I've said it in several different threads, and I'll say it again to start this post. I'm not going to nail the coaching hire this early. I'm not going to act like I know things that I don't.
But here is a summary of things I've been told over the last few days, and over the weekend, covering a variety of topics...
All of the items below are from sources I trust:
There was plenty of buzz that an announcement could come this weekend, and I was hearing that as early as Tuesday of this past week, but as we sit here on Sunday night, all signs point towards Kenny coaching in DC at the ACCT. With that being said, he will be out within the week.
This was a dis-functional coaching staff across the board. I was told the staff simply doesn't communicate, they don't talk, and most of the time they weren't included in practice scheduling plans. Just really bad all the way around. Nolan has been a polarizing figure since he arrived here. Do I think he has made some mistakes? Of course. Do I think Kenny did him any favors? No. The two haven't really been on the same page since the summer. Kenny hasn't let Nolan do any press conferences, and I think Nolan is going to try to disconnect from these two years as quickly as possible. Danny has really been the only assistant that talks to Kenny during games. Josh Jamieson, no comment.
I believe stories will start to come out as this comes to an end and people start to share their side of things, but what started as a sensitive situation turned into one that even the most blinded KP supporters couldn't defend behind the scenes. Heird was not happy with KP for a number of reasons, and those two didn't have a collaborative and healthy working relationship at all. After trying everything to support this staff and give suggestions, the administration got to a point where they stopped trying to protect Kenny.
As far as the last second recruiting attempt by Kenny: The Joson Sanon kid, as we saw, used Louisville as a side piece on his way to Lexington. The staff, other than Kenny, was very much in the dark on this visit, and people around the program didn't think the visit would be happening given the circumstances. Nonetheless, the kid shows up, and it became another embarrassing moment to go with a laundry list of others. With Karter Knox, after talking to someone very close to the recruitment, this was pretty cut and dry. The Knox family wanted the interest in Louisville to seem real in an effort to save KP's job.
Onto the upcoming coaching search, where again, I think information is spotty at best as of March 10. There are several people that I trust who think as of today, if Scott Drew was forced to make a decision, he'd come to Louisville. There are others in the industry who don't think it's happening. I'm not ready to weigh in personally, but wanted to share some additional context. As far as other candidates, the Billy Donovan rumblings weren't shot down by anyone in that camp. I haven't heard Mick Cronin's name come up from anybody in the know. And there are plenty of people around here who would know if it was happening. That's not to say he's not an option, but if he is, it's been kept very quiet by people close to the Cronin's. The other name I don't think people should rule out is FAU's Dusty May. Someone very connected on the grassroots level mentioned him to me earlier today. I do think a mid-major up-and-comer is a potential scenario. If one of these guys gets hot in March, and Louisville feels like they can save money on contracts, and load up on NIL funds, they may go that route. He lost today, and may not even get into the NCAAT, but Josh Schertz has been the name I've heard the most that would fit that desctiption.
Buckle up, folks.
But here is a summary of things I've been told over the last few days, and over the weekend, covering a variety of topics...
All of the items below are from sources I trust:
There was plenty of buzz that an announcement could come this weekend, and I was hearing that as early as Tuesday of this past week, but as we sit here on Sunday night, all signs point towards Kenny coaching in DC at the ACCT. With that being said, he will be out within the week.
This was a dis-functional coaching staff across the board. I was told the staff simply doesn't communicate, they don't talk, and most of the time they weren't included in practice scheduling plans. Just really bad all the way around. Nolan has been a polarizing figure since he arrived here. Do I think he has made some mistakes? Of course. Do I think Kenny did him any favors? No. The two haven't really been on the same page since the summer. Kenny hasn't let Nolan do any press conferences, and I think Nolan is going to try to disconnect from these two years as quickly as possible. Danny has really been the only assistant that talks to Kenny during games. Josh Jamieson, no comment.
I believe stories will start to come out as this comes to an end and people start to share their side of things, but what started as a sensitive situation turned into one that even the most blinded KP supporters couldn't defend behind the scenes. Heird was not happy with KP for a number of reasons, and those two didn't have a collaborative and healthy working relationship at all. After trying everything to support this staff and give suggestions, the administration got to a point where they stopped trying to protect Kenny.
As far as the last second recruiting attempt by Kenny: The Joson Sanon kid, as we saw, used Louisville as a side piece on his way to Lexington. The staff, other than Kenny, was very much in the dark on this visit, and people around the program didn't think the visit would be happening given the circumstances. Nonetheless, the kid shows up, and it became another embarrassing moment to go with a laundry list of others. With Karter Knox, after talking to someone very close to the recruitment, this was pretty cut and dry. The Knox family wanted the interest in Louisville to seem real in an effort to save KP's job.
Onto the upcoming coaching search, where again, I think information is spotty at best as of March 10. There are several people that I trust who think as of today, if Scott Drew was forced to make a decision, he'd come to Louisville. There are others in the industry who don't think it's happening. I'm not ready to weigh in personally, but wanted to share some additional context. As far as other candidates, the Billy Donovan rumblings weren't shot down by anyone in that camp. I haven't heard Mick Cronin's name come up from anybody in the know. And there are plenty of people around here who would know if it was happening. That's not to say he's not an option, but if he is, it's been kept very quiet by people close to the Cronin's. The other name I don't think people should rule out is FAU's Dusty May. Someone very connected on the grassroots level mentioned him to me earlier today. I do think a mid-major up-and-comer is a potential scenario. If one of these guys gets hot in March, and Louisville feels like they can save money on contracts, and load up on NIL funds, they may go that route. He lost today, and may not even get into the NCAAT, but Josh Schertz has been the name I've heard the most that would fit that desctiption.
Buckle up, folks.
