General Manager
- Thread starter catmankev
- Start date
Dwayne Casey would be a name to look at
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Sounds like we may need one soon. It’s hard to manage all this BS. We need to help our staff out by getting someone solely responsible for this. Surely some major Kentucky fan who was an executive that is retired could do this role well.
I didn’t hear that interview but my recollection was that he wants to create such a position.
I think a lot of this falls back on Mitch. I'm not saying he needs to go or anything else. I'm just saying that his history has been slow to react to the new things going on in athletics. He was slow to alcohol sales, slow to embrace NIL collectives, and now slow to go the GM route with the money making sports. I'm sure the coaches would appreciate all the help they can get in that department, which would maybe free them up to, I don't know, maybe actually coach their respective teams.
I think Casey should give $1,000 in NIL money to every UK player.
Yeah man. My first thought when a kid decommits due to another PG being signed was how this was definitely the ADs fault. FARRRRRRRRRRR BARNEY!
I don’t necessarily think Lewis decommitting co pulls have been helped, but I do think as more teams go to adopting GM’s Mitch will be one of the last ones to do so.Yeah man. My first thought when a kid decommits due to another PG being signed was how this was definitely the ADs fault. FARRRRRRRRRRR BARNEY!
Thank you for submitting your resume, Chad.
Derek Anderson and Jeff Sheppard make a lot of sense as smart business people who have direct connections to Mark Pope. Maybe even Frank Vogel could be convinced by Pitino and Pope to take the job. Adrian Wojnarowski was hired as St. Bonaventure's GM, and he's a journalist, so I'm not really sure what professional skills that you need to be successful for such a role.
Making a splashy current/former NBA player as the Assistant GM hire is the rage right now in college basketball. Steph Curry was named Assistant GM at Davidson, and Trae Young was named Assistant GM at Oklahoma. I could see Rajon Rondo, John Wall, or Devin Booker being interested. Bringing in one of the Calipari guys to connect to the other wealthy NBA guys that played under Cal could be a huge plus at maintaining relationships. Vogel might get you Anthony Davis.
Making a splashy current/former NBA player as the Assistant GM hire is the rage right now in college basketball. Steph Curry was named Assistant GM at Davidson, and Trae Young was named Assistant GM at Oklahoma. I could see Rajon Rondo, John Wall, or Devin Booker being interested. Bringing in one of the Calipari guys to connect to the other wealthy NBA guys that played under Cal could be a huge plus at maintaining relationships. Vogel might get you Anthony Davis.
Splitting those duties up among the staff seems like a bad idea and will lead to some quick burnout.
Anytime this discussion comes up, I have one answer. Nazr Mohammed. He’s perfect! Former teammate of Pope. Former NBA scout and current Director of Team Personnel for the Thunder. Would he take it? Who knows. But he is 100% my first call.
How is a General Manager supposed to help?
We could probably use a $$eneral $$anager if someone’s volunteering. A Ty$$on’s Chicken or a Ryan $$mith or a Latter Day $$aints global church.
Getting a General Manager would be throwing bureaucracy at a problem that almost certainly doesn’t even exist. “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.”
No thank you.
We could probably use a $$eneral $$anager if someone’s volunteering. A Ty$$on’s Chicken or a Ryan $$mith or a Latter Day $$aints global church.
Getting a General Manager would be throwing bureaucracy at a problem that almost certainly doesn’t even exist. “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.”
No thank you.
A general manager is 100% dedicated to NIL deals, transfer portal, etc. It allows the coaches to do more of what they were hired to do...coach. And not have to take so much of their time paying attention to the portal, worrying about NIL, etc. This is a pro sport now. Would you be asking a pro team why they need a general manager?
A GM is going to help because it lets coaches focus more on coaching. It is the first clearinghouse for portal guys, for setting up zooms, for reaching out to players and agents, working through NIL, working through revenue sharing agreements, etc. I'm not sure why people are opposed to this.
We are insanely killing it in the portal considering the money we’re spending relative to many other schools that have worse results. Pro teams have an entirely different financial calculation. I would not in fact want to bring in someone who by definition would be less deeply entwined with our basketball philosophy and bottom line and make him a pencil pusher with power making decisions that couldn’t help being as arbitrary as they were “necessary.” Either that or spend so much time in Pope and assistants’ offices asking specific questions that those coaches would have net less time for their other duties than they do now. I think that would be stupid and I don’t think it’s a coincidence that the one staff that is killing all other programs at NIL recruiting dollar for dollar is the one that has opted to be GMless.
