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Shaka Smart

Because VCU will be surrounded by much more successful programs. Gonzaga is on an island.

He won't be on TV. His conference is in the toilet. Gonzaga's conference is not great but is not going anywhere.

With the expansion of the ACC and the split of the Big East it will be even tougher for VCU to compete for players and nationally.
 
Strickland33 said:
bkf, care to comment on the thorough destruction of Texas Tech's basketball program at the hands of the Knight clan? How about Pat Knight's stellar 3-28 masterpiece at Lamar?

Or, does your critique only get directed at successful young coaches who actually win and bring their teams to the NCAA Tournament?
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I'll comment on this. First, TTech's program was in the toilet when Knight arrived and he got them competitive for a few years. They're generally pretty lousy anyway.

Little Knight inherited a team full of Seniors who made the NCAA Tourney last year. Cupboard was bare this year. His tenure really starts now as it's up to him to get players.

I'm no Knight fan but facts, while often a disrespected commodity around here, are what they are.
 
I could see why he would turn down VT especially in his case.
 
88Deac said:
I don't really have a problem with this post, per se, but Shaka is just about every AD's dream coach right now, but he keeps turning everyone down. Illinois, NC State were very public, but VT apparently made a run at him and he apparently told them no without even speaking with them. The joke one cnnsi writer said last year after the NCAA was that Shaka turns down more jobs per day than most people have cups of coffee. They were under the impression a lot of schools have contacted him to inquire, only to be turned down before going any further.

So, the only thing I would say is that Shaka obviously really likes VCU and Richmond, and he certainly isn't begging to get to another higher profile school. I don't know what he is looking for, but so far, he has remained adamant he is staying at VCU. I'm not sure I don't believe him. He is on just about everyone's radar outside of Durham, Chapel Hill, Kansas, Gonzaga, Indiana, Florida and a handful of others. I would give it probably less than a 1% he would accept the Wake job if offered. He's already turned down a Big 10 and 2 ACC's that we know of.
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Right, I mostly agree with you. I'd like our chances at better than 1%, but still not likely. I was trying to make the point that if he ever does decide to leave VCU, which itself seems unlikely, it would be a shame if he didn't come to Wake Forest because our program is still being choked out by Wellman's autocracy and [Redacted]'s ineptitude.

That being said, I do think that it is only getting more and more likely that Smart will leave. I think he is a good enough coach and ambitious enough that eventually he will want to jump to a major conference and compete at a higher level, with better players, better coaches, on a national stage. And it doesn't help that the A-10 is falling apart. Illinois and NC State courted him at the wrong time, way too soon after his Final Four success. VT, well, I can understand why he would turn that down. So I think if Wake has a job opening at the time when he is willing to leave, I don't think there is a better school for him to go to. Moving to a major conference and being on Tobacco Road, a much better recruiting base, and a school with a solid history waiting for a good coach to take them to the Final Four and the next level. What other school in need of a coach offers that?
 
bobknightfan said:
Bob Knight hardly "destroyed" Texas Tech basketball. The program was nothing when he got there. He inherited a team that only had 4 total roster players remaining from a team that had just gone 3-13 in the Big 12.....and won 23 games and took them to the NCAA Tournament in his first year.

Bob Knight's record speaks for itself. I don't have to defend it to you...or anyone else. He is the greatest college basketball coach who ever lived.
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One of the great coaching jobs. When he took the job fellow coaches were shocked.
 
bobknightfan said:
Bob Knight hardly "destroyed" Texas Tech basketball. The program was nothing when he got there. He inherited a team that only had 4 total roster players remaining from a team that had just gone 3-13 in the Big 12.....and won 23 games and took them to the NCAA Tournament in his first year.

Bob Knight's record speaks for itself. I don't have to defend it to you...or anyone else. He is the greatest college basketball coach who ever lived.

2001–2002 Texas Tech 23–9 10–6 T–3rd NCAA First Round
2002–2003 Texas Tech 22–13 6–10 T–7th NIT Semifinals
2003–2004 Texas Tech 23–11 9–7 T–5th NCAA Second Round
2004–2005 Texas Tech 22–11 10–6 4th NCAA Sweet Sixteen
2005–2006 Texas Tech 15–17 6–10 T–7th —
2006–2007 Texas Tech 21–13 9–7 5th NCAA First Round
2007–2008 Texas Tech 12–8* 3–3* T–6th*
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I'll agree with this, but Coach K presents a very good argument for greatest coach ever.
 
