News about Steve Alford from Phoenix, AZ

[PhxFiveOh]

Live in Phoenix. IU grad. Tonight on our NBC local news channel, the sportscaster stated that the Suns' coach, Earl Watson, may be moving on from the Suns next year, as he apparently was in the running for the UCLA job, which would be opening up. They spoke as if it was a foregone conclusion that Alford was out to take the IU job. No friggin clue as to the validity of the info, but there's definitely smoke building to the rumor around Steve. Not exactly thrilled. Take it for what it's worth. I know everyone is clamoring for any kind of info at this juncture

 

[RBB89]

Live in Phoenix. IU grad. Tonight on our NBC local news channel, the sportscaster stated that the Suns' coach, Earl Watson, may be moving on from the Suns next year, as he apparently was in the running for the UCLA job, which would be opening up. They spoke as if it was a foregone conclusion that Alford was out to take the IU job. No friggin clue as to the validity of the info, but there's definitely smoke building to the rumor around Steve. Not exactly thrilled. Take it for what it's worth. I know everyone is clamoring for any kind of info at this juncture

Silliness.

 

[minneman]

There's also been articles stating that that smoke is all from Alford or his agent.

I live in Phoenix, too. Which part of the valley are you in? North side, here.

 

[TheRehab5]

Sounds about right. Jay Williams touched on it today on Mike and Mike.

 

[PhxFiveOh]

Central Phoenix. 32nd and Camelback area. Not that it matters here, but I'd hate to see Lou go as the Suns' coach. And I hope that it's all just idle prattle, I'm crossing my fingers, toes and anything else that crosses that it's Billy D

 

[PhxFiveOh]

Sounds about right. Jay Williams touched on it today on Mike and Mike.

Jay Williams stated that it was coming from Alford's camp, or stated it was sounding like he was out at UCLA for IU?

 

[TheRehab5]

The "Alford Camp" theory has all been doctored up by the Crimson Quary. It's bogus.

 

[ufo33]

Alford is an upgrade from Crean. Alford might win a National Title at UCLA and then leave.

 

[PhxFiveOh]

Who knows? Maybe Stevie will run the table in the tourney and march into BTown a conquering hero. And maybe the Ball's will all follow him. And maybe Wilkes, Romeo and the whole band of In-State all stars will join together and form a Voltron-esque basketball wrecking machine! And maybe............we'll just make the Sweet Sixteen every three to four years.

 

[asindc]

Live in Phoenix. IU grad. Tonight on our NBC local news channel, the sportscaster stated that the Suns' coach, Earl Watson, may be moving on from the Suns next year, as he apparently was in the running for the UCLA job, which would be opening up. They spoke as if it was a foregone conclusion that Alford was out to take the IU job. No friggin clue as to the validity of the info, but there's definitely smoke building to the rumor around Steve. Not exactly thrilled. Take it for what it's worth. I know everyone is clamoring for any kind of info at this juncture

May be? I will take it for what it's worth.

 

[PhxFiveOh]

Hopefully the reality will land somewhere closer to the first scenario.....within reason. A lot of unknowns with Steve I think.

 

[PhxFiveOh]

May be? I will take it for what it's worth.

Sounds good professor.

 

[Johnny Fairplay]

https://m.facebook.com/groups/1792286410797286?view=permalink&id=1796171433742117

Did you guys see this?

 

[Paterfamilias]

I probably shouldn't even put this out there, but what the heck...

Last summer and early fall, there was a poster on the UCLA message board that said that it had already been agreed upon between Alford and Guerrero that this would be Alford's last season at UCLA regardless of results.

At the time, some said it was silly given how well recruiting had turned around. Others said that this poster was close to the program and always right. As the season has went along, said poster has quit posting as far as I can tell. Some have poked fun at him and most all have seemed to come around to believing that Alford should be given a shot to prove himself with these great recruiting classes. Nobody expected a season like this, so up until the news about the Indiana job, you very rarely saw anything negative about Alford.

The reason that I'm thinking that there may be something to all of this now, is because, when it became clear that Crean's job would be in jeopardy, one of the main posters spoke of the possibility of Watson being the new coach if Alford were to bolt.

It seems like these guys have been way ahead of the rumor mill so far. I'll check tonight to see if that dude is back posting yet. It's probably all just nonsense, but maybe it's possible that this whole thing was planned out months ago... thus no extension for Crean.

