Reports: Illini hire John Groce

[Texsox]

Tex did you not read his original post? That was the oversimplification.

 

 

Grabbed the wrong quote. Sorry.

[IlliniKrush]

And rumor has it (on B&B, who usually have great sources when it concerns U of I athletics) Smith (Simeon) is being tabbed for an assistant position. Could be trying to let Smart know (or someone else) that if he's worried about recruiting Chicago, he won't have to be. Obviously all just rumor right now, however if you somehow combined Smart and Smith as his recruiter, this whole thing turns around really, really, really fast.

 

Interesting twist to follow nonetheless.

[GoodAsGould]

And rumor has it (on B&B, who usually have great sources when it concerns U of I athletics) Smith (Simeon) is being tabbed for an assistant position. Could be trying to let Smart know (or someone else) that if he's worried about recruiting Chicago, he won't have to be. Obviously all just rumor right now, however if you somehow combined Smart and Smith as his recruiter, this whole thing turns around really, really, really fast.

 

Interesting twist to follow nonetheless.

 

If Illinois somehow got Smith to come on as an assistant and were able to keep Howard as well as hire Smart.... I'm thinking you have a staff inline to bring them back to top10 rankings.

[Brian]

I don't want Smith to leave Simeon. He and Slaughter from Young are rumored to lead the CPL to leave the IHSA. I want that to happen so bad, because they think their tournament at the end of the year would out draw Peoria which is such a joke.

[Jenksismyhero]

And rumor has it (on B&B, who usually have great sources when it concerns U of I athletics) Smith (Simeon) is being tabbed for an assistant position. Could be trying to let Smart know (or someone else) that if he's worried about recruiting Chicago, he won't have to be. Obviously all just rumor right now, however if you somehow combined Smart and Smith as his recruiter, this whole thing turns around really, really, really fast.

 

Interesting twist to follow nonetheless.

 

Yeah all the rumors seem to indicate that Shaka is hesitant because of the "murkiness" of Chicago recruiting. If that's the case, I dunno that he's ready for a D1 job. There's murkiness for just about every high level recruit, especially recruits coming out of big cities.

 

And I said last week in a dream world you'd have Smith and Howard as your lead recruiters. That would be amazing.

[Brian]

Sounds like Bernsteins source was Joe Henricksen from the Suntimes who tweeted it as a joke...possibly.

[LittleHurt05]

New rumors are that Shaka is still deciding, may make decision by tonight. Offer is in the $2.5 million per year range.

[He_Gawn]

Sounds to me like sources close to VCU would be SHOCKED if he left.

 

If Illinois hired this Simeon coach as an assistant, I'd laugh my ass off. What a joke, considering the s*** they gave Indiana with Steele.

[Jenksismyhero]

sounds to me like no one knows anything. i'm a big fan of 2 separate cbssportsline.com writers coming out with different rumors - one says it'd be a surprise if shaka left, the other saying that shaka is still considering the offer and hasn't decided anything yet.

[Heads22]

Yeah all the rumors seem to indicate that Shaka is hesitant because of the "murkiness" of Chicago recruiting. If that's the case, I dunno that he's ready for a D1 job. There's murkiness for just about every high level recruit, especially recruits coming out of big cities.

 

And I said last week in a dream world you'd have Smith and Howard as your lead recruiters. That would be amazing.

 

Ummm....D1?

[Buehrle>Wood]

And rumor has it (on B&B, who usually have great sources when it concerns U of I athletics) Smith (Simeon) is being tabbed for an assistant position. Could be trying to let Smart know (or someone else) that if he's worried about recruiting Chicago, he won't have to be. Obviously all just rumor right now, however if you somehow combined Smart and Smith as his recruiter, this whole thing turns around really, really, really fast.

 

Interesting twist to follow nonetheless.

I keep hearing it, where does this reputation come from? Boers and Bernstein were completely off on the last two major U of I hires. They know nothing.

[Jenksismyhero]

Ummm....D1?

 

Meant to say high level d1, major conference.

[bigruss]

Yeah all the rumors seem to indicate that Shaka is hesitant because of the "murkiness" of Chicago recruiting. If that's the case, I dunno that he's ready for a D1 job. There's murkiness for just about every high level recruit, especially recruits coming out of big cities.

 

And I said last week in a dream world you'd have Smith and Howard as your lead recruiters. That would be amazing.

Yea if he's reserved about recruiting at this level then he wont ever really leave VCU.

[kjshoe04]

Yea if he's reserved about recruiting at this level then he wont ever really leave VCU.

Well it seems he will be the frontrunner everywhere for the next 2-3 years. Maybe he wants to go somewhere that he wouldn't have to establish a recruiting base? Illinois has had a real hard time recruiting lately.

