How difficult would it to bring Bruce back?

#52
#52
Lol why on earth would it make people who think Barnes is overpaid happy. It sucks that when this team wins 14 games next year take it easy Barnes isn’t going to feel any heat.

That was with info from the article listed. If he had a buyout of 25 million for fans it would mean: you don’t have to worry about a coaching search......you don’t have to wonder if your going to end up with some mid major flop. For recruits they wouldn’t have to wonder if the coach would be gone in 2 years, for the school they have stability..........win, win, win.........especially since the $ is coming from a program which is making $ and a lot of the money for Barnes is coming from boosters and such.

I never said it would make you happy.
 
#53
#53
Even if that was his thinking he should have gotten a smaller termination buyout in exchange for the small escape buyout. You are absolutely right one is going to poach Rick. If we win a game in the tournament the next four years it will be a surprise.

Hey I agree, but really Tennessee is not letting him go sooner than 4 anyway (baring something egregious) and no one is coming along and saying hey I’ll pay the 4 million buyout and give you a 30 million contract.........so in reality it isn’t hurting anyone.

But your right.......for sure, you want to give yourself (school) some room if something does happen.
 
#55
#55
Fulmer really got a pretty crappy deal for the university
Washed up coach with no business acumen as the A.D. who was put in place by a boss who's seat was past red hot and actually had flames coming out, what does every one expect?
 
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#56
#56
I’m not referring to him leaving, I don’t think there’s much concern about that anymore...my point is that he is now paid as a Top 3 coach and if he were to fall off a cliff and the program suck a$$ for the next 2 years we would have no option but to continue to employ him because of the massive buyout. On the flip side he could pick up and go whenever he wants for very little cost, Tennessee appeared to take on all the risk when it comes to buyout and in addition pay him way more than they should’ve. Fulmer showed how green he is as an AD, he got a crappy deal for the university.

This time 10000, and no matter which story is true, Barnes not leaving because UCLA refused to pay his buyout, or UCLA rejecting Barnes after he came back for a second bite at the apple, Fulmer had all the leverage. He used it to overpay Barnes and put UT on a massive hook should Barnes fail badly the next few years, while still giving Barnes a reasonably easy out if someone really wants him.
 
#57
#57
Washed up coach with no business acumen as the A.D. who was put in place by a boss who's seat was past red hot and actually had flames coming out, what does every one expect?

It was the best option at the time. No other way to really handle it. John Currie was not the answer. I can get past some negotiation weaknesses if he ultimately corrects football. We had an accountant for an AD who was terrible at negotiating contracts. Fulmer is better than him.
 
#58
#58
No idea. Outside the parties involved, no one will ever know how it all played out. Still, I'm convinced Fulmer had to do and pay whatever it took shy of Calipari numbers to keep Barnes.

Having said that I consider Barnes to be greatly overpaid. Neither here nor there at this point. It's done. Gotta accept things as they are.
If you believe Fulmer had to pay whatever it took it means you think he was either told a number or negotiations took place, I don’t believe that to be the case and what has been shared doesn’t really like up with that.

Barnes has an offer reportedly around $5m/year from UCLA, Fulmer asked Barnes to meet with him and at least give him an offer, Fulmer and Boyd came up with the $5.2m package with bonuses up to $3m, by this time Barnes and UCLA hit a snag and that marriage wasn’t likely to happen, Barnes snatched the offer and said thanks.

$5m at UCLA is equivalent to about $3.5m at Tennessee, so no I don’t think Barnes demanded $5.2m to stay at Tennessee...like I said I think that is what Fulmer & Boyd came up with. Simply put if Barnes walked in and Fulmer presented the offer all the same but $4m instead of $5.2m I think Barnes would still be here just the same.
 
#63
#63
I don't think it was inexperience on Fulmers part. If anything, he knew full well he couldn't play hardball and let Barnes walk after these last two seasons. Barnes held all the cards and both parties knew it. Fulmer also knows the landscape with the board and how hard it is to get top shelf talent to Knoxville. If he draws a line on the money and Barnes left, the howls about being cheap go wild. On top of that, having Pearl winning at a conference opponent only would add to the angst. Fulmer had to keep Barnes. No choice really.
I was wondering while reading this who would be the first to pen the exact issues we faced on the contractual issues with Rick. You nailed it on every point. And can you imagine the slobbering hysteria if Phil HAD NOT inked this deal? I personally think it was the best we could do and in the long run probably will be the best for men’s BasketVol! JMO
 
#64
#64
[QUOTE="bleedingTNorange, post: 16761379, member: 46997
$5m at UCLA is equivalent to about $3.5m at Tennessee, so no I don’t think Barnes demanded $5.2m to stay at Tennessee....[/QUOTE]

Yep, just divide the UCLA offer by a 1.5x COLA differential from Calif to Tenn... which would be about $3.3 mil, and give him a little bump, say $500K, which would be about $3.8 mil, meaning Barnes is overpaid by about $1 mil. I think it was ok to overpay this time given UT's abysmal situation since Pearl left. I hope he gets more traction in recruiting, because the last two years have been terrible with no Fr/So starters.
 
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#65
#65
Fulmer really got a pretty crappy deal for the university
Too early to tell.....it appears so now but you never know. Fulmer did put the extensive vehicle in park but it is too early to tell whether or not it is a jalopy or if it will pay dividends down the road......
 
#68
#68
I was wondering while reading this who would be the first to pen the exact issues we faced on the contractual issues with Rick. You nailed it on every point. And can you imagine the slobbering hysteria if Phil HAD NOT inked this deal? I personally think it was the best we could do and in the long run probably will be the best for men’s BasketVol! JMO

He really had no choice. If he loses Barnes, he's toast with the fan base. And who would he be able to replace Barnes with that would satisfy/excite the fans? Pearl will never coach UT again...ever. Every top name out there knows the challenges he'd face at UT. We've got Penny closing the borders around the western part of the state. Vandy in mid state. UK is the 800lb gorilla in the room. Pearl lighting it up at Auburn. UGA with a top 10 class. Throw in the fact that we likely will lose 4 starters and have zero proven talent to replace them. The incoming class has 2 guys who are projects. The lone "star" they signed was dropped to a 4 star as he stuggled vs elite competition offensively. Fulmer is no fool. He knew he had no hand to play in this poker game. Folks say he was green and inexperienced . I disagree. Fulmer knew his hand was a pair of deuces and Barnes had 4 aces. Folding was the smart play...the only play.
 
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#71
#71
Personally, I would have no problem with Coach Bruce Pearl coming back to coach Tn.
 
#73
#73
We finally get a proven excellent coach with integrity. Best of all, the UTAD ponied up serious $$$ to keep him from a blue blood. Right or wrong, THAT is nearly miracle level.

So, now we get this thread. :-/ We appear to need fanbase development similar to player development. The mindset is not championship caliber yet.
 
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#74
#74
If Barnes decides to posture again next year and dips out on us, how likely/possible would it be to bring Bruce back?
I was asked that same question shortly after he ended his spacing out episode about UCLA, my niece graduated from there btw (lol). So that makes me an insider.
 
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#75
#75
Loved Bruce Pearl while he was in Knoxville. His teams brought excitement & Bruce really loved Tennessee. That said, it's water over the dam. Rick Barnes is our basketball coach, & that makes me hopeful & happy. Move on.

I loved having Bruce here as much as anyone. But anyone thinking there is a realistic chance on him being back in Knoxville? Welcome to Fantasy Island. Boss! Boss! De Plane! De Plane!
 
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