Thamel: It’s GMac

[OttoinGrotto]

I love my law partners. They're both great guys. I've learned from them immensely in how to do things, but I've also learned how not to do things because I strongly disagree with their points of view and priorities and how they choose to manage certain aspects of our practice.

I hope that's how Gerry feels about JB. His staff will tell a lot early. Is it going to be a real staff or a Syracuse alumni jobs program?

Staff and roster. Has to get it right.

And right isn't going to mean either is loaded with former Syracuse and Siena guys.

My biggest fears are playing out right now.

 

[Brooky03]

A lot of posters were team Hodgson. For those that are Team Gerry? What do you love about his style? How comfortable are you with the next 5 years at SU?

The Duke game was great, but i really am nervous about that being a flash in the pan game for him.

I was okay with either guy. What I like about Gerry is the way his team plays defense and the inside-out offensive style, that shows an ability to adapt to the players he has, instead of wedging players into a ‘system.’ I like his demeanor and the players seem to rally around him. Coaching games is as much about motivating players and putting them in position to succeed as it is about X’s and O’s.

 

[crv1728]

He hasn’t beaten a serious team. Ever. He put a good game plan together for the duke game, but does ANYONE here believe duke wouldn’t mop the floor with Siena if they played again? It would have been nice to see him win a game he was expected to lose.

MAAC finals vs Merrimack?

 

[Brooky03]

Staff and roster. Has to get it right.

And right isn't going to mean either is loaded with former Syracuse and Siena guys.

My biggest fears are playing out right now.

Well, I’d expect he’s going to bring along ‘his’ guys. I’d expect that from any coach. Getting a head coaching gig and then interviewing completely new guys to fill out your staff is a hell of an uphill battle. Setting up additional hurdles for yourself.

 

[Sherman20]

My worry - i watch a lot basketball. Mostly NBA with Cuse seasons generally over by Christmas. The best coaches are smart - some very smart. They innovate to secure an edge. That was JB's edge against Georgetown, St John's and UConn. I remember Pitino saying as much before the final game against Kentucky in '96. Will Cuse out recruit Duke or NC or even Louisville? Unlikely. Best case is probably 2nd tier unless our coach is better at the craft of coaching. There is nothing in G-Mac's short coaching history to suggest he is a crafty coach. His experience as an assistant is limited to one coach - yes a smart one but one that by most accounts lost his edge over his last years. I've heard that his teams are gritty and play hard. The Duke game was not about Xs and Os. It was about Duke thinking they could coast to the 2nd round and a great shooting day until Duke dug in. With sufficient NIL $$ and a demanding program, I trust we will be better and get into the Big Dance most years. But getting back to a perennially strong program like the Big East days, I will be surprised. Success may come down to having a reason to watch after Christmas. And telling tales to my grandchildren about what Syracuse used to be.

My only hope is that he hires the next Luke Murray as an assistant to mastermind the offense and offer a fresh perspective. When Hurley empowered Murray, that’s when UConn went to the next level. Fran hired Vince from Toledo to fix the defense, and that was a really savvy move. I have faith that will work out because he hired a proven guy. Follow that path and you might have a chance. Put Ryan Blackwell in charge of the offense and we will look like Red 2.0.

 

[Consigliere]

He hasn’t beaten a serious team. Ever. He put a good game plan together for the duke game, but does ANYONE here believe duke wouldn’t mop the floor with Siena if they played again? It would have been nice to see him win a game he was expected to lose.

Okay. But that’s not the question. You can say that about dozens of coaches. Has nothing to do with whether or not he graduated from Syracuse.

 

[newmexicuse]

While I initially thought an outsider would be better, I fully support this hire and wish Gerry great success. I do believe with adequate NIL that he will succeed here.

Gotta say though, that a five year deal is a really long time in case it doesnt work out. Would have preferred a three year arrangement.

Go Cuse - Go Gerry !!!!

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Well, I’d expect he’s going to bring along ‘his’ guys. I’d expect that from any coach. Getting a head coaching gig and then interviewing completely new guys to fill out your staff is a hell of an uphill battle. Setting up additional hurdles for yourself.

