Just not sure his history suggests he will contend for a league title with any degree of regularity. His conference finishes going back…
3rd this year
4 way tie for 5th last year
6th
3 way tie for 11th (just 1 game out of last place)
4 way tie for 5th but clearly the worst team of that bunch
4 way tie for 3rd
3 way tie for 3rd
6th
6th
2 way tie for 7th
etc
The occasional 3rd place finish, usually in a massive tie. This is the first time I think in his career he has finished less than 3 games back of first place. He has basically never been a real contender until this year in what all likelihood might be his absolute peak at Iowa.
Seems like a safe bet to finish around .500 most of the time, though.
I stand corrected–I had forgotten that article. However, Brendan is uncharacteristically way, way off on dates and facts here, and that makes you wonder whether something is being lost in the translation. Jeff Meyer didn’t leave until the summer of ‘17. Saddi Washington had already been hired the year before along with Billy Donlan to replace Laval Jordan and Bacardi Alexander.
Again, I have no doubt that Juwan is telling the truth when he says that he and Beilein discussed an assistant’s position. That there may even have been discussion of a possible coach-in-waiting situation. However, there’s nothing which suggests to me that there was an offer of same (even Brendan’s report says the idea was “floated”).
Wow, those numbers for the Iowa-Wiscy game! I wonder if that would have been the case no matter which game was being played in that slot (of the Friday matchups)? Not like there’s much else to do…
Either way, just confirmation its always about the $$$$
K. I had just done a quick google search. But either way, Minnesota can pay him $1.5 or more NOW, not in 2025. Pitino made more than $2m per year. I don’t know if he will leave or not, or if Minnesota even wants him. But money talks and he has some sort of affinity with Minnesota, as evidence by the lower buyout for them. It’s not as simple as “well if I were him, I’d just stay at SDSU.”
You sure could see the logic of it, and maybe he’s in a different mindset than the one he was in when that loyer buyout for Minnesota specifically was negotiated into hos current contract. But it sure does seem like the smart bet is that he’s interested in the job.
