Ripe for the picking?
- Thread starter Rebel_Luv
- Start date
He isnt going to leave Iona for UNLV, it would be for much bigger things.
UMMMM. That sound like sour grapes. it says 5-6 years. Do u think he will wait a couple more years until the right fit comes along. He knows UNLV potential . I think he could be had. If we came up with enough money. 3 mil plus.
Sour grapes? More like reality. There will be plenty of schools willing to hire him and pay him with a lot more opportunity than UNLV has to offer him for those final 5-6 years. If Im Texas he is the first person I call.
Wouldn’t be surprised to see Pitino as the next St. John’s coach.
Dude … you wayyyyyy overvalue UNLV. What have we done?
If he’s considering UNLV, like you think he should, why not San Francisco? Why not DePaul? They had a pretty awesome past, too. Hell, why not St John’s? Biggest city in the States, he has ties there …
Is it the bright lights?
I agree he’s a perfect fit for us.
But look at us, seriously. Do you think we are a well oiled athletic department?
If this was in the 90’s …. Ok.
We haven’t won an NCAA tournament game since Mussolini was in power.
I’d love to see it, I really would. I’d be on board in an instant. But the damaged goods have been recovered, in part, so his value shot up again.
I have UNLV pride, as well. But I don’t know that I met somebody more out of touch with their Rebel colored glasses than you.
I know … if, if, if …. If we get into a power conference, if casino owners would chip in … etc, etc, etc.
I don’t know how to break it to you … we aren’t attractive and we are even less significant and even less infrastructure for success.
Who's going to take a gamble on a coach that has only 5 years left . I get our situation. I just think not too many schools will take a chance because of his short amount of time he has left. IMO he knows he could win bigger here before St.Johns. He obviously is putting out his name for a reason. yes I am a dreamer , but it all makes too much sense . You can't move on with CKK unless we pull something like this off. If not we are stuck good or bad for 1-2 more years.
Why wouldn’t St John’s work? Why would you say he could win bigger here??????? Huh? Or Gtown. St John’s is set up for quicker and higher success than UNLV. Do you think games against Fresno, Air Force and Wyoming are more appealing than Xavier, UConn, Providence (his start) and Villanova? We are administratively very weak, we don’t have money and this school takes no gambles UNLESS it’s with inexperience. They won’t gamble with any baggage. I think they’re very wrong for that but at least recognize the reality instead of doing ostrich/sand and pretending that doesn’t exist … which would lead to rolling if, if, ifs to make it work.
How is UNLV set up to win bigger than St John’s? Our 3 NCAAT wins over the last 30 years makes it true? You can tell weed is legal in Vegas but I suspect you’re on something that raises delusion much higher.
It makes very little sense if you step back and look at it objectively. In fact, unless his options were equivalent to UNLV, I’d question his level of dementia.
Again, for us, it would be a perfect fit, it’d be awesome and IT WOULD be a game changer - for us. For him? A complete rebuild with a weak administration and little money?
There’s no perfect sense like you are stating. It’s pure dreaming man, unadulterated dreaming.
But what he WOULD do was float the rumors and get some traction that UNLV is interested … as bait …. For a bigger and richer school. That I’d buy. Why not? He’s done that before and several others have, as well. You can be used when you set the reputation as being usable.
We passed on a VERY successful college coach with 2-3 years left for CKK.
We aren’t taking one of my favorite coaches ever. Or, to be more honest, he isn’t taking us.
I know nothing compared to you guys on this board but here are a few thought to multiple posts (not just a response to you Rebel_Luv - just happened to be the last one so I can have some kind of reply to click).
1) He has wanted to be here more than once (two or three times now?) If not outright said, enough smoke to humor the fact that it was an option more than once. He has been coaching since the Tark days, he too most likely remembers what we once were decades ago, Hell, why he wanted the job in 00/01 anyhow.
2) We only need 3-5 years. Rick would come in, recruit a good staff, a good roster and hit the ground running .. day .. one. This slow build bullshit is exactly that, we always form the same damn excuses coach after coach after coach. If its not COVID, its not "his" guys, if its not "his guys" its roster structure. Whether we like to admit it or not, ALMOST EVERY other coach we've discussed or left us in 12 hours has their new destination in better shape nearly the same year.
2a) Once he (Rick) does what he does in 3-5 years, we are prime with renewed interest, fanbase and enough to line up a pretty damn good replacement imho. We've been our own enemies in the coaching atrocities we have been experiencing for years now.
3) We suck major bawls right now, and have for over a decade, but I still see UNLV as a brand, though, much more of this and all us 'old heads' will be dead and gone. And so will the legacy.
and
4) It's time to shit or get off the pot. Get him in a conference room Monday morning to discuss options or stick with what we got. No more changes, unless it's a change that actually makes some fuqing sense for a change.
Shit is getting out of hand. Enough stupid blind eye excuses. Make the move or say we have what we have! I am so sick and tired of wishing, guessing and hoping with all this "on paper its good" crap. I'm getting too old for this shit lol.
