I was listening to Jeff Goodman and Robbie Hummel discuss and grade the off-season hires. Here are the grades and cliff notes.
Todd Golden (Florida)
Goodman: C+
Hummel: C
They don’t love him as a fit in the SEC. Noted Florida was trying to hire the next Billy Donovan but Florida doesn’t invest in basketball. Going to be important for him to assemble a great staff to compete.
Kenny Payne (Louisville)
Goodman: B+
Hummel: A
Great guy and relationship builder. Even though Louisville missed on their tier 1 targets they love the hire. Acknowledge the difference between selling Cal and Kentucky and going toe to toe with Cal on the recruiting trail. Alums were really pushing for him.
Kevin Willard (Maryland)
Goodman: B+
Hummel: B-
They wonder if he’s much different from Mark Turgeon. Basically the same guy; two really good coaches. But they’re excited about the staff Willard might assemble. Overall they wonder if the issue isn’t more Maryland noting it’s a “B” job. You have to win early there and generate momentum. Turgeon couldn’t deal with the fans.
Matt McMahon (LSU)
Goodman: C
Hummel: C
They don’t like the hire. Don’t like his fit in the SEC. He’s not Will Wade, he’s going to play it straight and they don’t think it’s going to work. They like him as a coach and his guard play but the SEC is a different animal.
Mike White (Georgia)
Goodman: A-
Hummel: B
Goodman notes he’s the opposite of Tom Crean; a really likable guy. Hummel is worried about him being a retread without much momentum. Georgia is a tough place to win.
Chris Jans (Miss St)
Goodman: A-
Hummel: B+
Perfect fit at Mississippi State. His teams play super tough, defensive minded. Really like this hire.
Lamont Paris (South Carolina)
Goodman: C+
Hummel: C
Compare hire to Todd Golden. There are too many sharks in the SEC and Paris is a minnow. Solid coach with a good background under Bo Ryan and Greg Gard but he doesn’t move the needle.
Dennis Gates (Mizzou)
Goodman: B+
Hummel: C
Goodman notes he would have liked him more at a southern SEC school like Georgia, LSU or Miss St but acknowledges he’s been all over. Hummel notes his grade is more an indictment against Mizzou because he really likes Cuonzo. If Cuonzo can’t get it done there who can? Like Turgeon at Maryland, Cuonzo couldn’t get the momentum going and was derailed by injuries. Worried about anyone getting it done at Mizzou.
Sean Miller (Xavier)
Goodman: A
Hummel: A
Raved about this hire and his track record of success.
Archie Miller
Goodman: A
Hummel: A
Great fit at Rhode Island
Jerome Tang (Kansas State)
Goodman: A
Hummel: A
As the grades attest, they really love Tang. Great guy who will bring energy to the program. One of the best assistants in the country. He built the program at Baylor, with Scott Drew, from start to finish.
Todd Golden (Florida)
Goodman: C+
Hummel: C
They don’t love him as a fit in the SEC. Noted Florida was trying to hire the next Billy Donovan but Florida doesn’t invest in basketball. Going to be important for him to assemble a great staff to compete.
Kenny Payne (Louisville)
Goodman: B+
Hummel: A
Great guy and relationship builder. Even though Louisville missed on their tier 1 targets they love the hire. Acknowledge the difference between selling Cal and Kentucky and going toe to toe with Cal on the recruiting trail. Alums were really pushing for him.
Kevin Willard (Maryland)
Goodman: B+
Hummel: B-
They wonder if he’s much different from Mark Turgeon. Basically the same guy; two really good coaches. But they’re excited about the staff Willard might assemble. Overall they wonder if the issue isn’t more Maryland noting it’s a “B” job. You have to win early there and generate momentum. Turgeon couldn’t deal with the fans.
Matt McMahon (LSU)
Goodman: C
Hummel: C
They don’t like the hire. Don’t like his fit in the SEC. He’s not Will Wade, he’s going to play it straight and they don’t think it’s going to work. They like him as a coach and his guard play but the SEC is a different animal.
Mike White (Georgia)
Goodman: A-
Hummel: B
Goodman notes he’s the opposite of Tom Crean; a really likable guy. Hummel is worried about him being a retread without much momentum. Georgia is a tough place to win.
Chris Jans (Miss St)
Goodman: A-
Hummel: B+
Perfect fit at Mississippi State. His teams play super tough, defensive minded. Really like this hire.
Lamont Paris (South Carolina)
Goodman: C+
Hummel: C
Compare hire to Todd Golden. There are too many sharks in the SEC and Paris is a minnow. Solid coach with a good background under Bo Ryan and Greg Gard but he doesn’t move the needle.
Dennis Gates (Mizzou)
Goodman: B+
Hummel: C
Goodman notes he would have liked him more at a southern SEC school like Georgia, LSU or Miss St but acknowledges he’s been all over. Hummel notes his grade is more an indictment against Mizzou because he really likes Cuonzo. If Cuonzo can’t get it done there who can? Like Turgeon at Maryland, Cuonzo couldn’t get the momentum going and was derailed by injuries. Worried about anyone getting it done at Mizzou.
Sean Miller (Xavier)
Goodman: A
Hummel: A
Raved about this hire and his track record of success.
Archie Miller
Goodman: A
Hummel: A
Great fit at Rhode Island
Jerome Tang (Kansas State)
Goodman: A
Hummel: A
As the grades attest, they really love Tang. Great guy who will bring energy to the program. One of the best assistants in the country. He built the program at Baylor, with Scott Drew, from start to finish.
