Rank the Big East Coaches

[BandAid]

This is not intended to be another "heap on Steele" type thread, but I was chatting with a friend and we were discussing the Big East coaches. I was curious how we would all rank the coaches against each other. So here's my list:

Cream of the Crop:
1. Jay Wright - future HOF'er. I expect him to be atop everyone's list.

The Mid-Field:
2. Dan Hurley
3. Gregg McDermott - controversial opinion. I think he gets a lot out of his players. Biggest knock is his tournament performances.
4. Mike Anderson - I think he will turn St. John's around.
5. Ed Cooley - will always be solid, but don't know how high Providence can consistently climb.

The Meh Field:
6. Kevin Willard - will be solid most of the time, but will never be exceptional.
7. Patrick Ewing
8&9. LaVall Jordan and Travis Steele

Ultimately, I think numbers 5 and up are good to great coaches. The rest are bad to below average.

[GoMuskies]

3. Gregg McDermott - controversial opinion. I think he gets a lot out of his players. Biggest knock is his tournament performances.

Gregg can stay here if he wins tonight. Falls to like 9 or 10 (out of 9) with a loss tonight.

[D-West & PO-Z]

This is not intended to be another "heap on Steele" type thread, but I was chatting with a friend and we were discussing the Big East coaches. I was curious how we would all rank the coaches against each other. So here's my list:

Cream of the Crop:
1. Jay Wright - future HOF'er. I expect him to be atop everyone's list.

The Mid-Field:
2. Dan Hurley
3. Gregg McDermott - controversial opinion. I think he gets a lot out of his players. Biggest knock is his tournament performances.
4. Mike Anderson - I think he will turn St. John's around.
5. Ed Cooley - will always be solid, but don't know how high Providence can consistently climb.

The Meh Field:
6. Kevin Willard - will be solid most of the time, but will never be exceptional.
7. Patrick Ewing
8&9. LaVall Jordan and Travis Steele

Ultimately, I think numbers 5 and up are good to great coaches. The rest are bad to below average.

Man... fist thought.....we have a lot of mediocre, blah coaches in the BE.

If we could wave a magic wand and pick one of those guys to replace Steele, I wouldn't be completely confident in any of them being able to take X to another level except Wright.

That being said my list at this time would be:

1. Wright
2. McDermott
3. Anderson
4. Hurley
5. Willard
6. Cooley
7. Ewing
8. Steele
9. Jordan

[Xville]

Yeah lots of mediocrity in that list. Mine would be:

1. Wright












2. Hurley



3. McDermott
4. Anderson






5-9 meh


Compare our list of coaches to any other power conference and it’s quite sobering

[JTG]

Cooley is definitely Meh. What has he done ? Anything at all ? He should be winning with the talent he has, and he hasn't done squat.

[bleedXblue]

Gregg can stay here if he wins tonight. Falls to like 9 or 10 (out of 9) with a loss tonight.


Guy has built a really solid program and has his system established and working pretty darn well.

[XUOWNSUC]

1. - Wright
2. through 10. - doesn’t matter
11. - Steele

[Xavier]

Cooley is definitely Meh. What has he done ? Anything at all ? He should be winning with the talent he has, and he hasn't done squat.

I am not sure how he got the "Always gets the most out of his players" reputation.

[GoMuskies]

I am not sure how he got the "Always gets the most out of his players" reputation.

Maybe he has shitty players?

[SM#24]

1. Wright
2. Hurley
3. Anderson
4. Marq coach
5. Ewing
6. McDermott
7. DePaul coach
8. Willard
9. Cooley
10. Jordan
11. Steele (unfortunately)

I'll re-rank after Marq & DePaul hire coaches; but above is my prediction where they will rank.

[D-West & PO-Z]

1. Wright
2. Hurley
3. Anderson
4. Marq coach
5. Ewing
6. McDermott
7. DePaul coach
8. Willard
9. Cooley
10. Jordan
11. Steele (unfortunately)

I'll re-rank after Marq & DePaul hire coaches; but above is my prediction where they will rank.

Curious why such a low view of McDermott, especially when your ranking comes after his sweet 16 appearance? I don't think he's amazing by any means but I dont think the BE really has many very good coaches. McDermott has been at Creighton for 11 years and in 8 of those years Creighton was ranked in the top 25 for at least 1 week and appeared in the top 15 6 years.

His biggest downfall has been his lack of tourney success but that can be a crapshoot. Finally broke through to second weekend this year though. He definitely has a good system though that he continues to find players for.

[AviatorX]

1. Wright
2. Hurley
3. Anderson
4. Marq coach
5. Ewing
6. McDermott
7. DePaul coach
8. Willard
9. Cooley
10. Jordan
11. Steele (unfortunately)

I'll re-rank after Marq & DePaul hire coaches; but above is my prediction where they will rank.

Ranking the unidentified Marquette and DePaul coaches #4 and #7 respectively is interesting. What the hell are you basing that on?

[xukeith]

Why all the Ewing love? His team got hot for 3 games then got smoked. Great championship but too much drama with players over the past 2 years.

[noteggs]

Yay another thread to slam Steele...