 

[Paterfamilias]

Well, I scanned back through 5 pages of post and it doesn't appear that Bruin fans are talking about this at all. There was a post about Laver Ball saying that his boys aren't Indiana boys and would not follow Alford if he left. Other than that it's all basketball talk. You would think that there would be some buzz if they thought that Alford might be leaving for IU.

Nothing from the supposedly connected summertime poster either... oh well

 

[Spirito76]

Hey PhxFiveOh & minneman, I'm a transplant now living in the east valley - Gilbert. At ASU, I stumbled onto a pub called Whiskey Rocks (501 S. Mill) that flies an IU flag outside. It shows up on google maps too.

I had to ask & apparently the owner's best friend is an IU fan/grad and wanted to watch the games there, so the owner made sure he had the right cable packages and flies the Indiana flag outside. I can't give a review since I was planning on camping out there for this year's tourney, but our team crashed & burned.

 

[PhxFiveOh]

Trying to solve this coaching whodunit is like trying to play the game of Clue while drunk and blindfolded. But I'm pretty sure even Colonel Mustard could have prepared the fellas for Cuse's 3-2 Zone better than Tommy Boy.

 

[Bligedy]

I probably shouldn't even put this out there, but what the heck...

Last summer and early fall, there was a poster on the UCLA message board that said that it had already been agreed upon between Alford and Guerrero that this would be Alford's last season at UCLA regardless of results.

At the time, some said it was silly given how well recruiting had turned around. Others said that this poster was close to the program and always right. As the season has went along, said poster has quit posting as far as I can tell. Some have poked fun at him and most all have seemed to come around to believing that Alford should be given a shot to prove himself with these great recruiting classes. Nobody expected a season like this, so up until the news about the Indiana job, you very rarely saw anything negative about Alford.

The reason that I'm thinking that there may be something to all of this now, is because, when it became clear that Crean's job would be in jeopardy, one of the main posters spoke of the possibility of Watson being the new coach if Alford were to bolt.

It seems like these guys have been way ahead of the rumor mill so far. I'll check tonight to see if that dude is back posting yet. It's probably all just nonsense, but maybe it's possible that this whole thing was planned out months ago... thus no extension for Crean.

I just don't think they'd sign Wilkes if that's even remotely true

 

[PhxFiveOh]

Hey PhxFiveOh & minneman, I'm a transplant now living in the east valley - Gilbert. At ASU, I stumbled onto a pub called Whiskey Rocks (501 S. Mill) that flies an IU flag outside. It shows up on google maps too.

I had to ask & apparently the owner's best friend is an IU fan/grad and wanted to watch the games there, so the owner made sure he had the right cable packages and flies the Indiana flag outside. I can't give a review since I was planning on camping out there for this year's tourney, but our team crashed & burned.

I graduated in 03' and moved out here right after. There used to be an IU alum bar, McDuffies I think it was callled, right off of Mill, but they ripped it down when they really started renovating the whole area. My alumni Dad lives next door, so that's about as close to a rip roaring IU Grad experience as I get these days! Damn kids!! ha

 

[Paterfamilias]

I just don't think they'd sign Wilkes if that's even remotely true

Yeah, I thought it sounded odd even last summer. One thing about UCLA fans is they have a contingent that start all kinds of crazy stuff about Alford... it's stupid to even pay attention to really.

 

[go_iu]

Alford in 4 years has become their Crean ... even with his success this year, they see through it ... umm .. kinda like I and a lot of people did with Crean ... it's not working, hire Stevens NOW. We didn't, so be it. That bothers me, even though I suspect he would do a tremendous job recruiting Indiana. Still a concern that we'd be desperate to hire a coach, modestly better than Crean, because he WAS a legendary player.

 

[SpicelandRic]

I think Alford will be named coach maybe Monday..I think UCLA gets beat Fri.Steve knows he's not well liked in LA..They flew planes with banners wanting him fired last year..After this year UCLA will take a huge step back.Ball,Leaf,Alford,Hamilton and maybe Anigbogu gone.Looking forward to locking up the state..Might get us Romeo Langford too..In the end could be UK though

 

[Paterfamilias]

I think Alford will be named coach maybe Monday..I think UCLA gets beat Fri.Steve knows he's not well liked in LA..They flew planes with banners wanting him fired last year..After this year UCLA will take a huge step back.Ball,Leaf,Alford,Hamilton and maybe Anigbogu gone.Looking forward to locking up the state..Might get us Romeo Langford too..In the end could be UK though

I don't know how big a step back they will necessarily take. This looks like a really good roster to me. It will take time to gel, but by the end of the season they should be really good. It will be a different type of team to be sure, but maybe even better in the long run because of defensive capabilities.

