Coach Q resigns / Vonn Read named acting head coach/Named Assistant Coach at Houston

[OrangeXtreme]

Statement from Director of Athletics John Wildhack Regarding Women's Basketball Program - Syracuse University Athletics

The University has accepted Coach Quentin Hillsman 's resignation. Coach Hillsman and I agreed that parting ways is in the best interest of the University...

cuse.com

Read to Serve as Acting Head Coach for 2021-22 Season - Syracuse University Athletics

John Wildhack , director of Athletics at Syracuse University, today announced Vonn Read , currently associate head coach, will serve as acting head coa...

cuse.com

 

[Cusester]

Why would AdJW keep Read on instead of making a clean break? I don't understand this at all. Can anyone explain the logic here because I'm at a loss.

 

[baggerbob]

Why would AdJW keep Read on instead of making a clean break? I don't understand this at all. Can anyone explain the logic here because I'm at a loss.

JW has made a lot of mistakes recently. Maybe he isn't the right man for the job. This hire better be a home run, or maybe the University should go in another direction.

 

[cto]

Why would AdJW keep Read on instead of making a clean break? I don't understand this at all. Can anyone explain the logic here because I'm at a loss.

There is an immediate need for some kind of continuity ... both for the existing players and the recruiting process. You can't dismiss the entire staff (especially those not implicated in any issues) ... and hope to have any kind of stability. It would be a totally rudderless ship. There has to be someone at the helm ... if only for a short interim time.

 

[crazycassie]

There is an immediate need for some kind of continuity ... both for the existing players and the recruiting process. You can't dismiss the entire staff (especially those not implicated in any issues) ... and hope to have any kind of stability. It would be a totally rudderless ship. There has to be someone at the helm ... if only for a short interim time.

And how is that working out? NOT!

 

[cto]

And how is that working out? NOT!

And it would be a lot worse if there were no interim coach. Do you have any concept of organizational dynamics? Who would you like him to appoint? Some random unemployed person who posts on an internet fan forum? There was no time for a properly vetted outside search process.

 

[RoofBeam]

To understand what is going on at SU you need a concept of disorganizational dynamics.

 

[CuseLegacy]

And how is that working out? NOT!

Let me guess. You've never owned a business, run a business or been in a management position. If you had ever been in any of these positions you would understand the need for continuity in this situation.

Vonn Read was never accused of any wrong doing by any of the ladies on the team. He provides stability and continuity, as do the rest of the staff that was retained.

And these recent commits who have decommitted didn't do so until after Hillsman resigned. They probably wouldn't have come to Syracuse regardless...they committed to Hillsman.

 

[orange79]

And these recent commits who have decommitted didn't do so until after Hillsman resigned. They probably wouldn't have come to Syracuse regardless...they committed to Hillsman.

Hmmm. I was told by the NCAA that student athletes committed to schools, not coaches.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

Does SU's Benny Williams have chance to be ACC Rookie of the Year? (Mike’s Mailbox)

Syracuse.com's basketball reporter Mike Waters answers readers' questions.

www.syracuse.com

Q: What are your thoughts on Vonn Read taking over for Quentin Hillsman as head coach of the women’s basketball team. Should John Wildhack have started clean? Could an assistant taking over (vs. a new hire) impact recruiting?

John S.

Mike: I was a little surprised that Syracuse officials decided to go with a member of Quentin Hillsman’s staff after the former SU women’s coach resigned his position in the midst of a university investigation into allegations of mistreatment of players and bad behavior.

This is nothing against Vonn Read, who I’ve heard nothing but good things about. I just don’t know how this helps in the rebuilding of a program that is currently under a dark cloud. We’ve already seen recruits de-commit from the program. How will Read be able to recruit any players over the course of the next season?

But I can see why SU athletic director John Wildhack decided to hold off on finding a permanent head coach.

Wildhack probably wanted to conduct a thorough search for his next women’s basketball coach and, given the timing of Hillsman’s departure, that just wasn’t possible right now.

Maybe Wildhack decided that it was in the school’s best interest to sacrifice one recruiting cycle in favor of making sure he made the right hire. And he may not even have to sacrifice a recruiting cycle since the transfer portal has come into effect. Whoever Syracuse hires next spring will be able to restock the roster with transfers.

I get that many SU fans wanted the school to hire Felisha Leggette-Jack, the SU alum who is the head coach at Buffalo, right away. But she will still be there next March, and the timing might actually be better for her to leave UB and begin anew at her alma mater.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

Meet Vonn Read, the acting head coach of Syracuse women’s basketball: ‘He’s a basketball wizard’

Read takes over a program with few returning players or staff members.

www.syracuse.com

 

[Ozone!]

Down to 10 players; if we lose any more we won’t be able to have a scrimmage .

I certainly am not an expert on managing a team or coaching high performance athletes.

I have extensive experience with counseling student athletes and I love basketball; both Syracuse men’s and women’s teams.

I want the women’s program to succeed; as it well deserves to!

Color me frustrated and confused!

 

[Ozone!]

Meet Vonn Read, the acting head coach of Syracuse women’s basketball: ‘He’s a basketball wizard’

Read takes over a program with few returning players or staff members.

www.syracuse.com

This is a well written piece; I hope that the player transfers stop so we can see what Coach Read can accomplish.

 

[llandz]

This is a well written piece; I hope that the player transfers stop so we can see what Coach Read can accomplish.

