The Illinois Coaching Search

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#3,176      

sacraig

sacraig
The desert
sacraig
Ga65 said:
Don't agree because other than Finke we are 6'7" and we won't compete at that size and tired of bringing in mediocre 5 year men. Agree with the rest of the recruits as there is competition at the other positions.
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Sure, that's why I said he would be a boon to the team's performance next year. We clearly have a need at that position. However, he's probably a 1 or 2 year rental, which means he isn't likely to really cement the new coach's success here based on his play. I think the perception he brings will be the much bigger asset for the long-term health of the program.
 
#3,177      

Seagee

Seagee
Seagee
FWIW my uncle was at an alumni event last year with Dee Brown and asked him who he thought the next b-ball coach would be. Without a second's hesitation Dee said "Roger Powell." That obviously is not going to happen, but it could relate to JW potentially courting B Drew...
 
#3,178      

PhillyIllini

P
Los Angeles
PhillyIllini
Goldtop said:
The point that in his view Groce and Illinois were on the verge of turning a corner has some merit. How high that ceiling was going to be is part of the reason Groce was let go.

There is a risk being taken here though. It was easy to fire Weber because the program was trending downward. Groce had some good players coming in. We lose Tilmon, and it could be rough for a few years. I know many on here say Timon doesn't matter that much. I don't agree.
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The general trend illustrated by his overall record and conference record save for a slight uptick this past season was certainly "downward". The promise of a decent -- yes, decent (1 top 100 player) -- recruiting class shouldn't mask that this program had certainly not yet turned a corner with the results on the hardwood.
 
#3,179      

aluma

A
aluma
Not very impressed watching Vanderbilt's offense. HORRIBLE shot selection.
 
#3,180      

drew306

D
drew306
Goldtop said:
The point that in his view Groce and Illinois were on the verge of turning a corner has some merit. How high that ceiling was going to be is part of the reason Groce was let go.

There is a risk being taken here though. It was easy to fire Weber because the program was trending downward. Groce had some good players coming in. We lose Tilmon, and it could be rough for a few years. I know many on here say Timon doesn't matter that much. I don't agree.
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Agree that he has every right to stick up for his buddy but I don't even know if I agree with that much. We are graduating one of the best players in program history, a 6th year team leader pg, and a very solid center. If we couldn't win with Hill, Mav, and Abrams how does one figure we can turn the corner with... Lucas, Nichols, and Tilmon?
 
#3,181      

dmac279

D
dmac279
BZuppke said:
I guess Martin going to Mizzou could imply JW already has his man and Martin knew it. I wouldn't want to read too much into that but I will say this: An extremely important factor is how the coach feels about working for the AD. Many coaches over the years have said this is one of the top factors. If you're a top coaching prospect and will make 3-4 million per year at several schools, money is no longer a factor. A great AD who will support you and help you be successful looms large. The media and fans always undervalue this factor but coaches do not. I really like putting JW up against any AD in the country. I would also add that JW is a very intelligent person. He won't be outfoxed by anyone. I'm confident we will be ecstatic with this hire.
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IMO, i think your right. That's why CM jumped so quick
 
#3,183      

Illini34

Illini34
Champaign, IL
Illini34
Seagee said:
FWIW my uncle was at an alumni event last year with Dee Brown and asked him who he thought the next b-ball coach would be. Without a second's hesitation Dee said "Roger Powell." That obviously is not going to happen, but it could relate to JW potentially courting B Drew...
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Totally agree! It's a win win. You get Bryce Drew and you get Roger Powell to help recruit. You can't go wrong with that
 
#3,184      

redwingillini11

redwingillini11
White and Sixth
North Aurora
redwingillini11
Seagee said:
FWIW my uncle was at an alumni event last year with Dee Brown and asked him who he thought the next b-ball coach would be. Without a second's hesitation Dee said "Roger Powell." That obviously is not going to happen, but it could relate to JW potentially courting B Drew...
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Lol Dee. But it would be great to have Powell back in Champaign.
 
#3,185      

MadSeason

MadSeason
MadSeason
BZuppke said:
I guess Martin going to Mizzou could imply JW already has his man and Martin knew it.
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It could be, but I think the more likely explanation is that Mizzou went hard after their first target and Cuonzo didn't want to be left standing when the musical chairs stopped. If he waits, maybe Crean swoops in and takes the Mizzou job?
 
#3,186      

illynifan34

I
That's a winner!!
OH
illynifan34
Bryce Drew do not want. It is just one game, but those mental mistakes and bad shots might define him.
 
