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2013-14 Big Ten Projected Standings
1. Michigan | 2. Michigan State | 3. Ohio State | 4. Wisconsin | 5. Indiana | 6. Purdue | 7. Illinois | 8. Northwestern | 9. Iowa | 10. Penn State | 11. Minnesota | 12. Nebraska
Links to every conference
Minnesota Golden Gophers
2012-13: 21-13 (8-10)
In-conference offense: 1.04 points per possession (4th)
In-conference defense: 1.04 points per possession (8th)
When Tubby Smith was hired to take over Minnesota's basketball program in 2007, he'd won more than 70 percent of his games at both Georgia and Kentucky, captured a national title with the Wildcats in 1998 and finished in the top 20 of the AP rankings for nine seasons running. None of which happened during Smith's six seasons with the Golden Gophers, and expectations that they would resulted in the venerable coach being handed his walking papers after a disappointing 2012-13. In his place is a man who, at 31, is exactly half the age of Smith. He has a famous name and not much of a track record. Say hello to Richard Pitino.
Last season's shortfall was the final straw for Smith, who couldn't coax a .500 conference record out of a team with a strong starting core, a rare season of good health and a certain amount of star power in pro prospects Trevor Mbakwe and Rodney Williams. After reaching the AP's top 10 in January, the Gophers proceeded to lose 11 of 16 down the stretch. Miraculously, the Gophers earned their first NCAA berth since 2010 anyway: Minnesota even won a game, knocking off UCLA before bowing out in the round of 32 against Florida, in what fans didn't realize was a glimpse of their future.
That future revolves around Pitino, who besides the obvious influence of his father, also worked under the Gators' Billy Donovan. An advocate of analytics and intense video study, Pitino brings with him the charisma and stylistic traits of his mentors: pressing defense, drive-and-kick floor generals and lots of 3-point shots.
Projected starting lineup
POS. NAME YEAR
C
Elliott Eliason
Jr.
F
Charles Buggs
Fr.
G
Austin Hollins
Sr.
G
Malik Smith
Sr.
G
Andre Hollins
Jr.
Pitino's only collegiate experience as a head coach came last season at Florida International, where he did some good things amid the carnage left over from the Isiah Thomas era. With just three scholarship players on hand, Pitino's charges improved from 8-21 to 18-14, jumped from 231st to 48th in adjusted tempo and posted the fifth-best defensive turnover rate in the country.
Along with an apparent knack for X's and O's, Pitino might give Minnesota a big stick in the recruiting game. More on that in a bit, but suffice to say, to make his brand of hoops work for the Gophers, Pitino is going to need that pipeline of talent to be fruitful.
Pitino spent much of his first summer in Minneapolis dealing with the usual coaching-change fallout. Smith's last two Gopher recruits decommitted, with Alvin Ellis ending up with Michigan State and Alex Foster joining Smith in his new gig at Texas Tech. In addition, starting wing Joe Coleman transferred to Saint Mary's. At a time of the year when most teams already had their 2013-14 rosters set, Pitino found himself with five unused scholarships.
Considering the circumstances, the new coach seems to have done just fine. Malik Smith transferred from FIU to re-join Pitino with the Gophers, and will be eligible immediately after being granted an NCAA waiver. Smith is a prolific 3-point shooter, and that's an area where Minnesota needed help even before Pitino brought his system to town.
Fellow transfer Joey King is returning to his home state after playing his freshman season at Drake. The 6-foot-9 King is a face-up big who hit 35 percent from deep during his only season with the Bulldogs.
Pitino picked up a two-star freshman in Daquein McNeil, who could eventually develop into a rotation player. He also added junior college transfer Deandre Mathieu, a 5-9 point guard with the quickness you'd expect from a player that size but also the kind of leaping ability that turns heads and wins dunk contests.
The fifth scholarship remained open through the summer after another potential FIU transfer, Rakeem Buckles, was denied his waiver request in a bizarre decision by the NCAA. Buckles played three seasons at Louisville and was emerging as a rotation player before suffering two major knee injuries. He sat out last season at FIU, which remains ineligible for postseason play because academic probation. Buckles was denied an appeal and returned to FIU.
The Gophers were further weakened by the loss of Mbakwe and Williams to the pros, but there is some decent talent on hand to go with the newcomers. Minnesota should be strong on the perimeter, led by junior point guard Andre Hollins. Hollins' ability to score and kick out off penetration should make him a nice fit for Pitino's offense. We already know Smith fits the scheme, and he'll give Hollins someone to kick to. Pitino will likely start a third guard in senior Austin Hollins -- no relation to Andre -- who averaged 10.7 points as a slasher on offense and put up a team-best steal rate on defense.
Pitino will also welcome redshirt freshman forward Charles Buggs, an athletic, inside-out power forward who could emerge as one of the more impressive newcomers in the Big Ten this season. Another player whose athleticism fits the Pitino mold is sophomore wing Wally Ellenson, who didn't play much as a freshman under Smith. Ellenson won a gold medal in the high jump over the summer during the Junior Pan Am Games.
Beyond that, Pitino will cycle through options in the frontcourt that include Oto Osenieks, Maurice Walker and Elliott Eliason. Chances are, the players with the shot-block and offensive-rebound rates will earn the big-man minutes, which bodes well for Eliason and perhaps Walker.
Pitino will be sorting through all of this while making plenty of noise on the recruiting trail. The Gophers have landed on the final lists of a number of top prospects, three of whom happen to be from the Minneapolis area. The big fish among that trio is point guard Tyus Jones, the current No. 3 player in ESPN RecruitingNation's 2014 rankings. The usual blue bloods are after Jones as well, but if Pitino were to sign him, it would be a sure sign that big things are happening for the Gophers.
Right now, it's all about potential. Pitino has coached only one season. There are big names thinking about the Gophers, but none have committed. The style of play sounds great, but with the wrong talent, that same style can lead to ugly results.
Still, the coaching change brings hope to what had become a moribund program. Richard Pitino brings with him the one thing that Tubby Smith no longer had the luxury of: A clean slate.
Projected 2013-14 conference finish:*&^!#11th
