Who is the best choice?

by gmphidelt on Mar 22, 2007 11:48 PM EDT

I have heard so many names just in the past 6 hours of Tubbys departure. God bless to Tubby and his family but who do we get now to lead the elite of elite programs in college basketball?
Travis Ford
Tom Crean
Rick Barnes
Tom Izzo
Billy Gillespie
Jay Wright
Rick Pitino
Bruce Pearl
Thad Matta
John Calipari
Billy Donavan
Mike D'Antoni
Pat Riley

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Billy Donovan

I am a first-time blogger on this site and I found it while searching for more info. on the Tubby Smith ordeal. When I saw that I could log on and give my own opinion, it really was an opportunity that I just had to take.

IMO, "IF" we can pry him away from Florida, Billy Donovan is who I would like to see be the next head basketball coach at Kentucky. He very well may be on his way to a second consecutive national championship and the Gators have overtaken Kentucky as the # 1 powerhouse in the SEC East.

I heard on television earlier today or yesterday that Florida's A.D. would even consent to Kentucky talking with Donovan sometime in the days to come if that would be requested however it sounded to me as if he just knew that Donovan would be set in stone to stay in Florida.

To at least be considered for the Wildcat coaching job should be a huge enough honor and I don't follow the contracts all too closely but is it only a rumor that I heard a while back that Donovan would strongly considered opting out of his Florida contract to come to Kentucky and KY is the only one or one of a very few teams that he would even consider leaving for? I honestly heard that just the other day before Tubby left for Minnesota.

Anyone else heard any rumors or have any opinions on who you want the next UK head coach to be?

by KYfirefighter on Mar 23, 2007 3:53 PM EDT reply actions

Wishing on stars...

I don't see it happening but P. Riley would be great pub for the university. R. Pitino would be my personal #1 choice due to the fact that it can not be argued that he is an outstanding recruiter and coach and knows all the pressure that comes with the job.

That being said I don't see him coming back, just a personal feeling.

I love Ford but lets face it he still needs to cut his teeth at a mid major a while longer.

I live in the middle of Buckeye country Matta is going no where, he has a great class coming in next year to complement what he already has and already made it clear he did't want to leave when the IU job opened up last year and he is from Indiana.

I don't know how the rest of you feel but I for one absolutely couldn't stomach Pearl and Calipari wouldn't be much better.

Also I can't see Izzo leaving MSU, I think he has to much dedication to them to skip out.

Crean absolutetly does not deserve a crack at a job like UK, its simply to high above his station.

Barnes, D'Antonio, and Wright are much better than Crean and certainly deserve hard consideration (especially Wright).

Which brings the ideal situation, a two man race between Gillespie and Donovan......

I would really love to see Billy D. roaming the sidelines, in the mold of Pitino, understands the pressure that come with the job. I think it should be considered that he is losing one hell a chunk of his team to the NBA and there has to some allure to being the guy given the chance to turn UK around.

by wldcatsfreak on Mar 23, 2007 5:22 PM EDT reply actions

I think Donovan

Here is my thinking, and Matt Jones has a somewhat parallel take.

I believe that Donovan has been headed to bigger things than Florida since last year. He flat-out equivocated when he said he didn't want to exploit his success last year - no sane man in his position wouldn't leverage his position to the best advantage of his family, or puts a school before his future.

I think Donovan was headed to the NBA after this season, and he may now be rethinking that. There have long been rumors that he is less than totally happy with the fan support for basketball in Florida, and I don't believe he thinks a larger venue or facilities upgrade is in the offing - Florida has the football beast to feed, and the basketball program will always get the leavings and scrapings from that monster.

Now that UK has opened up, I think Donovan will consider it. But if the right situation in the NBA comes along, I expect he will decline our offer, no matter what it is, and go to the NBA. He has seen what can happen at UK if things don't go your way, and that may put him off a little. But I don't want to emphasize that too much, because stress comes with any coaching job. UK carries a lot of that, but the rewards are also proportionally greater.

So ultimately, we will definitely be talking to Donovan, and he will be listening. Will he come? Maybe, maybe not, but I predict he won't be a Gator much longer, either way.

by Glenn Logan on Mar 24, 2007 11:52 AM EDT reply actions

John Beilein Is Our Man

If current West Virginia Coach John Beilein can build tournament caliber programs at Richmond and West Virginia, imagine what he could do at Kentucky.

Beilein is a total "class act". His team's are always fundamentally sound, he love's the 3-ball, and he'll bring honor to the UK program in the similar that Coach K brought honor to Duke. With the recruits Beilein will be able to bring into UK, we'll be playing for NCAA National Championships again soon.

Move John Beilein's name near the top of the list !

RealityCzech

by realityczech2003 on Mar 26, 2007 10:42 PM EDT reply actions