Elgin Leslie out at Carondelet?

[ClayK]

That's what I heard, and I know Carondelet is looking for a new athletic director, as the job has been posted.

Carondelet will return a lot of talent next year and should be very strong, so it's a good job -- at least for one year. Six seniors will graduate in 2019, and the junior varsity wasn't as strong as it has been in the past.

Still, given the ability to recruit from Discovery Bay to San Ramon, the ceiling is very high. Of course, a lot will depend on the new AD, and the administration, and just how committed (if at all) they are to winning NCS titles.

 

[OnBall8]

Seems to be true. That's a rough beat.. make the open div.. kids make poor decisions.. parents still get you fired..

 

[colhenrylives]

That's what I heard, and I know Carondelet is looking for a new athletic director, as the job has been posted.

Carondelet will return a lot of talent next year and should be very strong, so it's a good job -- at least for one year. Six seniors will graduate in 2019, and the junior varsity wasn't as strong as it has been in the past.

Still, given the ability to recruit from Discovery Bay to San Ramon, the ceiling is very high. Of course, a lot will depend on the new AD, and the administration, and just how committed (if at all) they are to winning NCS titles.

"...given the ability to recruit..." Thank you for sharing.

 

[Norcal_Fan]

Lets be real here...If Elgins steps down, that job is Kelly Sopek's for the taking. The ONLY reason why he wouldn't get it is because maybe he burned a bridge or two with people in hiring places. Then he can legally recruit players...

From what I've heard though, some of the Admin at C-Let aren't thrilled about having him as a coach. They don't want to be knows as that basketball school (even though they already are)...which is interesting because Former O'Dowd Basketball Coach Kevin Kushing is running the show.

 

[OnBall8]

If Elgins steps down, that job is Kelly Sopek's for the taking.

Doesn't sound like there is any IF about it... And I would be willing to bet mucho that he did not "step down".

While you might not be wrong that Kelly would be a leading candidate if he tried for it, I am not sure he will even throw his hat in the ring. However, I would not be surprised to hear other cal star names in the rumor mill

 

[Norcal_Fan]

Doesn't sound like there is any IF about it... And I would be willing to bet mucho that he did not "step down".

While you might not be wrong that Kelly would be a leading candidate if he went for it, I am not sure he will even throw his hat in the ring. However, I would not be surprised to hear other cal star names in the rumor mill

Intersting...I think this is a job he's coveted for a long time and why would he not?? He can't get every kid in at Miramonte and at C-Let, the doors is basically wide open. That AND having the Cal Stars name behind him...he'd be the the Mitty of the Eastbay.

 

[alwayslearning]

Why would Sopak want to leave Miramonte? He obviously hasn't had a hard time getting good young talent to that school. His main focus and fun comes in the off season with Cal Stars. His daughter is at Miramonte and I don't see him coaching HS much longer after his daughter graduates in a few years. Cal Stars is a full time job with way less headaches if he wants it to be. Any HS job comes with way too many headaches now a days. Soon you will see AAU totally take over the basketball scene in the Bay Area. I think you will see a lot of good HS coaches retiring in the next 5 years or so. Ask any college coach, they will say how they wish it was like the old days (get rid of AAU and bring the game back to good HS coaches teaching fundamentals), but reality is they know the money is on the circuit and they feel like if a kid doesn't play on a known AAU team then they must not be very good.
What if a kid and family just don't want to spend the thousands of dollars it costs to play AAU and travel on the circuit (except for the top 2% getting free from Adidas or Nike teams)? What if a kid just wants to stay in the gym working on skills and fundamentals and then showing the results of that with their HS teams? What if they go to the park or rec center and play against men every day for free?

 

[ClayK]

Note that the NCAA just recommended major reforms in club basketball, requiring full financial disclosure and what amounts to having an accountant and bookkeeper to run a team or an event -- club basketball could be very different in just a couple years.

And surprisingly, basketball is by far the cheapest of the major girls' sports. Volleyball and soccer are much more expensive to play at the club level, despite there being fewer scholarships.

I can say Kelly is not leaving Miramonte while Leah is playing (she will be a junior). After that, it's up to him to say, but from our conversations, I would expect his time at Miramonte to extend at least one season after that.

