A few weeks after insisting that Cal would return for a sixteenth season, today both Cal and Barnhart have come out with statements saying that he will be moving on. Cal says, "This program probably needs to hear another voice." Here's Barnhart:
We're appreciative of John Calipari leading our program for the last 15 years, adding to the legacy of championship success at Kentucky. We're grateful to John for his many contributions to the University, and our state, both on and off the court.
We are working diligently to hire a proven, highly dedicated coach who embraces the importance of this program to our fans and the state of Kentucky.
And that's probably about as much as we'll ever know about what really happened.
Now we wait to see who in the sports media actually knows the truth. In the last coaching search, Andy Katz was consistently correct, and almost everyone else was consistently wrong. We will be keeping track of who gets it right.
No news yet.
ReplyDeleteSince John Wooden retired, only three schools have gone back-to-back. Here's how I would rank them:
ReplyDelete1. Duke
2. UConn
3. Florida
In the final Ken Pom rankings, Kentucky finishes at Number 23.
ReplyDeleteRick Pitino's St. John's team finished at Number 21.
DeleteThat's the highest final ranking for any team in the State of New York since 2014. Also, he was the only coach in the post-season who gave UConn a real game.
DeleteWith the possible exception of Danny Hurley, the two greatest college coaches since Wooden retired were Larry Brown and Rick Pitino, but neither of them managed their career in a way that made it possible for them to get the credit their talents deserved.
DeleteI'm surprised that Bobby Knight did not make your list.
DeleteJust a reminder that since UNLV in 1990, every NCAA Champion has come from one of the seven classic conferences -- the SEC, the ACC, the SWC, the Big 8, the Big 10, the Big East, and the Pac 12 -- except for U of L in 2013.
ReplyDeleteStill no news.
ReplyDeleteIn all seriousness, here's what I think will happen. Arkansas will make their announcement tomorrow, and UK won't want to say anything that would conflict with Cal's introduction at Arkansas. The Masters starts on Thursday, and UK won't want to have their big announcement get drowned out by the Masters -- and besides, their lawyers will be working over the weekend on whatever deal they are considering. So I don't think we'll hear anything until next week.
ReplyDeleteRob Dillingham, one of my favorite UK players of all time, has announced that he's going to the NBA. Cal never wanted him to start, and in the end that attitude had disastrous consequences for everyone except Oakland.
ReplyDeleteAdam Zagoria reports that UK is targeting Baylor coach Scott Drew and that the two sides are in talks. I like this idea.
ReplyDeleteIf it were up to me, of course, I'd swing for the fences with someone like Billy Donovan, and then I'd end up hiring Bruce Pearl. But I can live with Scott Drew.
DeleteAndy Katz tweets: "The best fit with AD Mitch Barnhart would be Baylor coach Scott Drew. They are good friends and have similar interests. Now, whether or not he is the choice or goes is another question. The Kentucky job is not for everyone. You must be someone who can handle the pressure, the interest level and the demands to compete for a title."
ReplyDeleteIronically, if Scott Drew had done what he's done at Vandy, instead of Baylor, I think Kentucky fans would be much more interested in getting him. I don't think UK fans fully appreciate how hard it is to win at a place like Baylor. But it's really hard.
ReplyDeletePeople don't understand how absurd it is to have to play against Kansas in Kansas's league. Do you want to appreciate how absurd Kansas's home court advantage is? Consider this: Kansas beat UConn at home this season -- that's how absurd their advantage is. And Drew has been battling that for years.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the folks who don't think Drew can coach should explain how Baylor drilled UK in December 2012 and December 2013.
DeleteSo I'm fine with Drew. But I really wish Barnhart would just make the announcement tomorrow, instead of letting everything drag on into next week.
ReplyDeleteBut to reiterate: I think Drew is the biggest name Barnhart would be willing and/or able to get. If we don't get Drew, I think we're looking at someone like Mark Pope.
ReplyDeleteRemember that Barnhart's idea of a great hire was Billy Gillispie.
DeleteScott Drew sounds great to me.
ReplyDeleteBen Roberts of the Lexington Herald-Leader reports that Scott Drew is on a plane for Lexington.
ReplyDeleteKeith Farmer of Channel 18 in Lexington reports that no coach is on a plane for Lexington today. That supports my view that this will get done next week.
ReplyDeleteScott Drew just sent out a tweet saying that he's in Waco today.
ReplyDeleteThe tweet showed Drew at a restaurant in Waco. According to Matt Jones, a UK fan figured out where the restaurant is, called the restaurant, and asked one of the waitresses to tell Drew he is needed in Lexington.
DeleteFor what it's worth, the Message Boards want Bruce Pearl (assuming UK can't get Danny Hurley or Billy Donovan). Personally, I'm starting to get more and more accustomed to the idea of T.J. Otzelberger.
ReplyDeleteMatt Jones just tweeted that "We can all chill. It's not a 'circus' and there is nothing to worry about yet. It's a process."
ReplyDeleteThat's the tweet of someone who knows nothing is happening until after the Masters.
My advice: start getting used to the idea of T.J. Otzelberger.
ReplyDeleteAnd you know what? He may turn out to be great.
DeleteHe might.
DeleteEveryone in Kentucky is now reporting that UK has been in talks with Scott Drew, and that his family visited Lexington today.
ReplyDeleteThose are the top candidates per BetKentucky.com after Scott Drew, who reportedly is staying at Baylor.
ReplyDeleteDonovan now tops the BetKentucky.com board. Drew and Hurley have been removed from the list, and a new name has been added.
ReplyDelete"Richard Andrew Pitino (/pɪˈtiːnoʊ/; born September 18, 1952) is an American basketball coach who is the head men's basketball coach at St. John's University."
I hope it's Pearl, Pitino or Pope.
ReplyDelete1. They will never hire Pearl, although that would be my choice.
Delete2. They will never hire Pitino, although I think he would be a good caretaker for a few years while UK waits for a new Athletic Director.
3. Otzelberger not only has a much better record than Pope, he is also five years younger.
Maybe I'm to blame. I wanted Pearl or Pitino but threw in Pope because I thought the sentence sounded good and figured they would go with your guy Otzelberger, anyway. Maybe Mitch Barnhart is a big HP guy.
DeleteIt sounds like they're going to waste the weekend getting turned down by Hurley and Donovan. Then they'll start seriously looking at Pope and Otzelberger.
ReplyDeleteI don't think they'll get Tommy Lloyd, even if they ask him.
DeleteYesterday, I was assuming we would be able to get Otzelberger. But by next week, that will be much harder as Iowa State will have probably already signed him to a long-term deal. So we may be stuck with Pope.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, Barnhart is 64 years old, so UK will have a new Athletic Director in a few years. And his top priority will probably be to hire a new men's basketball coach.
ReplyDeleteOK, actually reading Mark Pope's Wikipedia page for the first time, my guess is that Mitch Barnhart locked in on Mark Pope in 2020, after he got scared John Calipari was going to bolt for UCLA in 2019 and Brigham Young went 24-8 in Pope's first season as head coach.
ReplyDeleteThis is hiring Joe B. Hall as head coach straight from Regis in the 1960s.
ReplyDeleteWell, I can only hope it turns out as well as that might've turned out.
Wikipedia says the wife of Mark Pope is a former assistant to David Letterman.
ReplyDeleteHall was an excellent recruiter.
ReplyDelete