It's much easier to get into the NCAAT and many of the games are against average or worse teams.

K is a great coach. He's not in wooden's league.
 
Versus you supporting a guy who chokes players, attacks kids on campus and throws filled vases at the head of a 60+yo woman...
 
'15 Deac said:
Right, I mostly agree with you. I'd like our chances at better than 1%, but still not likely. I was trying to make the point that if he ever does decide to leave VCU, which itself seems unlikely, it would be a shame if he didn't come to Wake Forest because our program is still being choked out by Wellman's autocracy and [Redacted]'s ineptitude.

That being said, I do think that it is only getting more and more likely that Smart will leave. I think he is a good enough coach and ambitious enough that eventually he will want to jump to a major conference and compete at a higher level, with better players, better coaches, on a national stage. And it doesn't help that the A-10 is falling apart. Illinois and NC State courted him at the wrong time, way too soon after his Final Four success. VT, well, I can understand why he would turn that down. So I think if Wake has a job opening at the time when he is willing to leave, I don't think there is a better school for him to go to. Moving to a major conference and being on Tobacco Road, a much better recruiting base, and a school with a solid history waiting for a good coach to take them to the Final Four and the next level. What other school in need of a coach offers that?
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Good post and good points. Illinois really seemed like it would be a good fit for him if he were inclined to leave. VT and State are cow colleges, and definitely do not fit his persona, though VT has been able to attract much better students in the past decade. But it is still VT, and State is still State.... I see Shaka at a sprawling urban school in a big city. Even if the landscape around VCU were to crumble, they keep winning and Shaka's popularity among high schoolers and AD's will continue to grow. I think he has supreme confidence that he can win anywhere any time, and I don't see him having a problem finding a good job even if VCU's conference affiliation falls apart. I think he wants to build it at VCU and be the man, much like Mark Few is at Gonzaga. The sense of accomplishment would be much greater than taking over at a well-established school. And VCU is already on the national stage. Ranked all year and recruiting is definitely improving.

If there were ever a time, now might be it. And if we could get him, it could be one of those rare hires that changes a program for 15-20 years. We need to cut bait with [Redacted] now, and take our shot at Shaka. We have a 0% if we don't. And 98% chance of a mediocrity ceiling with [Redacted]. And if we don't, we have a 90% of faring the same of better with most anyone we hire, remembering that Bob Staak looked like a good hire, as did Les Robinson and countless others. We HAVE to take our shot now.
 
Well, you see him in a place people who know him don't.
 
RJKarl said:
Well, you see him in a place people who know him don't.
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You know Shaka Smart? From talking to him, did he say anything to you about the A-10 losing schools? Did he say he sees himself at VCU long-term? Damn, I though we had at least an outside shot...
 
I agree with 88 that he is indeed a game changer and would effect us in a positive way for 15-20 years, but I just can't see it happening. If he didn't take the State job, why would he come here instead?

Its all a moot point because we don't and will not have an opening anyway becuase our jackoff AD is in bed with the HC.
 
If we don't have a HC opening, then we'll have lots of openings in the form of empty seats in the Joel.
 
bobknightfan said:
John Wooden ran one of the dirtiest programs this side of UNLV. UCLA should have been put on probation for 10 years. Sam Gilbert was buying players right and left during those championship years.

http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jun/08/sports/la-sp-0609-wooden-gilbert-20100609
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RJKarl said:
Versus you supporting a guy who chokes players, attacks kids on campus and throws filled vases at the head of a 60+yo woman...
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:popcorn:

Would you rather have a cheater lead your program or an asshole?

Round 1 goes to bkf.

Note: big fans of both coaches.
 
