📡 Hines Column: Thoughts on Alabama’s reported opening and its impact on Steve Prohm and Iowa State - Ames Tribune

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TULSA, Okla. -- What always seemed inevitable has now come to pass.

The Alabama job is reportedly opening, and Iowa State coach Steve Prohm, a Crimson Tide alum and former team manager, is among those being discussed as a potential frontrunner candidate to replace Avery Johnson.

Given Prohm’s success with the Cyclones and his ties to both Alabama specifically and the South generally, Alabama would be silly to not have him on its shortlist. The Tide took a big swing when it hired Johnson, a former NBA champion as a player and later the league’s coach of the year with the Dallas Mavericks. He was a big name with a strong resume, but had no college coaching career and had been out of coaching altogether for three years when the Tide hired him in 2015.

Alabama is reportedly in discussions to buy out his contract and move on from a four-year tenure that produced one NCAA tournament appearance.

Prohm would be a more traditional choice given his diploma from the university, long coaching career and the success he’s had in eight years as a head coach, both at Murray State and ISU. Given all that, it’s long been assumed that if Alabama ever had a vacancy, that was a job that would invariably at least try to gauge Prohm’s interest.

If there’s reciprocal interest remains to be seen.

Prohm rebuffed advances from LSU in 2017 when its job opened, and by all accounts he’s happy in Ames. ISU athletic director Jamie Pollard awarded him with a new contract in 2017 that still has three years and $6.3 million remaining on it after this season. His buyout calls for him to pay half that if he were to leave for another head coaching position.

Prohm has a good thing going with ISU with two conference tournament championships and three NCAA tournament appearances under his belt, as well as success on the recruiting trail which has netted the Cyclones two high-profile recruits in Lindell Wigginton and Talen Horton-Tucker as well as Tyrese Haliburton, who went from three-star recruit to NBA draft prospect this season. The staff is also high on its other recruits, both in the 2018 and 2019 classes.

Still, one’s alma mater almost always has some sort of gravitational pull. Prohm even has two other former Alabama coaches, David Hobbs (head coach 1992-98) and James Kane (video coordinator 2009-11), working for him now. The ties to Tuscaloosa are obvious, even if they ultimately prove not to be binding for either side.

Of course, the other situation looming over any discussion about Prohm and another job is Fred Hoiberg.

The former ISU star and coach remains out of a job after being fired during his fourth year as the Chicago Bulls’ head coach. He’s reportedly the frontrunner for a Nebraska job that continues not to be open as the Huskers advanced in the NIT with coach Tim Miles still employed.

Hoiberg being on the market and ISU’s current coach being linked to another job creates an interesting situation, to say the least.

Not to mention the Cyclones still haven’t even played in the seventh NCAA tournament they’ve qualified for in the last eight years. If the Cyclones get past Ohio State on Friday (approx. 8:50 p.m.; TBS) their season will not only remain alive but hold tons of potential heading into a Sunday game with a Sweet 16 at stake.

The timing of coaching changes is almost never perfect, and given everything ISU has to play for and the Hoiberg/Nebraska context, this would qualify as not ideal. That’s the way it works, though, in the big-money and high-interest world of Division I men’s basketball coaching.

 

[TerryP]

A couple of thoughts on Prohm.

I understand his buyout is at 3.5MM. With Avery's severance package, is that a stumbling point for the UA administration.

I wonder if he didn't have a past relationship with Alabama if he'd even be mentioned in this search.

 

[TUSKtimes]

A couple of thoughts on Prohm.

I understand his buyout is at 3.5MM. With Avery's severance package, is that a stumbling point for the UA administration.

I wonder if he didn't have a past relationship with Alabama if he'd even be mentioned in this search.

Byrnes will choose who he chooses but one guy who happens to have ties to Bama doesn't make much of a list. Frankly, being one and done last night vs Ohio State didn't make much of a ripple for me.

The Buffalo coach, Nat Oats, has done a great job with that program. This is the second year in a row he has made the dance and his team seems very worthy of the high seed the committee gave them. I like their style of play personally. There's one.

If Byrnes will just return my calls I have other notes I would be happy to share with him.

 

[TerryP]

Byrnes will choose who he chooses but one guy who happens to have ties to Bama doesn't make much of a list

"The List." There's something we'll never know other than what's speculated.

It's my belief this will work out along the same lines as it did with the baseball hire. Bohannon's name wasn't completely out of left field. Those that followed baseball and recruiting knew of him. But, when it came to being announced he was Bama's next coach that was in left field...bit of a short pop up, but never-the-less, a bit of a shock and unknown to a lot of Bama fans.

Frankly, being one and done last night vs Ohio State didn't make much of a ripple for me.

I noticed comments around the 'net last night about fundamentals and scoring. Neither were meant as compliments.

The Buffalo coach, Nat Oats, has done a great job with that program. This is the second year in a row he has made the dance and his team seems very worthy of the high seed the committee gave them. I like their style of play personally. There's one.

You're not the first to suggest Oats. You're also not alone by pointing to the job he has at Buffalo. I've seen mentioned how it's not an easy place to win or recruit. I don't know enough about that area to speculate. It's not like NY is lacking basketball talent.

I haven't seen them play this season. I did watch them play one game last season in the tourney against Kentucky. Avery's team played the Cats better, in Rupp, in the regular season but there's very little difference in how the two coaches did against UK in the post season.

(It's the MAC...so you feel comfortable calling them a mid-major? It's akin to Winthrop when Marshall was snagged a few years ago, right? Not quite at that level, yet.

 

[TUSKtimes]

You're not the first to suggest Oats. You're also not alone by pointing to the job he has at Buffalo. I've seen mentioned how it's not an easy place to win or recruit. I don't know enough about that area to speculate. It's not like NY is lacking basketball talent.

I haven't seen them play this season. I did watch them play one game last season in the tourney against Kentucky. Avery's team played the Cats better, in Rupp, in the regular season but there's very little difference in how the two coaches did against UK in the post season.

(It's the MAC...so you feel comfortable calling them a mid-major? It's akin to Winthrop when Marshall was snagged a few years ago, right? Not quite at that level, yet.

Byrnes job is to get it right. Due diligence is whatever makes that possible. Wimp Sanderson came off the staff and that was as much a risk as David Hobbs. I don't think Byrnes list will come with any guarantees. He just needs to make a change and if that doesn't work you make another change until you get it right. That's his job.

The mid-major guys are simply the next coaches up to the big league. The tourney is the place to show your stuff. The biggest mistake with our last hire is the willingness we had to pay for an unproven college coach. Throwing money at an idea is a lot more expensive and painful than paying for results. Byrnes gets a chance to show he gets that too.