The Next Head Coach of Wichita State WBB - Welcome Coach Nooner

[SubGod22]

Go Shockers article from Tweet shared above

Official intro will be Thursday at 330 inside The Chuck. Much like was done for Mills it's open to the public and will stream on ESPN+.

"To say this is a dream come true is an understatement," Nooner said. "As someone who played in Kansas, met my wife here and have raised my children here, I couldn't be happier to land my first head coaching position in the state I love so much. My family and I are incredibly excited to join Shocker Nation and make Wichita our home for years to come. I can't thank Kevin Saal and Dr. Muma enough for their belief and support, and I'm ready to build something special with our women's basketball program."

[Shock Top]

Good luck Terry!

[1972Shocker]

As I was saying. LOL! Although I have to admit that was even quicker than I was expecting.

[RoyalShock]

Jane Asinde promptly enters the portal. Have to think she didn't want to play for a male coach.

[1972Shocker]

That was a quick process. Almost makes you think that ADKS had been mulling this over prior to Keitha Adams departing. OTOH, perhaps if you are fishing primarily in the assistant coach/Juco coach pond making a deal can go pretty quickly. I have no problem with going this direction with the WBB program.

The Shocker softball program has fared pretty well pulling their coaching staff out of the D-II ranks.

If you look at WSU's coaching history the only two coaches with winning records were Darryl Smith at 74-68 (.521) over 5 years and Jody Adams 163-115 (.586) over 8+ years. Darryl came from the D-II ranks (Metro State in Denver) and Jody only had 1 year of head coaching experience at Murray State.

OTOH, the two coaches with arguably the best pedigrees and resumes struggled at Wichita State. Jane Albright in 10 years at Northern Illinois and 9 years at Wisconsin was 349-217 (.617). At Wichita State she was 48-95 (.336). Keitha Adams, after a strong 5 years at Independence CC, was only 41-74 (.357) in her first 4 years at UTEP in the WAC but she was 243-135 (.643) over her last 12 years at UTEP playing in CUSA. She bookended her initial 16 year stint in El Paso with records of 3-25 and 8-23. In 6 years at Wichita State Keitha could only manage a 80-93 record (.462) overall and 34-57 (.374) in regular season AAC play.

So let's see what Coach Nooner can do. Hopefully, he has a reasonable base contract that is laden with meaningful performance incentives and reasonable buyout provisions. I think one of his biggest challenges at WSU is overcoming the apathy and general lack of fan interest but that can be overcome if he can build a good product that fans can be proud of (see Wichita State Volleyball and Softball - although those two sports don't have to compete head-to-head for fans with men's basketball).

I am looking forward to seeing what ADKS and Coach Nooner have to say tomorrow at the introductory press conference. I think it is pretty clear it was time for a reset and a new start.

[Shockm]

Jane Asinde promptly enters the portal. Have to think she didn't want to play for a male coach.

Why do you think that RS? It’s not what first comes to my mind. There are several possible reasons, and that wouldn’t be at the top for me.

[1972Shocker]

Jane Asinde promptly enters the portal. Have to think she didn't want to play for a male coach.

That is always a possibility although that may not be the case with Jane. Unless she comes right out and says that I doubt we will ever know for sure. But her leaving is a major blow to the Shocker roster.

As of right now the Shockers have 10 returning players listed on the roster and that includes Jane. Gone from last year are Trajata Colbert and Curtessia Dean who used up their eligibility. Other players from last year not listed on the current roster include Shamaryah Duncan, Tanya Platonova and Carla Budane. Platonova and Budane did not play last year and are of little consequence. However, with Trajata, Curtesia, Jane and Shamaryah moving on the Shockers are losing 4 of their 5 starters.

The most notable returners are starting point guard DJ McCarty, backup point guard Nhug Bosch Duran, backup post player Daniela Abies, backup up forward Ornella Niankan, shooting guard Ambah Kowcun and reserve guard Jeniah Thompson. 6-4 Ella Anciaux is still listed on the roster but she did not play much last year and I am just not sure she wouldn't be better off playing at the D-II level.

And who knows, the exodus of players may not be over. They still have until May 11 to enter the portal. We'll see if Jane's departure opens the floodgates. If DJ decides to go than the cupboard is pretty much officially bare. Abies and Niankan both did some good things last year but at 6-0 Abies is undersized at the 5 and Niankan who is listed at 6-1 is probably closer to 5-11. Bosch Duran is a okay back up point guard but can be defensive liability due to her diminutive stature. Plus not sure how serious her relationship is with Brock Rodden and how that might impact what she wants to do, if that is even still a thing. Kowcun played a lot more later in the season and can occasionally get hot from deep. Thompson seems to have a decent game but her playing time seemed to decline as the year went on. One thing about it though is that right now there is a lot of playing time up for grabs.

Hope Coach Nooner likes a challenge because he has one.

[RoyalShock]

Why do you think that RS? It’s not what first comes to my mind. There are several possible reasons, and that wouldn’t be at the top for me.

Just the timing. And I'm not criticizing her if that is indeed the case.

[Shockm]

Just the timing. And I'm not criticizing her if that is indeed the case.

I didn't take it as criticism. I've just never heard women say that they would rather play for a female coach, although it's possible. I think that women want to win as much as anyone else, and they would prefer the best coach they can get.

I would just think that things like this (below, not entered in most likely to least likely) would enter her mind when leaving than a preference to play for a woman coach. But who knows for sure.

-wants to play for a "winning" program or team
-moving to a school closer to home
-not liking Wichita or WSU
-her best friends are graduating, and she has no close connections
-she wants a step up in competition

[SubGod22]

I've heard women say it

[Shock Top]

I agree that the "playing for a female coach" thing has legs.

Not saying it was a factor in Jane's situation, but it definitely is a factor for some (and a recruiting tool for some female coaches).

[shoxlax]

Stunned it wasn’t a female coach.

[SubGod22]

Stunned it wasn’t a female coach.

Why? I think Saal cares more about winning than checking boxes

[1972Shocker]

Stunned it wasn’t a female coach.

Can you define what a female is?

[WstateU]

Can you define what a female is?

With apologies to coach Nooner…