88Deac said:
Good post and good points. Illinois really seemed like it would be a good fit for him if he were inclined to leave. VT and State are cow colleges, and definitely do not fit his persona, though VT has been able to attract much better students in the past decade. But it is still VT, and State is still State.... I see Shaka at a sprawling urban school in a big city. Even if the landscape around VCU were to crumble, they keep winning and Shaka's popularity among high schoolers and AD's will continue to grow. I think he has supreme confidence that he can win anywhere any time, and I don't see him having a problem finding a good job even if VCU's conference affiliation falls apart. I think he wants to build it at VCU and be the man, much like Mark Few is at Gonzaga. The sense of accomplishment would be much greater than taking over at a well-established school. And VCU is already on the national stage. Ranked all year and recruiting is definitely improving.

If there were ever a time, now might be it. And if we could get him, it could be one of those rare hires that changes a program for 15-20 years. We need to cut bait with [Redacted] now, and take our shot at Shaka. We have a 0% if we don't. And 98% chance of a mediocrity ceiling with [Redacted]. And if we don't, we have a 90% of faring the same of better with most anyone we hire, remembering that Bob Staak looked like a good hire, as did Les Robinson and countless others. We HAVE to take our shot now.
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At this point I'm just thinking out loud without any real basis, but if I were in the position of a young coach at a successful mid-major with great coach potential and the ability to move up, I would. I recognize the success that Mark Few has had at Gonzaga, but look at this year. They lost two games and still barely got a number 1 seed. This is still the first time the program has been ranked number 1. That doesn't happen at a major program with a coach that good. You can't achieve the type of success that you can at major programs just because the level of competition isn't the same. I also think that even with as much success as VCU has had, Smart will be hard pressed to improve recruiting on the East Coast to the same level that Mark Few has on the West Coast. He just has more competition for recruits on the East Coast.

I also understand that an ambitious coach would want to build their own success rather than continue the success that someone else established. This is why I will never see Roy Williams as a "great" coach or on the same level as Coach K, because Carolina is the house that Dean Smith built. Roy is just a good enough coach to whip some McDonald's All-Americans into good enough shape that they can focus enough to string together a couple very successful seasons every year or two. I definitely don't see Shaka Smart being an heir to the throne of any blue-blood program. This is another reason why I think Wake could be such a good fit for him. Wake has a strong enough history that it's feasible for the program to achieve and maintain some amount success at the highest level, but there is still a lot of work to be done. Smart would be coming into an established basketball school, but would still be building the program himself.
 
88Deac said:
I see Shaka at a sprawling urban school in a big city.
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Yeah, someplace like Oregon, Wisconsin -- or maybe Gambier, Ohio. Or, if we factor in the family, maybe a metropolis like Akron, Ohio.
 
DeacWatcher said:
I agree with 88 that he is indeed a game changer and would effect us in a positive way for 15-20 years, but I just can't see it happening. If he didn't take the State job, why would he come here instead?

Its all a moot point because we don't and will not have an opening anyway becuase our jackoff AD is in bed with the HC.
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State approached him too quickly after his Final Four success because that's when they had an opening at head coach. He had just taken the job at VCU and had found success in his second season, possibly the most success he could have at VCU. He probably envisioned being at VCU longer and being able to build the program into one that competes/wins the A-10 championship every year, consistently goes to the Sweet Sixteen and every now and then making deep runs further into the tournament. I'm not saying he can't achieve this, but the more time he spends in a head coaching role, the more he will understand about college basketball and the coaching scene (I'm not trying to seem like I know more about college basketball than a head coach, I don't know that much, I'm just postulating). One day, he may decide that it's unrealistic for him to have the type of success he wants at a mid-major program. One day, he may get more ambitious and want to win in the strongest basketball conference in the nation. Who knows how his views on what he wants to achieve will change once he realizes his spot in the driver's seat.

But, that suggests an interesting (obviously not a realistic) thought experiment:

If you could,
a) fire Jeff [Redacted] right now and then fare as you will in the coaching search, OR
b) wait until the end of next season, fire Jeff [Redacted] in a year, and know for a fact that Shaka Smart would be our next head coach,

Which would you choose? What if b. was end of year 5? I think the answer has to be b., but the hatred for [Redacted] as HC has become so great for a lot of people that I'd be interested to hear what others think about this. (also, I feel like I might have seen this same thought posted somewhere else, so sorry if Haas)
 
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