And of course, who knows what Carondelet wants? They have to get a new AD first, and then presumably begin the search for a basketball coach, so it really seems unlikely -- unless an AD hiring happens in the next couple weeks -- that a new coach will be in place before school's out. (Now if the head of school has a new coach already in mind, different story ...)

 

[norcalbasketball]

Heard that Coach Leslie will still have a chance at the job.

 

[OnBall8]

Heard that Coach Leslie will still have a chance at the job.

Explain?

 

[norcalbasketball]

Explain?

He will be in the running with other applicants.

 

[Streak One]

What a weird situation. Is Elgin forced to re-apply?

That program has been sputtering (based on expectations) since Margaret left.

 

[ClayK]

I've seen schools "open up the job" before, and I don't recall any instances where the previous coach was re-hired.

Since it's an at-will contract, technically the job is open every year, but when the administration is happy, they just have the old coach sign the contract.

One difference here, however: There's no AD in place (as far as I know), and it may be the head of school just wanted the new AD to be able to hire whoever he or she wanted for the most prestigious job in the program.

 

[Norcal_Fan]

I've seen schools "open up the job" before, and I don't recall any instances where the previous coach was re-hired.

Since it's an at-will contract, technically the job is open every year, but when the administration is happy, they just have the old coach sign the contract.

One difference here, however: There's no AD in place (as far as I know), and it may be the head of school just wanted the new AD to be able to hire whoever he or she wanted for the most prestigious job in the program.

The difference is that this is a private school and they're by no means obligated to have to open it OR they could technically offer a mutli-year contract if they wanted. They can do whatever they want. lol The big things is that there is no AD in place and I would think that for ANY incoming coach, he/she/they would want to have met and/or have a good relationship with the incoming AD.

Yah this seems like it's gonna be a clean break from the previous coach. any chance Margaret applies? How about Scott Brown who was Margarets assistant? I would love to see Scott back at the high school level-those campo teams were fun to watch.

 

[ClayK]

Margaret Gartner is an interesting name to bring up ... and that might be a good move for everyone.

As for Scott, I don't think he wants to be a head coach any more -- but I learned a lot of what I know about the game from coaching with him.

 

[Chuck023]

This is weird. Why is Coach Elgin no longer the head coach at clet?

 

[Norcal_Fan]

Has his job been officially posted? I haven't seen it anywhere...unfortunate. If this is the case, who do you think would apply?

 

[ClayK]

It's all rumor mill at this point, but the Carondelet AD is doing the scheduling -- but then again, I heard that Elgin can reapply for the job. But I don't know ...

Generally, when "positions are opened" and previous coaches "reapply," the job goes to someone else, but you never know. Elgin is a quality coach, and as far as anyone can tell, he had little or nothing to do with the postseason party that apparently was the trigger for these moves.

I know the AD job has been posted, so maybe they're waiting for that to be filled before they post the basketball job? Or maybe not?

I'm guessing we won't know anything until the white smoke appears above the gym ...

 

[Paytc]

It's all rumor mill at this point, but the Carondelet AD is doing the scheduling -- but then again, I heard that Elgin can reapply for the job. But I don't know ...

Generally, when "positions are opened" and previous coaches "reapply," the job goes to someone else, but you never know. Elgin is a quality coach, and as far as anyone can tell, he had little or nothing to do with the postseason party that apparently was the trigger for these moves.

I know the AD job has been posted, so maybe they're waiting for that to be filled before they post the basketball job? Or maybe not?

I'm guessing we won't know anything until the white smoke appears above the gym ...

Let's just say obviously there was some damage done and enough blame at the top to warrant the house being cleaned. To blame everything on the kids (especially if you weren't in house) is not fair. The young ladies who have been in the program and still there have always deserved accountable and quality leadership.They've worked hard to be quality players of good character on and off the court all four years I observed them. When there is no checks and balances in place at the top, no one has to worry about being accountable below. And it's sad to see children take the blame and punishment alone, when adults set them up to fail by dropping the ball not being accountable role models themselves. Personally, I think the young former A.D. was in over her head and/ or had her kindness taken for granted. I wish this year's team, the new coach, and administration all the best.

 

[Paytc]

That's what I heard, and I know Carondelet is looking for a new athletic director, as the job has been posted.