C- Welsh-Anigbogu??-Hill
PF- Goloman-Riley
SF- Wilkes-Smith-Olesinski
SG- Ali- Gelo Ball
PG- Hands-Holiday

 

[hoosier_est_1984]

And maybe the Ball's will all follow him

Have you not seen any footage on this family?
No way they go to Iu. Their father is a very conceited individual, and they are to go to the NBA, do not stop,do not pass go,do not go outside the state... GO STRAIGHT TO THE NBA.He wants his kid to be the next Jordan but he forgets the reason Jordan was Jordan was BC Jordan had class.
Lamar Ball is a very embarrassing individual for himself and unfortunately his kids

 

[PhxFiveOh]

If UCLA makes it to Phoenix,

Have you not seen any footage on this family?
No way they go to Iu. Their father is a very conceited individual, and they are to go to the NBA, do not stop,do not pass go,do not go outside the state... GO STRAIGHT TO THE NBA.He wants his kid to be the next Jordan but he forgets the reason Jordan was Jordan was BC Jordan had class.
Lamar Ball is a very embarrassing individual for himself and unfortunately his kids

Bro, I was being hyperbolic. Obviously the Balls, born and bred in Chino Hills, CA are not heading to BTown.

 

[iubhounds]

I probably shouldn't even put this out there, but what the heck...

Last summer and early fall, there was a poster on the UCLA message board that said that it had already been agreed upon between Alford and Guerrero that this would be Alford's last season at UCLA regardless of results.

At the time, some said it was silly given how well recruiting had turned around. Others said that this poster was close to the program and always right. As the season has went along, said poster has quit posting as far as I can tell. Some have poked fun at him and most all have seemed to come around to believing that Alford should be given a shot to prove himself with these great recruiting classes. Nobody expected a season like this, so up until the news about the Indiana job, you very rarely saw anything negative about Alford.

The reason that I'm thinking that there may be something to all of this now, is because, when it became clear that Crean's job would be in jeopardy, one of the main posters spoke of the possibility of Watson being the new coach if Alford were to bolt.

It seems like these guys have been way ahead of the rumor mill so far. I'll check tonight to see if that dude is back posting yet. It's probably all just nonsense, but maybe it's possible that this whole thing was planned out months ago... thus no extension for Crean.

That UCLA poster is not back yet but Watson's name has come up as the leader as the next UCLA coach. Tonight the board I've been following seems to think Alford is gone after this season.

 

[iubhounds]

I just don't think they'd sign Wilkes if that's even remotely true

By rule Wilkes could get out of his NLI if Alford left for a different job. They could have signed all of his next class as a "just in case" things change.

 

[iubhounds]

I think Alford will be named coach maybe Monday..I think UCLA gets beat Fri.Steve knows he's not well liked in LA..They flew planes with banners wanting him fired last year..After this year UCLA will take a huge step back.Ball,Leaf,Alford,Hamilton and maybe Anigbogu gone.Looking forward to locking up the state..Might get us Romeo Langford too..In the end could be UK though

UCLA are losing those guys but their 2017 class is a Monster and that is even with Ball as a role player. This second son is nothing close in ability to his brother at UCLA.

 

[i'vegotwinners]

By rule Wilkes could get out of his NLI if Alford left for a different job. They could have signed all of his next class as a "just in case" things change.

guess i'm not aware of this rule.

 

[miltk]

don't go by anything you hear from the ucla forums. we're as clueless as anyone else...LOL just browsing your boards, there are more indiana fans who don't want alford than there are ucla fans who do. so if it were left up to the fans, alford's not going anywhere, but frankly you guys are closer to the situation because it all starts with the iu admin.

my guess is that your admin must be equally divided as the fans. they know alford's resume just like the fans. IF steve gets the job, all i can say is he's the luckiest coach in the history of ncaaM. he got a lucrative job because the ucla ad didn't want to go thru another embarrassing series of rejections and settled on a legacy and indiana/wooden connection, and now alford might get another massive contract off one great year because, again, he is a legacy.

in terms of recruiting, the big man on alford's staff is asst david grace. he is not good, he is GREAT- phenomenal. but he's not going with alford because he is, has, and always will be a west coast guy with local aau ties. he is a 24/7 recruiter.

me,,,i think alford is an average coach, like 80% of all coaches, totally reliant on talent, not great not bad. but i'm tired of all the ucla drama - there's no stability here. therefore i prefer to see alford stay, but if he goes - thx steve for stabilizing the hc job, and i'll go for earl watson and retain grace

