The admin's decision to punish IU basketball has been going on since they fired Coach Knight. He lost his job and part of his legacy. IU basketball has been non relevant nationally in every year since 2002 (Knight recruits). The admin got to tell everyone that they stood on the moral high ground and were too good for a coach like Bob Knight. It's IU, any coach can win at Indiana...
Admin chooses to continue with Mike Davis. It saved them from potentially losing half the team to transferring (and the 2002 tournament run) but it caused IU basketball to take steps backyards.
Admin chooses Kelvin Sampson to get them back. Then he tries to skirt rules. This caused the admin to self report and fire him. The basketball program then takes the punishment and the really good team that had w/ Eric Gordon and DJ White implodes. IU admin gets to tell everyone that they are the moral high ground school, unlike the other blue bloods.
Admin chooses the cleanest coach they can find...Tom Crean. After three years of misery, he is able to recruit Cody Zeller and other good role players. The program then finally gets great play from CZ, Yogi, Thomas Bryant, Watford, Hulls, Sheehey, Olidipo, and others. Then it becomes evident with the roller coaster results that Crean needs an extremely good roster in order to win. IU basketball becomes just another program.
Admin then chooses another "clean" coach in Archie Miller. He was the young Knight like and fiery defensive minded coach that IU needs in order to become nationally relevant again. He was unproven at the power conference level but he projected like someone that could do it. He recruits the state well and getting the state's best players give him some exciting rosters. Then it becomes clear to all the fans that he can't do much with the talent. He was in over his head. IU basketball becomes an average at best program. The respect of being a blue blood is gone.
Admin chooses one of Coach Knight's greatest and favorite players of all time, Mike Woodson. He knows and openly discusses how IU is a blue blood and possibly the best place to play in America. Fans and alumni love the swagger and how much he loves Coach Knight. He recruits at a high level and enjoys great years from TJD, KW, JHS, Gallo, and others. However, they can't get past the slightly above average level. MW has zero college experience and they can't level up even with good players. Some IU fans/alumni are now to the point of feeling that being in the last 4 in for the NCAA Tournament is actually a really good year.
IU Admin is now back to choosing another coach. Chris Beard, the closest thing to Coach Knight that you can find, appears to be open to coaching IU. His teams overachieve every year. He has just brought another school with zero legacy (minus TX) to national relevance and to their best seasons ever. Rick Pitino, perhaps the best mind in college basketball today, says CB would be the one and only guy to hire if he were the admin at IU. He does have a police report of an incident with an ex. Both she and CB have stated that CB was not the aggressor and it was self defense. All charges were dropped. Does IU admin continue to punish the basketball program and pass on the best available coach and the best chance to bring the basketball program back to national relevance? They can tell their fans/alumni that they are the moral high ground school who won't accept a person with any incidents in their past. They can hire a cleaner but lesser qualified coach. There is some pride in doing it that way and it would appease some fans/alumni to do that. However, they aren't hurting Chris Beard. He will win and be successful at any university that is lucking enough to have him. Then there is the other choice. If IU admin is done punishing the basketball program they hire CB and return it to being a fun to watch and national championship level program. Does the IU admin want to get IU back to being in a top 5-7 team each year again (Pitino's words)? IU admin has to decide again. Scott Dolson and Pamela Whitten and the rest of the decision making team, please choose what is best for the basketball program.
