Trevor Lacey Transferring

[mark4tide]

The afternoon of the Lacey transfer found Joe Dean, Jr. on local talk radio - either Dunaway's show or Griffin's - and he was very, very quick to say that third party influence is killing college basketball.

I think we all know what he meant there.

Basketball is starting to get more corrupt than boxing

 

[RKel32]

I'm usually very slow to call for firing anyone because I think that stability is undervalued in athletics, but in this case, I think it would be better to be proactive rather than reactive. If next season isn't a significant improvement in overall player development, I think you make contact with Bruce Pearl through back channels next year and hire him the day his show-cause penalty is up (next August). Maybe an unpopular opinion, but our program is treading water with tired legs right now. I think it's worth taking a shot on a coach that's at best a top 10 coach in the country and at worst will energize recruits and the fan base.

 

[imauafan]

I'm usually very slow to call for firing anyone because I think that stability is undervalued in athletics, but in this case, I think it would be better to be proactive rather than reactive. If next season isn't a significant improvement in overall player development, I think you make contact with Bruce Pearl through back channels next year and hire him the day his show-cause penalty is up (next August). Maybe an unpopular opinion, but our program is treading water with tired legs right now. I think it's worth taking a shot on a coach that's at best a top 10 coach in the country and at worst will energize recruits and the fan base.

Pearl is a good coach but I would prefer to stay away from anyone that has been in trouble with the NCAA.

 

[RTR91]

I'm usually very slow to call for firing anyone because I think that stability is undervalued in athletics, but in this case, I think it would be better to be proactive rather than reactive. If next season isn't a significant improvement in overall player development, I think you make contact with Bruce Pearl through back channels next year and hire him the day his show-cause penalty is up (next August). Maybe an unpopular opinion, but our program is treading water with tired legs right now. I think it's worth taking a shot on a coach that's at best a top 10 coach in the country and at worst will energize recruits and the fan base.

I don't see Bruce Pearl, a man fired for NCAA violations, energizing the fan base. Especially, when you consider his show-cause penalty is up in August. Why would you hire a guy 3 months before the season starts?

 

[RKel32]

I don't see Bruce Pearl, a man fired for NCAA violations, energizing the fan base. Especially, when you consider his show-cause penalty is up in August. Why would you hire a guy 3 months before the season starts?

Which is exactly why I said it would be an unpopular opinion. Believe me, I know the other side of the argument, and I respect people for disagreeing with it, but who can we get that is a better option?

Can we hire a proven winner away from a team that is a contender? Nope.
Do we want a current or recently fired coach from a big school that wasn't a contender? None that I can think of.
Can we hire one of the top mid-major coaches in the country? I'd say those are Shaka Smart and Brad Stevens, and we aren't getting them.

So what are we left with? A re-tread coach with marginal success, dipping back into the midmajor ranks and hoping we strike gold, or someone like Bruce Pearl. I know there is risk associated with Pearl, but I think his upside at Bama would be the highest of the realistic options out there.

 

[Rama Jama]

Say what you will about Pearl. Rkel is right, he would energize the fans and that is something that is sorely needed. He is also a good evaluator of talent and apparently knows how to work the AAU ranks. I am not sure he is a great on the court coach, but he knows talent whe he sees it and gererally gets them to perform up to their ability.
Frankly, the pool of coaches looks rather bleak and if we can't find a diamond in the rough from a mid major, perhaps Pearl is an option. I think he would be very careful after his last run in with the NCAA.

Lets hope CAG grant can put it together next year and make all this discussion moot.

 

[Crimson1967]

Sorry, I don't want Pearl.

 

[Hoot30]

I agree that it is concerning that this latest transfer happened, but I don't see how the program is treading water under CAG when we just finished 2nd in the SEC with only 8 healthy players. Just look at Arkansas and the fact that they have fired two coaches after only 4-5 years for each. Can we just see how next year goes?

Bruce Pearl will not be considered, IMO. He probably would be more careful if given another chance, but I don't want to give the NCAA a reason to raise its eye at Bama by hiring him. Remember that the NCAA used the Tyrone Beaman incident to place Bama in the repeat violator window when they hammered us in football back in 2002. I think that the PTB would not want a HC w/ NCAA baggage.

