🏀 Alabama Announces Change in Leadership of Men's Basketball Program

[riz]

Really thought he was the guy when he was hired. But it has been the exact same thing every year. I wish him the best and hope for the best for us, as well.

 

[TheChief]

I'm so glad we don't have Pearl. He's a liar and a cheat. We might as well have kept Gottfried. He's been blackballed twice - once by the coaching profession when he recorded phone calls with high school recruits to take down Illinois, and then again by the NCAA with a three year show cause. There are coaches who can win who don't have baggage. We just need to get one. Let aubrun have this character case, along with his Vol wife.

RTR,

Tim

Tim, I heard an interview with Pearl before the LSU game, and I was taken aback by his contrition and humility. His actions were despicable, and they were many and now well documented. However, do you think a man can change? Do people deserve a second chance?

I'll go a step further. Did we not give a certain football coach a second chance for some of the type of transgressions? So far it seems as though upon interview and inspection, that football coach has proven to be a changed man in many respects.

I dare say this Tide team would be dancing right now if the AD had done what he should have and then made an offer to Pearl.

 

[TerryP]

Do people deserve a second chance?

He got his at UT.

What he pulled there pales in comparison to the crap he pulled at the directional Illinois school.

 

[planomateo]

Tim, I heard an interview with Pearl before the LSU game, and I was taken aback by his contrition and humility. His actions were despicable, and they were many and now well documented. However, do you think a man can change? Do people deserve a second chance?

He recruits for a living...I would suspect he's very good at making you believe what he wants you to.

 

[TheChief]

He recruits for a living...I would suspect he's very good at making you believe what he wants you to.

Maybe so, Plano. I've been deceived plenty of times. We could very well say the same thing about Kiffen though.

If it's true a leopard doesn't change his spots, we'll see in time I suppose. Maybe that should have been a cheetah, you know, because...

 

[TerryP]

We could very well say the same thing about Kiffen though.

Geez...learn to spell the guys name! :slap8:

 

[It Takes Eleven]

Tim, I heard an interview with Pearl before the LSU game, and I was taken aback by his contrition and humility. His actions were despicable, and they were many and now well documented. However, do you think a man can change? Do people deserve a second chance?

I'll go a step further. Did we not give a certain football coach a second chance for some of the type of transgressions? So far it seems as though upon interview and inspection, that football coach has proven to be a changed man in many respects.

I dare say this Tide team would be dancing right now if the AD had done what he should have and then made an offer to Pearl.

Pearl is a slick talker, and a chameleon to get his message across. If you're talking about infidelity, we gave DuBose a second chance (a mistake in my book since it involved a subordinate), but did not for Gottfried, Price or, for that matter, Ray Perkins.

Although I mentioned his Vol wife, I didn't include him dumping his wife and four kids for a local Vol fan among his transgressions. I'm talking about the other stuff.

 

[bama alum]

A good read from rollbamaroll. I think Brad Stevens is a pipe dream, but Archie Miller seems like a good target.

http://www.rollbamaroll.com/2015/3/16/8219987/the-next-alabama-crimson-tide-basketball-coach-2015

The Next Alabama Crimson Tide Basketball Coach
By CB969

@CB969onRBR on Mar 16, 2015, 6:59a 83

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I hate to say "I told you so..."

Wait a minute. No, I don't. Way back when Anthony Grant was hired in 2009, I was one of the few on the community boards to vocally disagree with the hiring of Grant. And the Crimson Tide interwebz community ripped into me. Over the years, I have spoken out against him on this platform and I have been criticized for it. To me, Grant was hired based on one game.

"He beat Duke!" you cried. Yes, his VCU team beat a really bad overrated Duke team – probably one of Coach K's worst teams.

"Florida wanted to hire him!" you bellowed. Actually, they were rumored to be interested in interviewing him. I am not sure why that qualifies him.

"Wait until he gets rid of Gottfried's players and gets his horses in there," He did and nothing changed.