[bigruss]

Well it seems he will be the frontrunner everywhere for the next 2-3 years. Maybe he wants to go somewhere that he wouldn't have to establish a recruiting base? Illinois has had a real hard time recruiting lately.

Meh, they've recruited highly rated players the past few years, they just haven't worked out/improved/fit the system.

[Buehrle>Wood]

Three straight top fifteen classes

[Jenksismyhero]

Recruiting at Illinois has not been the problem the last 2-3 years. They still have more talent on that roster than most of the big ten. Shaka (or whoever) can step in immediately and still be a tournament team, even without Leonard. The only problem is that the scholarship situation left them with only one commit for 2012, so if a couple of guys transfer they're going to have to scramble to find some guys.

[fathom]

I'm sure many will disagree with some of the thoughts I'm going to share, but here it goes:

- if UIUC pays Shaka in the Izzo range, that is absolutely insane. Take it from a Ga Tech fan when I say that giving out a bad contract can absolutely cripple your athletic program. Shaka's team didn't do much in non-conference play, and considering some of the mediocre coaches for the top team in his conference (ie: Paul Hewitt and Bruiser Flint), I think Shaka has become severely overrated.

- I HATE the public nature of the concerns about Chicago recruiting for any UIUC basketball coach. It basically implies that even in the future if they can get some high profile Chicago players, it means that something fishy probably went on. Is complaining in the media about recruiting in Chicago really going to make handlers/coaches stop asking for money? Hell no

- I love how Purnell had to save face by saying coaching in Chicago is great, even though there were rumors earlier in the day that he might have been saying it sucks having to recruit in the city

 

[Jenksismyhero]

I'm sure many will disagree with some of the thoughts I'm going to share, but here it goes:

- if UIUC pays Shaka in the Izzo range, that is absolutely insane. Take it from a Ga Tech fan when I say that giving out a bad contract can absolutely cripple your athletic program. Shaka's team didn't do much in non-conference play, and considering some of the mediocre coaches for the top team in his conference (ie: Paul Hewitt and Bruiser Flint), I think Shaka has become severely overrated.

- I HATE the public nature of the concerns about Chicago recruiting for any UIUC basketball coach. It basically implies that even in the future if they can get some high profile Chicago players, it means that something fishy probably went on. Is complaining in the media about recruiting in Chicago really going to make handlers/coaches stop asking for money? Hell no

- I love how Purnell had to save face by saying coaching in Chicago is great, even though there were rumors earlier in the day that he might have been saying it sucks having to recruit in the city

 

- I agree it's an overpayment, but it's necessary to get some energy back into the program. Paying him an extra 1-1.5 million a year isn't going to cripple them. I think Forbes just had them as the 8th most profitable bball program in the country, and that's in a s***ty period of years where there were tons of empty seats. Couple that with the soon-to-begin Assembly Hall renovation (i.e., luxury boxes), and money is not an issue.

 

- I also agree Shaka is probably overrated, but quite frankly, he's the hottest name out there and if Illinois can't bring him in their national reputation is going to take a hit. Obviously money isn't everything and being in a big conference isn't important to everyone. But normal fans won't think rationally about all the factors he has to weigh. They're going to see "Shaka says no to Illinois" headlines and people will perceive Illinois as not being a top level program.

 

- Recruiting in Chicago has, and always will, suck. Too many coaches/handlers with ulterior motives.

Edited March 21, 2012 by Jenksismybitch

[IlliniKrush]

Shaka has agreed to do studio work for the tournament this weekend, starting tomorrow. This means 2 things IMO:

 

1) He'll have a decision made by today

 

2) He's not coming here

 

I don't think he'd go on TV with this hanging and make that the storyline. I also fail to see how he'd accept a job and then be in the studio for the weekend. I think this just comes down to the fact he doesn't want to leave his little place in Richmond. It's not about the money, as we've reportedly offered enough. It's a much better job, all things considered, he just doesn't want the change. I know the perception will be Illinois is down because they didn't get him, but if we made a great offer and he wants to stay, that's on him. Minus maybe 4 programs (and even that's a maybe), Smart wouldn't leave his current position. I don't think it's Illinois in particular. IMO it's a dumb long term career move, but he's going to do what he wants depending on what makes him happy.

 

If this is the case, time to move on, lot of good candidates and interest in the job.

[Soxbadger]

Jenks,

 

See my post below but Illinois is 13th most valuable and 4th in the Big 10 (which makes no sense as MSU is 5th), , but Illinois according to Forbes is not top 10.

 

Forbes has Illinois as 13, behind Wisconsin, OSU and Indiana, somehow ahead of MSU. That being said Illinois has a very good history. The problem is that I dont believe anyone can say Illinois is in the top 5 in the last 10 years and that would be when the current class was 6 on.

