Is Buzz Williams the best coach in the SEC?

GenDawg32

Junior
Feb 4, 2024
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No. Part of being the best coach is getting the players. He’s good, but not the best. That would be like saying Dan was the best football coach in the SEC
 

onewoof

Heisman
Mar 4, 2008
14,980
13,083
113
No. Part of being the best coach is getting the players. He’s good, but not the best. That would be like saying Dan was the best football coach in the SEC
You don't really have to coach the best players, you just need to be able to outbid the other programs.

As you can see with KY, TN and Bama losing games they should not have, they are not great coaches. A&M has lost one game at Texas they should not have. UK lost at Georgia, at Vandy and Arkansas at Rupp. Bama lost to Ole Miss at home and arguably have the best roster other than Auburn. Pearl is not a great coach, what the hell, they just have a crazy bankroll. Florida's roster is outstanding as well and Golden is a joke. A&M's roster is less than ours.
 

GenDawg32

Junior
Feb 4, 2024
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You don't really have to coach the best players, you just need to be able to outbid the other programs.

As you can see with KY, TN and Bama losing games they should not have, they are not great coaches. A&M has lost one game at Texas they should not have. UK lost at Georgia, at Vandy and Arkansas at Rupp. Bama lost to Ole Miss at home and arguably have the best roster other than Auburn. Pearl is not a great coach, what the hell, they just have a crazy bankroll. Florida's roster is outstanding as well and Golden is a joke. A&M's roster is less than ours.
Dude…..what?
 
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onewoof

Heisman
Mar 4, 2008
14,980
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113
Also I don’t feel like he’s doing more with less this year, he’s got one of the deepest rosters in the league.
he doesnt have really a single star player, all mid players and they are #8 in the nation

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MSUDC11-2.0

Heisman
Sep 29, 2022
8,914
13,870
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he doesnt have really a single star player, all mid players and they are #8 in the nation

View attachment 758867

You’re just looking at a box score and not actually watching that team or how they play. Taylor and Phelps absolutely have star qualities. They have a deep rotation with a lot of guys contributing in a variety of ways. It’s a different style of play than most of the league but that doesn’t mean they don’t have good players. Points per game not really the best metric to use to grade them.

I do think his style has a hard ceiling and that’s why he’s struggled to advance in tourneys in recent years. But he’s definitely got talent to work with. Not Top 5 talent, but talent.
 

DoomSlayer

Senior
Jan 13, 2018
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I would disagree with Pearl not being a good coach. We should have went after him instead of Ray regardless of the baggage from TN, which I don’t remember being that bad.
 

FlotownDawg

All-American
Aug 30, 2012
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Pearl isn’t a great coach? Seriously? Auburn was nothing before he got there. They were probably the worst program in the SEC. We even finished ahead of them in the Rick Ray years. He also had great success at Tennessee before he got into NCAA trouble for what turned out to be nothing much.
 

onewoof

Heisman
Mar 4, 2008
14,980
13,083
113
Pearl isn’t a great coach? Seriously? Auburn was nothing before he got there. They were probably the worst program in the SEC. We even finished ahead of them in the Rick Ray years. He also had great success at Tennessee before he got into NCAA trouble for what turned out to be nothing much.
He is wonderful at getting money to get the better players. Last year he went all out to win the SEC tourney and left the real tourney quickly. He's obsessed with getting players and paying them. That's his best quality by far. Coach O had highly paid football players at LSU so he's a great coach like Pearl.
 

leeinator

All-Conference
Feb 24, 2014
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Todd Golden is my pick. Back several years ago when the 5 SEC HC openings occurred this was my favorites list for the MSU coach. I really wanted Golden, but our glorious former AD went out and hired him quick. But we got the next best one IMO. Of course, Dennis Gates and Lamont Paris have done pretty decent jobs, but not sure I would have hired either of them.

1) Todd Golden
2) Chris Jans
3) Matt McMahon
 

onewoof

Heisman
Mar 4, 2008
14,980
13,083
113
There's 3 different type of coaches. Rarely do you find all 3 in one coach.

1) Salesman
2) Financial man
3) Servant leader, teacher, father figure, mentor, coach

Right now you have SEVERAL good salesmen coaches. Hardly any financial. Hundreds of coaches doing the best they know how at #3.

Oats, Pearl, Golden, Barnes are very good at #1.

Pope is decent at both #1 and #3 and getting better.

Williams is great at #3.

Jana is better than average at #3 but not the best at #1.

I haven't yet seen a basketball coach that does all 3 well.
 

BulldogBlitz

Heisman
Dec 11, 2008
16,199
20,341
113
Jans is better than average at #3 but not the best at #1.

