SI: Ten College Basketball Coaches Who Face a Critical Season (MN: Richard Pitino)

[BleedGopher]

per SI:

RICHARD PITINO, MINNESOTA
Minnesota raised some eyebrows when it hired Pitino, then 31, after just one season of head coaching experience at FIU back in 2013, and the returns after five years have been a mixed bag. Since Tubby Smith was surprisingly fired after leading the school to its first NCAA tournament win since 1997, the Golden Gophers have made the field just once. Pitino’s teams have struggled with year-to-year consistency, illustrated by Big Ten finishes of seventh, 10th, 13th, fourth and 11th—in order. The low point of Pitino’s tenure has been the 2015–16 season, when the Gophers went a dismal 8–23 and just 2–16 in the Big Ten, the program’s lowest overall win total since 1967–68.

Pitino’s time in Minneapolis has also been marred by off-court issues, including the 2016 suspensions of Kevin Dorsey, Nate Mason and Dupree McBrayer for posting a sexually explicit video on social media and the ’18 expulsion of Reggie Lynch after he was found responsible by the school for two separate instances of sexual misconduct from 2016. After injuries contributed to Minnesota’s poor 2017–18 season, when it went 4–14 in the conference, the team should be healthy again and expects to show notable improvement. If the wheels fall off again, it may spell the end for Pitino.

https://www.si.com/college-basketball/2018/10/08/hot-seat-coaches-steve-alford-richard-pitino

Go Gophers!!

 

[WindyCityGopher]

Well that's a nightmare narrative to recruit against.

 

[gopherguy15]

Norlander (CBS) has a column about this as well:

Minnesota: Richard Pitino
Record at Minnesota, record in the Big Ten: 90-78 | 31-59 entering sixth season
Last NCAA Tournament appearance: 2017

As you can see, the Big Ten stands to have the busiest carousel come March 2019. That said, Minnesota might be the best dark horse pick to win a power league this season. I'm not saying the Gophers are going to pillage the mountaintop in the Big Ten, but it's not unfathomable. Jordan Murphy is a top-five underrated forward and Amir Coffey will join him on our annual list of the top 100 (and one) players in the sport.

Pitino's been stop-and-go since he got to Minnesota. If this team goes sub-.500 again (it was 15-17 last season) and wastes that talent, the program should try to start over and bring someone new in. But I don't think that will happen. I've got Minnesota dancing this season.


https://www.cbssports.com/college-b...-whose-jobs-could-be-on-the-line-this-season/

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

Norlander (CBS) has a column about this as well:

Minnesota: Richard Pitino
Record at Minnesota, record in the Big Ten: 90-78 | 31-59 entering sixth season
Last NCAA Tournament appearance: 2017

As you can see, the Big Ten stands to have the busiest carousel come March 2019. That said, Minnesota might be the best dark horse pick to win a power league this season. I'm not saying the Gophers are going to pillage the mountaintop in the Big Ten, but it's not unfathomable. Jordan Murphy is a top-five underrated forward and Amir Coffey will join him on our annual list of the top 100 (and one) players in the sport.

Pitino's been stop-and-go since he got to Minnesota. If this team goes sub-.500 again (it was 15-17 last season) and wastes that talent, the program should try to start over and bring someone new in. But I don't think that will happen. I've got Minnesota dancing this season.


https://www.cbssports.com/college-b...-whose-jobs-could-be-on-the-line-this-season/

If we aren't dancing, I think we are hiring a new coach.

 

[SelectionSunday]

If we aren't dancing, I think we are hiring a new coach.

Possible, but I don't think it's that cut & dried. So many factors to consider. For example, what if Gophers have a solid season (let's say 11-9 in Big Ten), just miss the NCAA Tournament, and Matthew Hurt commits to Gophers/Pitino (not likely, but work with me)? Absent more off-court issues, I know I wouldn't be firing Pitino in that scenario.

 

[builtbadgers]

Possible, but I don't think it's that cut & dried. So many factors to consider. For example, what if Gophers have a solid season (let's say 11-9 in Big Ten), just miss the NCAA Tournament, and Matthew Hurt commits to Gophers/Pitino (not likely, but work with me)? Absent more off-court issues, I know I wouldn't be firing Pitino in that scenario.

I would not either unless you knew you were able to hire one of the coaching superstars.

 

[alchemy2u]

Possible, but I don't think it's that cut & dried. So many factors to consider. For example, what if Gophers have a solid season (let's say 11-9 in Big Ten), just miss the NCAA Tournament, and Matthew Hurt commits to Gophers/Pitino (not likely, but work with me)? Absent more off-court issues, I know I wouldn't be firing Pitino in that scenario.

Agree. The erratic seasons are part of the process of hiring a young coach early. You have to withstand the learning process. If he continues to recruit well, develop players and coach well then you have to be careful of pulling the plug too early. He will be our coach as long as he shows potential in the eyes of the AD. If he repeats his earlier mistakes and stumbles with game coaching then he looses his potential and is gone.


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[scools12]

I would think he has to make the NCAA. I don’t think a NIT bid will save his job.

Say Hurt does commit that may change things but if not after 6 years you have to come the realization it isn’t working.

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

Possible, but I don't think it's that cut & dried. So many factors to consider. For example, what if Gophers have a solid season (let's say 11-9 in Big Ten), just miss the NCAA Tournament, and Matthew Hurt commits to Gophers/Pitino (not likely, but work with me)? Absent more off-court issues, I know I wouldn't be firing Pitino in that scenario.

Maybe in that perfect storm, I'd be for keeping him. That said, 1 tournament in 6 years would be pretty awful (so would 2 in 6, but if we kept him so far, I don't know why we'd fire him if he gets us back to the dance). If we aren't seeing actual, wins and losses, postseason results, being excited about recruits probably won't do it for me.

 

[SelectionSunday]

Maybe in that perfect storm, I'd be for keeping him. That said, 1 tournament in 6 years would be pretty awful (so would 2 in 6, but if we kept him so far, I don't know why we'd fire him if he gets us back to the dance). If we aren't seeing actual, wins and losses, postseason results, being excited about recruits probably won't do it for me.

A perfectly fair and reasonable argument, no problem with anything you say here.

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

A perfectly fair and reasonable argument, no problem with anything you say here.

Same to you. Obviously, the ideal outcome would be that we have a great year, win a few games in the tourney, and totally moot any discussion around what would be the minimum level of acceptability for keeping hin.

 

[Tim1406]

Maybe in that perfect storm, I'd be for keeping him. That said, 1 tournament in 6 years would be pretty awful (so would 2 in 6, but if we kept him so far, I don't know why we'd fire him if he gets us back to the dance). If we aren't seeing actual, wins and losses, postseason results, being excited about recruits probably won't do it for me.

I agree but if we get to the tournament it would be 2in 3 which is decent for a middle power conference school. Not where we want to be but it’s where we are.

 

[bemidjigopher]

Possible, but I don't think it's that cut & dried. So many factors to consider. For example, what if Gophers have a solid season (let's say 11-9 in Big Ten), just miss the NCAA Tournament, and Matthew Hurt commits to Gophers/Pitino (not likely, but work with me)? Absent more off-court issues, I know I wouldn't be firing Pitino in that scenario.

Not to mention that would be our third winning in conference season in 20 years and Pitino would own two of them. Personally I don't see 12-9 keeping us out, unless we stumble in non con

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