Potential JB successors

[Grbac]

Based on this thread, there will be a lot of unhappy bunnies when Gmac is announced as the next head coach.

Honestly I would rather keep McNamara and make him HC than to replace JB with a has been run of the mill coach.
He will always be a part of SU history and I think “could” be a good HC in the future. I would love it to have him be a successful HC right here at Syracuse.

If he fails, well atleast we have it a try. One of our own.

 

[benjams77]

If Hop, Red or Gmac don’t get the job and we actually go outside the program, who are some potential coaching candidates that could be good fits for the program and would be able to recruit at a high level at Syracuse? Here are some I’ve thought about. I’d love to hear people’s thoughts about quality, recruiting ability and fit (beyond simply looking at winning percentages or comparing them to JB).

John Beilein (he’d be my first choice if you could lure him back into coaching)
Brad Underwood, Illinois
Fran McCaffrey, Iowa
Dana Altman, Oregon
Shaka Smart, Marquette
Anthony Grant, Dayton (formerly Alabama and VCU)
Ed Cooley, Providence
Kevin Willard (lol… he is a NY native and can recruit though)
Mike Boynton, Oklahoma State (Brooklyn native)… I think he could be an underrated name. OSU is a really difficult place to recruit, and he’s done well.
Greg McDermott, Creighton
Travis Steele, Xavier
Wes Miller, Cincinnati
Steve Pikiell, Rutgers
Ryan Odom, Utah State (formerly UMBC)
Mark Pope, BYU
Porter Moser, Oklahoma (formerly Loyola Chicago)
Johnny Dawkins, Central Florida
Tommy Amaker, Harvard
Bobby Hurley, ASU (LOL!!!)
Frank Martin, South Carolina

Some of these guys at P5 jobs are probably not going anywhere, but you never know.

Some of these guys are on "Hot seat"lists on sports sites... A few are ok... 1st if we are wanting JB gone this year, why go get another upper aged coach who will be in JB's shoes sooner than later... and 2nd I'd like to see this list of Coaches here with Tournament bids the last 8 yrs... I don't even mean success in tourney, I mean just getting in .. I looked up a couple and some I just know have not been consistently.. At its worst counting this year Cuse under JB has missed the tourney 4 of the last 8 yrs of which the NCAA issue year and Covid year were not a lock of being out but didn't look good... Now If these coaches are not getting to at least 4 NCAAs in the last 8 years why would we want them... Mike Boyton has been to 2 in his 6 yrs I think... I know we need a replacement but many of these are not it if we use criteria of success... Because of that and all things considered unless its a younger successful coach like Oats or Few, I think they'll roll the dice with a Syracuse alum

 

[Briancuse]

3 OTs last night against Xavier - Dunk was super loud. No he is not leaving PC.

Providence is a really tough place to win. Pitino and Gillen both left when the iron was hot. He would leave pc for Syracuse.

 

[Orangefizz]

Todd Golden from USF Dons - they’re playing Gonzaga tonight.

 

[Gotothehole]

Honestly I would rather keep McNamara and make him HC than to replace JB with a has been run of the mill coach.
He will always be a part of SU history and I think “could” be a good HC in the future. I would love it to have him be a successful HC right here at Syracuse.

If he fails, well atleast we have it a try. One of our own.

NO

 

[orangedave]

If Hop, Red or Gmac don’t get the job and we actually go outside the program, who are some potential coaching candidates that could be good fits for the program and would be able to recruit at a high level at Syracuse? Here are some I’ve thought about. I’d love to hear people’s thoughts about quality, recruiting ability and fit (beyond simply looking at winning percentages or comparing them to JB).

John Beilein (he’d be my first choice if you could lure him back into coaching)
Brad Underwood, Illinois
Fran McCaffrey, Iowa
Dana Altman, Oregon
Shaka Smart, Marquette
Anthony Grant, Dayton (formerly Alabama and VCU)
Ed Cooley, Providence
Kevin Willard (lol… he is a NY native and can recruit though)
Mike Boynton, Oklahoma State (Brooklyn native)… I think he could be an underrated name. OSU is a really difficult place to recruit, and he’s done well.
Greg McDermott, Creighton
Travis Steele, Xavier
Wes Miller, Cincinnati
Steve Pikiell, Rutgers
Ryan Odom, Utah State (formerly UMBC)
Mark Pope, BYU
Porter Moser, Oklahoma (formerly Loyola Chicago)
Johnny Dawkins, Central Florida
Tommy Amaker, Harvard
Bobby Hurley, ASU (LOL!!!)
Frank Martin, South Carolina

Some of these guys at P5 jobs are probably not going anywhere, but you never know.

I wouldn't take Hurley if he offered to work for nothing. He's a total PIA.