 

[Shirtsandskins]

don't go by anything you hear from the ucla forums. we're as clueless as anyone else...LOL just browsing your boards, there are more indiana fans who don't want alford than there are ucla fans who do. so if it were left up to the fans, alford's not going anywhere, but frankly you guys are closer to the situation because it all starts with the iu admin.

my guess is that your admin must be equally divided as the fans. they know alford's resume just like the fans. IF steve gets the job, all i can say is he's the luckiest coach in the history of ncaaM. he got a lucrative job because the ucla ad didn't want to go thru another embarrassing series of rejections and settled on a legacy and indiana/wooden connection, and now alford might get another massive contract off one great year because, again, he is a legacy.

in terms of recruiting, the big man on alford's staff is asst david grace. he is not good, he is GREAT- phenomenal. but he's not going with alford because he is, has, and always will be a west coast guy with local aau ties. he is a 24/7 recruiter.

me,,,i think alford is an average coach, like 80% of all coaches, totally reliant on talent, not great not bad. but i'm tired of all the ucla drama - there's no stability here. therefore i prefer to see alford stay, but if he goes - thx steve for stabilizing the hc job, and i'll go for earl watson and retain grace

Why settle for Earl? One second your bemoaning legacy hires and the next you're advocating the hiring of a legacy with no college experience and only 3 years of any coaching

 

[miltk]

Why settle for Earl? One second your bemoaning legacy hires and the next you're advocating the hiring of a legacy with no college experience and only 3 years of any coaching

because i think earl can retain our recruiting class and keep david grace. and because earl is aau connected in phx, this will also help with bagley. earl's gift, apparently, is handling players very well and when you're dealing with elites you have to deal with egos. i'm not bemoaning legacy hires, i was using it as an example in relation to how alford was hired by ucla, and possibly now indiana. both cases are similar in circumstance and lucrative for alford.

 

[Shirtsandskins]

because i think earl can retain our recruiting class and keep david grace. and because earl is aau connected in phx, this will also help with bagley. earl's gift, apparently, is handling players very well and when you're dealing with elites you have to deal with egos. i'm not bemoaning legacy hires, i was using it as an example in relation to how alford was hired by ucla, and possibly now indiana. both cases are similar in circumstance and lucrative for alford.

Earl would be too risky for me. He's only been a HC for a couple of years and an asst for a couple more. UCLA should be able to get a more proven coach

 

[miltk]

Earl would be too risky for me. He's only been a HC for a couple of years and an asst for a couple more. UCLA should be able to get a more proven coach

we're in a tough spot because the job is scary. there are some very real factors at play in los angeles and all those intrusions you've heard about are true. the risk in hiring watson is ameliorated by the fact that the job itself is so hazzardous, if you can get where i'm coming from. after years of ben we are in a good place, so the criteria becomes the ability to keep the program in the direction it's currently headed - coaching will take care of itself. keep grace, keep the recruiting steady and freeze out zona, retain the 2017 class, put out a product that competes for the entertainment dollar.

the fight for the entertainment dollar is a real concern. people around the country joke about it but look,,,,when zona, kentucky, michigan, or any program of that ilk come to pauley the seats are filled. showtime this year had filled seats. if not, people find other things to do and the seats drop to 2/3 capacity. that's los angeles, that's not ucla.

as a side, ucla basketball has a nasty problem with agents who mill around the campus etc. imo that's why we lose players who in other campuses would stay longer. I would HOPE that a figure like watson could deal with it better but that's only my feeling. to alford's credit he sees this agent thing as a fact of life for players going to ucla and he's has decided to adopt the calipari template for recruiting, which makes sense because we lose players right and left anyway. the first question i ask of a good coach is can he do the same in los angeles and ucla - it is a huge factor. one of miller's demands of zona was free reign in recruiting - that would simple NOT FLY at westwood

 

[PhxFiveOh]

we're in a tough spot because the job is scary. there are some very real factors at play in los angeles and all those intrusions you've heard about are true. the risk in hiring watson is ameliorated by the fact that the job itself is so hazzardous, if you can get where i'm coming from. after years of ben we are in a good place, so the criteria becomes the ability to keep the program in the direction it's currently headed - coaching will take care of itself. keep grace, keep the recruiting steady and freeze out zona, retain the 2017 class, put out a product that competes for the entertainment dollar.