The likelihood that "his guys" from both the player and coach perspective are good enough to get us back to the tournament is low.

We're going to take a nice ride on the pain train if the major coaching and roster moves heavily sway to former Siena guys.

 

[MSOrange]

Just curious. For those on the “must be outside the “family”” brigade, since the Siena - Duke game was likely the first time you watched one of GMac’s teams play, what specifically would have made you feel the coach was just another Boeheim clone? And before you say playing his starters too much consider 2 key reserves were out with injuries, a third was limited and a starter was declared ineligible prior to the start of the postseason. Siena had 9 players average 10+ mpg.

cliftonpark has some good insight as a Siena season ticket holder. Siena has had a few televised games on the ESPN networks also, so it's not just the Duke game that some people have seen.

Post in thread 'Coach Search Options after Autry'

Today at 1:46 PM

First, I have no inside info. Let’s make that clear,

That said, let’s say if we go with GMac, we have $12 million in NIL. And let’s say if we go with Josh Schertz, we would have $8 million in NIL.

Who do you go with in a situation like that?

Bryan Blair already said in one of the first times he sat in front of a microphone at SU that it used to be you hired the best possible coach you could. But in this day and age, coaching isn’t as important. NIL money (and talent on the court) are now a huge consideration.

I think many of us have speculated that SUAD BB has been weighing a...

• cliftonparksufan

• 

 

[Orangezoo]

My only hope is that he hires the next Luke Murray as an assistant to mastermind the offense and offer a fresh perspective. When Hurley empowered Murray, that’s when UConn went to the next level. Fran hired Vince from Toledo to fix the defense, and that was a really savvy move. Follow that path and you might have a chance. Put Ryan Blackwell in charge of the offense and we will look like Red 2.0.

I do not expect to see the Siena offense here. What he ran was a lot to do with personnel from what I saw.

He did some some nice halfcourt sets throughout the year, the injuries plus Coyle getting the yips complicated things. I expect Gerry to have an offense here that does push the ball as that is more in line with how he likes to play. He does need an offensive mind to help with that. Maybe if he can get Lee to come, Lee can help be that guy with more talent and options to work with maybe it’s someone else to bring in. Either way certainly a different more P4 modern offense is necessary and I would expect we will see one.

Don’t forget that Gerry was never shy of pushing the ball as a player and getting good shots early on to beat a defense. I don’t think (and hope) that has left his DNA in how he wants to play.

 

[LAorange44]

The likelihood that "his guys" from both the player and coach perspective are good enough to get us back to the tournament is low.

We're going to take a nice ride on the pain train if the major coaching and roster moves heavily sway to former Siena guys.

I’d welcome any of GMAC’s Siena guys. If they can instill into our Cuse guys the work ethic and culture that GMAC brought to Siena then we will be a very dangerous team.

 

[Cusefan95]

Years and years ago I sat next to a former Villanova assistant coach at the Big East tourney. We got to chatting. He knew Gerry from his high school days in Scranton.

The story was that when SU got into the locker room at halftime of the title game, up 18, the enormity of the moment hit Gerry. He kinda freaked out, got super tight, and struggled in the second half. I mean, he was 18 and in the national title game. So I totally get it.

He’d also smashed his hand on a monitor going for a loose ball iirc.

 

[Orangezoo]

The likelihood that "his guys" from both the player and coach perspective are good enough to get us back to the tournament is low.

We're going to take a nice ride on the pain train if the major coaching and roster moves heavily sway to former Siena guys.

He’s got a pledged massive war chest to work with and a tournament still in play. Lot of time to get the word out and feelers out to bring in some major talent. I’d say you need 2 major buys( PG and C), 2-3 re-ups from our existing roster, 2 guys from Siena , find a couple overseas guys and then some nice finds for additional depth with the rest .

I don’t mind Moesch as a bench guard if he can play and be a hard to guard college JJ Barea from the feedback some saying he can indeed ball.

