This is something I've kind of wondered about for a few years, basically since Stevens had so much success at Butler and was such a hot coaching comodity, and then Smart shortly after.
It's come up again since I really think that IU will find a way to pay Crean off and find a replacement.
Do you think that there's any merit to some of these hot coaches doing well where they are, but not being able to translate that success at a higher profile school? Obviously that's always a consideration, but here's my reasoning: Stevens was able to basically take leftovers from a talent-rich basketball state like Indiana, and turn them into a very good team. He had players that might have felt overlooked and had a chip on their shoulder. These types of guys just tend to work harder than the more naturally gifted players, many times. Now, if you take a coach like Stevens that values hard work, skill, and teamwork, and put him in a situation where the fanbase isn't going to allow him to just go and find the best fits for his system, if they don't have a high enough # of stars next to their profile, is it a good fit? I'm using Stevens here only because he was the first coach I thought this about way before he took the Celtics job, and I was seriously concerned he might end up at IU in the future.
As a more realistic scenario, what about if Shaka Smart took the HC job at IU? Can you imagine the looks on the faces of the players on the current IU roster that first day of practice when he shows them what he wants them to do on defense? They might have a situation like in Crean's first year where there are like 3 scholarship players.
I haven't watched enough of Gregg Marshall's or Archie Miller's teams to know much about their styles, but my theory is that the success at these smaller schools is built on hard work and a team-first mentality. Once those coaches are expected to recruit at a higher level, and usually those types of recruits are a little more "me" centered, will their system work?
Just a thought stream to throw out there. Thoughts?
Can you think of a coach that either supports or destroys my theory? Jim Laranaga is the one that comes to mind in support of it.
It's come up again since I really think that IU will find a way to pay Crean off and find a replacement.
Do you think that there's any merit to some of these hot coaches doing well where they are, but not being able to translate that success at a higher profile school? Obviously that's always a consideration, but here's my reasoning: Stevens was able to basically take leftovers from a talent-rich basketball state like Indiana, and turn them into a very good team. He had players that might have felt overlooked and had a chip on their shoulder. These types of guys just tend to work harder than the more naturally gifted players, many times. Now, if you take a coach like Stevens that values hard work, skill, and teamwork, and put him in a situation where the fanbase isn't going to allow him to just go and find the best fits for his system, if they don't have a high enough # of stars next to their profile, is it a good fit? I'm using Stevens here only because he was the first coach I thought this about way before he took the Celtics job, and I was seriously concerned he might end up at IU in the future.
As a more realistic scenario, what about if Shaka Smart took the HC job at IU? Can you imagine the looks on the faces of the players on the current IU roster that first day of practice when he shows them what he wants them to do on defense? They might have a situation like in Crean's first year where there are like 3 scholarship players.
I haven't watched enough of Gregg Marshall's or Archie Miller's teams to know much about their styles, but my theory is that the success at these smaller schools is built on hard work and a team-first mentality. Once those coaches are expected to recruit at a higher level, and usually those types of recruits are a little more "me" centered, will their system work?
Just a thought stream to throw out there. Thoughts?
Can you think of a coach that either supports or destroys my theory? Jim Laranaga is the one that comes to mind in support of it.