Carondelet will return a lot of talent next year and should be very strong, so it's a good job -- at least for one year. Six seniors will graduate in 2019, and the junior varsity wasn't as strong as it has been in the past.

Still, given the ability to recruit from Discovery Bay to San Ramon, the ceiling is very high. Of course, a lot will depend on the new AD, and the administration, and just how committed (if at all) they are to winning NCS titles.

Clay,

They have been and most likely will always be committed to winning NCS titles. That was always one of the major problems I noticed at Carondelet. They were only committed to winning league and NCS championships. The goal and the bar was never set at striving to win an Open Division or any other kind of division state championship. I guess that was why it was easy to forfeit the Open Division tournament games. It was a very quick decision. I don't think they even gave it a second thought. I wonder what De La salle would have done in a similar circumstance? Actually they ( as did a few other schools) had a player or two at or around this so call party. So I guess we already know what they and others would have done. Hopefully the bar will be raised with the new coach. Hopefully he's the type of coach that challenges and "builds" confidence in his players. Hopefully he leads by example and accountability flows downhill.

Teams don't win a championship by accident. You win them by planning and preparing to win them. And by wanting to do it as a "team". By the expectations, desire, courage, and goals coming from the top. You win championships by committing to becoming a better team and a better program. By caring about more than just yourself. In the girls game especially, by building confidence. By being taught the meaning of team and to be a good team mate.

"Most people don't fail because they aim too high and miss. Most people fail because they aim too low and hit." Les Brown

 

[ClayK]

Snarky reply: Playing DeAnza (4-13 and 873 in the state, including 51-point loss to John Swett) certainly should build confidence.

More to the point: I've always gone back and forth about setting high goals, or any goals at all. There are just so many variables. I've sort of settled on "Play the game as well as you can and the wins and losses will take care of themselves," as I've seen too many championships decided by luck and injury (ask Mitty) to define a season by setting particular goals and being disappointed if you don't reach them.

And I would disagree with Les Brown ...

 

[Paytc]

Snarky reply: Playing DeAnza (4-13 and 873 in the state, including 51-point loss to John Swett) certainly should build confidence.

More to the point: I've always gone back and forth about setting high goals, or any goals at all. There are just so many variables. I've sort of settled on "Play the game as well as you can and the wins and losses will take care of themselves," as I've seen too many championships decided by luck and injury (ask Mitty) to define a season by setting particular goals and being disappointed if you don't reach them.

And I would disagree with Les Brown ...

Those are your opinions based on your experiences and beliefs. I can respect that.

Some think starting off with an easy schedule and building from there can be a way to gradually build confidence. The new coach may want to slowly get to know what he's working with also. Ask Kelly Sopak, in years past I've seen him masterfully schedule his team schedules over the years to make his team(s) have a false belief of how good they were early until he felt they were truly ready to be challenged. To some that is a way of building confidence.

Many coaches take the same approach at times. I think it depends on the group of kids you have each year. Hey whatever works ! Remember I'm the "Win Anyway" philosopher, as I have never seen any "one way" win or work every time. The ego needs to be humbled at times or it will get humbled eventually anyway.

As far as Les Brown's quote goes, he's not the only person who believes or has been lifted by the power of "expectations" and goal setting. Beliefs are very similar to religions, to each his/her own. Remember "anyway" that works for you.

In all fairness to the new coach I did see Pinewood, Mitty, Salesian, Bear creek, Miramonte,and SJND on the Carondelet schedule as the season progresses. Not to mention they will get a challenge during the Christmas holiday tournaments. And I think he's still putting the final games together which he might add a couple of more challenging teams.

 

[straightline50]

Carondelet has not been the same since Margaret Gartner retired. They will always be in the conversation but to get over the open division hump is a tough task. Only SMS and BOD have done so from the North.

 

[Paytc]

Carondelet has not been the same since Margaret Gartner retired. They will always be in the conversation but to get over the open division hump is a tough task. Only SMS and BOD have done so from the North.

