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Pleasantly surprised.....

Big Red Crimson Buffalo

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Aug 28, 2001
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...how this coaching search turned out, No, Mike Woodson wasn’t my first choice. For 2 weeks everyone promoted “their guy.”
Stevens, Matta, Beiline, Beard, Fife, Woodson, Drew, Holtmann, Alford, Pitino, Musselman, and on and on.

But at the end of the day, we actually got not just one but three of the very names discussed on these boards. Kind of cool how it ended up. A college head guy has to have stellar assistants. Coaching by committee is the modern era of college basketball and the reason guys like Izzo are so good is because they have top-notch staffs. Bob Knight had very good staffs. Archie, in contrast had a weak staff, save for Hunter.

This basketball-by-committee approach is certainly pretty unique. The reality of it all is that in today’s game, it’s a group effort running the show, regardless.
Good strategy to pick up 3 knowledgeable basketball minds in one hire.
 
I like it. It's unique and Dolson delivered on what he promised. Yeah, it's Woodson and Fife, but you really think Matta's not going to have coaching/talent evaluation input? It's like our cake and eat it two times over. If we can recruit, and we know we can with these guys, we could be back to elite in like 2 years, like it's supposed to be when you make bold moves. Not wallow in your misery forever for someone that didn't fit the slipper. We now have 3 that all do. It's brilliant, and that they're all cool with it, makes it even more so. Go recruit!
 
...how this coaching search turned out, No, Mike Woodson wasn’t my first choice. For 2 weeks everyone promoted “their guy.”
Stevens, Matta, Beiline, Beard, Fife, Woodson, Drew, Holtmann, Alford, Pitino, Musselman, and on and on.

But at the end of the day, we actually got not just one but three of the very names discussed on these boards. Kind of cool how it ended up. A college head guy has to have stellar assistants. Coaching by committee is the modern era of college basketball and the reason guys like Izzo are so good is because they have top-notch staffs. Bob Knight had very good staffs. Archie, in contrast had a weak staff, save for Hunter.

This basketball-by-committee approach is certainly pretty unique. The reality of it all is that in today’s game, it’s a group effort running the show, regardless.
Good strategy to pick up 3 knowledgeable basketball minds in one hire.
The most positive post by you in some time (That I have seen). Use the code word if something is wrong...
 
...how this coaching search turned out, No, Mike Woodson wasn’t my first choice. For 2 weeks everyone promoted “their guy.”
Stevens, Matta, Beiline, Beard, Fife, Woodson, Drew, Holtmann, Alford, Pitino, Musselman, and on and on.

But at the end of the day, we actually got not just one but three of the very names discussed on these boards. Kind of cool how it ended up. A college head guy has to have stellar assistants. Coaching by committee is the modern era of college basketball and the reason guys like Izzo are so good is because they have top-notch staffs. Bob Knight had very good staffs. Archie, in contrast had a weak staff, save for Hunter.

This basketball-by-committee approach is certainly pretty unique. The reality of it all is that in today’s game, it’s a group effort running the show, regardless.
Good strategy to pick up 3 knowledgeable basketball minds in one hire.
First off, I am excited about these hires as well. But honestly and objectively, from an X’s and O’s / coaching / recruiting / etc perspective, what is it about Fife that has everyone excited? Remove the fact he was an ex player and would you / everyone else be so ecstatic? Again, I like the hire simply because he is passionate about IU and is a former player. But from a coaching perspective and skill set, I’d love to hear some objective points speaking to his abilities as a coach.
 
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Fife, Woodson, and Matta were all three head coach candidates and we have all three - clearly Dolson is treating the basketball program as a crown jewel. Regarding Fife: he’s been the top assistant under Izzo; his head coaching stint at IPFW (now PFW) resulted in improvement (in terms of Wins and Loses) every year. It’s not like IPFW could schedule a bunch of games to pad wins (people schedule them to do that!); it’s not like IPFW had great facilities or some magical draw for great players - its improvement was due to coaching. Also, Fife has fire and passion for IU - he “gets it” because he’s lived it. And lastly, though it’s premature as Woodson has yet to coach a game yet, but the potential of a seamless transition from him to Fife for a continuity of success sure sounds nice!
 
