and o's coach? Nope, but he's a lot better than he was when he got the job. He's basically learning on the job right now and I think he's doing damn good and I'm glad he re-upped. He's running a program that has no off the court problems and the players graduate (that's what about 60% of the contingent here really want too). He don't have the greasy car salesman thing going either, lol. He's a genuinely good dude and he'll chat you up at anytime. I saw him coming out of a restaurant right before his first year of coaching and I just told him "good luck on the job" and we proceeded to talk about Memphis basketball for like 15 mins out in the parking lot, I had to leave, lol. The only way I'd be nervous for him leaving is if the Arizona job came open, but Miller's doing a damn good job over there.

----------------------------------
www.maxptah.com
"you gotta be real white to hate on a nxgga for eating." (c) okp infin8

Lol at you having to leave after 15 minutes, like "hey i gotta go, I thought you would just say what's up and keep it moving"

lol, that's what I was expecting too, but after he asked what high school did I go to and if I played ball there, he asked if I had played against Pierre Niles and/or Tarik Black (both of whom ended up there). My gf saw us out there talking and thought that it was a old high school friend I was talking too cause we're around the same age lol.

----------------------------------
www.maxptah.com
"you gotta be real white to hate on a nxgga for eating." (c) okp infin8

if he got the job he would've hoarded talent but UCLA better off getting somebody that can recruit and coach(i.e. Sean Miller), those Memphis teams play like they just met each other as they walked in the arena.

>, those Memphis teams play like they just met each
>other as they walked in the arena.

<---https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DL9AVTQ

Brad Stevens
Sean Miller
John Groce
and soon Jeff Boals will be the HC at a major program soon too


______________________
The percentage who don't understand
is higher than the percentage who do
Check yourself, what percentage is you

either that or this is for leverage.

@SIPeteThamel
Sorry, UCLA. VCU is working on an contract extension to keep Shaka Smart. Should have an agreement soon.
https://twitter.com/SIPeteThamel/status/316629924591054849

______________________
The percentage who don't understand
is higher than the percentage who do
Check yourself, what percentage is you

I'd have bounced.

crazy, did they watch this past season or his Bama teams?

http://zagsblog.com/articles/source-ucla-boosters-want-mark-gottfried/#more-92239

With Shaka Smart and Brad Stevens apparently out of the mix at UCLA, a source with direct knowledge of the situation told SNY.tv that the school’s boosters support the hiring of N.C. State head coach Mark Gottfried.

“Mark said he wants it and the boosters want Mark Gottfried,” the source told SNY.tv. “He’s got the support of the boosters.”

Smart is reportedly negotiating an extension at VCU, according to SI.com, while Stevens is said to want to avoid the limelight associated with Los Angeles.

“Shaka and Brad Stevens were their top choices,” the source said. “Neither of them wants it.”

Gottfried has deep ties to UCLA, having served as an assistant there for eight years, including the 1994-95 national championship season under Jim Harrick.

Still, Gottfried has a $3.75 million buyout in his contract so it would be costly for the Bruins, according to the Charlotte Observer. His current contract runs through the 2017-18 season.

Under Gottfried, N.C. State has won 48 games in two seasons, yet they lost to Temple in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

As we reported here earlier today, N.C. State will lose four players next year, including juniors C.J. Leslie and Lorenzo Brown to the NBA Draft.

“I can see why he probably wants to get out of there,” the source said of Gottfried.

UCLA AD Dan Guerrero has said he wants to hire “someone who plays a fun brand of basketball.

“We don’t want to bring in a coach who averages 50 points per game,” he told the L.A. Times.

As the Observer pointed out, Gottfried’s Wolfpack averaged 77.4 points per game this season, 10th-best in the nation.

The source also said that UCLA is looking to retain assistant Korey McCray, who was instrumental in recruiting current freshmen Tony Parker and Jordan Adams and is “holding everything together.”

“If Korey McCray is doing a good job, I think that he would be a good hire for anybody,” Virgil Parker, Tony’s father, told SNY.tv .

Virgil added that they haven’t heard from Guerrero and have made no plans as of yet.

“I haven’t really talked to anybody from UCLA,” he said. “I’m waiting to see what Tony wants to do. He’s going to be home today (Tuesday) and that’s going to give us a chance to talk about it.”

While Shabazz Muhammad is expected to turn pro and Larry Drew II will graduate, the new coach could have a solid core with David and Travis Wear, Norman Powell and rising sophomores Kyle Anderson, Parker and Adams.

“As of right now, he just wants to see who they’re bringing in,” Virgil Parker said, adding that this was a “hard year” for his son, who averaged only 6.3 minutes and 2.4 points per game.

Virgil Parker said he wanted a coach who emphasized work in the weight room, and pointed to Kansas and Miami as examples of schools that did.

