Calipari to Arkansas?!?

[Pablo]

Isn't Scott Drew a big time bible thumper?

That doesn't really jive with what Sucky is. They need a scummy con-man at the helm. They are going to get Chris Beard. And they'll like it.

[Rams Fan]

Originally Posted by RaidersOftheCellar

Hurley would be the one to worry about and that's not happening.

Appears that Oats is out too. Drew has to be the favorite, and I don't think that's anything to be terrified of.

Care to explain? He completed the largest rebuild in college basketball history with a title.

I get he has been to the second once since 2020-2021 (which is when they won the title), but so has Kansas.

He's in arguably the toughest conference in college basketball, has less to work with than he would at Kentucky, and performs at a high level, both on the court and in terms of recruiting.

The only thing that would give me some pause is I'm not sure his temperament would be the best fit here given his personality. He's not the larger than life guy that Cal and Pitino are. He's more like Tubby, which he still did great here, but I think he'd get eaten alive if he wasn't putting up results within 3 seasons?

Drew, IMO, should be the second call behind Hurley. I'd rather have him than Donovan due to Donovan being older and not having coached college in almost a decade. Anything other than Hurley, Drew, or Donovan would be a disappointment.

Originally Posted by Pablo

Isn't Scott Drew a big time bible thumper?

That doesn't really jive with what Sucky is. They need a scummy con-man at the helm. They are going to get Chris Beard. And they'll like it.

I'm not sure the point you're making?

The AD is also devoutly Christian as well, like Drew. The President of UK is Jewish.

[KC_Connection]

Drew is a really good coach and massive improvement on Calipari.

[Rams Fan]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

Drew is a really good coach and massive improvement on Calipari.

Drew in 2024 is better than Calipari in 2024, yes.

I don't think a majority of people realize what he's done at Baylor was nothing short of a miracle. He inherited a program that was on probation for his first 7 years as HC, which also included the loss of scholarships for multiple seasons and the inability to play non-conference games for a season.

He recruits at a high level. Not as high as Calipari, who is probably the greatest recruiter of all time, but still very, very well. His teams also are very good offensively and defensively.

I get the criticism that he hasn't made the second weekend that often, but it's ****ing Baylor, and he has been there multiple times and likely would have been in contention for another second weekend or Final Four appearance in 2020.

The only reservation I have is his personality. It's a fishbowl in Lexington with the scrutiny he'd be under. I'm not sure how he'd handle that.

He isn't Dan Hurley, but he's a pretty damn good coach in his own right.

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

A message to #BBN: pic.twitter.com/TG344ipTfZ

— John Calipari (@UKCoachCalipari) April 9, 2024

Damn. UK is (potentially) back.

He was there for 15 years and only 30 of his guys ****ing graduated? WOW. I don't even.

Originally Posted by Pablo

Isn't Scott Drew a big time bible thumper?

That doesn't really jive with what Sucky is. They need a scummy con-man at the helm. They are going to get Chris Beard. And they'll like it.

Man, Chris Beard would be an annoyingly good hire. Unless he's just all the way off the wagon now.

[KC_Connection]

Originally Posted by Rams Fan

Drew in 2024 is better than Calipari in 2024, yes.

I don't think a majority of people realize what he's done at Baylor was nothing short of a miracle. He inherited a program that was on probation for his first 7 years as HC, which also included the loss of scholarships for multiple seasons and the inability to play non-conference games for a season.

He recruits at a high level. Not as high as Calipari, who is probably the greatest recruiter of all time, but still very, very well. His teams also are very good offensively and defensively.

I get the criticism that he hasn't made the second weekend that often, but it's ****ing Baylor, and he has been there multiple times and likely would have been in contention for another second weekend or Final Four appearance in 2020.

The only reservation I have is his personality. It's a fishbowl in Lexington with the scrutiny he'd be under. I'm not sure how he'd handle that.

He isn't Dan Hurley, but he's a pretty damn good coach in his own right.

Tournament is a complete crapshoot, it doesn't matter. He's been a top 5 coach now for at least the past 5 years. Realistically, I don't know that they could do much better (after Hurley says no).