I agree that we are killing it. Kudos to Pope and his crew for doing that. It also has the possibility to wear them down and burn them out much quicker. I'm not looking for a pencil pusher. I'm looking for a guy like Nazr Mohammed. A guy like Tayshaun Prince. I agree 100% that it has to be someone in tune with the basketball program, and more importantly, Mark Pope. Raising money and finding NIL deals is going to be such a huge part of the future. Dealing with agents, etc. If you can find the right guy to do it, you absolutely do it imo. I think the future success of Stanford football (or lack there of) is going to be a huge measuring stick for what the future holds. Andrew Luck getting 100% control of every decision with that football program is going to crash or burn...and other programs will be watching closely.
Maybe. But I still think anyone who is not precisely all these coaches acting together in concert would stress this phenomenally well-performing system. In fact I think that would happen if you gave it all to any one of them (my personal guess why we went away from the Mark Fox model). There probably is room for someone to be in there being in charge of only spreadsheet crafting and booking accommodations, etc. But I think it would be a stretch to call that a general manager and a really kooky stretch to think that would solve this problem, the supposed Acaden-Lewis-bolting-because-no-General-Manager problem.
I'm not associating the Acaden Lewis situation without having a GM at all. I'm more thinking about the future of college sports and how more and more will be asked of a coach and his staff. I think Mark Fox was not the right person to give it to in the first place, along with sitting on the bench and focusing on basketball too.
I do agree that we have no idea if it would work or not. My opinion is it would but I've been wrong many times.
What the hell are you talking about? Where did I say anything about anyone decommitting and it being the AD's fault? Can you read? Please show me where I said such a thing, for Christ's sake, read, man read.Yeah man. My first thought when a kid decommits due to another PG being signed was how this was definitely the ADs fault. FARRRRRRRRRRR BARNEY!
Sorry man it was way past my bedtime. It’s untelling how bad I misinterpreted that. Really was just going for the laughs. I love posting the Barney dancing thing lol. You can’t take me too seriously man haha
Iirc he was given that title but he doesn't carry that function. Hes on the sidelines and providing in game instruction.
We need a legit gm.
It is all good. I was just trying to figure out what the heck was going on. I was talking about a general manager in a thread titled general manager and I'm being question about Lewis decommiting. Just trying to figure things out. We good.
Yeah I went back and looked at what I said and read what you said and just kind of chuckled. I was clearly way past due for bed. My bad, Jeff
We talked about this in another thread the other day Mohammed or Prince would make great GM's and they are moving up the NBA corporate ladder. Just wonder if either would take a step back. I tell you if he was close to retiring I'd tell you a perfect one would be the one and only Pat Riley but he's probably way past his prime even for a job like a GM of a college program!
Me personally, I don't think this is the type of job you just throw out to various past UK players (unless they are proven in this space). This position needs to be about growing the Kentucky product from a business and financial perspective. Ideally this position would be dealing with NIL, basketball operations, likely work on revamping facilities where needed, etc.
Im not against a Kentucky guy for that, but i don't think they are neccesarily the best fit, just because they played here or have some connections. I want a Daryl Morey, Pat Riley (yes I know hes a UK player) or Danny Ainge type of mind. I want someone who understands this space.
Im not against a Kentucky guy for that, but i don't think they are neccesarily the best fit, just because they played here or have some connections. I want a Daryl Morey, Pat Riley (yes I know hes a UK player) or Danny Ainge type of mind. I want someone who understands this space.
That's why think Nazr and Prince are perfect. Might not be able to get either. IMO, they are both on their way to being considered for NBA GM jobs one day. Nazr has worked his way up with the Thunder from GM for their G League team, to one of their pro scouts and GM of the G League team to currently being the Director of Team Personnel. Prince started off as the Special Assistant to the GM for the Grizzlies and has worked his way up to VP of Basketball Affairs. Both, very bright guys, really connected to the program and have top level experience with management in this area. I know I'm probably beating a dead horse with this.
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