#3,189      

Illwinsagain

Illwinsagain
Cary, IL
Illwinsagain
Govoner Vaugn Fan said:
Based on the Lovie hire, I suspect the next coach was locked up before it was announced Groce would not be back. An official announcement has to wait for the official job
posting to expire on the 20th, and for the new coach to conclude this season, assuming he is in the NCAA or NIT.
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Lots of posters implying or even stating that its a done deal. I hope they are right.

Ps - I don't know who.
 
#3,190      

Roundball Shaman

R
Roundball Shaman
sacraig said:
Personally, I feel that Tilmon matters more from a perception standpoint than an actual on-the-court standpoint. He will be a huge boon to the team on the court if the new coach can keep him, but only likely for a year (or maybe two). I think he means more to us in the long term based on the sense that he can help make Illinois "cool" again with top recruits and it will probably give the coach instant credit for a former player in the NBA. That's more valuable in my opinion.
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Yes, yes, and yes. This is not just another coaching hire. This is the placement of the program in the major college ball hierarchy for the next 10 years if not more. This is why retaining Groce was too big a risk to attempt. We needed a culture change.
 
#3,191      

Ubermensch

Ubermensch
BOOM! Feed my ego.
Ubermensch
Govoner Vaugn Fan said:
Based on the Lovie hire, I suspect the next coach was locked up before it was announced Groce would not be back.
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I'm not sure we can glean too much from that situation. That was the stars lining up in a most unprecedented way. Based on nothing but intuition, I think JW got a sense of what sort of cash he'd have available, maybe made a few phone calls to gauge interest, and that's about it. I'm sure he took some inout on what to possibly expect the market to look like WRT other open slots in the coaching ranks. Then he decided he had enough information to move forward and look for a new coach.

That's only my guess. It is not the gospel.
 
#3,194      

urbanaillini27

U
urbanaillini27
Though I would prefer Archie or Bennett as my top two guys right now, I don't see any reason why Eric Musselman isn't being listed right up there with the rest of them. From all accounts, he is a tremendous offensive coach, uber-competitive, develops players extremely well, and has succeeded at Nevada in a very short time both on-the-court and recruiting-wise (two 4-star players in the 2016 class, and 4 transfers (Kendall Stephens from Purdue, Hallice Cooke from Iowa State, and the Martin brothers from NC State)).
 
#3,195      

Illinoy

I
Illinoy
SampsonRelpenk said:
That's a unique take given that in year four he's already the most successful coach in their history.
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He's had the most successful season. Let's not act like the bar wasn't low. Prior to that, even Bill Carmody actually had a couple of 20 win seasons.
 
#3,197      

Second and Chalmers

S
Second and Chalmers
Govoner Vaugn Fan said:
Based on the Lovie hire, I suspect the next coach was locked up before it was announced Groce would not be back. An official announcement has to wait for the official job
posting to expire on the 20th, and for the new coach to conclude this season, assuming he is in the NCAA or NIT.
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At the Cubit firing, Whitman made the fact that the next coach was already locked in as clear as he reasonably could, the job posting requirement was waived, the Lovie news broke all over the place within hours, and the official announcement came two days later.

At the Groce firing, Whitman specifically said this was going to be a longer search process, they didn't even bother to get the job posting up for two days, there are no reports of any deal being done, and it's already five days since the job became open.

This. Is. Not. Lovie.

If you don't believe Whitman's own very direct and specific words, and you don't believe the obvious factual reality, believe me I guess? :confused:
 
#3,198      

Illinoy

I
Illinoy
Ubermensch said:
Yeah, Holtmann was *never* going to replace Groce at UI. I'd have been less shocked by Bill Self coming back.
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lol apparently he isn't going to IU either....or any power 5 with given that he thinks people deserve 6 years to turn things around.
 
#3,199      

Ubermensch

Ubermensch
BOOM! Feed my ego.
Ubermensch
socalini said:
If it takes five years to get "close to turning a corner", you're not steering properly.
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:thumb::thumb::thumb:

There was zero evidence that Groce was close to "turning a corner." An embarrassing loss to Rutgers and a blowout loss to Michigan to eliminate all chance of an NCAA tournament? That's not turning a corner. That's ignoring the stop sign and driving off the cliff.
 
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#3,200      

Second and Chalmers

S
Second and Chalmers
urbanaillini27 said:
Though I would prefer Archie or Bennett as my top two guys right now, I don't see any reason why Eric Musselman isn't being listed right up there with the rest of them. From all accounts, he is a tremendous offensive coach, uber-competitive, develops players extremely well, and has succeeded at Nevada in a very short time both on-the-court and recruiting-wise (two 4-star players in the 2016 class, and 4 transfers (Kendall Stephens from Purdue, Hallice Cooke from Iowa State, and the Martin brothers from NC State)).
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We might actually be able to get him, so that's not enough of a candy and gumdrops fan-validation fairy tale for this board.
 
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