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First off, I am excited about these hires as well. But honestly and objectively, from an X’s and O’s / coaching / recruiting / etc perspective, what is it about Fife that has everyone excited? Remove the fact he was an ex player and would you / everyone else be so ecstatic? Again, I like the hire simply because he is passionate about IU and is a former player. But from a coaching perspective and skill set, I’d love to hear some objective points speaking to his abilities as a coach.

As others have noted, first for me is his passion about IU basketball. There was no one tougher than Dane and if he can instill that in players.... WOW what a difference than the past four years.

Recruiting. Unless I am mistaken, he was the main recruiter for many of their top players.

Obviously he was one hell of a defensive player. Maybe Woodson is going to go with him as an offensive coach and Dane as a defensive coach. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.
 
As others have noted, first for me is his passion about IU basketball. There was no one tougher than Dane and if he can instill that in players.... WOW what a difference than the past four years.

Recruiting. Unless I am mistaken, he was the main recruiter for many of their top players.

Obviously he was one hell of a defensive player. Maybe Woodson is going to go with him as an offensive coach and Dane as a defensive coach. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.
I think it's great Fife is coming but I have questions about his recruiting as well...I mean, he was recruiting players to play for an incredible successful program under a hall of fame coach. That wont be the case here..
 
From what we hear he was a very good practice coach and an even better strategist doing "scouts" of other teams and fabricating game plans. From what I have absorbed he was well respected as a top assistant around the Big 10 and in the nation. Some say he would have been the next coach of MSU.
 
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I think it's great Fife is coming but I have questions about his recruiting as well...I mean, he was recruiting players to play for an incredible successful program under a hall of fame coach. That wont be the case here..
IU is a Hall of Fame program, So it won’t be to hard for a right coach to recruit!
 
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As others have noted, first for me is his passion about IU basketball. There was no one tougher than Dane and if he can instill that in players.... WOW what a difference than the past four years.

Recruiting. Unless I am mistaken, he was the main recruiter for many of their top players.

Obviously he was one hell of a defensive player. Maybe Woodson is going to go with him as an offensive coach and Dane as a defensive coach. It will be interesting to see how it plays out.
Thanks for the input. I’d love to hear from others and if anyone has first hand or second hand knowledge of how he was used at Michigan State and speak to development of players, that would be great. Are there any coaches in this forum?
 
I think it's great Fife is coming but I have questions about his recruiting as well...I mean, he was recruiting players to play for an incredible successful program under a hall of fame coach. That wont be the case here..
I think Fife is more of an X's and O's coach that will help Woodson will the day to day nuances and scouting but was instrumental in some key IN prospects that have gone to Sparty over the years. Hunter will be the lead recruiter especially at the national stage but having Fife on staff still helps.
 
I think it's great Fife is coming but I have questions about his recruiting as well...I mean, he was recruiting players to play for an incredible successful program under a hall of fame coach. That wont be the case here..

IMO, most players go to a school for the head coach AND the coach that recruited them. I believe Dane can still recruit and bring players to IU. He has a LOT to sell. Great facilites, a head coach with NBA connections and the history that IU has.
 
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I think it's great Fife is coming but I have questions about his recruiting as well...I mean, he was recruiting players to play for an incredible successful program under a hall of fame coach. That wont be the case here..
Are you dumb, Hunter is the recruiter for this team.
 
...how this coaching search turned out, No, Mike Woodson wasn’t my first choice. For 2 weeks everyone promoted “their guy.”
Stevens, Matta, Beiline, Beard, Fife, Woodson, Drew, Holtmann, Alford, Pitino, Musselman, and on and on.

But at the end of the day, we actually got not just one but three of the very names discussed on these boards. Kind of cool how it ended up. A college head guy has to have stellar assistants. Coaching by committee is the modern era of college basketball and the reason guys like Izzo are so good is because they have top-notch staffs. Bob Knight had very good staffs. Archie, in contrast had a weak staff, save for Hunter.

This basketball-by-committee approach is certainly pretty unique. The reality of it all is that in today’s game, it’s a group effort running the show, regardless.
Good strategy to pick up 3 knowledgeable basketball minds in one hire.
It is cool we got three of those you listed.
 
