Musical chairs end

Today we have a wonderful guest columnist, Warren Grimes. Warren has done a number of interviews with Stanford Coaches and Players from his Southern California Base and is a long time Stanford WBB Fan.

The Pac-12 will have three new head coaches starting in the Fall. The choices that the Athletic Directors made for these three schools offer interesting perspectives on the art and science of selecting a head coach.

University of Washington – Athletic Director Scott Woodward reportedly paid out $475,000 (average) per year over a 5 year contract to lure Xavier head coach Kevin McGuff to come to Seattle. McGuff has an impressive resume, having led Xavier to 5 consecutive NCAA tournaments and, over the last two years, a top ten ranking. As Stanford fans well know, McGuff’s Xavier team was one possession away from making the final Four in the 2009-2010 season. This was clearly the biggest name (and the most expensive hire) among the three Pac-12 schools. There is some logic to this. Washington has been a bottom dweller over the past few seasons. The program, once one of the best in the Pac-10, needs a jump start. Maybe McGuff can give the Huskies the recruiting boost they need to get back in the mix. They have some tough competition for Northwest players – Gonzaga has been the class team of the Pacific Northwest over the past few years.

California - Athletic Director Sandy Barbour hired back Lindsay Gottlieb, formerly the Associate Head Coach under Joanne Boyle. Gottlieb has been the head coach at UC Santa Barbara over the past three years. Her record at UCSB was solid, but not overwhelming. Although Gottlieb has head coaching experience, she is young (34) and has yet to make a mark as a head coach in a major conference. Unlike Washington’s hire of Kevin McGuff, Gottlieb is a relatively low profile hire, probably offered substantially less than McGuff’s half a million yearly compensation. California has performed better than Washington over the past few seasons, but clearly more is expected. Cal had a disappointing season last year. Gottlieb, by all accounts an extremely likeable and dedicated coach, has yet to prove herself as a head coach in a top-flight conference. California will have to show improvement over the next couple of years. If not, Gottlieb will become part of the revolving door of college coaching.

UCLA - Athletic Director Dan Guerrero also “hired back” someone with UCSB connections. Cori Close had been the junior assistant coach under former UCLA coach Kathy Olivier. More recently, Close had a multi-year run as associate head coach at Florida State. Close was given responsibility for the offense, and Florida State did well during these years, with a string of NCAA tournaments and high finishes within the competitive ACC. Close has never been a head coach before, but among the three newly appointed Pac-12 coaches, Close inherits the program with the most momentum and promise. Close was chosen, according to AD Guerrero, in part because of her California connections (Close grew up in the State and graduated from UC Santa Barbara, where she played her college hoops and also served as an assistant coach). The likelihood that Close will be loyal to the program was a factor after Nikki Caldwell abandoned ship.
Was it a mistake to hire Caldwell? I’d say no. Caldwell built up the program in a couple of years to the point that last season, UCLA finished the season with a record number of wins. The Bruins, although losing to Stanford three times, distanced themselves from the non-Stanford teams in the conference. Under Caldwell, the Bruins showed the consistency and focus that was lacking under former UCLA coach Olivier. Expectations will be high for Close.

All three schools have reason to be enthusiastic about their new head coaches. But this is a rough and unforgiving profession. Chances are, four or five years from now, at least one of these three coaches will be gone. Indeed, if you look at the Pac-12-related coaching changes (see the list below), ask yourself which of these coaches has the best chance of being an elite coach 5 or so years from now.
Joanne Boyle
Nikki Caldwell
Cori Close
Lindsay Gottlieb
Bobbie Kelsey
Kevin McGuff

I’d say that Nikki Caldwell has the best chance of becoming an “elite.” My second choice would go to the stealth hire of the season -- that new head coach at the University of Wisconsin.