That is true. I had hoped Margaret would have stayed to coach my daughter. My daughter never had a good woman head coach coaching her. I personally think woman understand young girls a little better than most men do. But don't get me wrong, there are a lot of men who can coach women, no doubt. I would have loved to have had Kelly Sopak, Bernard Barnes, or Michael Berry (an out of state coach who interviewed when Margaret left) and a few others who applied at the time. But hey destiny had Carondelet selecting Elgin after Margaret gave him the heads up to quit the Campolindo head coaching job and sit on her bench her last season to be in the best position to get the job being already in house. Hey on the bright side, it opened the door up for one of our favorite coaches ( Art Thoms) to take over Campolindo. Art did a good job and accomplished probably 80 % of the things he had on his list of goals.

I don't see ( and I'm sure a whole bunch of other coaches don't either) getting over the hump a tough task when you consistently have a pretty large pool of talented players coming in each year. But you have to have the right no non sense focus and attitude. You can't be driving a car toward a state championship goal line constantly looking over your shoulder. The coaches confidence or lack there of is often what the players feed off. Or even more important than that, you ( the coach) have to have the desire, focus, hunger, and expectation of getting to and winning a championship. Carondelet ( at least after Margaret left) was only setting goals to go undefeated in league and hopefully win NCS. They were gonna do that anyway. Carondelet is 135-2 against league the past 10 seasons and haven't loss in 5 years. There is a such thing as living up to expectations or exceeding expectations. Or setting a bar, expectation, or goal line at a higher or highest level. And that's where goal setting, hard work, desire, discipline, wanting to be challenged and to achieve more, and a focus on constantly improving comes in. You can not consistently be the same team in March that you were in November and expect to pull off a miracle. Your competitors will know what to expect. And you most likely won't be confident or good enough. What good coach wants to rely on luck?

If the new coach (I believe his name is Mike Morris) wants to win an Open Division State championship he has the players to do it. Carondelet has had the players to do it every year since Margaret left. But there has to be first off the right players making the varsity team, the right players starting, and the right players in the 8 or 9 player rotation. It can't be about clicks, payoffs, or playing favorites. Or not developing and grooming key players and potential play makers. Coaches have to know the importance of getting individual players and the team ready for post season and seasons that follow. The past 4 seasons we had girls with "no desire" to play college basketball at times in the starting lineup. All while there were a few talented girls capable of starting ( who wanted to play in college) who never even got pulled up to varsity. So you can bet there were not a lot of players being groomed, confident, and ready before they would have to be thrown in the fire.

 

[ClayK]

Coaching is complicated, especially at a program like Carondelet's. There are a lot of factors involved, a lot of work most people don't see, and then it can go all up in smoke with a knee injury or some shaky foul calls.

All that said, if you take a job like Carondelet, you better be ready to commit yourself to success, and put in the time and effort required. In fact, being a head coach anywhere is a ton of work, and one reason I have no desire to be a head coach again, even at D5 (which I enjoy), is that I just don't have the available energy to do what needs to be done.

So really, it's critical for anyone who applies to be a head coach to truly grasp what the expectations are and what the demands will be -- and understand if you're not willing to do the work, it's not going to be a fun experience.

 

[personalogic]

Coaching is complicated, especially at a program like Carondelet's. There are a lot of factors involved, a lot of work most people don't see, and then it can go all up in smoke with a knee injury or some shaky foul calls.

All that said, if you take a job like Carondelet, you better be ready to commit yourself to success, and put in the time and effort required. In fact, being a head coach anywhere is a ton of work, and one reason I have no desire to be a head coach again, even at D5 (which I enjoy), is that I just don't have the available energy to do what needs to be done.

So really, it's critical for anyone who applies to be a head coach to truly grasp what the expectations are and what the demands will be -- and understand if you're not willing to do the work, it's not going to be a fun experience.

Bottom line, though, is you have to convince the players to come. Are there any blue chippers in this year's frosh class? Particularly any size? Based on what I see in the Tri-Valley area at least, the new coach is going to have to do some major work to prove that C-let is going to have a premier program going forward.

 

[Paytc]

Bottom line, though, is you have to convince the players to come. Are there any blue chippers in this year's frosh class? Particularly any size? Based on what I see in the Tri-Valley area at least, the new coach is going to have to do some major work to prove that C-let is going to have a premier program going forward.

