The Search for Calipari Thread

[Vito Porkleone]

While it does happen for head coaches to advise ADs, do you think Doug McMillion is asking a target exec for hiring advice?

Execs do it all the time.  If they know somebody at the company the person is coming from, they're vetting them.  Unoffical reference check, or due diligence - call it whatever you like.  It happens.

[bigpig]

https://x.com/treywallace_/status/1778593057664909532?s=46&t=VKUX0KEsVDEwvBGk5nonyA

crap...

they're going to make me like him aren't they?

It's happening. I can feel it.

[BleedinRed]

Don't forget "Left lane, hammer down"

[DrMongoose]

Execs do it all the time.  If they know somebody at the company the person is coming from, they're vetting them.  Unoffical reference check, or due diligence - call it whatever you like.  It happens.

I get the vetting (that is when you have a candidate in mind), I am talking about - looking for idea on who to hire when you don't really have a list of candidates after missing on your top 2 choices.  :Hey, who would be a good candidate to run our north american stores?

[DirkPiggler]

I get the vetting (that is when you have a candidate in mind), I am talking about - looking for idea on who to hire when you don't really have a list of candidates after missing on your top 2 choices.  :Hey, who would be a good candidate to run our north american stores?

You're assuming that everything they said at the press conference should be taken at face value. 

I suspect they had more than an inkling that Cal was interested before the visit ever happened.  We may well have reached out to Beard...too much smoke there not to believe it.  I refuse to believe that we ever offered the job to Jerome Tang if talking to Calipari was even remotely on the table. 

[DrMongoose]

You're assuming that everything they said at the press conference should be taken at face value. 

I suspect they had more than an inkling that Cal was interested before the visit ever happened.  We may well have reached out to Beard...too much smoke there not to believe it.  I refuse to believe that we ever offered the job to Jerome Tang if talking to Calipari was even remotely on the table. 

oh I agree. I think once Beard and Tang fell through, John who had already back channeled with Cal was ready to go but no body else was believing it was legit until hunter and cal met in Arizona and cal vetted hunter.
There's a reason Tyson wanted them to meet IN PERSON.

[Green_lanternn]

BYU's Mark Pope is a candidate according to Rothstein.

UK fans predictably thrilled

The pope and his 7 wives are headed to Lexington 
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/kentucky-chose-mark-pope-as-its-last-best-head-coaching-option-and-it-doesn-t-feel-great/ar-BB1lwiaB

"Y'all ever watch Shrek? I'm sure you have. Remember that scene after Shrek rescues Fiona from the tower she's locked in? She eventually finds out Shrek is actually an ogre instead of the Prince Charming she's looking for and immediately demands Shrek put her back in the tower so somebody cute can get her.

That's kind of the vibe I'm getting from Kentucky right now." 

[vegashog]

multiple media guys, both local and national, said tang was never offered. he didn't 'turn us down'.

[BleedinRed]

My gut tells me that...

1) Weeks, if not months ago, Muss told Hunter that he was leaving the program whether there was an open job or not.  It seems like he missed his mom and the wife wanted to explore other ventures that are not available in Arkansas.

Which, by the way, wasn't it interesting that Cal talked about how he grew up like us?  Small town in PA.  Working class family.  He connected with the majority of the state.  I don't think Muss ever said or did anything that demonstrated that he was an Arkansan.  Just an interesting side point and not sure it really means a whole lot.

2) It has been widely known that Cal and Kentucky were not seeing eye to eye on facilities, money, etc. and the fan base was tiring of the first round bounces.  It was also known that there were issues between the AD and Cal.  That has all been verified in the "vetting hunter" and "administrations win championships" that came directly off Cal's lips.

Knowing those two things I think Cal was the target all along.  Did Hunter reach out to Beard and Tang?  I'm sure he did.  It would have been dumb not to as Cal might have decided to stay or Kentucky may have had an "Oh Fuck" moment.  

I think this was Cal's job from the very beginning.

[DirkPiggler]

Connected boosters have said that Hunter let them know as early as football season (about the time he was looking for contributions to possibly buy out Pittman) that there was a strong possibility that he would need to find a new basketball coach at the end of the year.  I don't know if Muss told him, or if he was just hearing about Muss reaching out to all these programs with dead coaches walking and put two and two together. 

I think early on Muss at least tried to embrace the culture and the university.  Remember him showing up at the baseball regionals (supers?) wearing the size XXS Sunday cream baseball uniform?  And flying to Dallas to watch Sam's best team kick the shit out of the sheep fuckers? 

The trouble with guys like Muss is that they burn really hot for a while, then flame out.  When he was engaged fully and motivated Muss was as good as we could hope to have in that role.  Once that drive waned he became average at best.  A disengaged Muss isn't a whole lot better than Stan Heath at the Xs and Os. 

I also think that when things went south midseason last year and pretty much all year this one, instead of looking inward he started to get a sense that this program wasn't good enough to help him reach his goals.  He told people that this year's team was good enough to get to the Final Four before the season started.  When that didn't work I don't think he accepted his role in it not happening.

