Rick Barnes of Tennessee said thanks but no thanks to the Bruins and their men's hoops job. They can't find anyone to take this post. It has become an unhappy turd in the Division I punchbowl. Good heavens. Sam Gilbert is spinning in his grave.
UCLA is Molokai
- Thread starter colhenrylives
- Start date
I guess the UCLA standards are really high. The word "Settled" on Mick Cronin really bothers me. Arguably one of the top 15 coaches in all of College Basketball. He has led Cincy to 9 straight NCAA Tournaments. Hes 365-170 in his career as a Head Coach.....not exactly Steve Kerr, but still darn impressive.
Cronin is the type of coach that will keep a lot of the UCLA players in school and not transferring. On top of that, he'll have a bigger recruiting budget and I could easily see Cassius Stanley settling into that program nicely.
Pretty sure Cronin was not UCLA’s 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on. So “settled” is a good word.
Yeah 9 straight tourney appearances with only 1 sweet 16 appearance. Will he turn things around, maybe with the PAC-12 being what it is right now. Not knocking the hire, but it’s who they chose to settle for.
Yeah 9 straight tourney appearances with only 1 sweet 16 appearance. Will he turn things around, maybe with the PAC-12 being what it is right now. Not knocking the hire, but it’s who they chose to settle for.
Dunno how they did it... Not saying Cronin is the next Wooden, but he's a whole lot better than Alford and may turn out to be better than some of those that turned Westwood down in the last couple weeks.
At least this guy should have them playing hard on the defensive end...
At least this guy should have them playing hard on the defensive end...
How many feel that he has to hire someone with ties to the top aau programs in the LA Basin, and San Diego?
I think he should, but he has some presence out here with some recent signings. Based on the press conference, UCLA is trying to tap into the UCLA that Howland had running
Honestly, I think USC has such a hammer lock on the Socal prospects. I would go after East Coast/Midwest guys who want to come out to California for a year or two to play basketball. Those are the kids I would target. Still could get a couple kids from California, but the East Coast is where UCLA should find a lot of its top players. They have a budget that can support this type of recruiting.
Also I can't remember too many International players playing at UCLA....thats a very important pipeline that they also must tap into!
Also I can't remember too many International players playing at UCLA....thats a very important pipeline that they also must tap into!
Remember, Jim Harrick wasn't one of UCLA's top 3 choices either and look what he did? Harrick was a heck of a coach and got things rolling while he was the skipper. I've known Cronin since he was first hired at Louisville under Pitino. He's known for being an amazing recruiter, good defensive coach, and kids love playing for him. He's at a bigger school, bigger budget, and has great national recruiting pipelines.
My only worry is that the uptempo, showtime wannabe unrealistic UCLA fans may not have the patience to let him build this program. I mean, look what Howland did and what they did to him! 3 straight final fours. I think it's a good hire and he'll do a great job.