We will see with recruiting, but I DO feel different about football, for the first time .. ever. Like ever. Lets do the same damn thing with basketball and put UNLV the fuq back on the map.
Now, wake me up when there is a yes or no. Not wasting what is left of my emotional state at this point.
I would absolutely love an “all out” effort for Rick here, if I was the President and AD I would get on this NOW not later. Pitino is on the same level as Coach Prime would have been here if he were hired!
We've already burned every UNLV Legends bridge there is, whats one more? F-it, if anything we get an offseason to talk about on the boards. That's all BB has been for like 11 years anyway.
Exactly, there were a lot of coaches over the last 10ish years that have popped up, that we only expected 5 years max out of (in regards to age), that 99.999% of the board drooled over.
This school is nothing but excuses. We lose to a crappy, horrible SJSU team twice. It’s injuries. It’s the refs. It’s everything but the truth to some of our fans. They’ll make excuses for players and coaches, they do anything but look in the mirror. What’s wrong with looking in the mirror and saying I’m fat, bald and ugly if I’m fat, bald and ugly.
But as we’ve seen, people have too fragile of an ego to admit truths. You see it daily. Hourly. Anything but, gasp, being wrong.
It’s a no brainer to me, if the resources and opportunity were there, I’d pounce. But this school won’t take somebody tarnished. Hell, they dumped a mascot because of a few ignorant fans.
It can't hurt to ask but I don't think the powers that be will touch him because they really have no investment in the program or it's legacy. They've got the Raiders and the Golden Knights. Why would they care what happens to the Runnin Rebels?
He also says "special program" when referring to what it'd take to move. He doesn't say P5 or big school. What would be better than playing vs your kid 2 times a year...
Honestly I'd kick every tire and personally would pick Mrs Pitino up at airport and I don't even live in Vegas. The whole "we can't hire a controversial coach because the NCAA is going to punish us for Tark 30 years ago" crowd needs to realize that no one at the NCAA really care anymore and that we've basically been on probation for a decade anyways. Do it, guys like Lon and just wins wherever he goes.
I don’t think there is a chance in hell we would get Pitino, but I would love it if we did. Since we are talking about pipe dreams how about coach cal? There are a bunch of people calling for his head at Kentucky lets make a run at him as soon as the door is officially slammed on the Rick pick.
It’s an absolute no brainer if he’s interested. Is he friends with Elaine Wynn or the Fertitas by chance? Harper needs to make something like this happen....needle moving.
I think that door has shut now since UK is hot right now, but give me Beard and I'd be happy lol
Pitino is never going to coach at UNLV. If he does, I'll give the OP of this thread 100 dollars.
"He also says "special program" when referring to what it'd take to move."
How much more special could it be to take a has been former Champion, build it back it to a National title and then retire?
I know Cal isn't leaving Kentucky and will retire from there. Even if he was leaving Kentucky he wouldn't come to UNLV. Just like Rick P. no matter how much we would love too have him as coach it isn't going to happen for UNLV.
Probably more along the lines of Justin Hawkins or Derrick Jasper is more than likely given out track record of hiring coaches.
Let's just get Saban to coach the FB team while we are at it!
Pitino ain't coming. Whatever coocoo logic you're twisting in your brain to make it seem like we have a shot is something you should maybe seek therapy for as soon as possible before it takes a darker turn. We'd have to buy out KK AND afford to pay Pitino AND a high end staff with a program that's hemorrhaging money at it's basically all time low over the last 6 years.
When we had a shot to land him, we missed it--which is basically the unofficial UNLV athletic department motto at this point.
This is the social equivalent of the super hot high school love interest you went on one disastrous date with as a junior is vague posting on instagram 30 years later and you think she's gotta be talking about you. THINGS ARE FINALLY GONNA WORK OUT.
Maybe I'm the one that needs therapy thinking that any real sports discussion can ever happen in this forum anymore.
When we had a shot to land him, we missed it--which is basically the unofficial UNLV athletic department motto at this point.
This is the social equivalent of the super hot high school love interest you went on one disastrous date with as a junior is vague posting on instagram 30 years later and you think she's gotta be talking about you. THINGS ARE FINALLY GONNA WORK OUT.
Maybe I'm the one that needs therapy thinking that any real sports discussion can ever happen in this forum anymore.
Listen i get that are chances are not even in the ball park of being a maybe. I am just saying that he could win here quickly . He knows that. That being said going to another school it would have to be a Georgetown or the likes of that. A lifetime bottom dweller in the Power 5 schools might be too big of a task. Seems like he wants to win and win on a big level. I am also saying that it would take 3 mil plus to even think about it and that is the only way we move on with CKK 2 years early. (thats how many more i think he has) There is a lot that has to go right, but we do have the means to make it happen. Yes i am a dreamer and probably over estimates UNLV as a whole ,but that is all i have to hang onto these days. It is frustrating watching most of the schools in the MWC even with marginal success being more than ours. Make it make sense.