You are so correct. If the new coach can get the administration's support to get in there and raise the bar to make "the program" and the "team's" success a priority for all, ( no clicks, payoffs, or favorites) things can turn around in a hurry. Especially if at the same time there is a priority the coach puts on grooming and building confident young adults both on and off the court. Players can sense if a coach cares about and has trust in them. When that happens it tends to bring the best out of the players. He just has to show the players he's committed to helping each and everyone of those who are willing to bring a good attitude and put in the work that he'll promised to help them fulfill the personal goals they have as individuals who possibly want to play at the next level. Being what I have heard a pretty successful player himself, he probably knows what buttons to push to motivate and bring out the best in the girls. I have a feeling the team is gonna be in good hands. They only graduated 2 or 3 seniors. And I can think of three players with speed and ability I saw on last years JV team that would make great additions to an already good returning squad. I didn't get to see enough of the freshman team to know what they had. And I haven't heard any rumor of any incoming 6 footer this year. But they tend to always attract 1 or 2. Having a lot of size matters more in the boys game. The girls game is totally different as they play below the rim and most don't even jump. Playmakers with heart, speed, and IQ tend to neutralize size anyway. Just ask Pinewood if size intimidates them. Winning would obviously be a good help in getting the type of buzz the program needs to keep pulling in the talent. I can't promise they will win the NCS or Open Division this year. But I'm sure they will once again win 20 games and give themselves a shot at doing both.

 

[personalogic]

You are so correct. If the new coach can get the administration's support to get in there and raise the bar to make "the program" and the "team's" success a priority for all, ( no clicks or favorites) things can turn around in a hurry. Especially if at the same time there is a priority the coach puts on grooming and building confident young adults both on and off the court. Players can sense if a coach cares about and has trust in them. When that happens it tends to bring the best out of the players. He just has to show the players he's committed to helping each and everyone of those who are willing to bring a good attitude and put in the work that he'll promised to help them fulfill the personal goals they have as individuals who possibly want to play at the next level. Being what I have heard a pretty successful player himself, he probably knows what buttons to push to motivate and bring out the best in the girls. I have a feeling the team is gonna be in good hands. They only graduated three seniors. And I can think of three players with speed and ability I saw on last years JV team that would make great additions to an already good returning squad. I didn't get to see enough of the freshman team to know what they had. And I haven't heard any rumor of any incoming 6 footer this year. But they tend to always attract 1 or 2. Having a lot of size matters more in the boys game. The girls game is totally different as they play below the rim and most don't even jump. Playmakers with heart, speed, and IQ tend to neutralize size anyway. Just ask Pinewood if size intimidates them. Winning would obviously be a good help in getting the type of buzz the program needs to keep pulling in the talent. I can't promise they will win the NCS or Open Division this year. But I'm sure they will once again win 20 games and give themselves a shot at doing both.

I think the size thing is more of an issue than you do. As far as I am aware, the only 6 footers in the program are all seniors. Doubt there are any returning sophomores or juniors more than 5'7" or so. That's going to be pretty tough to overcome next year.

 

[ClayK]

In another thread I mentioned San Ramon Valley, which I've heard has a bunch of talented freshmen on the way. There was a time when some of those freshmen would have been at Carondelet, but to make that happen, the coaches have to work at recruiting.

I'm not sure that's happened in the past few years, and it will be harder for Mike Morris to do so since a) no one really knows him, and b) he's from Vacaville and has no strong connections (that I know of) in the Carondelet recruiting area.

(And of course I know that recruiting is "illegal" -- so call it "encouraging talent to attend to your school" if you like. It happens, directly and indirectly ...)

 

[Paytc]

I think the size thing is more of an issue than you do. As far as I am aware, the only 6 footers in the program are all seniors. Doubt there are any returning sophomores or juniors more than 5'7" or so. That's going to be pretty tough to overcome next year.

personalogic,

I can respect your view point on the size issue.

I think there is always a need for size. Obviously any girl who's 6 ft and can walk and chew gum is a likely D1candidate. But my point is ( like Pinewood, ESCP, CW, Miramonte, and a few others often with not much size) if you can coach you can still be successful without too much of it. I don't know of any 6 footers (some are still growing) coming in the pipeline for Carondelet, but they always have seemed to get them. Another advantage they have over other schools is many of the De La salle boys have sisters that come to Carondelet in the car pools. And talent and size often runs in the families.

