2020-21 Basketball Happenings Around the AAC

[Stickboy46]

Nolley commits to Memphis

[MelvinLoudermilk]

nice job UCF.

[WuShock Reaper]

College basketball coaching carousel: Grading 2016's best and worst hires after a full recruiting cycle - CBS SPorts

by Matt Norlander
04/20/20, 11:00am cst

https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/college-basketball-coaching-carousel-grading-2016s-best-and-worst-hires-after-a-full-recruiting-cycle/

"All hires listed below come from college basketball's Major Seven conferences: ACC, American Athletic Conference, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC.

Texas Tech, The hire: Chris Beard, Grade: A
Wisconsin, The hire: Greg Gard, Grade: B+
Rutgers, The hire: Steve Pikiell,, Grade: B
TCU, The hire: Jamie Dixon, Grade: B

UCF, The hire: Johnny Dawkins, Grade: B
UCF's only made one NCAA Tournament in Dawkins' four seasons, but its 2019 run included a second-round epic against Duke that was in fact one of the 101 greatest tournament games of the modern era. Dawkins has guided the Knights to an 83-48 record and bypassed other job opportunities along the way. UCF is coming off its worst season under Dawkins (16-14) but the program is on seemingly steady ground in the next couple of years. UCF has just five Big Dance appearances to its name, so things have gone about as well as could be hoped to this point in Orlando.

Oklahoma State, The hire: Brad Underwood, Grade: B
Stanford, The hire: Jerod Haase, Grade: B-
Georgia Tech, The hire: Josh Pastner, Grade: C+
Vanderbilt, The hire: Bryce Drew, Grade: C+

Memphis, The hire: Tubby Smith, Grade: D+
This hire was as worth it as much as it wasn't because of what came after (and how much remains to be seen with that ongoing experiment). Smith only made it two seasons, finishing 40-26 and not making the NIT in either campaign. He was infamously poor at making connections with the talent-rich regions in and around Memphis, which ultimately played into his downfall and helped Penny Hardaway land the job. The Tigers were not a disaster, but they simply became irrelevant and were the focal point of frustration on a near-every-week basis for the fan base. Smith was the wrong fit at the wrong time, but it might wind up being for the best if Hardaway can find a way to get the talent he's bringing to Memphis to actually lead to NCAA Tournament appearances.

Tulane, The hire: Mike Dunleavy, Grade: D-
Dunleavy was a bad hire. A coach not built for the college game who took a job that required a lot more than he was able to commit to. The Green Wave went 24-69 under Dunleavy and were winless in league play in 2018-19, his third and final season with the program. There's not much more to add here. It's a tough job in a fun city and you have to get the right mix of guys to make a dent in the American Athletic Conference. Ron Hunter was an upgrade, but even he will need two more years to get things cooking with some gas. Tulane's average KenPom ranking in Dunleavy's tenure was 232

Pittsburgh, The hire: Kevin Stallings Grade: F..."

[Shock Top]

Stallings. LOL.

[shocks02]

Ron Hunter has grabbed Ryan Murphy (Pitt grad transfer), Jaylen Forbes (Alabama transfer - former 4* recruit), Gabe Watson (Southern Miss transfer), and Oton Jankovic (Vandy transfer) all out of the portal this off-season. ECU grabbed a former Top 150 point guard yesterday. The rise of the cellar dwellers seems to be continuing.

[MelvinLoudermilk]

Any idea why Precious Achiuwa has not declared yet? I've seen him as high as #10 or #11 on some boards and haven't seen any that are not in the mid-first round or better. Would seem like a mistake to comeback imo.

[im4wsu]

Any idea why Precious Achiuwa has not declared yet? I've seen him as high as #10 or #11 on some boards and haven't seen any that are not in the mid-first round or better. Would seem like a mistake to comeback imo.

He might be making more at Memphis than he would in the NBA. I think it was John Brodie who was asked on national TV what the difference was between the NFL and his college days at Stanford. His reply, "the cut in pay."

[Woodrow]

Precious declared and is hiring an agent.

[wichshock65]

[WstateU]

Yikes! Unfortunately, brings back ‘Baylor’ color memories.

[Shocker Mama]

Rod Brown, who previously committed to Tulsa, has reopened his recruitment.

[shock]

Rod Brown, who previously committed to Tulsa, has reopened his recruitment.

Huh. I wonder if he goes sun belt or c-usa.

[pogo]

This is so odd on many counts.

[MikeKennedyRulZ]

Talk about Cone of Shame! Yikes.

[rjl]

Talk about Cone of Shame! Yikes.

His attorney has stated it wasn't Teshaun who fired the gun; it was his brother. And further, his brother fired it in self defense.

Curious to see how the facts shake out in this one.