We are a top 25 basketball school we can get a good coach we do not need this.
No we aren't, and it isn't a matter of whether we can or can't get a good coach. It's a matter of will we pay for one, or will we not, and history suggests that we will not.
Wade Houston- A career assistant who hasn't coached since being fired.
Kevin O'Neill- A journeyman mid-major coach who reached the NCAA tournament 4 whole times in 16 tries. Coached 5 teams in 16 years as a HC.
Jerry Green- Average coach at Oregon before coming to Tennessee. Successful here but disconnected from fans and administration and hasn't coached since.
Buzz Peterson- Terrible journeyman mid-major coach who hasn't really won big anywhere he's ever been, and has made 1 NCAA tournament in 16 years as a HC.
Bruce Pearl- Another mid-major coach, and who came with some baggage, though had been wildly successful in every HC job he'd ever had. That success continued here, but you know the rest of the story.
Cuonzo Martin- Yet another mid-major coach. Not as successful prior to, or during his Tennessee career as Pearl, but was as clean and straight-laced as they come, and improved every season on the court. Was doomed from the start because he wasn't Bruce Pearl, and like Green, never connected with the fans. Never seemed interested in being here either. He's in a better place for himself.
Donnie Tyndall- Guess what....another mid-major coach. Comes with baggage. Very successful at every stop, but.....
A very brief synopsis of our coaching hires of the past 25 years. You see a theme in there? If we could attract a top shelf coach, I'd imagine we'd have tried it once in seven tries by actually offering a competitive salary. We hire on the cheap and hooe for the best. I don't expect that to change, but will be pleasantly surprised if it does.