“Some coaches don’t take that as important,” he said. “The weight room is not as important as others. From that aspect I would like to see somebody take on a change into that part of the game.”

Meantime, UCLA has commits from shooting guards Zach LaVine and Allerik Freeman and small forward Noah Allen and is involved with Philly point guard Rysheed Jordan, who is also considering St. John’s and Temple and will announce April 15.

The 6-4 Freeman, whose Findlay Prep team is preparing for next week’s ESPN NHSI, told SNY.tv that McCray “broke the news to me but I’m still committed.”

He added: “I haven’t heard the candidates, but I just want to win.”

Some UCLA boosters have been pushing Gottfried for months. This has been going on since before November. But it's a small minority.

Stevens is much further ahead on the target list, making that article worthless.

There are thousands and thousands of boosters, to paint a picture of them all under the same umbrella is laughable.

official scout reps debunking it

Stevens is legitimately interested. Any sources who are scoffing at that don't have real insight into the situation.

i would think stevens has to be interested

that's a huge opp

and a big paycheck
it's not like he was offered a job at Pitt

or Syracuse

UCLA is high level

---
"though time has passed, im still the future" (c) black thought

Hopefully all this is wrapped up by then

------------------------------------
2019 CABG Survivor

2016 OK Survivor Champion

be about it or be without it

RIP GOATs

I wouldn't be totally against it..

I just want us to explore all of the main options before going that route...

I'm not so sure from an on the court standpoint is it a huge improvement over Howland..or really an improvement at all..

I know he's got ties to UCLA and I'm partial towards the guys on that 95 staff..... including Lo Romar...

one upside to Gotfried coming in may be bringing Cam Dollar in as an assistant also..

but we'll see..

I have a felling that a larger profile candidate is going to emerge that may be a better option than Gottfried..but again we'll see...

Bruins are waiting until Florida and Louisville are done as Donovan and Pittino have expressed an interest to at least listen to what UCLA has to offer..

if that's those are the top 3 choices we'll be straight..

after thinking more about Gottfried I really don't want the guy...had forgotten about those affair stories out of Alabama... we don't need that shit. yeah I know bout Pittino trickin but at least he trickin and winnin...lol.

And not holding back anything in hopes of Donovan or Pitino

Stevens being interested has been a pleasant surprise. Going in he was my top choice but didn't see it as realistic

<--- Big Baller World Order

---------------------------------
<--The drought is over

"have fun reveling in your pettiness tho" (C) Dula summing up 98% of OKS

"I didnt finish a damn thing...matter of fact I jerked off after she left."
-Kobe speaking to investigators

L D E A

http://espn.go.com/chicago/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/9103538/northwestern-wildcats-duke-blue-devils-chris-collins-deal-source-says


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ऒ श्र्

K probably has another decade, plenty of time for one of the other Dukies to get on a hot streak and seize the lead.

Though since Wojo is in-house and so goddamn similar in K to demeanor, he'll be among the front-runners, no doubt.

Great move for Collins though. Geographically he couldn't have found a better place, and since expectations are so low (make the tourney!), he's in a good position to find success.

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That little floor-slapping coach's boy is gettin' that gig.

I realize it's closer to 6-8, but he will coach as long as he is physically able in order to ensure no one can catch that win record. He'll pass 1000, likely next year, and he'll probably go 100 past that at least.

To sniff 1100, at 30 wins a year, it'd take:
Roy by 75+
Pitino by 75+
Beilein by 74+ (if you include Division II)
Cal by 73+
Self by 70+ <-- the real threat
Stevens by 67+ (we'll keep an eye on where/if he goes, 30 per year ain't happening at Butler)
Smart by 68+ (same as Stevens)
Buzz Williams by 72+ (but 30 per year ain't happening at Marquette)

His competitive edge will push him forward til his hip won't let him.

My movies: http://russellhainline.com
My movie reviews: https://letterboxd.com/RussellHFilm/
My beer TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thebeertravelguide

>I realize it's closer to 6-8

particulars are needing to be worked out regarding assistants and the like..

My guess is that Monday Brad Stevens will be named UCLA's next coach..

i'm about 80/20 on that right now.

...you're probably right because there is nothing coaches love more than doing the exact opposite of what they say


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ऒ श्र्

Not only because I like Stevens (who doesn't) but because I really want to see how he translates to a more prestigious school and the resources that come with that. He definitely deserves the chance and no one knew if he was willing to come out of his comfort zone at Butler but it looks like he's leaning toward ambition.

---------------------------------
<--The drought is over

"have fun reveling in your pettiness tho" (C) Dula summing up 98% of OKS

"I didnt finish a damn thing...matter of fact I jerked off after she left."
-Kobe speaking to investigators

L D E A