Are you dumb, Hunter is the recruiter for this team.
If he/she is that would make you a galactic-class dolt.

Everyone recruits, and the 'lead' w.r.t. any candidate is determined on the basis of playing to the individual strengths/history/affiliations of the recruiters.

On or off-Court, you really should leave off pretending you know much about this Game (or people) as most of your posts are virtually identical to noxious interjections of intestinal gas. Hot takes are one thing but you sound like someone that misplaced their brain and whose anus is in meltdown.
 
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One thing I think all 3 of the coaches will instill is toughness. There has been a lack of mental fortitude with this program for 6 years. Get that in place and we’ve got a solid base for the recruits we do land. I expect these coaches to practice accountability and making sure the entire team values each possession.
I won’t claim that we have a great talent pool because it has dropped off as of late. However, I still contend that if we had coaching these past few seasons that could lock these guys in and stress the importance of every play, we wouldn’t have lost as much as we did.
 
First off, I am excited about these hires as well. But honestly and objectively, from an X’s and O’s / coaching / recruiting / etc perspective, what is it about Fife that has everyone excited? Remove the fact he was an ex player and would you / everyone else be so ecstatic? Again, I like the hire simply because he is passionate about IU and is a former player. But from a coaching perspective and skill set, I’d love to hear some objective points speaking to his abilities as a coach.
Isn’t an 8-10 year apprenticeship with Nader Izzo enough?
 
Not to be a wet blanket, but there's also the saying that too many cooks spoil the soup. It's been established that Matta and Woodson didn't know each other prior to this arrangement, and one assumes that Fife is probably in the same boat. There's a lot of talent among the crowd. What remains to be seen is how well all of these guys will work together. Will they gel, or butt heads?

Is Woodson a guy that listens to his staff, or is Woodson a guy who give orders? I have no idea. One dynamic might work. One might be a disaster. Lots of alpha dogs in one place.
 
Isn’t an 8-10 year apprenticeship with Nader Izzo enough?
He was an excellent defender and overall player for us. As an HC, in short time he improved what he was dealt every year. He's been the top asst. under a HOF coach for the better of 10 years. Your insinuation that either of them knew a ****ing thing about what was abuse going on in women's gymnastics is absurd. Why should they, they're bball coaches, not the FBI
 
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First off, I am excited about these hires as well. But honestly and objectively, from an X’s and O’s / coaching / recruiting / etc perspective, what is it about Fife that has everyone excited? Remove the fact he was an ex player and would you / everyone else be so ecstatic? Again, I like the hire simply because he is passionate about IU and is a former player. But from a coaching perspective and skill set, I’d love to hear some objective points speaking to his abilities as a coach.
His mental toughness and play hard attitude. Teach our guys that.
His defense.
 
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One thing I think all 3 of the coaches will instill is toughness. There has been a lack of mental fortitude with this program for 6 years. Get that in place and we’ve got a solid base for the recruits we do land. I expect these coaches to practice accountability and making sure the entire team values each possession.
I won’t claim that we have a great talent pool because it has dropped off as of late. However, I still contend that if we had coaching these past few seasons that could lock these guys in and stress the importance of every play, we wouldn’t have lost as much as we did.
Accountability may be even higher on the list than 3 pt shooting.
 
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Isn’t an 8-10 year apprenticeship with Nader Izzo enough?
Good point. Just curious if there is something Dane is known for as a coach? A speciality so to speak. I heard him mention recruiting on the Dakich show. So wondering is he a strong recruiter / relationship builder? Is he a badass scout?
 
Good point. Just curious if there is something Dane is known for as a coach? A speciality so to speak. I heard him mention recruiting on the Dakich show. So wondering is he a strong recruiter / relationship builder? Is he a badass scout?
Defense. Supposedly, he was Izzo's Defensive guru... Hopefully, that's the case here too...
 
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Defense. Supposedly, he was Izzo's Defensive guru... Hopefully, that's the case here too...
Sounds right, but can't help but recall how he struggled offensively under Knight and then suddenly in his Sr. year turned into a marksman from deep. Hoping there's something there that's 'teachable'...
 
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