“He couldn’t get the approval to deservedly fire CCC last year”. Maybe the minority were right - he didn’t/doesn’t deserve to be fired. He just needed to make some changes, like any coach at some point.It was a moonshot. He couldn’t get the approval to deservedly fire CCC last year. If you fire a coach, portal rules say you’re getting an exodus anyway, so there aren’t any recruits to hold on to. It’s a totally fresh start.
I generally think that the public praise, private criticism is the right approach. But maybe this was the message that was needed to actually make CCC take some action.
James has been with the Collins family for 30 years. He was on every Doug Collins NBA staff after Chris played for him. And he was bumped to a new role (but still on the bench?) to make room for Lowery. That’s a change, and perhaps one that wouldn’t have been made otherwise.
The idea that Chase and Boo are finally playing together…I do wonder if Mc has a bit more of their ears now, as an actual assistant. (Mc’s story: dude, Lindsey and I couldn’t get along, and we wrecked my senior year.) Does that resonate more now? Did Borovich get pushed to a lesser role at MSU? (“Hey Jon, thanks for your service. We’re letting you go in xxx weeks, but we’ll give you time to find something else.”)
I would argue that the public statement had little risk. Most fans that care wanted him gone, and Gragg couldn’t do it. A dip in recruiting — the recruits without the statement were an under the radar big guy and a Hail Mary Elon decommit. While both look like they belong, they weren’t mega-stars anyway.
And frankly, what we’ve realized is that no-star Boo and no-star Audige are the most important players this program has had since Mc and Law and Pardon.
Maybe no-stars Clayton and Barkley and Strauss are the profiles we should be attacking: guys who want a degree, guys who want to defend, and guys who want to be hoops lifers whether that’s scrapping in Europe and Asia and the G-League, or getting right into coaching.
Or maybe NU should try to build around the Bensons and Falzons and Kopps and Ivanauskases and Simmonses — look at those stars!
Also, for what it’s worth, I still think this is an NCAA or bust* season, and February is tougher than January, and there could be a ten-game losing streak lurking this season just like there was the last time NU hit the top 25. (I think…)
*if Boo and Chase commit to staying, I think I’d give him another last last last chance.
Clayton and Barkley are 3-star, not zero.
“10-game losing streak” for this team? No way, Jose!
“if Boo and Chase commit to staying, I think I’d give him another last last last chance” - he doesn’t need any more chances; this year was all we needed to prove to the doubters that Collins is a solid coach.