Clay,

As far as recruiting goes if they have another successful season and pull off an upset or two, I think they'll get a buzz out there that will possibly pull a couple talented girls in. I know of a few pretty talented middle school kids that plan to go to Carondelet. And one in particular has been growing like a weed. She also has been a dominant force on the court since 3rd grade. She has a couple of team mates as good that plan to attend C-Let too. She has toughness and a none stop motor that would compliment Kamani, Jamie, and a couple of the return players that will be juniors and seniors in 2019-2020 season. I wouldn't stick a fork in the program just yet. I don't think any school in league or their immediate area (outside of Miramonte) is gonna really challenge Carondelet on the court or in recruiting. But time will tell better than any of our speculations.

 

[northbaybbguru]

Good programs and coaches recruit themselves.

With that being said(even a program with a good rep) if a coach comes in that may be not up to standards that program can erode quickly.
It doesn't take much....a few good frosh that may have gone to 1 school in the past now going to a rival is good example of how that happens. And before you know it the perennial power is no more.

***please don't read into this...this is not a take on any new/current coaches..just a general observation

 

[Paytc]

Good programs and coaches recruit themselves.

With that being said(even a program with a good rep) if a coach comes in that may be not up to standards that program can erode quickly.
It doesn't take much....a few good frosh that may have gone to 1 school in the past now going to a rival is good example of how that happens. And before you know it the perennial power is no more.

***please don't read into this...this is not a take on any new/current coaches..just a general observation

If Carondlet didn't step in to clean house recently, I think you would have been right. The problem was they had a 4 or 5 year pipeline already in the clip. So even though IMO and a few others they were spiraling in the wrong direction the past 3 or 4 years, the pipeline sustained them. Now with the new coach, I agree it could go either way. But you and others have to keep in mind one very significant point I made recently. Many of the De La Salle boys have sisters who car pool in with them. And typically talent and size runs in the family. As long as De La Salle is strong that is almost automatic talented pipeline support already in place. Then if the coach has any type of fire in them (which Margaret had and IMO Elgin lacked) then the program and the kids will be in good hands. Based on the youtube video clip I pulled up, if that is the Mike Morris coaching Carondelet, I see plenty of fire just off the first glance. But time will tell.

 

[observer22]

Based on the youtube video clip I pulled up, if that is the Mike Morris coaching Carondelet, I see plenty of fire just off the first glance. But time will tell.

C’mon Paytc, if you’re going to post a visual image like that, you could include a link to share.

 

[Paytc]

C’mon Paytc, if you’re going to post a visual image like that, you could include a link to share.

Not the same guy so I will not keep the video of the wrong guy up.

 

[Paytc]

C’mon Paytc, if you’re going to post a visual image like that, you could include a link to share.

I found out who the coach must be based on better info from both answers below. I like the fact that he appears to be concerned with those he coaches. And making sure all those he coaches becoming better players and better individuals. Best of success to him !

 

[LBJ6]

observer22, Clayk, northbaybbguru, personalogic, striaghtline50, Norcal_Fan, Chuck023,Streakone, alwayslearning, norcalbasketball, Onball8,colhenrylives, CW Golden Eagles, and anyone else on this thread posting or watching.... is this the Michael Morris that just became the head basketball varsity coach at Carondelet? Can anyone confirm or deny this is the new coach?.. Or is the name correct but this is some other Michael Morris?.

View embedded media

This is a different guy. The MM coaching at CLET is from here and played college basketball in North Dakota if my sources are accurate

 

[OnBall8]

definitely not the same guy. The video is of a michael morris out of Texas

 

[Coach Cardinal]

From his AAU website:
"Coach Mike Morris is a Suisun City, CA native. He played his high school ball at Fairfield High and after a brief stay at Solano College, he earned a basketball scholarship to Dickinson State University in North Dakota. While he was playing at DSU, he earned All-American honors during his senior year. Mike then went on to play professional basketball in Australia, Austria and a 2 year stint in the I.B.A. (which is known today as the NBA "D-League"). Coach Morris is the most credible, knowledgable and experienced coach in this area. He brings a vast knowledge of the game along with an infectious enthusiasm that all the kids love."

 

[SouthBayHoopFan]

"Coach Morris is the most credible, knowledgable and experienced coach in this area."

Hmm. I wonder which area that's referring to?

 

[OnBall8]

Hmm. I wonder which area that's referring to?

Definitely not the one he's going to be in this winter..