Brad Stevens

[Hark_The_Sound_2010]

Brad Stevens just signed a big extension with the Celtics. In the press conference when they announced it - the front office said the main reason why they signed him was because they thought he was the perfect fit for the team, and so on (really, what else would you expect them to say). But they also said that another reason for the extension was so they could stop worrying about colleges swooping in to steal him from under their nose. They specifically mentioned 4 schools that they've had to answer questions about taking him: Indiana, Butler, Duke, and UNC.

Does anyone know if UNC had reached out to him or the Celtics for his services? Whether that be for sooner or later.

 

[BillyL]

It would make sense to me that Bubba would likely have already been engaged in some sort of backroom chats about who may/may not be a willing candidate for the HC job here if and when it should become available. I would also think that that could be a revolving list the longer that Roy coaches. Its Bubba's job to be ready to replace Roy at almost a moments notice. (heaven forbid he should have to) . . and I am very confident that Mr. Cunningham will make the correct choice.

 

[viking131]

If that being the case that says Bubba is willing to go outside of the UNC family for Roys replacement!

 

[Hark_The_Sound_2010]

If that being the case that says Bubba is willing to go outside of the UNC family for Roys replacement!

Yes, that aspect has been discussed on here as well. I figure that the Celtics wouldn't have included UNC in their mention of colleges if there wasn't any actual interest from the school there, so that's the reason I brought it up.

 

[Steat]

Hubert Davis will get the first crack at the UNC job when Roy retires in 5-7 years. Just my opinion....everyone has one.

 

[heels05champs]

Hubert Davis will get the first crack at the UNC job when Roy retires in 5-7 years. Just my opinion....everyone has one.

I like Hubert but I certainly hope not UNLESS he proves himself as a head coach at a D1 job.

 

[tarheels0015]

I think Hubert would do a fine job ..dude is basketball smart .. someone gave Roy a chance just as I feel UNC should give Hubert a chance. he could possibly add assistant coaches like Stackhouse , May , Paige just some ideas !

 

[gary-7]

Yes, that aspect has been discussed on here as well. I figure that the Celtics wouldn't have included UNC in their mention of colleges if there wasn't any actual interest from the school there, so that's the reason I brought it up.

Those questions regularly come from media types (I've heard it mentioned on ESPN for pete's sake), not necessarily from anyone attached to the schools mentioned. And c'mon --- pretty obvious selections of schools, dontcha think?

Roy will coach here as long as he wants and that will likely be at least 5 more years, barring something unforeseen health-wise. I doubt there has been any reaching out from our end at this point.

 

[ChapelHeeled]

Those questions regularly come from media types (I've heard it mentioned on ESPN for pete's sake), not necessarily from anyone attached to the schools mentioned. And c'mon --- pretty obvious selections of schools, dontcha think?

Roy will coach here as long as he wants and that will likely be at least 5 more years, barring something unforeseen health-wise. I doubt there has been any reaching out from our end at this point.

Gary, personally I believe that once he gets over his knee problems, then he could actually Coach another 6-8 years as well... He did do pretty well this season on two bad legs...

 

[DSouthr]

Those questions regularly come from media types (I've heard it mentioned on ESPN for pete's sake), not necessarily from anyone attached to the schools mentioned. And c'mon --- pretty obvious selections of schools, dontcha think?

Roy will coach here as long as he wants and that will likely be at least 5 more years, barring something unforeseen health-wise. I doubt there has been any reaching out from our end at this point.

I will say this, it would be hard to find a duke fan that does not believe that Brad Stevens will be their next coach, now they may say that Capel will get the shot to be a stop gap transitional guy but they fully believe Brad Stevens will be their next long term coach.

I would also say if when Roy does decide to hang them up and brad Stevens is both available and has any degree of interest at that time, yeah, UNC wil go for it and they should. I would love for the next UNC coach to come from our family tree but that same thinking gave us Matt D as our coach and more troubles than I want to remember.

 

[gary-7]

I will say this, it would be hard to find a duke fan that does not believe that Brad Stevens will be their next coach, now they may say that Capel will get the shot to be a stop gap transitional guy but they fully believe Brad Stevens will be their next long term coach.