[Rams Fan]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

Tournament is a complete crapshoot, it doesn't matter. He's been a top 5 coach now for at least the past 5 years. Realistically, I don't know that they could do much better (after Hurley says no).

The tournament is a crapshoot, yes, but it's also largest part in evaluating the season.

Cal wouldn't have had the fanbase turn on him if he won or made the natty in 2022. Instead, he hadn't made the second weekend since 2019, had arguably the worst season in program history, 1 tournament win, and losses to a 14 and 15 seed in the first seed, including with a 2022 team that by all accounts was a top 8 team based off of seeding and the regular season.

If Drew only makes the second weekend once in 5 years in Lexington, with no Final Fours or titles, he's going to be ran out of town. Just like Cal. Just like Tubby, who had weaker regular season teams at the end of his tenure but still made it to the second weekend 6 out of 10 seasons.

And I'm in agreement with you. Hurley is clearly the best candidate they could logically go after and he will likely say no. Drew is the next best and is still a very good coach.

[Pitt Gorilla]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

Tournament is a complete crapshoot, it doesn't matter. He's been a top 5 coach now for at least the past 5 years. Realistically, I don't know that they could do much better (after Hurley says no).

How does an average margin of victory of over 23 points per game and back-to-back Championships suggest a "complete crapshoot?"

[Bearcat]

Originally Posted by Pitt Gorilla

How does an average margin of victory of over 23 points per game and back-to-back Championships suggest a "complete crapshoot?"

I don't think it's a complete crapshoot, but Purdue did play an 11 seed in the Final Four.

Since 2000, 35 out of 96 one seeds made the Final Four... what other sport exists where a top 4 team routinely wins 85-90%+ of their games yet only has a 36% chance to make the semifinal?

[Pasta Little Brioni]

Originally Posted by Pitt Gorilla

How does an average margin of victory of over 23 points per game and back-to-back Championships suggest a "complete crapshoot?"

beaker Homer garbage

[lawrenceRaider]

Originally Posted by Pitt Gorilla

How does an average margin of victory of over 23 points per game and back-to-back Championships suggest a "complete crapshoot?"

3 UConn championships are of the crapshoot variety.

KUs last one definitely was.

[bdj23]

Originally Posted by Pitt Gorilla

How does an average margin of victory of over 23 points per game and back-to-back Championships suggest a "complete crapshoot?"

It's a fallback that KU (I'm a KU fan) and now UK fans use to cope with their perceived lack of success in the NCAA tournament. KU should have more championships as a blue blood program and UK should have more with the excess of talent Cal has brought it through the years.

So therefore the tournament is a completely random series of events.

[RaidersOftheCellar]

Originally Posted by Rams Fan

Care to explain? He completed the largest rebuild in college basketball history with a title.

I get he has been to the second once since 2020-2021 (which is when they won the title), but so has Kansas.

He's in arguably the toughest conference in college basketball, has less to work with than he would at Kentucky, and performs at a high level, both on the court and in terms of recruiting.

The only thing that would give me some pause is I'm not sure his temperament would be the best fit here given his personality. He's not the larger than life guy that Cal and Pitino are. He's more like Tubby, which he still did great here, but I think he'd get eaten alive if he wasn't putting up results within 3 seasons?

Drew, IMO, should be the second call behind Hurley. I'd rather have him than Donovan due to Donovan being older and not having coached college in almost a decade. Anything other than Hurley, Drew, or Donovan would be a disappointment.

I'm not sure the point you're making?

The AD is also devoutly Christian as well, like Drew. The President of UK is Jewish.

I didn't say that Drew isn't a solid coach. I said I don't think he's something to be terrified of (Hurley or Wright at Kentucky would be scary). I'm sure his results would be better on average than Calipari's over the last several years, but it's far from a guarantee that he's going to pile up final fours. Or land classes that are close to the average Calipari class.

And yeah, it was a nice rebuild, but it also took him 20 years to reach his first and only final four. Baylor was basically a middling program until 2020.