 

[Ldlane]

Interesting Take from Cecil on Tidesports:

Lacey and his family and advisors, possibly in that order, didn't see that dream getting any closer after two years at Alabama. Personally, I am not sure it would have mattered if Lacey had gone to Kentucky or Kansas or Quinnipiac. It is hard to see him as an NBA lottery pick, in any uniform.

 

[imauafan]

Lacey is similar to Richard Hendrix. Both were rated highly coming out of high school, could have signed with some top-tier schools but chose to sign with UA. Hendrix was a hard worker and a good basketball player but did not have the athletic ability to play in the NBA. Lacey is the same way. He has some good skills but will never be a NBA player due to his lack of the athletic ability that the elite players have. If he works hard to get in shape and continues to improve those things that he does well he can play overseas for a few years and make some decent cash.

 

[CrimsonPride25]

Any news on where he plans on going? I assumed Kansas but obviously that's off the table. I really can't understand his thinking, on this team he would be a top scorer, on a B1G or ACC team I just don't see him being an offensive focal point.

 

[yesitsmed23]

there are a lot of kids on rosters everywhere like this that do the same thing every year....mom n pop or HS coach think the kid is so great and should play in the league, but in all reality, they are never gonna make it to the league because they are only a serviceable/good college player. i watched trevor play from his 8th grade year til last year, and in all honesty never thought he would make it pro. he's was a great HS player and only a good college player, but HE IS NOT of NBA talent.

 

[wsims74]

first, I am new to the board (an old tidesports member, so I have been around) and it's so good to see some intelligent points being made about our basketball progam. I have been a huge supporter of CAG and will still say his in game coaching (scheme changing substitution) are really good. Example, in the sec Tourney vs TN he made headband (TN star PF) guard pick and rolls that started at half court. His conditioning had been questioned previously and it worked. That being said, this really concerns me. The message it sends to next year's recruits could be damming. winning does cure all, and this is CAG's lat chance imho.

 

[JPT4Bama]

Basketball is starting to get more corrupt than boxing

I was thinking the same thing. I used to be a huge Bama BB fan but have totally soured on it in recent years and that includes college BB in general.

I have followed Crimson Tide BB since C.M Newton in 1971 and IMO it has steadily gone down hill since Wimp was made to resign.

 

[RTRCharlotte]

Lacey is reportedly very interested in the Tarheels. He would have to sit out a year, but he could recover lost development time under CAG

 

[Matt0424]

He didn't lose any development time under CAG, he's just not as athletic as advertised. He'll get buried at UNC..

 

[KrAzY3]

To venture off topic a bit, count me as one that wouldn't want Bruce Pearl as the Alabama coach. I do think basketball is important, but Alabama has gone to great lengths to stay clean and appear clean. You hire someone that's had a serious run-in with the NCAA and you have to worry about perception. It's just not worth it in my opinion.

 

[TIDE-HSV]

To speak to the Pearl discussion - Pearl is a no-starter. There's not any point in discussing him, unless it's along the lines of "what might have been." This comes from the highest source possible in the UA hierarchy...

 

[Rama Jama]

I think it is all academic for 2 more seasons and hopefully CAG will have gotten things on track by then. It appears he is making a concerted effort to bring in better talent as evidenced by the number of transfers he has signed. I think he may have had something of an epiphany concening transfers. He can stay away from the AAU cesspool and still get quality players who probably are more of a known commodity than the AAU kids anyway since they have played at least a year of college ball. Since most of the transfer kids won't be eligible until 2015 anyway, I think he will be safe until the end of the 2015-2016 year.

 

[Crimson1967]

To speak to the Pearl discussion - Pearl is a no-starter. There's not any point in discussing him, unless it's along the lines of "what might have been." This comes from the highest source possible in the UA hierarchy...

Glad to hear that and I'm not surprised. Battle didn't become a millionaire hiring people he couldn't trust to head up major departments of his company.