I’m not saying we shouldn’t … UNLV doesn’t have the moxie to do that.
And even if UNLV got nailed for something under him - what’s that mean, probation and no postseason? Well, postseason isn’t something we’ve been doing anyway.
There’s no probably about it. It’s absolutely true. Remember, you thought Menzies was the anointed one because we got McCoy.
In no world should UNLV be in the same ballpark as SJSU the past half dozen years, or Wyoming or just about anyone else in the league. But that’s exactly where we are. Shouldn’t be, but are. Fans can’t change it.
I need actual honest to goodness evidence to start to think something is looking right. Not pipedream “if only’s” or maybes. For me it’s easier to look smack dab in the mirror and admit shortcomings and failures and UNLV is flush in both. It sucks but there’s nothing we can do about it.
I do think a cellar dweller P5 program has more potential than UNLV because of conference affiliation/TV contract, etc. Resources are better.
I do think he’d win here, for certain. He’s a really good coach, he has the Vegas personality, he can get kids and he gets them to go hard. He’d be my first choice. I just think there are too many self placed obstacles and other limitations at UNLV … you’d need an “all in” from admin and fans … I think you’d get a promising chunk from fans (but don’t kid yourself, though you and I would be good with it, there would certainly be the me too detractors that hated our mascot types firmly against it) and I don’t think you’d get an admin/booster all in. It would be tough.
I think, along with innate coaching ability, is his high profile. He'd attract loads of money from people that ordinarily would sit on it.
Agree.
But do you think a school who is so easily willing to shed part of it's identity would take the shot? And do you think he'd be attracted to a mickey mouse operation that he knows very well (and coaching circles are very tight, they know everything before we think they know anything).
First of all, I think your love for UNLV and Vegas is admirable. I think you're way over-optimistic but I don't think that's a character flaw or anything. The number of optimists here is at an all time low. I think you take a lot of shit for that, I hope you keep your head up--especially in the face of the cold logic of reality.
Pitino could win anywhere he decided to go. Iona puts a ceiling on him that would be lower than it would be here. That's all true. And proverbial bottom dwellers in P5 conferences aren't really easy places to turn things around--Jamie Dixon has had a tough time at TCU, Frank Martin only had 2 good years in 10 at South Carolina--of course one of those was a Final Four. I think those things are fair--but I think taking a bottom 3rd team from a mid major is even tougher than turning around a bottom feeder from a P5. Finding good coaches that have stumbled at lower P5 is tough but not uncommon, finding good coaches who turn around bottom 3rd mid major is super hard. Dana Altman at Creighton might count, but I would argue he wasn't a great coach when he started there, only 6 years of experience.
I can't make our futility make sense for you, because you look at silver linings. You see all of our advantages--history, facilities, City, etc but you tend to ignore the billowing black clouds that are all the other realities of the program. I try to see both and keep things in perspective--but even I got out of control during the football coach hiring process with some of the names I was hearing. It can happen to any of us. Maybe we are starting to head in a new direction. I like some of what Harper is bringing to the table but I need to see more data before I start thinking that things are going to turn around.
Based on where we are, wed be more likely to hire Todd Simon and be lucky to have him than Rick Pitino.
The names that will get floated around here will be likely way outside our ballpark as a program. Doesn't mean it'd hurt to make one hell of a run at someone like Pitino, similar to how Harper went after Prime. Id rather make an attempt to do something game changing then go into the bleakness of "whatever assistant picks up the phone".
The Prime thing never was going to happen from the very, very start.
I am just glad that Pitino is old enough to remember our glory days and that might 1-3% help sway him. I know i am way beyond optimistic ,but that is what keeps me as a fan. I hate flavor changers. They are the worst. As long as i keep following sports I cant change teams. I just cant. Too many memories POST 1990 as a fan to change that. I think i make good points even thou they are not as good as i think they are regardless they are good. There is a reason Pitino called us a sleeping giant. We have ALL the means or had to be great. The average fan is what 60? Jesus. That is one of the reasons crowds getting smaller they are all dying and not replacing with new blood.
I can never change teams. I’d feel like I was betraying myself. I can root for other teams based on certain circumstances, but I can’t stop rooting for my team and then taking on another team. I rooted for Max Good and followed them a bit when he went to Bryant College after Spoon took this job. Watched when I could. Same with him at LMU after Bayno bolted. I couldn’t root, however, for Rice at BYU or UNR. I want him to do well, but I cannot root for those teams to win. No problem when he was at Washington.
When I did follow the NBA a lot more closely, I never had an allegiance to a team, but followed players so whatever teams they were on, I rooted for. Marion with Phoenix and Dallas, LJ, Stacy, Greg, JR, Tark at SA, Armen, etc.
I do the exact same thing in the NBA. I use to follow Boston still my team kind of ,but i just enjoy watching UNLV players . Wish they would of signed Wood so i could of double dipped.
