Shaka smart
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After graduating from high school, Smart attended Kenyon College, a liberal arts school in Ohio. As a member of the Kenyon College basketball team, he was an all-conference selection as a senior and is the school's career assists leader (542). Smart was named a member of the 1999 USA TODAY All-USA Academic Team.
Coaching career - Smart began his coaching career in 1999 as an assistant at California University of Pennsylvania, where he also earned a Master's Degree.
Afterwards, he was hired as Director of Basketball Operations at the University of Dayton. He was then an assistant at the University of Akron for three years, Clemson for two, and Florida for one.
VCU hired Smart to be the head coach in the spring of 2009 after the program's previous coach, Anthony Grant, left to become the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team. Smart's hire made him the 10th-youngest head coach in Division I. In his first season, he led the Rams to a 27–10 season and a CBI Championship after VCU swept Saint Louis in the championship best-of-three series.
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After graduating from high school, Smart attended Kenyon College, a liberal arts school in Ohio. As a member of the Kenyon College basketball team, he was an all-conference selection as a senior and is the school's career assists leader (542). Smart was named a member of the 1999 USA TODAY All-USA Academic Team.
Coaching career - Smart began his coaching career in 1999 as an assistant at California University of Pennsylvania, where he also earned a Master's Degree.
Afterwards, he was hired as Director of Basketball Operations at the University of Dayton. He was then an assistant at the University of Akron for three years, Clemson for two, and Florida for one.
VCU hired Smart to be the head coach in the spring of 2009 after the program's previous coach, Anthony Grant, left to become the head coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team. Smart's hire made him the 10th-youngest head coach in Division I. In his first season, he led the Rams to a 27–10 season and a CBI Championship after VCU swept Saint Louis in the championship best-of-three series.
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It appears you're right. It's very odd these days to see guys like smart and brad Stevens stick with smaller schools. I like seeing it though.
I posted something quite similar in defense of pat being lit up for claiming Butler was a better job than UCLA.
olblue claims coaches live for the chance to coach at the UCLA types(there are maybe 5 such jobs in the country- UCLA, UK, KU, Duke, UNC).
The lack of reasonable expectations going into the job, the insane spotlight that is on the program, and the circus that is the LA media just cant appeal to a lot of coaches who are successful and have built or continued a successful program where they currently are.
But hey, what do I know.
Shaka Smart staying at VCU doesn't mean UCLA is still not a premiere job. It just means one of the most sought after coaches didn't want to go there. No matter who they hire, it's still a top five job in a tier with very few others, as you named.
I disagree; I think extensive small school success is bad for college basketball. If we ever get to a final four of Wichita State, Butler, Gonzaga, and VCU, there will be very low ratings for the national viewership. College basketball needs bigger programs and TV markets like Michigan State, UCLA, Syracuse/UConn, Duke, etc to win championships on a regular basis. If these successful coaches stay at smaller schools it just makes for more Cinderellas every year.
Cinderella wouldn't be nearly as good of a story if there were 10 Cinderellas in it. The special feel of the story is that usually the people with power and status win everything; the story is of a one time success for the underdog.
Cinderella wouldn't be nearly as good of a story if there were 10 Cinderellas in it. The special feel of the story is that usually the people with power and status win everything; the story is of a one time success for the underdog.
Um what? I would love to see wichita state play vcu for the title. If it is kansas vs kentucky, i doubt id even turn it on.
I fully expect Rick Petino and Billy Donnavon to get phone calls from UCLA. Maybe they don't respond, and they have to settle on a mid-major type guy, (if you can settle for Brad Stevens?). But that job is one of the best in the country, and their next coach isn't going to look at that job and say "Man, they haven't won a Pac-12 title in 3 years", he's going to look and say "I could build a monster there, and make $3 million per year".
That's pretty enticing.
That's pretty enticing.
disgree.. ucla is not a top 5 job. unrealstic expectations, cannot compete for attention and attendance with clipper and lakers, and cali taxes and LA living expenses mean he'd have to make 2 1/2 mill just to be where he is now money wise. biggest prob is expectations. they haven't been relevant since the 70's on any consistent scale and they continue to meaure success there by j wooden. its not a bad job but it is not a elite job anymore.
Oh, i have no doubt that UCLA is a premiere job. I was just saying that i can see why some coaches would rather stay where they are than jump to UCLA.
UCLA's expectations are so far beyond reasonable that its setting each coach up for short term employment. Why take that job, with probably a 10% chance of success(as defined by the fanbase), when you are successful and loved at your current job?
Um...they won a Pac12 title THIS YEAR. They just won it, went to the NCAAs, and Howland was canned.
Howland won 68.5% of his games.
Howland won 67% of his conference games.
In the last 5 seasons, the 'down' ones since his FinalFour runs, he won 63% of his games overall and 64% of his conference games.
Howland won the conference 4 times, the conference tournament 2 times, made 3 FinalFours, was in a championship game, and made the NCAA Tournament 7 times.
All this was in 10 seasons.
As I said earlier, he won the conference THIS SEASON.
The expectations for success are unreasonable and I wouldnt think twice about already successful coaches who turn the job down to stay where they are.
I wasn't trying to be factual with that statement, just verbalizing the thought process. You can read it to "they haven't been to a Final Four in 5 years" if it makes you feel better. I understand that the expectations are sky high, but coaches live for that. Plus, Howland's resume was impressive, but little of that is in the last 3 or 4 years.
If the next coach is there for 10 years, he's probably going to pull down over $40million in salary. That's good enough.
If the next coach is there for 10 years, he's probably going to pull down over $40million in salary. That's good enough.