I would also say if when Roy does decide to hang them up and brad Stevens is both available and has any degree of interest at that time, yeah, UNC wil go for it and they should. I would love for the next UNC coach to come from our family tree but that same thinking gave us Matt D as our coach and more troubles than I want to remember.

Doh was a last-minute pick and an aberration.

 

[HeelFan58]

Doh was a last-minute pick and an aberration.

does aberration mean monumental mistake?

 

[gary-7]

does aberration mean monumental mistake?

In that case, yeah

 

[mikeirbyusa]

Doh was a last-minute pick and an aberration.

Bubba would have NEVER picked Doh.

 

[DSouthr]

Doh was a last-minute pick and an aberration.

Matt was Baddour and the chancellor at the time ignoring Dean's input and refusing to consider anyone not connected to UNC. It was more than a mistake, it was bone headed!

Yeah, I am all for making sure there is not a great candidate with UNC ties before we look outside but as sit stands right now IMO there is ONLY 1 IMO great candidate for the job when Roy does step down and he is getting a bit long in the tooth himself, Phil Ford. Truth is Phil was my absolute first choice for the job when Dean stepped down, understood Gut getting the gig but more than Roy, I wanted Phil as our coach.

 

[HeelFan58]

Matt was Baddour and the chancellor at the time ignoring Dean's input and refusing to consider anyone not connected to UNC. It was more than a mistake, it was bone headed!

Yeah, I am all for making sure there is not a great candidate with UNC ties before we look outside but as sit stands right now IMO there is ONLY 1 IMO great candidate for the job when Roy does step down and he is getting a bit long in the tooth himself, Phil Ford. Truth is Phil was my absolute first choice for the job when Dean stepped down, understood Gut getting the gig but more than Roy, I wanted Phil as our coach.

Ford would be the coach right now and Roy would still be at Kansas , if not for external issues. Gut would have just been a bridge to Ford. I'm with you 100% but afraid that ship has sailed.

 

[gary-7]

Matt was Baddour and the chancellor at the time ignoring Dean's input and refusing to consider anyone not connected to UNC. It was more than a mistake, it was bone headed!

Yeah, I am all for making sure there is not a great candidate with UNC ties before we look outside but as sit stands right now IMO there is ONLY 1 IMO great candidate for the job when Roy does step down and he is getting a bit long in the tooth himself, Phil Ford. Truth is Phil was my absolute first choice for the job when Dean stepped down, understood Gut getting the gig but more than Roy, I wanted Phil as our coach.

Yeah, Roy was the properly annointed heir-apparent, but when he turned it down the first time Phil should have been the pick. Again, I'm glad it worked out that Roy came home, but Phil would have been a great choice.

 

[Bur-Heel]

Awww c'mon guys!!...you mean to tell me that all of negative recruiting Capel does won't be enough to land him the dook gig??..poor guy!!

 

[94tarheel]

I know Hubert is on deck but I wonder how much attention King Rice is receiving? No one ever talks about him as a possible heir.

 

[DSouthr]

Awww c'mon guys!!...you mean to tell me that all of negative recruiting Capel does won't be enough to land him the dook gig??..poor guy!!

Truth is he should not want the job, at least not directly after K leaves. Got to be one of the worse ever coaching jobs when you take over a power program directly after a legendary coach steps down after a very long tenure. You will be expected to not skip a beat and torched at the first sign of program slippage and there is always slippage when a legendary coach steps down. That is why Dean didn't want Matt to take the gig, because he knew it was the wrong time for a young coach.

 

[DSouthr]

I know Hubert is on deck but I wonder how much attention King Rice is receiving? No one ever talks about him as a possible heir.

Actually IMO King would maybe be one of the top 2 inside the family tree that would be considered, I don't think it would be Hubert, not until he got some time running his own program. Haas IMO would be up there with King, thou I would love to see Phil coach them for a few years and allow other guys to season a little bit more.

 

[gary-7]

Truth is he should not want the job, at least not directly after K leaves. Got to be one of the worse ever coaching jobs when you take over a power program directly after a legendary coach steps down after a very long tenure. You will be expected to not skip a beat and torched at the first sign of program slippage and there is always slippage when a legendary coach steps down. That is why Dean didn't want Matt to take the gig, because he knew it was the wrong time for a young coach.

Dean may also have been unsure about his commitment to the system.