 

[5OutFred]

Not to discourage the hopefuls...Brad Stevens isn't coming. If it didn't happen at IU, it's guaranteed not happening at SU. Mark Few isn't coming. He's built a perennial top 5 team in his backyard. The only comparable high-major to high-major moves in recent years would be Williams to UNC and Beard to UT - both of which had prominent ties to those jobs.

There can be a realistic discussion about who WOULD come - but to throw out names like that is misguided.

 

[721Comstock]

I wouldn't take Hurley if he offered to work for nothing. He's a total POS.

FIFY.

 

[HRE Otto IV]

Some of these guys are on "Hot seat"lists on sports sites... A few are ok... 1st if we are wanting JB gone this year, why go get another upper aged coach who will be in JB's shoes sooner than later... and 2nd I'd like to see this list of Coaches here with Tournament bids the last 8 yrs... I don't even mean success in tourney, I mean just getting in .. I looked up a couple and some I just know have not been consistently.. At its worst counting this year Cuse under JB has missed the tourney 4 of the last 8 yrs of which the NCAA issue year and Covid year were not a lock of being out but didn't look good... Now If these coaches are not getting to at least 4 NCAAs in the last 8 years why would we want them... Mike Boyton has been to 2 in his 6 yrs I think... I know we need a replacement but many of these are not it if we use criteria of success... Because of that and all things considered unless its a younger successful coach like Oats or Few, I think they'll roll the dice with a Syracuse alum

Agree that there is not much out there. You definitely ask Oats, but I think he stays put. Too bad the Rutgers coach is a UConn guy. So we will need to roll the dice, which more likely means internal. But I rather roll the dice with someone who can recruit NYC, Philly, BMore. That is what we need. Our current staff doesn't have pull in any of those places, which is why I mentioned Kyle Neptune.

 

[Bulldog04]

Here’s my coaching wish list:

Brad Stevens as HC. Sure he left college because he grew tired of recruiting and turned down a Godfather offer from Indiana last year, but I am sure he’s got the itch to return to college.

At lead assistant, let’s bring in Monty Williams from the Suns. They have been one of the leading defensive teams in the NBA the last couple of years, so he could handle that side of the court.

That leaves us a little lacking on O, so I would give Mike D’Antoni a call. He knows how to build offensive attacks. He is getting up there in age, so if by some chance he turns the offer down (which is a very slim possibility), then you go to one of his protégés: Steve Nash. He wanted to play collegiately at Syracuse so that’s a layup.

There’s one assistant spot left. I would tab current Knicks and former UK assistant Kenny Payne to spearhead our recruiting efforts.

I’ve also thought about the director of basketball operations position . Here’s a name that might seem out of left field: William Wesley, colloquially known as “Worldwide Wes.” He has a lot of connections in the recruiting world, and I am sure he would be a valuable contributor in those efforts.

Now you have a coaching staff.

I think you forgot your sarcasm font...

 

[Bulldog04]

No one has named JBs actual replacement yet? Well... allow me

I’ve been saying it for months that he will be a candidate so welcome to my fan club

 

[UpstateSM]

I've said it elsewhere but it is hilarious that you can't touch Pitino because "optics" or people think that he's a bad dude but Mark Few is a no-brainer hire.

What a world we live in

 

[sweetpea]

For selfish reasons I think many (I included) would be able to look past Pitino's past. He might actually be willing to come too.

 

[Fly Rodder]

I've said it elsewhere but it is hilarious that you can't touch Pitino because "optics"

Slick has promised to be the best boy ever.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

Todd Golden from USF Dons - they’re playing Gonzaga tonight.

9 pm start. Glad to be able to watch the Zags at a decent time. But won't be easy on the road. See if the Dons are Golden.

 

[Sherman20]

Donovan hates re recruiting and will never go back to college coaching.

I guess you didn’t read the part where I said he hates recruiting.

 

[sutomcat]

I always thought Billy Donovan would be a good fit for Cuse if he chose to return to college coaching. But I know he hates all the BS that comes with recruiting. And he’s not just a “relatively big name.” Him and Brad Stevens are just about biggest fish you could get, outside of Few or Wright.

If JB were to leave after this season (I don’t think that’s happening), I’d fully support hiring Beilein. Again, does he want to get back into college coaching? I really don’t know who we’d be able to land. I’d love to see Wildhack back up the brinks truck and land a Donovan, Stevens, Nate Oats or Eric Musselman. I forgot to put those last two on the list. Also, I love Buzz Williams, but I don’t know if he leaves Texas A&M since he’s from that area.

Agree Donovan would be an extremely tough get. Very unlikely. No idea what his situation is or if he might be interested in returning to college coaching for the right situation. Probably not.

I threw his name out not because I think he are going to hire him specifically but as an example of the type of coach I think John is going to go after.