"Alright, smarty. What coach would you rather have hired?" you cross-examined. My answer in spring of 2009 was the guy who was making noise with an unheralded Butler team. That next season, Brad Stevens led the Bulldogs to the NCAA Championship Game while the Tide did not even make the NIT. Butler lost to Duke that year and returned to the Championship Game again the next season losing to UConn (side note: Butler beat Florida in the Elite 8 that year).

Now six years later, he is on track to another losing season with the Celtics and likely another missed playoff. The problem is that he is in the middle of a six-year $22 million contract and I don't think the Celtics are ready to give up on him just yet. But Stevens needs to be in college ball. So, instead of putting up another fraternity house or a billion dollar complex for the Bama rowing team, break open the piggy bank and go after this guy! Stevens is a big name that will attract recruits and is a proven winner. Bama may not be able to afford him but they should at least try.

STEVENS AT BUTLER

Season Overall Conference Standing Postseason
2007–08 30–4 16–2 1st NCAA Second Round
2008–09 26–6 15–3 1st NCAA First Round
2009–10 33–5 18–0 1st NCAA Runner-up
2010–11 28–10 13–5 T–1st NCAA Runner-up
2011–12 22–15 11–7 T–3rd CBI Semifinals
2012–13 27–9 11–5 T–3rd NCAA Third Round
Total: 166–49 (.772) 84–22 (.792)


STEVENS AT BOSTON

Year W L W–L% Finish Result
2013–14 25 57 0.305 4th in Atlantic Missed Playoffs
2014–15 29 36 0.438 - -




GREGG MARSHALL
If you have followed Crimson Tide basketball over the past several seasons, you should be familiar with Wichita State coach Gregg Marshall. Alabama lost to the Shockers in the NIT championship game in 2011. The Tide got revenge the next season in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off but Wichita won the next two meetings last season and this season.

Marshall has lifted a team from absolute obscurity to a national power. If you look at his record at Wichita, you can see how he has progressively improved the program over the years and kept them relevant.

MARSHALL AT WICHITA STATE

2007–08 11–20 4–14 9th -
2008–09 17–17 8–10 T–5th CBI Second Round
2009–10 25–10 12–6 2nd NIT First Round
2010–11 29–8 14–4 2nd NIT Champions
2011–12 27–6 16–2 1st NCAA Second Round
2012–13 30–9 12–6 2nd NCAA Final Four
2013–14 35–1 18–0 1st NCAA Third Round
2014–15 28–4 17–1 1st NCAA #7 seed
Total
202–75 (.729) 101–43 (.701)
I don't think Tide fans are asking for national championships, but if he could duplicate this kind of success at Bama, they would be pleased.

Marshall recently turned 52. He hails from South Carolina and Virginia, playing his college ball at Randolph–Macon in Ashland, Virginia.

ARCHIE MILLER
Dayton coach Archie Miller is 36 years old and has served as an assistant at Western Kentucky (Darrin Horn), NC State (Herb Sendek), Arizona State (Herb Sendek), Ohio State (Thad Matta), and Arizona (brother Sean Miller). His Flyers are 2-0 versus Anthony Grant's Crimson Tide teams. His squads are no stranger to the SEC and other major programs:

2011–12: defeated ALABAMA, Wake Forest, Minnesota, Temple, Xavier.
2012–13: defeated ALABAMA, Auburn, UAB, Boston College, Xavier.
2013–14 defeated Georgia Tech, Gonzaga, Ole Miss. NCAA tourney: defeated Ohio State, Syracuse, Stanford, then lost to #1 seed Florida.
2014–15: defeated Texas A&M, Boston College, Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, VCU (split).

MILLER AT DAYTON

Season Overall Conference Standing Postseason
2011–12 20–13 9–7 5th NIT First Round
2012–13 17–14 7–9 11th -
2013–14 26–11 10–6 T–5th NCAA Elite Eight
2014–15 25-8 13-5 2nd
NCAA 11 seed
Miller played point guard for NC State from 1998–2002. He is from Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania - hometown of one Joe Namath.

...

