Nice post by the poster NC Wealse, very fair assesment.
These are all just our opinions. None of us know him, so we're just taking shots "in the dark" so to speak.
First off, he married a KY Girl, so he gets a couple of bonus points for that. The man has to have some taste.
Secondly, JB has always been the "other" coach in the Big East. Never "the man". Calhoun, Pitino, Massimino, Carnesecca, Thompson, Wright ... these guys have all had turns being the hot coach. And Jim B stood in the shadows so to speak as the good, but not great coach right behind them during their glory runs. Plodding along just winning games. And he does it in a tough state, the NY Media riding his ass, etc.
I think it probably has given him a tougher shell than he started out with. But that is part Jim and part the Northeastern Media eating the coaches alive up there.
The guy has been winning, his way for a long time. I was happy when he got his NCAA Title because it validated him as a coach. Meant he was as good as anybody, especially in the Big East. Where it is tough.
I 100% agree they don't play a good enough OOC schedule. He has probably hurt his team at times by not leaving NY state early enough in the season, played some better road games prior to the bonference schedule. But the Big East, at times, has also been one helluva gauntlet of games to wade thru as well.
We'll see where the smoke clears on this Bernie Fine stuff. On one hand, if Boeheim knew he should go, you can't protect your coaches over the boys working for the program. There is NEVER an excuse for that. BUT, while he was protecting Fine initially he also said something that is coming true ... these two "victims" are primarily out for money. And their actions aren't typical either. Moving in with their alleged molester? Going back as an adult years later and protestuting himself to Bernie Fine as an adult? Recording a phone call while trying to extort money from the family? .... Maybe his experiences as a molested child lead to all that, but Boeheim wasn't entirely wrong either. And if he wasn't aware that Fine was a molester, it would be easy to see why he said what he said. To top it all off, that same "victim" apparently spoke on the phone and gave info to another person who was NOT a victim but that information allowed that person to sound more credible. To me, that should be a crime too.
We'll have to see when all the facts are in what Boeheim knew, and when.
But purely as a coach, I think he is avery good one. Top 15 for sure.
As far as being arrogrant or an ass. Most people outside Rupp's inner circle said the same thing about him. Strong, confident, passion winners are almost always perceived that way from the outside.
Of the top coaches, only Wooden and maybe Dean Smith come to mind as something otherwise. I am sure there are more, but the majority would fit that description.