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/chrissmith/201...valuable-teams/

 

 

13. Illinois Fighting Illini

 

Current Value: $15.8 million

Two-Year Change in Value: -24%

Basketball Profit: $9.8 million

Conference: Big Ten

Head Coach: Bruce Weber

 

Illinois failed to qualify for a tournament berth this year, and the team hasn't had much luck in March since losing the NCAA Championship Game to North Carolina in 2005. That year's success will no longer count towards future conference payouts, which means that the Fighting Illini may slide in value again next year.

 

(edit)

 

Just to be clear I think that Forbes methodology is terrible and it really doesnt show the value of the team, more shows profitability in a given season.

Edited March 21, 2012 by Soxbadger

[Jenksismyhero]

Shaka has agreed to do studio work for the tournament this weekend, starting tomorrow. This means 2 things IMO:

 

1) He'll have a decision made by today

 

2) He's not coming here

 

I don't think he'd go on TV with this hanging and make that the storyline. I also fail to see how he'd accept a job and then be in the studio for the weekend. I think this just comes down to the fact he doesn't want to leave his little place in Richmond. It's not about the money, as we've reportedly offered enough. It's a much better job, all things considered, he just doesn't want the change. I know the perception will be Illinois is down because they didn't get him, but if we made a great offer and he wants to stay, that's on him. Minus maybe 4 programs (and even that's a maybe), Smart wouldn't leave his current position. I don't think it's Illinois in particular. IMO it's a dumb long term career move, but he's going to do what he wants depending on what makes him happy.

 

If this is the case, time to move on, lot of good candidates and interest in the job.

 

Yeah, this makes sense. But it's been done before. I'm pretty sure Kruger did analyst work after accepting the Illinois gig. Seth Davis seems to think Shaka is coming here, but he's been wrong about a lot of things.

 

Read somewhere too that Shaka has a history with Meyers. Apparently Shaka was Florida's lead recruiter for Meyers and had him scheduled to go to a Florida camp right before he signed with Illinois. That'd be great if he (1) accepts the job, (2) convinces Meyers to stay another year. (even though that's a pipe dream I think at this point)

[LittleHurt05]

Yeah, this makes sense. But it's been done before. I'm pretty sure Kruger did analyst work after accepting the Illinois gig. Seth Davis seems to think Shaka is coming here, but he's been wrong about a lot of things.

 

Read somewhere too that Shaka has a history with Meyers. Apparently Shaka was Florida's lead recruiter for Meyers and had him scheduled to go to a Florida camp right before he signed with Illinois. That'd be great if he (1) accepts the job, (2) convinces Meyers to stay another year. (even though that's a pipe dream I think at this point)

 

I would explode all over my keyboard if Shaka got the job and convinced Meyers to stay.

[Jenksismyhero]

Jenks,

 

See my post below but Illinois is 13th most valuable and 4th in the Big 10 (which makes no sense as MSU is 5th), , but Illinois according to Forbes is not top 10.

 

In 2010 they were #4 according to CNN. And that Forbes list says they've lost a quarter of their profits in 2 years. The point still remains - they make plenty of money, and when they start a 2-3 season long sell out streak like they had before all that profit comes right back. An extra million or two isn't going to cripple the program.

 

Edit: yeah in 2010 Forbes had them #5 and #1 in the Big Ten. Certainly the pool of money to be made is there.

 

http://www.forbes.com/2010/03/16/most-valu...basketball.html

 

Moving up on our list is the Illinois Fighting Illini, which jumped two sports to rank fifth overall and first among Big Ten Conference teams, with a value of $20.8 million. The Illini's profit grew 9% last season to $13.9 million, while revenue increased at the same rate, to $18.7 million. The team's $7.2 million in gate receipts and $691,000 in concession income were both up last year, while seating donations were off only 2%, to $4.2 million. That's an impressive total at a time when many athletic departments saw fundraising scale back considerably on account of the recession.

Edited March 21, 2012 by Jenksismybitch

[Soxfest]

Shaka has agreed to do studio work for the tournament this weekend, starting tomorrow. This means 2 things IMO:

 

1) He'll have a decision made by today

 

2) He's not coming here

 

I don't think he'd go on TV with this hanging and make that the storyline. I also fail to see how he'd accept a job and then be in the studio for the weekend. I think this just comes down to the fact he doesn't want to leave his little place in Richmond. It's not about the money, as we've reportedly offered enough. It's a much better job, all things considered, he just doesn't want the change. I know the perception will be Illinois is down because they didn't get him, but if we made a great offer and he wants to stay, that's on him. Minus maybe 4 programs (and even that's a maybe), Smart wouldn't leave his current position. I don't think it's Illinois in particular. IMO it's a dumb long term career move, but he's going to do what he wants depending on what makes him happy.

 

If this is the case, time to move on, lot of good candidates and interest in the job.

I think it is number 2.