 

[Cuseregular]

Just curious. For those on the “must be outside the “family”” brigade, since the Siena - Duke game was likely the first time you watched one of GMac’s teams play, what specifically would have made you feel the coach was just another Boeheim clone? And before you say playing his starters too much consider 2 key reserves were out with injuries, a third was limited and a starter was declared ineligible prior to the start of the postseason. Siena had 9 players average 10+ mpg.

Dude, don’t even bother, haters are gonna hate, regardless, as I learned in the last few days

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I’d welcome any of GMAC’s Siena guys. If they can instill into our Cuse guys the work ethic and culture that GMAC brought to Siena then we will be a very dangerous team.

That assumes there's enough talent on the roster for the work ethic and culture to make enough of a difference to be competitive in the ACC.

 

[RedtheGOB]

Regardless of Offense/Defense or Position we have to bring in Winning players that have played for Winning Coaches and teams.

-JJ-->Never played for a winning coach or team under Brey and Autry
-Donnie-->Never played for a winning team or coach Autry
-George-->Never played for a winning team or coach under GTech and Stoudamire

These 3 were the lions share of our NIL...Notice how every coach they played for has been canned to date and these players have not won anywhere they have played.

-Kyle-->UCLA Cronin
-Kingz-->Oregon St. his path is much different being JUCO and RS also he's 23.
-Betsey-->Cincy
-Suare--> Stoudamire again
-Not considering the freshman

When the portal opens the NIL needs to be spent on guys that have played on winning teams and under solid coaches. I don't care about portal rankings and all the hype a player may have in the portal if this NIL is real we need to go out and get 3-4 studs that are playing tourney games right now under well coached teams.

 

[Cusefan95]

From everything previously said he did not really donate that much money. In his post did not say he will donate real money.

I think that was a big part of the beef with Lally - AW would donate to Tom Brady’s charity, post to social media sitting with him at the game, and act like it was a huge donation to Syracuse. There’s probably room for AW and Lally to coexist - a lot would depend on AW taking the mostly the same approach at Syracuse that he did at Siena.

As an aside - the Lally = football take doesn’t seem to take into account the way he uses his football donations as leverage for general political clout. If AW is posting pictures on social media with whatever famous person he paid to come to a game with him - this is probably going to start going sideways.

 

[Brooky03]

The likelihood that "his guys" from both the player and coach perspective are good enough to get us back to the tournament is low.

We're going to take a nice ride on the pain train if the major coaching and roster moves heavily sway to former Siena guys.

I assume we’re talking about a recruiting/NIL guy? Yeah, he should probably put in some work there and get the best he can.

I don’t think he needs outside hires as offensive/defensive coordinator types (which I recognize is not really a basketball thing). You want guys aligned with your X’s and O’s. Position coaches can come from anywhere; being at a bigger school doesn’t necessarily say much about their ability.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

He’s got a pledged massive war chest to work with and a tournament still in play. Lot of time to get the word out and feelers out to bring in some major talent. I’d say you need 2 major buys( PG and C), 2-3 re-ups from our existing roster, 2 guys from Siena , find a couple overseas guys and then some nice finds for additional depth with the rest .

I don’t mind Moesch as a bench guard if he can play and be a hard to guard college JJ Barea from the feedback some saying he can indeed ball.

Right, but here's the problem - at Siena he hasn't been recruiting the guys that would be difference makers in the ACC.

Gerry got some experience as the head man, which was needed. But the level is so different, AND it's compounded by the fact that he was regularly the bridesmaid when he was our lead recruiter. Boeheim didn't put him in position to succeed and didn't help him much, but the following things have to be true:

1, sufficient dollars are there

2, Gerry and staff can identify talent that will come here that isn't just mercenary pay me first guys

3, the "culture" takes hold among whatever combo of holdovers, Siena guys, and new portal/recruiting additions gets thrown together

4, this combination all works such that we end up with a combination that puts us toward the top of the ACC, relative to all other ACC programs

I just view the likelihood of this being very low.

 

[Orangezoo]

Right, but here's the problem - at Siena he hasn't been recruiting the guys that would be difference makers in the ACC.