I agree.... UCLA is not a top 5 job anymore. Might not even be top 10 at this point in time.
You're high, that's simply wrong.
We go through this all the time, Alabama Football isn't a top job prior to Saban, Kentucky basketball before they hired Calipari, Notre Dame football is dead, etc. It wasn't that long ago UCLA was playing Florida for National Titles every year, and Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook days.
Duke
North Carolina
UCLA
Kansas
Kentucky
It doesn't get any better than that in college basketball.
We go through this all the time, Alabama Football isn't a top job prior to Saban, Kentucky basketball before they hired Calipari, Notre Dame football is dead, etc. It wasn't that long ago UCLA was playing Florida for National Titles every year, and Kevin Love and Russell Westbrook days.
Duke
North Carolina
UCLA
Kansas
Kentucky
It doesn't get any better than that in college basketball.
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Sweet16 -- last 15 years:
<colgroup><col><col></colgroup><tbody>
</tbody>
| 12 | Duke |
| 10 | Michigan St |
| 10 | Kansas |
| 8 | Kentucky |
| 7 | North Carolina |
| 7 | Connecticut |
| 7 | Florida |
| 7 | Syracuse |
| 7 | Arizona |
| 6 | Ohio St |
| 6 | Wisconsin |
| 6 | UCLA |
| 5 | Louisville |
| 5 | Pittsburgh |
| 5 | Texas |
| 5 | Gonzaga |
| 5 | Xavier |
| 4 | Butler |
| 4 | Memphis |
| 4 | Maryland |
| 4 | Illinois |
| 4 | Purdue |
| 4 | Oklahoma |
| 4 | Marquette |
| 4 | Villanova |
| 4 | West Virginia |
| 4 | Tennessee |
<colgroup><col><col></colgroup><tbody>
</tbody>
Everyone is entitle to their opinion. I will gladly acknowledge that someone arguing UCLA in the top 10 of best coaching gigs is going to have some good points.
However, I disagree. UCLA is a state school that can't pay an outrageous salary to a head coach in order to combat the ridiculous cost of living out there. Coaching and keeping a popular 19 year old male focused on basketball is very challenging in LA. Way too many distractions.
Here's 6 schools that I currently think are better jobs than UCLA:
Duke
UNC
KU
UK
Michigan State
Syracuse
Here's other schools that I can easily see being argued over UCLA for a better gig.
UCONN
Florida
Arizona
Ohio State
Indiana
Louisville
Other schools with a weaker agrument:
Wisconsin
Butler
Gonzaga
However, I disagree. UCLA is a state school that can't pay an outrageous salary to a head coach in order to combat the ridiculous cost of living out there. Coaching and keeping a popular 19 year old male focused on basketball is very challenging in LA. Way too many distractions.
Here's 6 schools that I currently think are better jobs than UCLA:
Duke
UNC
KU
UK
Michigan State
Syracuse
Here's other schools that I can easily see being argued over UCLA for a better gig.
UCONN
Florida
Arizona
Ohio State
Indiana
Louisville
Other schools with a weaker agrument:
Wisconsin
Butler
Gonzaga
Exactly. Maybe we can get a comparison of the National championships Nebraska and Alabama had prior to Saban's arrival.
Why, thank you, sir.
I agree with most people here. Coach K takes over a program like Duke and he makes it his powerhouse. I think more and more smart young coaches are aiming for this. When you can take a program like Butler/VCU/etc. and create and sustain success over a long period of time, the pressure decreases tremendously. These coaches are still getting paid handsomely, and their contracts are practically lifelong if they want them. At these type schools, you are not expected to bring in high profile players. At a place like UCLA, you HAVE to bring in top recruits (to appease fans, alumni, administration, etc.), but sometimes the high profile players don't fit the mold of what type of team these coaches want to build these days. It should be very obvious by how many mid-majors make sweet sixteens each year, that amassing the most amount of 4 and 5 star players on one squad does not necessarily equate to an automatic championship contender. Many coaches want the "chip on their shoulder" players and/or high IQ guys. If you can win that way, make money that way, and have no pressure that way, then why not coach at a school like that?
Yeah, I respectfully disagree with this completely. The bigger schools will still get the better players (at least from an athletic standpoint). If the smaller schools keep winning, it just goes to show how far good coaching can go. It debunks the myth that the more athletic is always better than the more well-coached. If the Mich. State/UCLA/Duke/Syracuse/Kansas/UK/etc teams of the world don't win every year, I find it a good thing for basketball. It then challenges those big schools to take their coaching and fundamentals up a notch which is better for the game as a whole. Less free 1-on-1 play and more structured team ball that requires physical and mental ability (if you want to win, of course). Sounds good to me.
regular everyday people enjoy a nice paying, low stress, high quality of life job with good job security, and often turn down big salary, high stress, low quality of life jobs with shaky job security all the time. yet no one thinks this applies to coaches. stevens, few, and smart are smart guys. they have good things going at their current gigs. they can stay there as long as they'd like. they don't have to deal with egos and kissing the asses of AAU 'coaches' on the cruitin' trail. they make more money than they know what to do with. and they can compete for titles doing what they are doing at their current schools. butler's been to 2 final 4s and a halfcourt last second shot away from a title. vcu has been to a final 4. gonzaga was #1 in the polls and a #1 seed this year. these programs can get favorable NCAA seeding by playing tough non-conference schedules. plus butler (and maybe vcu eventually?) are joining with the catholic 7 in the new basketball centric big east. these guys have great jobs and aren't going to chase a short term raise at the expense of long term happiness and employment.