Can UConn be a landing spot for Ben Howland?

Connecticut Huskies head coach Jim Calhoun is taking an indefinite medical leave of absence as he has been dealing with "a worsening case of spinal stenosis, a lower back condition that causes intense pain and hinders mobility."

It is unclear whether Calhoun can hang on for the long term. It may not be a bad idea for Howland's agent to start sending feelers out.

GO BRUINS.

4 months ago Nestor 14 comments 0 recs |

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At this point I'd prefer Howland's successor to be Geno Auriema (sp?)

by charnaw on Feb 5, 2012 8:50 AM PST reply actions

Or Pat Summit :D

by charnaw on Feb 5, 2012 8:50 AM PST up reply actions

I think you're joking, but I mentioned it once to friends.

I think Pat Summit would be a hire. She is already a great coach. It would be very forward thinking; the kind we applaud.

I am sure there would be a backlash in LA and across the country; which would only reinforce in my eyes that we were doing the right thing.

Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all the time thing. You don't win once in a while; you don't do things right once in a while; you do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing. ~ Vince Lombardi

by MexiBruin on Feb 5, 2012 12:12 PM PST up reply actions

If she were truly the best person for the job

I think most people would have no problem with it.

But I think it’s wrong to hire someone merely to be “different,” if that person is not the best fit for the job. There certainly exists already the opportunity for a talented woman, or even an unproven one, to coach college basketball, since virtually every college or university that fields men’s basketball also fields women’s basketball, so it wouldn’t be a “glass ceiling”-shattering hire.

No doubt it would raise eyebrows, but that doesn’t necessarily mean “that we are doing the right thing.” I’m not even sure I’d call it “forward thinking,” not that I think it’s backward or stupid. Far from it. I, for one, would be all for the hiring of anyone who can get the most out of the players, and if Pat Summit were that person, make it happen!

I know your heart’s in the right place, Mexi, and I hope this doesn’t come across as though mine isn’t.

by palafox on Feb 5, 2012 1:22 PM PST up reply actions

Not at all.

And I’m not suggesting we hire Pat Summit just to make waves or to make a progressive stance.

I think we all agree Pat Summit has proven to be a capable leader and basketball coach.

But, when I’ve mentioned it to friends, the rebuttals usually have nothing to do with basketball. They will mention something like woman coach would never work because men undress and shower in the locker room. And yet women reporters often are allowed in a locker room soon enough to see naked men walking around. Beyond that, there is no reason intelligent coordinators of a D1 basketball program can work out a time before the game and after the game when the players can get dressed or showered after a game. Summit could perform all of her pregame and postgame talks without ever being made or making others uncomfortable by her presence.

The other foolish thing I have heard is that the ‘men’ would never take her seriously. And yet, she has the rings to silence doubters. She has the glare of Clint Eastwood, and finally, the position to bench a player who is not getting the job done.

I have yet to hear a reasonable argument why Pat Summit could not coach a men’s D1 basketball program.

by MexiBruin on Feb 5, 2012 2:08 PM PST up reply actions

A year ago, hiring Summit might have been a reasonable idea

But since she’s been diagnosed with dementia, hiring Summit would be a huge risk, especially given the challenges and changes that would come with switching to the men’s game.

by jaffa on Feb 5, 2012 2:52 PM PST up reply actions

Sad to say, when I saw this headline

My instinctive reaction was to wish Coach Calhoun well and to hope Coach Howland would move there. There’s no way I would have thought that about our coach a few years ago, but he does indeed seem to have lost his way in Westwood.

UCLA administrators love to tout diversity, so why not hire an accomplished women’s basketball coach, such as Gino Auriemma, or an accomplished coach who is female to coach our men’s team? What a statement that would be. (Hmmm…would recruits’ moms be thrilled or feel threatened by having their kids play for a female coach?)

by bryanucla on Feb 5, 2012 9:36 AM PST reply actions