Mick Cronin to UCLA | Page 3 | Syracusefan.com

Mick Cronin to UCLA

Capt. Tuttle said:
I wonder how often, if at all, coaches change schools in conference.
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I’m sure it’s happened but I’m scratching my head trying to recall one. It’d have to be a pretty big name
 
IthacaMatt said:
I could see that. I bet he'd do great there.
He always used to kill our zone, and he won even more games at Pitt than the really good Ben Howland teams. He never could get over the hump in the NCAA tournament, but as much as we want to forget those days, in the 1990s, Pitt and UConn carried the Big East and battled for the title every year. Howland and then Dixon built and maintained a very good program.

EDIT: I read the thread above and see how critical people are of this hire, saying UCLA fans are unrealistic I think you're forgetting how down the PAC-12 is right now. Hop's teams haven't been that great and he's been Coach of the Year back-to-back years, and just won that league by 3 games.

Arizona is in a world of hurt right now. Bobby Hurley isn't "all that" at Arizona State after all. USC is kind of a mess right now. Somebody who is established and experienced running a program might be just what they need. Stability, great defense, commitment to winning.
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Omg, what?? Pitt was terrible in the 90s!! Howland didn’t get there til the early aughts. Also, Pitt NEVER carried the Big East. Your memory is bad. Pitt and UConn were consistently two of the best BE teams in the 00s but they never ever *carried* the conference. Syracuse won the title in 2003, UConn in 04, and Nova, Gtown, WVU, and Louisville all made Final Fours post 2000. Pitt never even made a FF though they won regular season titles.
 
Sherman20 said:
Omg, what?? Pitt was terrible in the 90s!! Howland didn’t get there til the early aughts. Also, Pitt NEVER carried the Big East. Your memory is bad. Pitt and UConn were consistently two of the best BE teams in the 00s but they never ever *carried* the conference. Syracuse won the title in 2003, UConn in 04, and Nova, Gtown, WVU, and Louisville all made Final Fours post 2000. Pitt never even made a FF though they won regular season titles.
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OK, so I'm old. Kill me.

UConn played in 4 of the last 5 Big East Championship games of the 90s, and then 4 out of 5 Big East Championship games from 2000 - 2004. Eight championship game appearances in 10 years.

Pitt played in 7 out of 8 Big East Championship games from 2001-2008.

Ben Howland was at Pitt from 1999 to 2003, and Dixon took over in 2003-04 and stayed for 12 or 13 years.
(I honestly thought Howland had stayed longer than that, but I guess not ...)

Between the 2 of them, they achieved 10-straight seasons with at least 20 overall wins, 10 conference wins, and an NCAA Tournament appearance from 2002 through 2011.

I thought Howland got pushed out of UCLA because of the lack of tournament success, but he did last 10 seasons there. He had some great players, too - Kevin Love, Darren Collison, Russell Westbrook, Jordan Farmar and Arron Afflalo.

Maybe they wouldn't mind a do-over at UCLA. Howland wasn't as bad as they remembered, and maybe Dixon can bring them back. I think he's a good coach. He went 15-6 against SU. I don't think anybody has a better record against Boeheim than that.
 
RF2044 said:
I think that the term "home run" gets used too often. Dixon is a solid coach, but postseason performance is relevant, too. Given his track record, I'm not sure that he's a home run for an ostensible blue blood like UCLA, even as a program that has slipped a notch.

They were ostensibly talking to Calipari last week. Dixon is no Calipari.
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IDK dixon has won with marginal talent...how many recruits are dying to go to Pitt (even when they were good) or TCU? How many "stars" or NBA players has Dixon ever had??

Dixon @ UCLA would give him a whole new tier of players to work with...might be all he ever needed to get over the hump in the first place...I'm pretty sure he would do better @ UCLA than he ever did at Pitt or TCU...
 
CardiacCuse said:
IDK dixon has won with marginal talent...how many recruits are dying to go to Pitt (even when they were good) or TCU? How many "stars" or NBA players has Dixon ever had??