Gerry got some experience as the head man, which was needed. But the level is so different, AND it's compounded by the fact that he was regularly the bridesmaid when he was our lead recruiter. Boeheim didn't put him in position to succeed and didn't help him much, but the following things have to be true:

1, sufficient dollars are there

2, Gerry and staff can identify talent that will come here that isn't just mercenary pay me first guys

3, the "culture" takes hold among whatever combo of holdovers, Siena guys, and new portal/recruiting additions gets thrown together

4, this combination all works such that we end up with a combination that puts us toward the top of the ACC, relative to all other ACC programs

I just view the likelihood of this being very low.

All fair observations and concerns. It’s sink or swim. While I wanted an outside hire and see all of this as a gamble I think he will beat the odds despite what he is up against. Honestly we don’t need many holdovers. I do like Kingz and Sadiq and I get Kiyan does likely stay but none of the holdovers have a connection to Gerry and turning things over may have a better likelihood of success and getting buy in alongside the 3 guys he brings with him.

 

[Cusefan95]

Just curious. For those on the “must be outside the “family”” brigade, since the Siena - Duke game was likely the first time you watched one of GMac’s teams play, what specifically would have made you feel the coach was just another Boeheim clone? And before you say playing his starters too much consider 2 key reserves were out with injuries, a third was limited and a starter was declared ineligible prior to the start of the postseason. Siena had 9 players average 10+ mpg.

Watched a few games this season (went to one). Don’t think he overplayed starters, he had no bench left. Also haven’t seen people say he’s a JB clone - I wouldn’t agree with that.

I do worry that hiring a guy with two years experience means he hasn’t been exposed to a bunch of situations and is going to have to learn on the fly. An example of that was this year in football - I’d expect (hope?) at some point Brown will lose his starting QB and will have a better plan b. It can be a momentum killer and potentially a career killer when you have one bad season early in the big time. Ideally he can hire an assistant that has had some head coaching experience, that helps mitigate his limited experience.

 

[Fan Always]

He went to Providence because boeheim said no.

That would make sense.

 

[50YRsofCuse]

Regardless of Offense/Defense or Position we have to bring in Winning players that have played for Winning Coaches and teams.

-JJ-->Never played for a winning coach or team under Brey and Autry
-Donnie-->Never played for a winning team or coach Autry
-George-->Never played for a winning team or coach under GTech and Stoudamire

These 3 were the lions share of our NIL...Notice how every coach they played for has been canned to date and these players have not won anywhere they have played.

-Kyle-->UCLA Cronin
-Kingz-->Oregon St. his path is much different being JUCO and RS also he's 23.
-Betsey-->Cincy
-Suare--> Stoudamire again
-Not considering the freshman

When the portal opens the NIL needs to be spent on guys that have played on winning teams and under solid coaches. I don't care about portal rankings and all the hype a player may have in the portal if this NIL is real we need to go out and get 3-4 studs that are playing tourney games right now under well coached teams.

Not that I believe the above players were bad but the first three you mentioned did very little to get their teammates involved in the flow of the game. I know that Starling is gone, I kind of wish that George and Freeman would be gone unless they come back motivated to work to move the ball around.

George’s main job last year was to get the whole team on the floor involved in the game. He failed to do so in more games than he succeeded. I would not be upset if the team found a better floor general.

 

[Orangefan1]

Right, but here's the problem - at Siena he hasn't been recruiting the guys that would be difference makers in the ACC.

Gerry got some experience as the head man, which was needed. But the level is so different, AND it's compounded by the fact that he was regularly the bridesmaid when he was our lead recruiter. Boeheim didn't put him in position to succeed and didn't help him much, but the following things have to be true:

1, sufficient dollars are there

2, Gerry and staff can identify talent that will come here that isn't just mercenary pay me first guys

3, the "culture" takes hold among whatever combo of holdovers, Siena guys, and new portal/recruiting additions gets thrown together

4, this combination all works such that we end up with a combination that puts us toward the top of the ACC, relative to all other ACC programs

I just view the likelihood of this being very low.

One likes basketball and supports it and the other does for football…not sure what the issue is here

 

[sdhall01]

Okay and did that lead to anything besides a holiday bowl

Yeah, it did. It lead to getting the nation’s leading passer. What are we even talking about here?