The Official Rick Barnes discussion thread

#326
#326
cncchris33 said:
If he decides to hang it up in the summer, I won't be shocked to see Gainey get the interim job for a year, but unless he just blows the doors off in his one-year audition, I don't see him being the long-term option.

For starters, he has zero head coaching experience. That's a big strike against a guy at the highest level of coaching. Secondly, Danny White didn't hire Barnes or Gainey. The assistant promotion idea makes more sense if there is a long-running relationship of AD, head coach, and assistant. Think Kevin White, Mike Kryzewski, Jon Scheyer...and Scheyer had the added benefit of being a Duke alum.

Danny White being the businessman he is, isn't likely to give much more than cursory consideration to Barnes's desires for who replaces him. He has an obligation to the program to hire the best person and he has a decent track record of hiring coaches.
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Oh I’m not suggesting Gainey would get the long term job, just that as you suggest I could see it working to where he gets that 1 year audition for it.
 
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#328
#328
omghulkhands said:
Let’s say he leads us to a 9 seed NCAA tournament bid.

I know there is a lot of missing potential context to that. But let’s say healthy team. Mostly outside the top 25 all year. Lose in first round

What do you think happens in that audition year.
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I think he probably gets replaced then, but as you said, lots of unknown context.

I'll also add that a 9-seed probably means we finished with double-digit losses, probably something like a 19-12 record. Losing in the 1st round of the NCAAT won't help ease that sting, obviously. And it will be tough to think that the program will have developed any sort of stability in the recruiting process of most kids with a lame duck coach, so it isn't likely that there will reinforcements on the way. Probably look a lot like UVA this year with a little more success.

Now, if he manages 20 wins and an NCAAT berth after seeing his roster gutted and pulls together a group of guys that on paper had no business being above .500, then maybe we are having a different conversation. But that's the context we don't know, right now.
 
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#329
#329
TheMookieMonster said:
Every time I see this tired debate rear its ugly head, I always sit and try and at least consider WHO the replacement would be if we did push Barnes out, and the answer every time is “I have no idea.”

Seriously, I don’t know what our vocal minority of a fanbase wants. We’re not pulling an established, elite coach from another P4 program with how much money every program has now. We will be rolling the dice with another mid-major coach. It will be a huge risk when the time comes, and it may work out or it may crash and burn.

I look at who is out there now, and while some of the names are interesting, none of them are guarantees to succeed at the next level.

Bucky McMillan? Could be really fun and his ceiling is high, but his style of play also may not translate to high-major.

Ben McCollum? Probably my top choice right now, but unless Barnes retires this off-season he won’t be on the market any more.

Ryan Odom? Another pretty interesting choice. Also likely to not be available after this off-season.

Guys like Tony Skinn at GMU of and Russ Turner at UCI are interesting names as well, but a huge dice roll.

I say all this to illustrate the point that being so quick to hire any of these guys over Barnes is far more likely to result in disaster than it is a Final Four.

We’re not getting Nate Oats, Dusty May, TJ Otzelberger, etc.
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I don’t know of another fan base in the country with a top 5/top 10 team vying for a #1 seed that is talking about replacing their head coach, let alone being overly consumed with it.

This is amazing.
 
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#335
#335
we struck lightning two years in a row in the portal with DK and Chaz. I still think Barnes is here as long as ZZ is here.
 
#337
#337
Rick Barnes is a great coach but this is about what you expect from his teams at this point in the season; poor offensive performances just in time for the NCAA tournament
 
#338
#338
Delmar said:
So you think he’s retiring after this season? Possible I guess.
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i wouldn’t be shocked if he’s done after this year. After the run with Santi and JJJ, Ziegler and Mashack are only ones left from Barnes core of his best teams at Tennessee.

With that said, I think this year had been a pleasant surprise since Chaz has replaced DK’s production in the portal. Barnes definitely seems hungry compared to Coach K and Roy Williams at this point of their years.
 
#339
#339
JMSqb11 said:
i wouldn’t be shocked if he’s done after this year. After the run with Santi and JJJ, Ziegler and Mashack are only ones left from Barnes core of his best teams at Tennessee.

With that said, I think this year had been a pleasant surprise since Chaz has replaced DK’s production in the portal. Barnes definitely seems hungry compared to Coach K and Roy Williams at this point of their years.
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Me either as to your first comment
 
#340
#340
BernardKingGOAT said:
Me either as to your first comment
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JMSqb11 said:
i wouldn’t be shocked if he’s done after this year. After the run with Santi and JJJ, Ziegler and Mashack are only ones left from Barnes core of his best teams at Tennessee.

With that said, I think this year had been a pleasant surprise since Chaz has replaced DK’s production in the portal. Barnes definitely seems hungry compared to Coach K and Roy Williams at this point of their years.
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Ziegler is what kept Barnes from retiring earlier.

Unless he gets another year which I don’t think he goes, Barnes is done after this season.
 
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#348
#348
BernardKingGOAT said:
Is that your speculation or do you have some inside info?
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Just speculation.

There was a quote earlier this season that Barnes didn’t know if he’d still be coaching if he didn’t have Ziegler on his roster.

May not mean anything but it would make sense considering this is Ziegler’s last year.
 
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