the fight for the entertainment dollar is a real concern. people around the country joke about it but look,,,,when zona, kentucky, michigan, or any program of that ilk come to pauley the seats are filled. showtime this year had filled seats. if not, people find other things to do and the seats drop to 2/3 capacity. that's los angeles, that's not ucla.

as a side, ucla basketball has a nasty problem with agents who mill around the campus etc. imo that's why we lose players who in other campuses would stay longer. I would HOPE that a figure like watson could deal with it better but that's only my feeling. to alford's credit he sees this agent thing as a fact of life for players going to ucla and he's has decided to adopt the calipari template for recruiting, which makes sense because we lose players right and left anyway. the first question i ask of a good coach is can he do the same in los angeles and ucla - it is a huge factor. one of miller's demands of zona was free reign in recruiting - that would simple NOT FLY at westwood

Earl is like the ego-whisperer. I've watched him here in Phoenix and I love listening to his post game interviews, because he's like part philosopher and part basketball wiz. He was able to reign in Markief Morris's ridiculous behavior and had him playing good basketball......which allowed us to trade his toxic butt. I'm guessing he'd be perfectly adept for the circus that is L.A sports. That said, I don't want Steve, so hopefully Earl continues his rebuild in Phx!

 

[Paterfamilias]

we're in a tough spot because the job is scary. there are some very real factors at play in los angeles and all those intrusions you've heard about are true. the risk in hiring watson is ameliorated by the fact that the job itself is so hazzardous, if you can get where i'm coming from. after years of ben we are in a good place, so the criteria becomes the ability to keep the program in the direction it's currently headed - coaching will take care of itself. keep grace, keep the recruiting steady and freeze out zona, retain the 2017 class, put out a product that competes for the entertainment dollar.

the fight for the entertainment dollar is a real concern. people around the country joke about it but look,,,,when zona, kentucky, michigan, or any program of that ilk come to pauley the seats are filled. showtime this year had filled seats. if not, people find other things to do and the seats drop to 2/3 capacity. that's los angeles, that's not ucla.

as a side, ucla basketball has a nasty problem with agents who mill around the campus etc. imo that's why we lose players who in other campuses would stay longer. I would HOPE that a figure like watson could deal with it better but that's only my feeling. to alford's credit he sees this agent thing as a fact of life for players going to ucla and he's has decided to adopt the calipari template for recruiting, which makes sense because we lose players right and left anyway. the first question i ask of a good coach is can he do the same in los angeles and ucla - it is a huge factor. one of miller's demands of zona was free reign in recruiting - that would simple NOT FLY at westwood

The thing is coaching doesn't take care of itself. We've been operating under that kind of delusion for many years. Alford is a fine coach, but rather than betray your previous assumptions about him, you just decide that coaching must not matter at UCLA. Coaching matters everywhere and you have a good one.

Some IU and New Mexico fans assumed that Noodles was the reason Alford excelled at UNM too... that turned out to be false!

 

[miltk]

The thing is coaching doesn't take care of itself. We've been operating under that kind of delusion for many years. Alford is a fine coach, but rather than betray your previous assumptions about him, you just decide that coaching must not matter at UCLA. Coaching matters everywhere and you have a good one.

Some IU and New Mexico fans assumed that Noodles was the reason Alford excelled at UNM too... that turned out to be false!

after years of ben's aptitude for good coaching but REALLY bad player relationships, i can guarantee we're fed up. coaching does take care of itself. to wit,,,once ben lost his players from his FF teams the program went to pot. bad recruiting decisions, bad player handling, and ultimately a reliance on castaways and jc players before ben was forced to hire an aau coach so he could get kyle anderson/adams/parker. be's defenses were nevr the same after he lost his initial recruits...so recruiting does matter, like a whole lot and ben is proof. alford is an average coach with an average resume who added a once in a lifetime savant to the program and a genius dedicated recruiter. calipari and williams greatest asset is their recruiting. would it be great to get an izzo? all the really good coaches are taken. any coach is a risk for ucla because ucla itself is a risk.

what i love about alford is he relates, 10yrs of ben gets one to appreciate that. but if csa leaves i won't cry about it because he's made it possible(thx steve) to get another capable coach. we're way better off now than when we were a few years ago. i'll cry if we lose grace though. interestingly a local phx radio program asked watson directly about leaving for ucla and he answered in a very indirect way...lol. the thing is, csa is replaceable, grace is not.