Before you decide that these choices are unwinnable pursuits, consider where the Bama football program was in 2007 and how they fixed it. In addition, look at the inspiring hire that SMU made getting Larry Brown. That was an AD thinking big. You never know until you ask.

OTHERS

• Jamie Dixon, Pittsburgh (age 49) 305-105 in 12th season, 2 sweet 16s, 10 NCAAs in 11, never had less than 20-win season. Annual salary $2,133,120.
• Scott Drew, Baylor (age 44) one Sweet 16, two Elite 8, NIT Champions. Annual salary $1,720,333.

$$$
Some Tide fans may think that the above possibilities are pipe dreams. But consider the cash that the University of Alabama can throw at a coach that places like Wichita and Dayton cannot match. The men's basketball program posted an $8.2 million surplus for 2014. And this was with waning attendance and one of the nation's top 30 paid coaches. Grant's salary was close to $2 million per year. The Athletics Department as a whole had a $33 million operating surplus.

BILL BATTLE
This is the first major decision that Athletic Director Battle has been faced with in his young tenure at the Capstone. He hired Dana Duckworth as the gymnastics coach (which seemed like a no-brainer) and also Kristy Curry as the women's hoops coach (the jury is still out on that iffy hire). At age 73, he will likely be retiring soon. The question remains as to whether he wants to make the big splash hire or just a stop gap and let the next AD worry about it.

STOP GAP
I would be quite disappointed if Battle stuck this program with a "safe" hire. Once upon a time, Steve Prohm was a student assistant coach and student manager for the Crimson Tide. He now coaches Murray State. His teams have put up a lot of wins but have made only one NCAA appearance (2012) in four seasons. Most of this can be explained by the weak schedules they play. This season, the Racers were 27-4 and did not make the field due to the soft schedule (RPI Rank: 62; SOS Rank: 233). Prohm's credentials are less than Anthony Grant's were back in 2009. This hire would be a big mistake.

PROHM AT MURRAY STATE



Season Overall Conference Standing Postseason
2011–12 31–2 15–1 1st NCAA Round of 32
2012–13 21–10 10–6 1st (West) -
2013–14 23–11 13–3 1st (West) CIT Champions
2014–15 27–4 16–0 1st (West) NIT #3 seed

 

[TheChief]

Geez...learn to spell the guys name! :slap8:

Typo... Thanks for catching it.:clap:

 

[UAgrad93]

Brad Stevens could be another Nick Saban. He jumps from the college ranks to the pros and may realize that college is his calling. It wouldn't hurt to place a call.
Marshall and Miller are attainable as well. The biggest question is, ARE THEY WILLING TO COME OUT OF THEIR COMFORT ZONE AND MAKE THE MOVE TO THE POWER 5?

 

[UAgrad93]

Our recruiting class is decent, but their are no game changers in there. There was no reason to expect that 2015-2016 would be drastically different from the 2014-2015 season.

I just got a text stating that Dazon Ingram from Theodore High has decommitted. Like you said, decent but not overwhelming. 3* SG 6'5 180.

 

[riz]

Geez...learn to spell the guys name! :slap8:

LAIN KIFKINS

 

[Bamabww]

per Tommy Deas, Tidesports.com

In reply to we need to make a "Saban like hire"

The situation is completely different than it was when Saban was hired:

1) It's not football -- the Alabama football job was one any great coach could look at and see they could have massive success because of the history.

2) You have an athletics director who won't be there for the new coach's first contract term; you have a lame-duck president who is stepping down; you have a chancellor, Dr. Witt, who will be 75 this fall; and you have key members of the Board of Trustees rotating off the board soon.

So if you're that "Nick Saban-level" basketball coach, would you leave a position at a school where you can win (you wouldn't be a Saban-level hire if you aren't winning really big every year), where you have institutional support (and don't have to worry about who's going to be your boss and his boss and his bosses in 2 years), where you know the people you're dealing with -- even if you're comfortable with Bill Battle and Judy Bonner and Dr. Witt and the BoT ... they aren't going to be there in a couple of years.