He will do really well for a while at USC.  Like at Arkansas after 25 years of mediocrity, it won't be hard to show an immediate impact at a school with no real history.  The marketing genius in him will turn it up, and he'll have Snoop, Will Ferrell and others sitting courtside.  But eventually the long dick of reality will slap him upside the head again, and he'll be off to his next challenge...building a winner at Long Beach State or someplace similar.

[BleedinRed]

Connected boosters have said that Hunter let them know as early as football season (about the time he was looking for contributions to possibly buy out Pittman) that there was a strong possibility that he would need to find a new basketball coach at the end of the year.  I don't know if Muss told him, or if he was just hearing about Muss reaching out to all these programs with dead coaches walking and put two and two together. 

I think early on Muss at least tried to embrace the culture and the university.  Remember him showing up at the baseball regionals (supers?) wearing the size XXS Sunday cream baseball uniform?  And flying to Dallas to watch Sam's best team kick the shit out of the sheep fuckers? 

The trouble with guys like Muss is that they burn really hot for a while, then flame out.  When he was engaged fully and motivated Muss was as good as we could hope to have in that role.  Once that drive waned he became average at best.  A disengaged Muss isn't a whole lot better than Stan Heath at the Xs and Os. 

I also think that when things went south midseason last year and pretty much all year this one, instead of looking inward he started to get a sense that this program wasn't good enough to help him reach his goals.  He told people that this year's team was good enough to get to the Final Four before the season started.  When that didn't work I don't think he accepted his role in it not happening.

He will do really well for a while at USC.  Like at Arkansas after 25 years of mediocrity, it won't be hard to show an immediate impact at a school with no real history.  The marketing genius in him will turn it up, and he'll have Snoop, Will Ferrell and others sitting courtside.  But eventually the long dick of reality will slap him upside the head again, and he'll be off to his next challenge...building a winner at Long Beach State or someplace similar.

Fantastic write up.  Hard to argue against it really.

[olive_branch_hog]

Muss was an assistant with the Memphis Grizzlies several years back.

When Arkansas hired him, I asked an insider with the Grizzlies about Muss.

"He has a 3-year shelf life before he and everyone else is ready for him to move on."

csb.

[Trigger7672]

Only thing I'll argue is no celebrities are going to sit courtside at any USC basketball games.

[Show-Me Hog]

Connected boosters have said that Hunter let them know as early as football season (about the time he was looking for contributions to possibly buy out Pittman) that there was a strong possibility that he would need to find a new basketball coach at the end of the year.  I don't know if Muss told him, or if he was just hearing about Muss reaching out to all these programs with dead coaches walking and put two and two together. 

I think early on Muss at least tried to embrace the culture and the university.  Remember him showing up at the baseball regionals (supers?) wearing the size XXS Sunday cream baseball uniform?  And flying to Dallas to watch Sam's best team kick the shit out of the sheep fuckers? 

The trouble with guys like Muss is that they burn really hot for a while, then flame out.  When he was engaged fully and motivated Muss was as good as we could hope to have in that role.  Once that drive waned he became average at best.  A disengaged Muss isn't a whole lot better than Stan Heath at the Xs and Os. 

I also think that when things went south midseason last year and pretty much all year this one, instead of looking inward he started to get a sense that this program wasn't good enough to help him reach his goals.  He told people that this year's team was good enough to get to the Final Four before the season started.  When that didn't work I don't think he accepted his role in it not happening.

He will do really well for a while at USC.  Like at Arkansas after 25 years of mediocrity, it won't be hard to show an immediate impact at a school with no real history.  The marketing genius in him will turn it up, and he'll have Snoop, Will Ferrell and others sitting courtside.  But eventually the long dick of reality will slap him upside the head again, and he'll be off to his next challenge...building a winner at Long Beach State or someplace similar.

Good post. Wally Hall & Bob Holt wept.

Getting to the second weekend would be a basketball success at USC. Muss may do that one or two times, but I think that's as far as it goes.

[BleedinRed]

Good post. Wally Hall & Bob Holt wept.

  I almost made a Wally comparison but thought it would be too mean.  

[Lurk]

Only thing I'll argue is no celebrities are going to sit courtside at any USC basketball games.

Not without Bronnie.

[piglosopher]

multiple media guys, both local and national, said tang was never offered. he didn't 'turn us down'.

This.

Tang isn't worth the 6 million buyout + new contract.

[bigpig]

You don't get turned down by Tang and then hire Calipari. That's the opposite of how coaching searches go.

Kentucky just experienced this. They swung for big names, got turned down, and hired a midmajor.

[Doc Hogaday]

Be good to get P.Bev barking for us again and maybe back in BWA for some games.

https://twitter.com/PatBevPod/status/1778845539917828341

[egregious]

Tang would fulfill the CBB Rooney rule if there is one.