blueday

April 2nd, 2017 at 6:39 PM ^

Check out Izzo's desperate attempt to win again. This is why I respect our coach. Granted I have lost it at times. I now gladly accept his approach to recruiting kids that know the NBA is is possible but not the ultimate destiny. It takes a solid family behind you to make these choices.

Mr. Yost

April 2nd, 2017 at 7:08 PM ^

Exactly...for those saying their time is over. Look at Villanova. If you get the right coach, you'll be just fine.

Xavier and Butler both have had recent success. There's ZERO reason to believe Georgetown can't. Just have to get the players in there.

Chalky White

April 3rd, 2017 at 8:42 AM ^

Villanova is more likely the exception rather than the rule. They were a 1 seed this year and list early. You have to go all  way back to 1985 which was also Villanova's last championship before you find another school like Villanova winning. That was actually the time period when small programs were considered traditional powers.

 

If you have boosters who are willing to support your program, you can win anywhere. Ask Larry Brown.

cletus318

April 3rd, 2017 at 9:16 AM ^

In a one-and-done tournament, the standard for virtually every school but 5 or 6 can't ever simply be winning it all. Despite a number of early exits, Villanova has still been a top program for a decade. Xavier, Butler, and Creighton have all built really good programs, say nothing of schools like Wichita State and Gonzaga. Georgetown is unlikely to return to the height of the 80s for a plethora of reasons, but we have more than enough evidence that the right coach can succeed at similar schools that invest in the sport.

oriental andrew

April 2nd, 2017 at 6:43 PM ^

Although his foray at Michigan didn't go so well, he seems to know what it takes to win at small private schools (Seton Hall, Harvard). He took Harvard to 4 straight NCAA tournament appearances. Their only other appearance was in 1946. He may not reach the heights from the 80s, but consistent NCAA tournament appearances and occasionally a 2nd weekend appearance could be in the cards. 

Didn't realize that John Thompson III hadn't made it past the first weekend since the 2006-07 season. 

Also, looks like a lot of Hoya fans are on the Tom Crean bandwagon, with a large contingent of #AnyoneButAmaker folks. Crean also had success at a catholic university (Marquette) before heading to IU. Might be a good move, and they can hang out with John Harbaugh.

cheesheadwolverine

April 2nd, 2017 at 7:19 PM ^

My understanding is that Harvard before Amaker had the highest academic admissions standards in the Ivy League.  He's crootin on a top-30 level primarily becauase he's convicned the admissions department to give a bigger break to basketball players.  Presumably there already doing that at Georgetown, so he's not going to have that as a way to turn them around.

lilpenny1316

April 3rd, 2017 at 12:40 PM ^

Amaker had a team that would've made the tournament if not for the sanctions.  Who knows what that exposure would've done for his recruiting.  Considering what Amaker had to deal with, and how young of a coach he was, I think he did pretty well.  He definitely left the program in better shape than he found it.

atticusb

April 2nd, 2017 at 10:07 PM ^

I'd love a run-down of the last few years S16 teams, and an analysis of whether they are "one-and-done" type programs, or something else.  I mean, even Gonzaga-UNC... how many one-and-done's on those two rosters?  Neither team is Kentucky, right?  What is the way to success nowadays?  One-and-done, or "family"?  I'm pretty damn happy with 3 S16 appearances in the last 5 years, but maybe the greedy need to be one-and-done programs to win NC's?

cletus318

April 3rd, 2017 at 9:30 AM ^

This board really seems to view recruiting as though there are only two paths. For all the talk of one-and-dones, you're really only talking about 8-10 guys each year. The recruiting gap for Michigan hasn't been not getting one-and-dones, it's been getting players in that next tier. Still, to answer your question about this year, Gonzaga really isn't in the business of recruiting one-and-dones (although they could possibly end up with one this year), and North Carolina hasn't had a one-and-done player in a decade.

LSAClassOf2000

April 2nd, 2017 at 6:49 PM ^

- As of yesterday, Danny Hurley, Tom Crean, and Jamion Christian had not been contacted about the position.

I kind of wonder where Tom Crean will end up next, but the idea of Amaker at Georgetown is actually rather interesting to me. Like Harvard, it seems like a situation that would be in his wheelhouse.

WichitanWolverine

April 2nd, 2017 at 7:14 PM ^

Dumb question: why would G'town even go after Shaka? He had a miserable '16-'17 season at Texas. Possibly looks like he's not cut out for big time programs. Is there a legit excuse for his poor season?

Bando Calrissian

April 2nd, 2017 at 7:16 PM ^

This would be interesting, but I wonder what happens when Amaker goes back to a big-name program with expectations of success. He doesn't want to be a public persona, he doesn't like doing press, etc. He can do well at a place like Harvard, but unless he's learned something from Michigan, I don't know how Georgetown works out for him.

readyourguard

April 2nd, 2017 at 9:08 PM ^

I don't know man, I understand wanting to challenge yourself at the next level, but Amaker has a damn good thing going on at Harvard. What's wrong with pulling down Half a million or more and just staying there? His wife is on the staff at the med school, it's a prestigious place to work, good location, and the risk of getting canned seems minimal. There's lots of coaches who stay at D2 or D3 places for decades and carve out a hell of a life for themselves and their families. Don't do it Tommy.