Yes improvements needed, but just saying

[BandAid]

Adding Shaka to the field...

His knock is his recent tournament performances - which he lost all of them by two possessions or less (ouch). I can't see how he doesn't shoot up towards the front of the pack.

1. Jay Wright
2. Shaka Smart
3. Dan Hurley
4. Gregg McDermott
5. Mike Anderson
6. Ed Cooley
7. Kevin Willard
8. Patrick Ewing
9&10. LaVall Jordan and Travis Steele

[D-West & PO-Z]

Man... fist thought.....we have a lot of mediocre, blah coaches in the BE.

If we could wave a magic wand and pick one of those guys to replace Steele, I wouldn't be completely confident in any of them being able to take X to another level except Wright.

That being said my list at this time would be:

1. Wright
2. McDermott
3. Anderson
4. Hurley
5. Willard
6. Cooley
7. Ewing
8. Steele
9. Jordan

My new list:

1. Wright
2. McDermott
3. Anderson
4. Smart
5. Hurley
6. Willard
7. Cooley
8. Ewing
9. Steele
10. Jordan

[SM#24]

1. Wright
2. Hurley
3. Anderson
4. Marq coach
5. Ewing
6. McDermott
7. DePaul coach
8. Willard
9. Cooley
10. Jordan
11. Steele (unfortunately)

I'll re-rank after Marq & DePaul hire coaches; but above is my prediction where they will rank.

My ranking is the same.

[BandAid]

My ranking is the same.

Now I'm really curious as to who you have slotting in at DePaul...

You thinking Moser?

[SM#24]

Curious why such a low view of McDermott, especially when your ranking comes after his sweet 16 appearance? I don't think he's amazing by any means but I dont think the BE really has many very good coaches. McDermott has been at Creighton for 11 years and in 8 of those years Creighton was ranked in the top 25 for at least 1 week and appeared in the top 15 6 years.

His biggest downfall has been his lack of tourney success but that can be a crapshoot. Finally broke through to second weekend this year though. He definitely has a good system though that he continues to find players for.

I think McDermott is a good coach; he looks low on my list because I have a higher opinion of Anderson and Ewing than most. If I was tiering them, I'd go Elite (Wright), Very Good (Hurley, Anderson), Good (Smart, Ewing, McDermott), Mediocre (DePaul hire (guessing for now, this could change), Willard, Cooley), Below Average (Jordan, Steele).

[SM#24]

Now I'm really curious as to who you have slotting in at DePaul...

You thinking Moser?

I'd re-rank if they get Moser. Otherwise, I'm just guessing they get someone mediocre.

[D-West & PO-Z]

I think McDermott is a good coach; he looks low on my list because I have a higher opinion of Anderson and Ewing than most. If I was tiering them, I'd go Elite (Wright), Very Good (Hurley, Anderson), Good (Smart, Ewing, McDermott), Mediocre (DePaul hire (guessing for now, this could change), Willard, Cooley), Below Average (Jordan, Steele).

I'm with you on Anderson. I'm lower on Ewing and Hurley though.

I think Ewing can be good though, just have him 8th for now.

I really want Ewing to succeed, he was my favorite NBA player growing up.

[BigMoeMusketeer]

Cool thread, sorry I missed this:

1. Jay Wright
2. Greg McDermott
3. Mike Anderson
4. Shaka Smart
5. Ed Cooley
6. Dan Hurley
7. Kevin Willard
8. Patrick Ewing
9. LaVall Jordan
10. Travis Steele
11. DePaul for now -- I'm guessing they end up with a guy I'd slot between Willard and Ewing, or, between Hurley and Willard.

[UCGRAD4X]

This is a depressing thread.

Where's my Jamison?

[bobbiemcgee]

Cool thread, sorry I missed this:

1. Jay Wright
2. Greg McDermott
3. Mike Anderson
4. Shaka Smart
5. Ed Cooley
6. Dan Hurley
7. Kevin Willard
8. Patrick Ewing
9. LaVall Jordan
10. Blue Blob
11. T. Steele
......

[xuphan]

Cool thread, sorry I missed this:

1. Jay Wright
2. Greg McDermott
3. Mike Anderson
4. Shaka Smart
5. Ed Cooley
6. Dan Hurley
7. Kevin Willard
8. Patrick Ewing
9. LaVall Jordan
10. Travis Steele
11. DePaul for now -- I'm guessing they end up with a guy I'd slot between Willard and Ewing, or, between Hurley and Willard.

Jay Wright
Greg McDermott
Shaka Smart
Dan Hurley
Ed Cooley
Mike Anderson
Pat Ewing
Kevin Willard
Travis Steele
Lavall Jordan
Brian DePaul Gregory

[JTG]

I was working yesterday at a March Madness event with a Butler grad in his early 60s. According to him they want Jordan gone as much or more than we're ready to dump Steele. Jordan had a good excuse, lots of frontline injuries. Steele's excuse is, well...he was Steele.

[waggy]

I like Jordan, and the young guards he recruited are going to be a huge problem.

[GIMMFD]

I like Jordan, and the young guards he recruited are going to be a huge problem.