anyway, it seems i've hijacked this thred over to ucla, and i apologize. so the way i look at it, if iu has hired a recruiting firm, then nothing is carved in stone. the media is making the obvious leap in judgement. i think all sports admin hears what their fanbase is saying and thinks along the same lines. i sense an overwhelming sentiment to not hire alford and the fans' concerns are the admin's concerns

 

[asindc]

after years of ben's aptitude for good coaching but REALLY bad player relationships, i can guarantee we're fed up. coaching does take care of itself. to wit,,,once ben lost his players from his FF teams the program went to pot. bad recruiting decisions, bad player handling, and ultimately a reliance on castaways and jc players before ben was forced to hire an aau coach so he could get kyle anderson/adams/parker. be's defenses were nevr the same after he lost his initial recruits...so recruiting does matter, like a whole lot and ben is proof. alford is an average coach with an average resume who added a once in a lifetime savant to the program and a genius dedicated recruiter. calipari and williams greatest asset is their recruiting. would it be great to get an izzo? all the really good coaches are taken. any coach is a risk for ucla because ucla itself is a risk.

what i love about alford is he relates, 10yrs of ben gets one to appreciate that. but if csa leaves i won't cry about it because he's made it possible(thx steve) to get another capable coach. we're way better off now than when we were a few years ago. i'll cry if we lose grace though. interestingly a local phx radio program asked watson directly about leaving for ucla and he answered in a very indirect way...lol. the thing is, csa is replaceable, grace is not.

I like the UCLA fan perspective you provide, but could you please use some capitalization?

 

[Paterfamilias]

after years of ben's aptitude for good coaching but REALLY bad player relationships, i can guarantee we're fed up. coaching does take care of itself. to wit,,,once ben lost his players from his FF teams the program went to pot. bad recruiting decisions, bad player handling, and ultimately a reliance on castaways and jc players before ben was forced to hire an aau coach so he could get kyle anderson/adams/parker. be's defenses were nevr the same after he lost his initial recruits...so recruiting does matter, like a whole lot and ben is proof. alford is an average coach with an average resume who added a once in a lifetime savant to the program and a genius dedicated recruiter. calipari and williams greatest asset is their recruiting. would it be great to get an izzo? all the really good coaches are taken. any coach is a risk for ucla because ucla itself is a risk.

what i love about alford is he relates, 10yrs of ben gets one to appreciate that. but if csa leaves i won't cry about it because he's made it possible(thx steve) to get another capable coach. we're way better off now than when we were a few years ago. i'll cry if we lose grace though. interestingly a local phx radio program asked watson directly about leaving for ucla and he answered in a very indirect way...lol. the thing is, csa is replaceable, grace is not.

So you're saying, if I understand it correctly, that Tom Crean would have been fine if he just had more talent. Maybe that's not what you are saying, but if it is... you don't know what you're talking about. Steve Lavin had great talent at UCLA, but unwatchable teams. Fortunately, the talent usually won a couple of NCAA Tournament games, but they had a snowballs chance in Hades to win a National Title.

Anyway, I'll be rooting for you guys and hopefully Grace can get us a Title!

 

[miltk]

So you're saying, if I understand it correctly, that Tom Crean would have been fine if he just had more talent. Maybe that's not what you are saying, but if it is... you don't know what you're talking about. Steve Lavin had great talent at UCLA, but unwatchable teams. Fortunately, the talent usually won a couple of NCAA Tournament games, but they had a snowballs chance in Hades to win a National Title.

Anyway, I'll be rooting for you guys and hopefully Grace can get us a Title!

i can tell you there are A TON of people who think lavin was a terrible coach. and i don't know what you all think of crean as a coach but i do hear hoosier fans complaining about crean's inability to keep local talent. if that complaint is loud, then my point is proven - you can't refute my point and be ok with crean.

you are off on two things 1...lavin WAS a bad coach and that's why he failed,,,and 2 did crean bring in adequate talent. i dunno - you tell me. did he do what was expected of the talent he accrued? if he did what was expected of the talent he recruited, if he rode indiana as far as it could go, then he didn't have enough talent, else you wouldn't have fired him. he wasn't getting the talent - quod erat demonstratum.

if there are any hoosier fans who are upset about losing wilkes or any of the talent on indiana's teams for the past 9 years, then crean has not fulfilled his job as recruiter. i mean, i suspect crean is an okay coach, so recruit better win more. i just looked at hoosier recruiting over the past decade. two or three 5* and few 4* and a preponderance of the other. i don't know....would you say the Indiana's record was in lock step with it's recruiting talent? seems like it to me