There's also the actual nuts-and-bolts process of a coaching search. You can sabotage yourself if you don't handle it right:

1) Let's say UA decides to go after Calipari or Pitino or Izzo or some other truly proven, top-of the-game coach at that level, or a guy completely entrenched at his school like WIchita State's situation or Iowa State's.

2) OK, you identify that candidate. Now you're going to have to wait until his season is done to talk to him. If he makes a deep run, other really good candidates are probably going to be snatched up before you're done with your target guy.

3) You can't target two or three of these type guys -- it's one at a time, you can't send offer sheets out to all of them and see who bites ... because in the coaching fraternity everyone knows who's being courted by who, who has an offer from who, and the media is almost certain to pick up on it. So you can't go after one guy at that level and expect that another guy at that level is going to listen when everyone knows he's not even your No. 1 choice. Not going to happen. So you get one shot at a guy like that, and if you miss what's left on the table when the other schools were going after really good guys who were actually on the market at the time?

You're playing some high-stakes poker there, and you might not want to be one sitting at the table while other people are raking in all the chips.

I'm not saying Alabama can't go after some pie-in-the-sky coach, but there are risks that go with the longshot reward.

https://alabama.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=427&tid=211250779&mid=211250779&sid=885&style=2

 

[psychojoe]

I heard Greg Marshall's name floated around today on some of the talk shows, with the idea that we might pry him loose by offering a Pitoio/Calipari scale salary. I don't see Marshall coming, and even if a 4 million salary would get his interest, I can't see us U of A offering 4 million. Much as it would please me if we did so, the U of A does not have the commitment to basketball where the expectation is a deep tournament run every year, with final four appearances and maybe even an NC. We would be very content to get back to the Wimp level, dancing every year nd bowing out at the sweet 16 level. There would probably be some grousing about not amking it past the sweet 16, but mostly contentment at reaching that level.

 

[TerryP]

Typo... Thanks for catching it.:clap:

:rolf: Touche'

 

[TerryP]

LAIN KIFKINS

You've got an excuse...just a dumbass. :bird:

 

[TerryP]

I don't see Marshall coming, and even if a 4 million salary would get his interest, I can't see us U of A offering 4 million.

As I recall reading, WSU bumped his pay two years ago...he's making around 1.7 per now with five or six years left on his contract (which rolls over, yearly.)

Assuming Bama throws an offer of 2.5. I can see WSU matching that. When you consider what he's built, the rock star status he's enjoying there, I'm not sure anything less than 3 per would even attract his attention.

 

[UAgrad93]

As I recall reading, WSU bumped his pay two years ago...he's making around 1.7 per now with five or six years left on his contract (which rolls over, yearly.)

Assuming Bama throws an offer of 2.5. I can see WSU matching that. When you consider what he's built, the rock star status he's enjoying there, I'm not sure anything less than 3 per would even attract his attention.

This is what makes basketball coaches so different from football coaches. Basketball coaches seem to be a lot more of the comfort variety and don't pursue $ as much or as often as football coaches. It seems as though they don't have to have their ego stroked as much to keep them happy.

 

[TerryP]

This is what makes basketball coaches so different from football coaches. Basketball coaches seem to be a lot more of the comfort variety and don't pursue $ as much or as often as football coaches. It seems as though they don't have to have their ego stroked as much to keep them happy.

Unless your initials are MG. :eyeroll:

One good example of that is Bobby Cremins taking the College of Charleston job. He had offers in those six or seven years he was "retired," and came out of retirement at a school that doesn't really have a tenth of the basketball tradition a school like Georgia Tech carried.

It certainly wasn't money that brought him back. He's sitting pretty comfortable with his property(s) on Kiawah Island.

 

[TerryP]

Just as a fwiw...

I was told Sunday that an announcement about Grant returning almost happened; twice. But, it was postponed twice at Grant's request. I thought the story was interesting. As it ends up, I see the story has legs as it's being reported by Rodney over on TI as well.

Adding one thought...I don't believe it was because he was looking at another job.