 

[DSouthr]

Dean may also have been unsure about his commitment to the system.

I was a small step away from direct from the horses mouth on this, actually both Dean and Roy agreed, Matt was not ready for this. Don't forget, Matt was on Roy's staff all but the single season at ND between his Ks and UNC jobs. Dean and Roy were actually trying to help Matt but Matt heard that they did not want him to have the job and got upset over it. That is why Matt came in and made so many changes that upset so many people. That is straight from a former UNC assistant coach.

 

[gteeitup]

looking at the family tree now, the branches aren't even twigs yet.

and just because the celtics signed him, doesn't mean he'll make it there or not want to leave...all you have to do is look at the tenure of nba coaches and who has the longest tenure right now behind pop.

 

[gary-7]

I was a small step away from direct from the horses mouth on this, actually both Dean and Roy agreed, Matt was not ready for this. Don't forget, Matt was on Roy's staff all but the single season at ND between his Ks and UNC jobs. Dean and Roy were actually trying to help Matt but Matt heard that they did not want him to have the job and got upset over it. That is why Matt came in and made so many changes that upset so many people. That is straight from a former UNC assistant coach.

Yep. And I know he resented Roy over that.

As for why he made the changes, obviously that was part of it, but my impression is his ego may have been his downfall in any event. Don't know if it was really in him to embrace Dean and Bill and the system.

It really is unfortunate that it played out like it did, what with Roy and Gut having their temporary falling out, and the disaster that was Doh's regime. At least we ended up with Roy finally coming home.

And Dave, I know you'll appreciate this. As a disciple of the Dean Smith system, watching Doh butcher it was especially painful for me. And I remember watching a TV game when things were going south for Doh and Phil Ford was doing color (can't remember if it was the radio feed or a local TV feed), and while Phil was trying to be diplomatic you could tell it was absolutely killing him watching that debacle. What was impressive amid all that was Phil rattling off by number what options we had in the system, and by implication, what he would do... and I remember thinking "now there's a Carolina basketball coach".

 

[TPFKAPFS]

The second PF in my handle refers to Phil Ford so I am certainly one that hoped he would one day be our coach! Unfortunately circumstances, including personal decisions, just didn't work out for him. I believe Hubert, King, and Buzz might get looks in the future if they stay on their current career arcs. Doh was a panic move and his New York style just didn't fit in a place used to southern gentlemen for decades. This, in addition to his staggering ego made it impossible for Doh to succeed. I knew peeps very close to the program too at that point and I heard that one major difference was that DES and Gut treated everybody in the program, from the secretaries to the custodians, to the players, to the student interns as equally important. They spoke to peeps and even knew and asked about their families. Doh treated it like a job, only speaking or acknowledging those he had to.

I believe Roy will coach at least 8 more years and might go 10 with good health. The program is moving swiftly in the right direction and he did not have to sell his soul to get it back there!

 

[HeelFan58]

As long as Brad Stevens is successful in the NBA , then I don't see him coming back to college. I mean no boosters to deal with and not having you success or failure hinge on persuading 17-18 year olds to sign on the dotted line.

 

[gteeitup]

i think everyone knows the process in which matt took over...it's not s big secret, anywhere...maybe haters like to spin it, but everyone knows he wasn't the choice...jc, y'all act like its a hidden gem or something.

as far as stevens, successful in the nba terms is different...then, on top of that, successful on celtic terms, meh, good luck with those expectations...he's gonna have to compete for titles or he's outta there.

we should be routing for bad celtic teams...he would kill it in chapel hill.

 

[DSouthr]

i think everyone knows the process in which matt took over...it's not s big secret, anywhere...maybe haters like to spin it, but everyone knows he wasn't the choice...jc, y'all act like its a hidden gem or something.

as far as stevens, successful in the nba terms is different...then, on top of that, successful on celtic terms, meh, good luck with those expectations...he's gonna have to compete for titles or he's outta there.

we should be routing for bad celtic teams...he would kill it in chapel hill.

Yes, there is some of what occurred that is well known but there is much more than has not been talked about publically and really, should not be because it serves no purpose at this point. You are way off to suggest its not a big secret, it will remain that way because it serves no purpose to dig it all back up.

