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Possible Wake Forest Coaching Candidates Analysis

PhDeac said:
I think it’s far more likely a fired Shaka takes a TV job and eventually replaced Rhoades whenever he leaves VCU. It’s clear he and his family love VCU. I’d throw a few bills on replacing Mooney at Richmond if he gets fired as well.

Dreaming about him coming to Wake is silly.
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But he might end up at Richmond?
 
I guess I'd rather dream about Matta and Shaka and get Oats, than dream about Oats and get Turner, or something, but yeah, it'll all get shattered soon enough.
 
PhDeac said:
I think it’s far more likely a fired Shaka takes a TV job and eventually replaced Rhoades whenever he leaves VCU. It’s clear he and his family love VCU. I’d throw a few bills on replacing Mooney at Richmond if he gets fired as well.

Dreaming about him coming to Wake is silly.
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It is still a question that Wake should let him answer. Maybe now that is finding the grass not so enticing out west, he will look a little more favorably upon the situation at Wake.
 
PhDeac said:
I think it’s far more likely a fired Shaka takes a TV job and eventually replaced Rhoades whenever he leaves VCU. It’s clear he and his family love VCU. I’d throw a few bills on replacing Mooney at Richmond if he gets fired as well.

Dreaming about him coming to Wake is silly.
Click to expand...

He would choose Richmond over Wake Forest?
 
When Shaka arrived at TX in 2015, he had a class of three Top 50 recruits waiting for him. Since then, he has had a Top 15, Top 15, three Top 60s and three Top 100s. His results have been inconsistent at best.

He's only two games over .500 in the nearly four years he's been in Austin. And .426 in B12 games.

Obviously, he's better than Danny.

Has some of the shine come off of him?
 
ChrisL68 said:
But he might end up at Richmond?
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CharlotteDeac1 said:
He would choose Richmond over Wake Forest?
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*waits patiently for CL and Charlotte to google where VCU is located*

ImTheCaptain said:
we should just contact IBM and ask if they can make a Watson that coaches basketball.
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Pretty sure they have a commercial about Watson as a basketball scout. That’s been out for a few years. Surely Watson has moved up the coaching ladder.

Deaconblue said:
It is still a question that Wake should let him answer. Maybe now that is finding the grass not so enticing out west, he will look a little more favorably upon the situation at Wake.
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That’s fair but I think the Smarts really like the grass in Richmond.
 
does appear that the coaching staff at VCU was loaded with Shaka, Will Wade, and Mike Rhoades
 
I know where VCU is located. That doesn't mean he'd accept likely close to a full million less to coach there.
 
That dude must really love Richmond. Is there any indication of this?
 
There is a lot to like about Richmond. And I suppose Shaka could end up back at VCU some day. But no, I don't see UR.
 
DeacsATS said:
I still think the chances of Smart ending up at Wake are slim, but he’d absolutely be a home run / tier one hire.

He had the best results of all VCU coaches... Not sure how you could argue otherwise.

He hasn’t been bad at Texas. Far from it. W/L has been mixed, for sure... But I think he’s still an elite (or near-elite) college coach.
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Agree
 
ChrisL68 said:
That dude must really love Richmond. Is there any indication of this?
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Come to Wake, resurrect Wake basketball and get it to where his VCU teams were and Winston-Salem will show him that kind of love.
 
CharlotteDeac1 said:
He would choose Richmond over Wake Forest?
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Country club school A vs. country club school B. DonaldRoss would say choose UR as it has a nice on-campus arena. Jim Boeheim would give the same advice based on better road trips in the A-10.
 
PhDeac said:
I think it’s far more likely a fired Shaka takes a TV job and eventually replaced Rhoades whenever he leaves VCU. It’s clear he and his family love VCU. I’d throw a few bills on replacing Mooney at Richmond if he gets fired as well.

Dreaming about him coming to Wake is silly.
Click to expand...

VCU or Richmond? WTF?

You serious, Clark?

Pretty much anyone with an opening will be throwing themselves at Shaka’s feet.

Could take a TV job, but I kind of doubt that, too.
 
Pilchard said:
I like posts like this because they stake out a position and are based upon facts.

That said, Shaka's record at VCU should be further explained. Yes, Smart never "finished first in his league" (regular season), but in his 6 years at VCU (3 in the CAA and 3 in A-10), his teams went a collective 74-30 in league play, and finished 2nd 3 times, and with a winning conference record every year - his worst year in conference was year #1 when VCU went 11-7 in conference.

In every season other than his first, Smart's teams did enough to get an NCAA bid. In his 3 years in the A-10, no school won more conference games overall than VCU. So, it's not like Smart didn't have success in conference play. Also, his teams won both the CAA Conference tourney and the A-10 Conference tourney. His program was the best overall team in each conference during his run at VCU.

Also, winning with Anthony Grant's recruits is not really accurate. 2010, Smart's first year at VCU and the year with the roster with highest percentage of Grant's recruits, was the only year that VCU did not make the NCAAs during Smart's VCU tenure. From 2012 on, when almost all of VCU's roster was built on Smart recruits, VCU went: 29-7 (NCAA 2nd round), 27-9 (NCAA 2nd round), 26-9 (NCAA 1st round), 26-10 (NCAA first round). So, over the 4 years, when VCU's roster relied on Smart's recruits, they never won fewer than 26 games, and the made the NCAAs each year.

FWIW, don't see Smart leaving Texas, but his record gives plenty of evidence that Smart knows what he is doing.
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I'll grant some of what is here. You make a really good case. And I'm likely being hyperbolic by saying he'd be a bad hire. But you have to agree it would be risky based on the evidence in front of us. In response to some of your points, context matters. Look deeper at Anthony Grant's run at VCU. 3 first place finishes, 2 NCAA appearances, an NIT, and an upset of Duke to advance to the round of 32. Smart then took over and with Larry Sanders on the team, the 15th pick that spring, only finished in 5th and no NCAA nor NIT. Then his run picks up, as you point out, yet still no first place finishes. And the idea that he had the most wins in the league over that span is a good one...still, isn't that also the case for Anthony Grant and Will Wade? When Wade took over they went to the NCAA both years, won a league regular season, and advanced out of the first round in the NCAAs. So, again, relatively speaking, his tenure at VCU is no better, or maybe barely better, than any of those guys.

Then he goes to Texas and they're not very good. And the folks that keep talking about KP ratings...ugh! Please look at what really matters in basketball...his record. They're under .500 right now and the schedule looks like at best they're going to finish at .500 but more likely under. If they finish under .500, do you realize Smart's only above .500 team at Texas will have been Barnes leftovers in his first year? Since then, under .500 each season. And again, with talent! He had the #6 pick overall last year and finished 8-10 in the Big 12. Just look at the evidence. I know what my eyes tell me...he's a mediocre coach in a Power 6 conference.

For me, I'd rather a Nates Oats hire or another one of the up and comers with the gamble we could strike gold. We have data and evidence of Smart going from mid-major to Power 6 and it hasn't been very good at all. With all that said, if the stars align and we get Smart, it could work. Maybe he's better suited for a place like Wake. And maybe he has learned from the mistakes and problems at Texas.
 
Agree that Smart's results at Texas have taken the shine off of him a little. Still would be happy with a Smart hire. Would also be happy with Nate Oats or John Brannen.
 
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