I think John is going to go after the best possible candidates. Shoot for the moon. Will he get choice A or choice B? Probably not.

But I do not think he is going to consider candidates with no head coaching experience. I do not think he is going to hire some obscure HC from the Midwest or the MAC. I think he is going to bring in someone with demonstrated success coaching college basketball at the highest level. That person is likely going to have a background recruiting in the NYC/Philly/DC metro areas.

I think John understands what is needed to turn the program around and has access to a lot of people who really understand college basketball and who the best fits might be.

Now we all know we are talking about Syracuse. This school has never spent money like a drunken sailor, never gone after top of the line coaches and changing 100 years plus of history is going to be a tough ask.

But John thinks big. I think when the time comes and the SU men's basketball position is open, he is going to make a statement hire. I have never predicted Syracuse to do something like this but given what he has done to rebuild the football coaching staff and the success he has had getting funds to renovate the dome, I think he is going big on this.

Maybe he goes to the board and gets turned down. Maybe the SU hoops HC position is not as great a coaching job as some of us think it is. When all is said and done, I think he gets the money to get the job done.

Let's see what happens.

 

[Syracuslove]

How many of these coaches are actual viable candidates? I personally would think a young upcoming coach with northeast ties at a mid-major or assistant at a top program would be the most reasonable and best route to go.

 

[Sherman20]

Ed Cooley.

Agree, I think Cooley could be a good choice. But people aren’t looking at context for any of these possibilities. Instead they’re just going to Wikipedia and looking up records and tourney bids and whining about how so-and-so hasn’t won enough in the regular season or tourney compared to JB. So unimaginative. “Let’s just stick with GMac.” Cooley coming from Providence is an example of, could he take the next step here? PC is a tiny Catholic school in a decent recruiting location but with nowhere near the program or conference resources of a place like Syracuse or Michigan (where he was a finalist for the job two years ago). Going from PC to Syracuse or Michigan, he’d have much more resources to work with, at schools with more history and prestige, and in bigger conferences with their own networks. He’d presumably be able to recruit at a higher level than he could at PC. So you can’t look at his record at PC and simply compare it to a coach like JB or Beilein. The schools are not a one-to-one comparisons in any way.

Look at Mick Cronin. He left Cincy to go to UCLA because of that program’s prestige and stature in the PAC and the wealth of great talent he could tap into in SoCal. And would you look at that? He’s already made a Final Four there.

I personally don’t think Billy Donovan or Brad Stevens are walking through that door after JB retires, though Beilein could be a possibility. So we need to look closely at candidates that are doing well where they are but could do even better at a more prestigious and well-resourced program like Syracuse.

 

[5OutFred]

Ed Cooley.

Reminder - Cooley has never made the Sweet 16 at Providence.

 

[Sherman20]

Not to discourage the hopefuls...Brad Stevens isn't coming. If it didn't happen at IU, it's guaranteed not happening at SU. Mark Few isn't coming. He's built a perennial top 5 team in his backyard. The only comparable high-major to high-major moves in recent years would be Williams to UNC and Beard to UT - both of which had prominent ties to those jobs.

There can be a realistic discussion about who WOULD come - but to throw out names like that is misguided.

I’d add Rick Barnes at Texas as a P5 to P5 move. He basically got pushed out at Texas but has turned Tennessee into a perennial top 25 team and grabbing top recruits left and right. (He’s still struggling to break through with a tourney run though.) There are some other names as well, including Cronin.

 

[Briancuse]

Reminder - Cooley has never made the Sweet 16 at Providence.

Reminder - Cooley has never made the Sweet 16 at Providence.

Providence isn't UNC. They have been to a total of 5 sweet 16s in the history of their program. And they have been around for a long time.

 

[Red Holzman]

I wouldn't want to hire someone more than 50 unless there were some strong extenuating circumstances. All things being equal I would prefer a coach known for an exciting playing style and a high scoring offense. I think they is what the fan base craves and would draw the biggest crowds/drive the most excitement.

1000% Yes -nailed it.
Athletes. Excitement. Entertainment. Fun.
Bring it back!!!

 

[Bulldog04]

I’d add Rick Barnes at Texas. He basically got pushed out at Texas but has turned Tennessee into a perennial top 25 team and grabbing top recruits left and right. (He’s still struggling to break through in the tourney though.) There are some other names as well, including Cronin.

The issue is all of these coaches already make more than what SU is paying. That’s my fear is they won’t dish it out for the right guy. I hope I’m wrong but I think it depends on the guy too. Guys love Barnes too

 

[OrangeDW]

Go the Deion route and hire Carmelo. Get solid assistants and watch what type of recruits are in the mix. Extremely hot take but I would sign up for it in a second ...

Carmelo….still plays in the NBA.