So, I've been thinking about this whole situation for awhile. Unlike many here, I came to the conclusion that he was gone awhile ago and we've just been getting played. Same as Mr. C. (Cyclad), if you read the tea leaves, you could see it coming. And here are the tea leaves:
1. FH, the Bulls and Thibs - Everyone knew Thibs was going to get fired. I don't think that it would have mattered if he would have won a title, he STILL would have been fired. We also know that Fred had an interest in coaching in the NBA due to his buyout. That clause was not in his contract by mistake. Finally, Fred has a relationship with the Bulls having played there. Plus, Gar Foreman was an assistant under Floyd during Fred's SR year.
2. Matt A and Williams - A year ago, Matt Abdelmassih was saying that he was all in with Hoiberg and wouldn't leave his side for anything. In the span of a year he's bolting for St. Johns? I don't care if it IS NYC, if FH was going to be the coach, Matt would have stayed. Thing is, Matty is loyal to Hoiberg and not particularly to ISU. So...when Hoiberg was going to be gone (no need for a "recruiter" in the NBA), he jetted. And since he only has loyalty to Hoiberg and not ISU, he talked Williams into decommitting. On a side note, I always did think that Matty A. was a shady little fat guy...maybe he allowed FH to dip his feet into the murky waters without getting too dirty. Oh well I guess.
3. TJ and Romar - So TJ comes back...probably at the request of Pollard. I'm guessing that Pollard told him he would carry the program during Hoiberg's recovery and then get a shot at the HC job if Fred went to the NBA. Romar obviously was told why TJ was leaving and for whatever reason (either TJ leaving or half his roster transferring) he ran his mouth to the press. I'm guessing that ISU didn't care much for those comments. Anyway, TJ comes back and all of a sudden, we start sending out offers to kids who didn't have one. Noshowiak among others and lots of Midwest underclassmen. It's as if TJ was HC and not Hoiberg??? Maybe he is. Then they send him out to press flesh on the road show? I'll say the whole "We're so glad to be home" talk seems like BS to me. They didn't have any problem dropping ties and heading to Seattle, now Iowa is important? Just seems like he was given talking points to start to smooth things over for the transition.
The whole situation goes together just too smoothly. I think that this has been in play for months if not longer. Once Pollard saw it coming, he talked fellow WI guy TJ into coming back and now we just wait for the next two shoes to drop. So who does JP hire? I for one am NOT in favor of TJ as HC. TJ so far has been a recruiter. And I'm not saying he's bad at that. But who was the X&O guy who helped out Hoiberg? When he started, it was Lutz. After that, it was Doc. It was never TJ. Not saying he can't do that, but it wasn't his primary duty. I actually think that he'd be better off if he would have stayed in Ames rather than go to Washington, as he would have been part of more Hoiball and he would have been the real lead assistant after Doc left.
So here's my surprise recommendation to hire: Nick Nurse. He's an Iowa guy, coached the Energy to a D-League championship, current assistant with the Toronto Raptors. Was on GMac's staff for a few weeks (with TJ and Grayer) before he bolted to Creighton. I'm guessing Nurse would take the job for not too much money. He knows TJ and Pollard can give TJ a nice salary to be lead assistant ($300k?). Nurse could also hire Grayer and help secure then next class. Nurse is an NBA guy and could easily run the Hoiberg sets, which this team is built for. With TJ and Grayer in tow, they could put together a decent roster for 2016. Then, if Nurse leaves in a few years, I think that we can trust TJ has learned from enough people to be a good HC candidate. Either that, or FH will be back looking for a job...which wouldn't sadden me. I'm petty and childish enough to wish Fred a Tim Floyd type NBA HC career. Good luck, I hope you're unemployed in 3 years. Not that I wouldn't take him back, but his silence has hurt the program enough now that I think quite a few of us have lost just a little respect for him.
1. FH, the Bulls and Thibs - Everyone knew Thibs was going to get fired. I don't think that it would have mattered if he would have won a title, he STILL would have been fired. We also know that Fred had an interest in coaching in the NBA due to his buyout. That clause was not in his contract by mistake. Finally, Fred has a relationship with the Bulls having played there. Plus, Gar Foreman was an assistant under Floyd during Fred's SR year.
2. Matt A and Williams - A year ago, Matt Abdelmassih was saying that he was all in with Hoiberg and wouldn't leave his side for anything. In the span of a year he's bolting for St. Johns? I don't care if it IS NYC, if FH was going to be the coach, Matt would have stayed. Thing is, Matty is loyal to Hoiberg and not particularly to ISU. So...when Hoiberg was going to be gone (no need for a "recruiter" in the NBA), he jetted. And since he only has loyalty to Hoiberg and not ISU, he talked Williams into decommitting. On a side note, I always did think that Matty A. was a shady little fat guy...maybe he allowed FH to dip his feet into the murky waters without getting too dirty. Oh well I guess.
3. TJ and Romar - So TJ comes back...probably at the request of Pollard. I'm guessing that Pollard told him he would carry the program during Hoiberg's recovery and then get a shot at the HC job if Fred went to the NBA. Romar obviously was told why TJ was leaving and for whatever reason (either TJ leaving or half his roster transferring) he ran his mouth to the press. I'm guessing that ISU didn't care much for those comments. Anyway, TJ comes back and all of a sudden, we start sending out offers to kids who didn't have one. Noshowiak among others and lots of Midwest underclassmen. It's as if TJ was HC and not Hoiberg??? Maybe he is. Then they send him out to press flesh on the road show? I'll say the whole "We're so glad to be home" talk seems like BS to me. They didn't have any problem dropping ties and heading to Seattle, now Iowa is important? Just seems like he was given talking points to start to smooth things over for the transition.
The whole situation goes together just too smoothly. I think that this has been in play for months if not longer. Once Pollard saw it coming, he talked fellow WI guy TJ into coming back and now we just wait for the next two shoes to drop. So who does JP hire? I for one am NOT in favor of TJ as HC. TJ so far has been a recruiter. And I'm not saying he's bad at that. But who was the X&O guy who helped out Hoiberg? When he started, it was Lutz. After that, it was Doc. It was never TJ. Not saying he can't do that, but it wasn't his primary duty. I actually think that he'd be better off if he would have stayed in Ames rather than go to Washington, as he would have been part of more Hoiball and he would have been the real lead assistant after Doc left.
So here's my surprise recommendation to hire: Nick Nurse. He's an Iowa guy, coached the Energy to a D-League championship, current assistant with the Toronto Raptors. Was on GMac's staff for a few weeks (with TJ and Grayer) before he bolted to Creighton. I'm guessing Nurse would take the job for not too much money. He knows TJ and Pollard can give TJ a nice salary to be lead assistant ($300k?). Nurse could also hire Grayer and help secure then next class. Nurse is an NBA guy and could easily run the Hoiberg sets, which this team is built for. With TJ and Grayer in tow, they could put together a decent roster for 2016. Then, if Nurse leaves in a few years, I think that we can trust TJ has learned from enough people to be a good HC candidate. Either that, or FH will be back looking for a job...which wouldn't sadden me. I'm petty and childish enough to wish Fred a Tim Floyd type NBA HC career. Good luck, I hope you're unemployed in 3 years. Not that I wouldn't take him back, but his silence has hurt the program enough now that I think quite a few of us have lost just a little respect for him.