 

[HeelFan58]

i think everyone knows the process in which matt took over...it's not s big secret, anywhere...maybe haters like to spin it, but everyone knows he wasn't the choice...jc, y'all act like its a hidden gem or something.

as far as stevens, successful in the nba terms is different...then, on top of that, successful on celtic terms, meh, good luck with those expectations...he's gonna have to compete for titles or he's outta there.

we should be routing for bad celtic teams...he would kill it in chapel hill.

I tend to Root for the Celtics.

 

[TPFKAPFS]

Stevens would be a fine choice and I agree that the past should remain in the past. I just really don't want him to join with the pukies!

Love me some Roy!

Go Tar Heels!

 

[gteeitup]

Yes, there is some of what occurred that is well known but there is much more than has not been talked about publically and really, should not be because it serves no purpose at this point. You are way off to suggest its not a big secret, it will remain that way because it serves no purpose to dig it all back up.

it's not a big secret...nor was why he didn't last long, and i'm not talking about w's & l's.

 

[DSouthr]

it's not a big secret...nor was why he didn't last long, and i'm not talking about w's & l's.

OK, if you say so...

 

[mikeirbyusa]

LOT was not public and let's keep it that way.

 

[gteeitup]

LOT was not public and let's keep it that way.

correct, not public, but if you knew/know anyone associated with the program, it was no big secret.

 

[DSouthr]

correct, not public, but if you knew/know anyone associated with the program, it was no big secret.

SMH, geez,OK fine...I am so tempted to say more but I will not, I am going to just leave this discussion and not address the topic of Matt any further. But you have no idea how hard it is for me to just walk away from this discussion...

 

[Archer2]

Let's suffice it to say the Doherty experiment didn't work out, for various reasons. It's unfortunate but there it is.

NTS, Stevens would have to be high on any school's list of prospective coaches, should he return to the collegiate level.

 

[aah555]

As long as Brad Stevens is successful in the NBA , then I don't see him coming back to college. I mean no boosters to deal with and not having you success or failure hinge on persuading 17-18 year olds to sign on the dotted line.

Agreed. I think any person with a basketball coaching opening (college, pro, international) would be crazy not to have Stevens at the top of the list. He took little old Butler to two title games, has developed a sterling reputation as an NBA tactician and motivator, and taken two squads with mediocre talent to the playoffs. And, oh btw, he's done all of this before the age of 40. IMO, he's clearly the best young coach in basketball. And it's not even all that close. That is why I don't think there's any realistic chance that he'll be returning to college anytime soon. I'm pretty sure there are only a handful of NBA teams out there that wouldn't seriously consider throwing their coach overboard in order to sign Stevens. (i.e., Spurs, Mavericks, Warriors, Heat, Clippers).

 

[aah555]

Truth is he should not want the job, at least not directly after K leaves. Got to be one of the worse ever coaching jobs when you take over a power program directly after a legendary coach steps down after a very long tenure. You will be expected to not skip a beat and torched at the first sign of program slippage and there is always slippage when a legendary coach steps down. That is why Dean didn't want Matt to take the gig, because he knew it was the wrong time for a young coach.

As I said in another post, I think the Stevens to Duke dream (which I have definitely had) is more of a pipe dream. I don't think Stevens has any real interest in returning to college; nor do I think Coach K really wants to turn the program over to someone outside the Duke "family." With that said, "worst ever coaching jobs" is a bit extreme. Lol. Duke will still have a massive national brand name, plays a national TV schedule, undoubtedly has the financial resources to pay his replacement top dollar (K has been reported to make near $10 million), has excellent basketball-training facilities, and will undoubtedly provide the program with tremendous financial support, etc. etc. While I think you're right that it's a very tough job for a young, unestablished coach who needs to learn on the job (ala Matt Doherty), I don't think an established, competent coach with a trackrecord will have much trouble. In the end of the day, if you're a head coach with aspirations of competing for national champions, your odds of doing that at a place like Duke (UK, UNC, Kansas) are dramatically better than your odds of doing that at 99% of the D-1 programs in the country. If Stevens wanted to come to Duke or UNC (which I don't think will happen), I am pretty sure that he'd be incredibly successful.

 

[NCtrueconservative]

You gotta believe Steve Kerr is also going to be a name popping up on a lot of lists for schools and other NBA teams looking to land a new coach