I don't believe defense is a good selling point. With the money that is flying around, it would be difficult to get the right player for hard nose D. Add in that Jans has no offense.

I haven't yet seen a basketball coach that does all 3 well.

Coach K?
 

MSUDC11-2.0

Heisman
Sep 29, 2022
8,914
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Yall are nuts if you think Pearl isn’t a very good coach. Auburn was the only SEC team that Rick Ray had a winning record against. That should tell you the shape they were in until Bruce got it rolling there. Also turned Tennessee into a winner when they were historically a women’s hoops school.
 
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o_HuntDawg

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Anyone that thinks the Texas AM roster is not good or deep doenst understand college basketball. Their personal stats are what they are because the style that is played. Wade Taylor was 1st team all-sec last season and one of the best guards in the country. Would start on every team in the country. They've got players, a solid roster, and some deep pockets as well.

And whomever said Auburn and Alabama have the deepest pockets. Deepest pockets in the league reside in Kentucky, and Tenn isnt far away
 
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o_HuntDawg

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Arkansas is in that discussion too.
exactly.

Hubbard is making more than anyone on Auburn or Alabama's rosters. Alabama and Auburn are getting 4th and 5th year transfers due to the style they play and helping enhance NBA futures not so much money.

the OP is way wrong on a lot of whats posted in this thread.
 

onewoof

Heisman
Mar 4, 2008
14,980
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If you cannot look at the top 4 SEC teams and see a drastic disparity in talent and likewise the cost of that talent, you're clueless. Those are the schools spending on basketball. It's obvious. You label that talent as coaching. I think that's hilarious.

Williams does more with less basketball budget and less talent. That's the point you're missing.
 

o_HuntDawg

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If you cannot look at the top 4 SEC teams and see a drastic disparity in talent and likewise the cost of that talent, you're clueless. Those are the schools spending on basketball. It's obvious. You label that talent as coaching. I think that's hilarious.

Williams does more with less basketball budget and less talent. That's the point you're missing.
again. you know very little about how things work from an NIL standpoint with basketball. The fact you think certain talent costs money and you know based on that what each roster costs is silly.

I know for a fact Hubbard costed state over 7 figures (plus). I also know for a FACT that broome came back to auburn for pennies on the dollar.

you dont think auburn could get 3 quality players hungry to win, imrpove draft stock, and play in the NBA styled system for the price we are paying Hubbard??

But carry on thinking certain rosters cost certain things... or that Wade Taylor is just a "mid tier" player.. or that texas am whose playing 9 guys nearly 20 minutes a game and none of them are talented.... and getting paid nothing at the richest school in the SEC
 
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onewoof

Heisman
Mar 4, 2008
14,980
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But carry on thinking certain rosters cost certain things... or that Wade Taylor is just a "mid tier" player.. or that texas am whose playing 9 guys nearly 20 minutes a game and none of them are talented.... and getting paid nothing at the richest school in the SEC

I don't think of things in extremes. Generally. There is no doubt that Auburn and Bama have the highest total roster cost. UK and Tenn are way up there as well. Florida is also in that elite $$$ tier. Each of these programs are well into the 7 figures. 3X to 4X what other schools are spending.

Next tier down is Mizzou.

Then its a log jam with all the mids like us and A&M.

Then it's Georgia, LSU, South Carolina and Oklahoma.
 

o_HuntDawg

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I don't think of things in extremes. Generally. There is no doubt that Auburn and Bama have the highest total roster cost. UK and Tenn are way up there as well. Florida is also in that elite $$$ tier. Each of these programs are well into the 7 figures. 3X to 4X what other schools are spending.

Next tier down is Mizzou.

Then its a log jam with all the mids like us and A&M.

Then it's Georgia, LSU, South Carolina and Oklahoma.
your not even close to right if you think the Alabama or Auburn roster costs more than others. They are probably both in the top 5 but not top 1 or 2... all you did was name the leaders of the league minus Texas Am and claim they pay more.... what about arkansas, any idea of what that roster costs to get them all from kentucky to arkansas? What about what texas paid to get the best high school player in the country?

Again Josh Hubbard is being paid more here.. than anyone on either of those rosters at Alabama or Auburn... and he's easily one of the highest paid players in the league.. top 5 if not top 3. Broom is getting pennies on the dollar.. and the reason why sears took so long to come back is because there wasnt any NIL money left for him at alabama, he's being paid less from an NIL standpoint than he was last year. ... Tenn also paid/won a big money war to get Lanier to replace Knecht...

you are so off and clueless.... on everything said in this post its honestly not worth discussing.
 
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