Yes, I agree. My point is that all of the investments they've made, and the stature that their fans believe they've attained, have given them the idea that they had become some kind of "destination" for coaches.bigappleram wrote: ↑1 year agoCooley came from Fairfield. Before him Keno came from Drake. And before him Welsh from Iona. Not exactly powerhouse programs. So all 3 are pretty consistent t with English in that they were plucked from low/mid major places.Blue Man wrote: ↑1 year agoI will say...I think Georgetown and PC are going to be disappointed with their hires.
If English does turn out to be the guy..great, but I wasn't overly impressed with what he had done against URI both games.
His best 2 players were inherited from when he got there, and 2 other starters came over with him from Tennessee on their 5th and 6th years of eligibility, so I don't think they could've stayed there.
For some reason I have big Dave Cox vibes from English. I could be totally wrong, but it just feels that way. He has a similar level of success as Cox as a head coach through 2 years as well. Great quotes from him. Great support from great and good coaches he worked for. Dan Hurley said Dave Cox was ready to be a head coach. Rick Barnes said Kim English was ready to be a head coach.
Like Dave, Kim inherited some pieces; granted Paulsen wasn't a worldbeater - but he wasn't a shit show either.
However, those inherited pieces were his clear 2 best players (think Jeff and Cyril).
He brought in some of his own guys, and guys he had recruited under his previous job (think Cox's first recruiting class).
Now, we never got to see what happened next for English. The first 2 years are an indictment on what was in the building before you. The next ones are where it becomes more apparent who you are. Portal obviously changes that.
But for a program and fanbase that purports itself to be so far above us (and obviously, with the recent success and their conference, facilities and budget - they are) - but you couldn't hold onto your hometown hero who made you relevant. So now we'll see if it's PC or Cooley that made them, them. But they've become a stepping stone just like us - yet our last successful coach left us for a blue blood program. Theirs left them to rebuild a dying brand at a conference rival while tanking their season and twisting the knife on the way out the door.
My point being - if PC is SO FAR ahead of URI - why are they grabbing an up and comer and not swinging for a huge name? URI did. We said we were going to invest in athletics and bulid something. PC was willing to pay $5.25M to a coach with 3 NCAA wins in 12 years - you couldn't find a big name with that kind of scratch? If Kim really is the guy - you couldn't wait for him in a couple years while you take a shot on Pitino or someone with a short shelf-life instead of needing the on the job training?
Ed Cooley was a nobody from Hartford, so maybe this does work out. But to see PC fans now pretending that a coach who led a middle of the pack A10 team, who was middle of the pack in the worst A10 in our lifetime, is God - is great to see.
Hometown hero's departure to a rebuilding project at a conference rival (and his and the national media dragging PC on his way out the door), and their hire of said mid-major coach with little experience, would tell me they're still a stepping stone.
Obviously when compared to us they're in a better conference, have had more recent success, and have significantly better basketball facilities (arena notwithstanding, and not counting the WiFi). But despite all of that, they're not the destination they think they are, and now they're trying to act like getting Kim English was some great coup and they got the best of the college basketball world.
It's nice to see some of that fanbase humbled from time to time.