Yes. I feel better after reading this. I know Vonn is the genius behind the team, but a couple of things. 1. Unless Q didn't totally listen to him , we did underperform for the players we had under Vonn's game plans, other than the final four run.
2. I also would have liked to hear from a more recent player as to their thoughts on Vonn. Was he "in the room" when things happened and didn't speak up, for ex. 5-6 years ago, Q was different than he is now. Delisha's comments are good to hear, but she was there for such a short period.
3. I know several very good choices who could have come right in as interim coaches, and most of them live right in Syracuse. So while I love CTO, those options were never even considered. They are people who are known to the players also. They probably would have jumped at this opportunity, or done it for the love of SU athletics. Most are employed, but probably would have made the move over to interim coach.

 

[CuseLegacy]

Yes. I feel better after reading this. I know Vonn is the genius behind the team, but a couple of things. 1. Unless Q didn't totally listen to him , we did underperform for the players we had under Vonn's game plans, other than the final four run.
2. I also would have liked to hear from a more recent player as to their thoughts on Vonn. Was he "in the room" when things happened and didn't speak up, for ex. 5-6 years ago, Q was different than he is now. Delisha's comments are good to hear, but she was there for such a short period.
3. I know several very good choices who could have come right in as interim coaches, and most of them live right in Syracuse. So while I love CTO, those options were never even considered. They are people who are known to the players also. They probably would have jumped at this opportunity, or done it for the love of SU athletics. Most are employed, but probably would have made the move over to interim coach.

Perhaps the administration felt if they were going to go with an interim coach it was better to go with someone they already had on staff. Then do their search for a new hire for the Spring. I don't think the players who are leaving, who committed to Hillsman, were going to stay for any interim coach, whether it is Vonn Read or one of the local people you know. If the resignation had occurred at an early time and the administration had hired a new fulltime HC there would still probably would be attrition. It's just a bad situation and basically a lost season.

 

[llandz]

Perhaps the administration felt if they were going to go with an interim coach it was better to go with someone they already had on staff. Then do their search for a new hire for the Spring. I don't think the players who are leaving, who committed to Hillsman, were going to stay for any interim coach, whether it is Vonn Read or one of the local people you know. If the resignation had occurred at an early time and the administration had hired a new fulltime HC there would still probably would be attrition. It's just a bad situation and basically a lost season.

I basically agree. As I said in another post on a player leaving, Q was a great recruiter. They were coming to play for him, and because of something he sold them about the program. That is no longer the case for them, so they are quickly cutting ties and finding a place to go before the season.
I just still have a slight issue, but understand why the move was made.

 

[KellySyracuse]

Down to 10 players; if we lose any more we won’t be able to have a scrimmage .

I certainly am not an expert on managing a team or coaching high performance athletes.

I have extensive experience with counseling student athletes and I love basketball; both Syracuse men’s and women’s teams.

I want the women’s program to succeed; as it well deserves to!

Color me frustrated and confused!

maybe we can get some walk-ons, what a disaster

 

[CuseLegacy]

Down to 10 players; if we lose any more we won’t be able to have a scrimmage .

I certainly am not an expert on managing a team or coaching high performance athletes.

I have extensive experience with counseling student athletes and I love basketball; both Syracuse men’s and women’s teams.

I want the women’s program to succeed; as it well deserves to!

Color me frustrated and confused!

Roster still lists 12 players...my count is 11.

2023-24 Women's Basketball Roster - Syracuse University Athletics

The official 2023-24 Women's Basketball Roster for the Syracuse University Orange

cuse.com

 

[CuseLegacy]

maybe we can get some walk-ons, what a disaster

Still have time for a Grad transfer. They can play immediately. And the roster still shows 12.

 

[Ozone!]

One of the 12 is the USC transfer who is reportedly transferring.
Are the transfers all done; who here is certain? Nit picking over numbers is hardly the answer for the program.

 

[Ozone!]

 

[baggerbob]

One of the 12 is the USC transfer who is reportedly transferring.
Are the transfers all done; who here is certain? Nit picking over numbers is hardly the answer for the program.

Shalexxus Aaron the 1st transfer in is in the portal.

 

[llandz]

Is it possible that Vonn can talk to a couple of these players who might not find what they are looking for elsewhere? (thinking the 2 Canadian players who want to stay together)

 

[Cuseonduty]

This is a well written piece; I hope that the player transfers stop so we can see what Coach Read can accomplish.

The only problem I have with this article is that some of it is exaggerated/fabricated. For people inside of the program this might be one of the reasons they don’t trust going to Syracuse media. You have quotes from a guard that the article says played 2016-2019 but actually only was a part of the team 2019-2020 and didn’t really play. You have part of the article talking about Reeds twitter account frequently posting motivational quotes when he hasn’t posted anything since 2020. These might seem like small things but for a program that already has trust issues with speaking out to staff members and Syracuse media. This could be why. As I’ve heard Reed is a nice guy and great coach, that is not the issue. The issue I see here is the way the article was written. I worry that stuff like this has happened in the past in previous articles that maybe we don’t recognize because we aren’t on the team. Syracuse media needs to focus on sharing facts and not exaggerating. We need to redeem our relationship between our players, staff and media

 

[Cuseonduty]

Is it possible that Vonn can talk to a couple of these players who might not find what they are looking for elsewhere? (thinking the 2 Canadian players who want to stay together)

The Canadian guard already committed to Duke and the other one I heard already has another school but isn’t announced yet. I believe our best bet would be to do what we can to keep any other players from leaving and rebuilding our reputation to the public. CuseWBB IG has done a better job I believe. In the past I rarely saw team bonding posts or charity work but now I see them doing that this year. Small steps but this can help slowly repair our image along with the coaching doing what they can to fix their image in the public.