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Message: [QUOTE="RF2044, post: 1614805, member: 40"] No--I've been consistent on this since he was announced as CIW. I wanted him to leave the fold to get experience when he had opportunities, so that he could get his on-the-job training elsewhere and be ready when he came back. And if he flopped elsewhere, then we would have dodged a bullet. Look at the track records that schools replacing coaching icons have gone through: [LIST] [*]UNC with Gut [winning with Dean Smith's players], then retiring after 2 years and giving way to Matt Doherty who stunk [*]Georgetown with Craig Escherick [*]Indiana with Mike Davis, that announcer, Kelvin Smith, and even their current goofball who is in danger of being fired [/LIST] Replacing an icon isn't easy. And it can really set the program back if you get the hire wrong. Look, I love Hopkins. And I'm very appreciative for everything he's done for the program. There is NO DOUBT that he has done the heavy lifting in the program as JB has gotten older. Coach is the closer with recruiting and shows up on game day, but has handed over a LOT of day-to-day responsibility to Hopkins that most ACs don't have. And I think that Hopkins is such a dynamic personality, that he's been a huge boon on the recruiting trail. I also think he's been incredibly loyal to the University, and has waited his turn--and has probably waited a lot longer than he should have. But regardless of how this season is unfolding, this is an elite caliber job. We need to land the best coaching candidate we can, period. And if that candiate comes from outside of the program, so be it. I feel like we place too much emphasis on keeping it in the "family" as opposed to getting the best guy we can. I also wouldn't mind seeing things switch up a bit with our style of play. Landing [and these are just purely hypothetical names] a Jay Wright, a Sean Miller, a Shaka Smart, are proven commodities who have won at a high level, and would make us better offensively than we've been the last few years. Now, maybe Hopkins will pan out and sustain JB's success, even though numerous historical examples suggest that probably won't happen. But at the end of the day, I don't think it can be argued that Hopkins--at his current experience level--is the "best" candidate for the big shoes he has to fill. You don't make a middle executive the CEO--you go out and hire another executive. And just to be clear again, I love Hopkins. I think he "deserves" a shot. I would just prefer a Shaka Smart or a Brad Stevens or a Gregg Marshall to Hop. [/QUOTE]

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