Butler never really strikes fear in me, I know we blew that 14 point lead, but we've had their number. I don't think you can sustain the level Brad Stevens had with Butler in back to back Final 4s, but it seems they've dropped off a bit from where they were. Not sure how recruiting has been for them, Jordan seems likable, better vibes than Kevin Ollie, but that's a pretty low bar.

For the rest of the conference, yes to Jay Wright as one, Hurley/Anderson/McDermott next, give me a couple years to re-assess Shaka Smart at Marquette, and then the rest of the conference in "who really cares," because nothing is outwardly impressive.

[Irishdawg]

I was working yesterday at a March Madness event with a Butler grad in his early 60s. According to him they want Jordan gone as much or more than we're ready to dump Steele. Jordan had a good excuse, lots of frontline injuries. Steele's excuse is, well...he was Steele.

Most Butler fans don't. Jordan isn't as good as Holtmann and certainly not as good as Stevens, but he's not awful either. Had there been a tourney last year, he'd have made the NCAA tournament in 2 of his 4 years, which isn't great, but certainly not worthy of firing.

[GoMuskies]

I was thinking about the fact that Ewing was sure to get fired soon....and I completely forgot they won the Big East Tournament last year. Even though I now know it's true, I still don't recall it at all. I guess I basically ignored the rest of the tournament after Xavier's craptacular exit. I wonder if that run will keep Ewing from getting fired after what is certain to be an atrocious 2021-22.

[D-West & PO-Z]

I was thinking about the fact that Ewing was sure to get fired soon....and I completely forgot they won the Big East Tournament last year. Even though I now know it's true, I still don't recall it at all. I guess I basically ignored the rest of the tournament after Xavier's craptacular exit. I wonder if that run will keep Ewing from getting fired after what is certain to be an atrocious 2021-22.

I imagine Ewing will get a very long leash. My guess is that BE tourney win bought him some time.

[IM4X]

I was thinking about the fact that Ewing was sure to get fired soon....and I completely forgot they won the Big East Tournament last year. Even though I now know it's true, I still don't recall it at all. I guess I basically ignored the rest of the tournament after Xavier's craptacular exit. I wonder if that run will keep Ewing from getting fired after what is certain to be an atrocious 2021-22.

I met him and his daughter a few years back. Both were really nice. I am also a fan of his from back when he played for Georgetown in the old BE. I would think this season will be viewed as a rebuilding year. At least I hope so. I am rooting for him to do well - just not against X.

[GoMuskies]

But they sucked last year, too. They were the #8 seed in the Big East Tournament and obviously got hot at the right time.

Who is this GW that Ewing played for?!?

[94GRAD]

I met him and his daughter a few years back. Both were really nice. I am also a fan of his from back when he played for GW in the old BE. I would think this season will be viewed as a rebuilding year. At least I hope so. I am rooting for him to do well - just not against X.

*Georgetown

He is in his 5th year at Georgetown and is 65-63, why should this be considered a rebuilding year? Travis is in his 4th year with a 58-38 record and everyone wants his head!

[bleedXblue]

*Georgetown

He is in his 5th year at Georgetown and is 65-63, why should this be considered a rebuilding year? Travis is in his 4th year with a 58-38 record and everyone wants his head!

Everyone does not want his head.

I think a very fair ask for him in his 4th year is show some progress and improvement as a coach. He has had enough talent to win more.

Missing the tourney again with this group would signal to many, he's not the right guy.

[MADXSTER]

Everyone does not want his head.

I think a very fair ask for him in his 4th year is show some progress and improvement as a coach. He has had enough talent to win more.

Missing the tourney again with this group would signal to many, he's not the right guy.

I actually think he over achieved in his first two years, but that's just me.

[IM4X]

But they sucked last year, too. They were the #8 seed in the Big East Tournament and obviously got hot at the right time.

Who is this GW that Ewing played for?!?

What? Don’t you remember back when GW was in the BE?

Actually, I think my brain couldn’t decided whether to type GTWN or GU and it came out GW.

Fixed it.

[94GRAD]

Everyone does not want his head.

I think a very fair ask for him in his 4th year is show some progress and improvement as a coach. He has had enough talent to win more.

Missing the tourney again with this group would signal to many, he's not the right guy.

I would agree with this more than I would disagree. I was just trying to show the difference in expectations he has for Ewing and Steele.

[IM4X]

I would agree with this more than I would disagree. I was just trying to show the difference in expectations he has for Ewing and Steele.

The simple answer is that it is easier to be more forgiving when the nice guy with a mediocre record happens to be coaching against X.

Make no mistake- if he was coaching X he’d have to go. He did recently make it to the tournament, though. Something he has over Travis. If Ewing’s team is below .500 at the end of the season, it might put him back on the hot seat.

Then there is also the fact that he is Patrick F-ing Ewing, the former player who made Georgetown an instant powerhouse - who brought in with him (as a player) millions of dollars in revenue and thousands of new fans. That kind of person you need to show some serious respect and give a longer leash… a longer leash than someone who had never even played on the team he is coaching.