Dixon @ UCLA would give him a whole new tier of players to work with...might be all he ever needed to get over the hump in the first place...I'm pretty sure he would do better @ UCLA than he ever did at Pitt or TCU...
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I agree. I think he'll get better players at UCLA than he did at Pitt or TCU.
Ben Howland recruited very well out there.
Lots of talent in LA, growing up wanting to play for the Bruins regardless of who the coach may be.
 
CardiacCuse said:
IDK dixon has won with marginal talent...how many recruits are dying to go to Pitt (even when they were good) or TCU? How many "stars" or NBA players has Dixon ever had??

Dixon @ UCLA would give him a whole new tier of players to work with...might be all he ever needed to get over the hump in the first place...I'm pretty sure he would do better @ UCLA than he ever did at Pitt or TCU...
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Dixon had numerous highly rated players at Pitt, including a few McD's. He put several guys in the pros. I think you're overstating when you say "marginal talent."

He's been a great regular season coach, and a subpar postseason coach. Hence, why I don't consider him a "home run." No doubt, UCLA is higher profile than either Pitt or TCU. He's a proven coach, with a proven track record of success at numerous stops. UCLA is getting a proven commodity. I just don't think its a home run -- last week, they were talking to Calipari [for comparison]. THAT would have been a home run.
 
RF2044 said:
Dixon had numerous highly rated players at Pitt, including a few McD's. He put several guys in the pros. I think you're overstating when you say "marginal talent."

He's been a great regular season coach, and a subpar postseason coach. Hence, why I don't consider him a "home run." No doubt, UCLA is higher profile than either Pitt or TCU. He's a proven coach, with a proven track record of success at numerous stops. UCLA is getting a proven commodity. I just don't think its a home run -- last week, they were talking to Calipari [for comparison]. THAT would have been a home run.
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Would you feel the same way if they were after Mark Few?
 
IthacaMatt said:
Would you feel the same way if they were after Mark Few?
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Yes -- and I'm guessing so would UCLA fans. Terrific coach. Lackluster postseason success relative to ratings.

Dixon is no home run.
 
RF2044 said:
Yes -- and I'm guessing so would UCLA fans. Terrific coach. Lackluster postseason success relative to ratings.

Dixon is no home run.
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Same resume, pretty much. Great regular seasons, not so much in the post-season.
 
l'orange said:
Luke Walton?
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Yeah, LeBron and Magic screwed up the Lakers, bringing all those crappy retreads who can't shoot to fill out the roster while getting rid of a couple legitimately good players who Walton wanted to keep.

I think Luke Walton is a fine young coach, and he could kill it there. He would be a great choice, IMO.
 
RF2044 said:
Which is why I said that yes, I view them through the same lens.
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Except you think one is a great choice and the other is not.
So, you don't really see them through the same lens, although their achievements are about the same.
 
IthacaMatt said:
Except you think one is a great choice and the other is not.
So, you don't really see them through the same lens, although their achievements are about the same.
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I have no idea how you derive that from me saying I view them through the exact same lens. Neither has had great postseason success. You're reading your own biases into it, and making a completely unsubstantiated interpretation about what you think I think.

In baseball terms, Jamie Dixon is a nice, solid double for UCLA. Not a home run. He's not a home run because his postseason track record sucks. Doesn't matter how anyone wants to candy coat that, that's the thing that prevents it from being a higher-profile hire.

Down the road, that perception could change if he has better postseason success. But today, he is what he is. A decent coach, without an impressive track record of posies success. No amount of rationalization changes that.
 
RF2044 said:
Even more embarrassing is that it now appears that Jamie Dixon is reversing course and is staying at TCU.

LOL
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yeah, that's what i was referencing. ucla was willing to give nearly $50m to calipari but balked at paying an $8m buyout to tcu
 
Jake said:
Ugly ending for all involved.

UCLA looks cheap.
Dixon has to be pissed at his bosses.
Dixon loses the trust of his players, fans and administration.
TCU looks less attractive for future coaches.

Well done everyone.
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Yeah, UCLA really screwed Dixon by being so public about this, and then dumping him so publicly.
 

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