lillurk

I believe he posted it in good faith but might not have been following journalistic best practices (two or more sources). And/or his source(s) are bad. I don’t believe it’s true. It sure seems like Dolson or intermediaries have talked to lots of folks, more folks than I would imagine are actually on his shortlist. Biding time until Beard and later Muss can talk, I’d guess.

This, exactly this. Yes the Waltons absolutely COULD throw money at the program and its coaches but they haven’t really tried that up to now. Musselman’s transience is not a problem. He immediately made Nevada better than it had been IN ITS HISTORY, then left for a better job. He has gotten Arkansas near its historic peak, 1994 notwithstanding, in two years. Indiana is a better job than Arkansas. What’s a better job than Indiana? To Muss, probably the NBA. But two issues there: 1. If he leaves for a pro job, it probably means he did very well at IU, and 2. The NBA tried him twice already, so he’d be a retread who would probably not get tons of interest at that level unless he REALLY crushed it for awhile in college.

It seems most likely to me that the person who should be embarrassed is the guy at Rivals who printed the rumor, not IU

Yeah Smith was always good but flawed, as is every player. It’s not his fault he was deployed incorrectly at IU. Also, if he’d played here for the coach who originally recruited him, he probably would’ve canned 35% of his 3s

I think Matta and Beilein are a bit different due to age. If we knew Matta was perfectly healthy he’d be near the top of the list for most, I think. Now, we’re in no position to know that. Scott Dolson is, we’d hope.

Curious for an expert to weigh in and in this specific case it’s moot since it’s been denied by far better reporters than initially reported the wrong thing. I have two guesses: 1. You’re right and it’s not strictly legal, OR 2. it’s permissible if both parties consent to it

I’m sure they’re saying this but it’s a crazy take. You don’t get a title for being a top ten or top five team. How many times has UNC even had the most talent in the ACC in that time? Once or less IMHO.

Kinda gets more amazing the deeper you go down the list. Starting at sixth in minutes and descending: Steve Novak, Pablo Prigioni, Iman Shumpert, Chris Copeland, and Ronnie Brewer

Looks like a 39 year old Jason Kidd was fifth in minutes on that team; Barron just played a lot in a single game. But your point stands! That team was absolutely maximized by its coach

If I were trying to make an anti-Bennett case I’d say: 1. If you’re good, you should try to create more possessions. More opportunity for separation, for the cream to rise; less opportunity for random chance events to have outsized importance. 2. I don’t necessarily think slowing down another team’s offense is bad. But long offensive possessions are typically less efficient. 3. The packline can be effective but is more and more a relic of a bygone era when shooting %s were worse AND teams tried harder to get to the rim or were more willing to settle for two-point jumpers. Congrats to Bennett for succeeding with it but it hemorrhages corner and nail catch-and-shoot 3s, aka the shots offenses want most (aside from maybe dunks and layups). 4. Collectively, this has worked for him...mostly. Good teams lose upset tournament games for lots of reasons: random chance shooting events by either team, bad tactical matchups, injuries, under-/over-seeding. Simply being a high seed frequently means you’re good and sometimes you’ll lose to a lesser team. But stylistically, Virginia does play a style that makes them more susceptible to upsets and the outcomes sure prove it.

Can’t think Of his name without googling but he’s been on the Solving Basketball podcast a couple times and I’ve been impressed

Yeah, you can’t MAKE anyone come. Stevens turned you down, if Beard does, too, and you’re sold on Matta’s health and vigor, he’s great. The health is the big unknown...but if you had perfect knowledge that he was healthy, we might be underrating him.

Imagine Jordan Geronimo unleashed on both ends in Moses’s system

Yeah good question. If you can pair high level recruiting with his eye for talent and scheme you can really get humming.

I feel this. They run good offense and they have better guys than you’d ever expect at ULC. Same was true when they went to the F4. I worry about the rest of his resume.

It’s a lot different to hire a coach who gets programs quickly to or near their historic peak WITH good underlying advanced metrics than it is to hire a guy with one Elite 8 and middling metrics

Can’t overstate how impressive he’s been. 4 years at Nevada, the last 3 are among the best in school history. Then they hired Alford and they’re mediocre again. Arkansas has a better history than Nevada but in year 2 he has them at a level only prime Nolan Richardson and Eddie Sutton ever got.

Same, I could buy him as a nice assistant pick.

Okay I’m going to make The Case for Dane Fife, trying to be brief. He’s not the guy I’d pick in a vacuum, but: 1. Fife has lots of experience at big time B1G programs. He’s seen final 4s as player and coach, and he’s seen things go poorly at those places, too. 2. He has HC experience and I don’t think that’s necessary for success, but it probably shortens the learning curve. 3. He has confidence and wants a head job; he’s waiting for the right gig and turned down Duquesne four years ago. 4. Hiring an assistant is a risk/reward and as outsiders to the process it’s hard to know the level of confidence of whoever does the hiring. I get the hesitation. What if he’s Roy Williams/Bill Self/Izzo 2.0, though? If you’re thorough and you get the right guy, an assistant can be great right away just like a known commodity.

I’m with you on preferences. Like everyone here I have nothing but respect for Beilein. I don’t think he’d necessarily take a job and I’m not sure he’d get the offer, but my feelings on him at IU at this point have changed a lot over the past week. I understand the concern that he took awhile to get UM going. UM folks really feel like their program was in a bad spot when he took over. IU wasn’t good under Miller but I think we broadly agree there’s some talent and the program infrastructure is fine. The other thing is that Beilein is a different coach than he was when he started at UM. One of the things I admire about him is he kept getting better even into his 60s at a job he was already good at. So I imagine he’d start better at IU. Again: not my pick, but he’d pick a good staff, and IU would have a top 25 offense next year.

Whoever’s next will inherit a nice amount of talent, some open scholarships, and a well-heeled program in one of the best recruiting hotbeds in the country. We’re gonna be alright.

He’s as good as it gets but I can’t blame him for taking a break

A lateral move, like 0708 is concerned about, would be Fife or, like Lewis as HC I think. Certainly disappointing if so even if Stevens is out. Good HCs come from all sorts of backgrounds. They wouldn’t have the splash of a Beard etc., I’m not beating the drum for them...but they both have track records indicating they could succeed at the high-major level. I just wish IU would know that before hiring either. That said I think unless you get a D*kich or Miller situation, I think clearly the baseline at IU is still quite high.

I’m not 0708 but I’d guess the denial was paired with a “deal’s off” to IU

Agreed, and if the opposition is to transfers you’re really gonna handicap the next coach, whoever it is. Beard has done nicely with transfers, too. Believe 2 starters on his national runner up were transfers, and one of his best players this year, too