Wednesday, March 18, 2015
I'll Believe It When I See It
Jim Boeheim announced this morning that he will retire in 3 years.
That seems like a really long transition period to me. Maybe he can say he didn't want his hand-picked predecessor Mike Hopkins to take over amidst the turmoil and sanctions from the NCAA.
But this also gives Boeheim way too much time to change his mind.
I do not trust him but I guess this gives him time to remove the stain of this latest ugly incident from being the last thing people remember about him.
But if he didn't want it to appear as if he were forced out, why not wait a year or two to announce this?
This doesn't give him enough time to recoup the 108 wins he lost, so he will never get to 1,000.
So he turns the program over to Mike Hopkins who has been on the staff for 20 years, and been the designated coach-in-waiting for at least the last five.
I am not sure what kind of coach Hopkins will be. Will he just be a Boeheim clone and do everything exactly the same? Will he try to put his own stamp on the program? Will he follow his mentor and teach one defense and employ one strategy no matter the circumstances? Or will he be a real coach who prepares his players for different opponents and adapts his scheme to the strength of his team.
I don't know the answers to any of these questions, but I'm looking forward to finding out.
In three years.
Hopefully after Boeheim goes out on a high note of back-to-back-to-back National Championships.
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1 comment:
Reminds me a bit of the Jay Leno/Conan O'Brien situation years ago - as you said, way too much time for the older guy to change his mind.
I'm also perplexed by the announcement because I think it may hurt recruiting. Playing for a HOF coach is a big selling point for Syracuse (among many others), and high school juniors this fall will have only 1 possible year to play for him. That kind of transition can be tough, and it's an easy way that competitor coaches can discourage recruits from signing with the Cuse.
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