IUCrazy2

We have been dreaming all week and this is a bridge to far for you? :p I think if this were the case, he would see it as helping the Simon's. He is also a guy with Boston connections, has been an NBA coach (who famously said coaches have a shelf life in the NBA)...I don't know, crazier things have happened.

So the Simon's are helping (got our name on the building, need a winner in it) and they reached out to Larry Bird from their Pacers connections and said, "Help us bring this Indiana boy home."

Bennett, which I think is a lower chance then almost anyone else on our list at the moment. That guy turned down a raise so more money could be put into building the program. That to me says he is committed where he is at.

I hear Northern Ohio is lovely this time of year.

My only worry with Beilein is that with his age, he might be calling it quits around the same time as some other guys in his age range. And if he does, that could put us in competition with Duke and North Carolina for coaches. Then again, if Stevens says no this time, it gives us another potential shot at him in a few years (although this kind of feels like a no or never type thing with him.)

They probably have a non-compete clause in their contract where they cannot quit and then go to another NBA team, but like you said, anybody can quit. Also, I doubt the noncompete has college programs in it and if it did, that would be easy to get thrown out in court I would think.

I think we have more of a shot than 4 years ago. The Indy media has been saying he said no this morning, but I don't get the impression that he has given a hard no...not from the context of the interviews I heard. "Are you quitting to go to Indiana." I could say no, I am moving on to another opportunity for me and my family. That is not quitting...from a certain point of view (as Obi Wan would say). I think the situation in Boston is changing. Steven's is not going anywhere now, but does he see himself there in 2 or 3 more years? I think that is more cloudy. He has a connection to this state and when he started to kind of go off track and talk about what the state and what IU meant to him, that sounds like a guy kind of weighing an option. "I am not getting fired from this job at the moment, but I am already well past the normal shelf life. And IU is attractive. Moving home is attractive. It sounds like the University has some real serious candidates they are considering. This may be my last chance at that job...." Dolson just needs to figure out what is keeping him from pulling the trigger and then deal with that concern because I think he sounds like he is really considering it.

Dumb. Then again, they are in the tournament this week and currently the first five topics on that board are about IU. 6 of the first 10 are about IU and one more talks about IU (among other high profile programs) not being in the tournament. This from a fanbase whose team is a 4 seed and is set to play games at the end of the week. They would never admit it, but I think they are slightly worried about who we are going to bring in.

The hire will. Failure to land Stevens in and of itself won't. If he fails that and picks another guy who does well, he'll be fine.

I post on HSN and on the rivals site. I have been lurking here for a few years. The rivals site is just habit, I started reading that board when it was Peegs back in 99/2000. That site is not great for the basketball talk anymore. Then HSN went down and I had been following Chris's info so decided to get a name and join in.

Is it bad that I almost have that as my #1 reason for wanting Stevens? So often we hear about dusty banners and IU needs to lower expectations and all of that, I really want people to have to eat that in the worst way.

I have followed that site for over 20 years, they never have the scuttlebutt on things like this until the very end in my experience. If they are saying Beilein, then he probably won't be it.

Nah, I am happy with just about anyone being mentioned. Anybody they bring in is going to get my support until they show they should not have it. Would I be happier with some options over others? Yes. That being said, the new hire represents hope. We get this hire in place and we can start talking about what the team needs to do to get back on track. Up until yesterday, the discussion was looking to center around getting rid of Miller (if we were talking at all). We should be going into this fall as Indiana fans pumped about the 2 major sports. When was the last time we could say that?

Screw Bilas. You think that guy would be telling Duke fans to just sit back and settle for the same kind of results after Kryzewski walks away? Me either. Guys like him come out every year and push the line that Indiana should just settle. "What you had was ok...you should just be happy with that." Wait until the situation at his alma mater changes and we will see just how much settling he thinks a program should do.

Holy cow...have we offered that? I was worried when Dolson got the job, but if we are really throwing it out there like this then I was completely wrong about the guy and will enjoy all the crow I can eat if he lands Stevens.

I doubt Coach Knight could or would be able to do that now....but man, that would be a heck of a pitch.

I for one would not be restless. I would start to get probably irrationally exuberant the longer this drags out towards June because that, in my mind, would point to our Captain Ahab landing Moby Dick.

Your info is why I now have a user name and account as opposed to just being a lurker. I would take your word over Goodman every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

Yeah, if you are looking to move on and you are one of those guys, I don't think you are showing your hand to the media.