Let me preface the following post by stating that I am a recent Indiana University grad who covered the team for four years - arguably some of the ugliest years in Hoosier basketball history. I suffered through the Mike Davis situation, as did all of Hoosier nation, and was pissed off like everyone else the day Sampson was hired. Now, less than two years into Sampson's tenure, Hoosier fans are experiencing what was an inevitable ending to a horrible decision.
I've never really had a problem with IU Athletic Director Rick Greenspan, despite the incredible amount of blame he's receiving. Aside from being a disgruntled human being, Greenspan made some fantastic coaching hires, for IU standards (Terry Hoeppner for football, Tracy Smith for baseball and Felisha Legette-Jack for women's basketball, are just some of the examples). Sampson, on the other hand, was not one of his finest hires. What Greenspan did though - rather than using common sense and recognizing the boat-load of baggage that Sampson carried with him - was cater to what IU fans demanded: wins. Sampson was the perfect candidate in that sense because he could flat out win basketball games. Unfortunately for Hoosier fans, the baggage wasn't enough to overcome in the end.
I would feel bad for Sampson if he was a nice guy, if he was approachable for the media, enthusiastic with the fans and impressive on the court - but quite honestly, he hasn't done much of any of that. He made a promise to a jam-packed Assembly Hall crowd more than a year ago at Hoosier Hysteria that he would a) restore the glory to Indiana basketball and b) play by the rules (among other things). He's done neither of those. Instead, he's managed to pry Eric Gordon from the weasly grasp of Bruce Weber and build a team around the star freshman. He's utilized DJ White, former coach Mike Davis' most highly touted recruit, and assembled an impressive assistant coaching staff to help him out, and subsequently throw under the bus when he broke the rules. The Hoosiers have had success this year, but it's NOT because of Sampson.
All in all, Sampson needs to be fired. As our friends over at Inside the Hall have said, Sampson will be evaluated now on a game-by-game basis, but will likely be suspended until IU. and specifically President Michael McRobbie, can figure out what to do with him. If and when Sampson is fired, I don't have an answer for you as to whom should take over as the Hoosiers' coach. But what I do know is that maybe IU should be less concerned about hiring a "big name" coach and more concerned about slowly rebuilding the program's reputation. It's not the end of the world, Hoosier fans - things can and hopefully will be ok. But don't be so quick to demand winning - and more importantly championships - when the Hoosiers can't even get their off-the-court act together, let alone win against ranked teams.
Maybe Mike Davis wasn't so bad after all.
6 comments:
Here's some food for thought... suppose Lute Olson comes back next year to coach his way to the 800-win club. Wouldn't Kevin O'Neil look just fantastic in IU red?
O'Neill is definitely no stranger to Big Ten basketball, since he previously coached at Northwestern. But unfortunately in this situation, Hoosiers will be calling for "one of their own" as the next head coach. They did the same thing when Mike Davis left, so we'll see how well it works this time around.
Sean Miller of Xavier anyone?
Pat Knight!!!! ha ha ha.
I've always hoped for Mark Few or Tom Crean, but Miller is a solid choice too. And it goes without saying, but Pat Knight would definitely be hilarious.
I was pulling for Few to come to Kansas when Self was hired. I also thought Mark Turgeon would have been a nice hire, though his Wichita State teams hadn't broken through nationally yet. Bygones.
Post a Comment