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MAC Basketball Offseason Discussion

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>TCU coach Jim Christian will replace John Groce at Ohio University, sources told CBSSports -- <a href="http://t.co/By3fkj0h" title="http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/blog/eye-on-college-basketball/18228449/ohio-university-hires-tcu-coach-jim-christian">cbssports.com/collegebasketb…</a></p>&mdash; Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanCBS) <a href="https://twitter.com/GoodmanCBS/status/186604068842639360" data-datetime="2012-04-02T00:00:51+00:00">April 2, 2012</a></blockquote>
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Wow. I'm pretty surprised by this. Really thought Boals would be the guy. Christian does know the MAC though, obviously.

Grew up down the street in Stow from Christian. Now, he'll coach down the street from my dorm next year.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>TCU coach Jim Christian will replace John Groce at Ohio University, sources told CBSSports -- <a href="http://t.co/By3fkj0h" title="http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/blog/eye-on-college-basketball/18228449/ohio-university-hires-tcu-coach-jim-christian">cbssports.com/collegebasketb…</a></p>&mdash; Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanCBS) <a href="https://twitter.com/GoodmanCBS/status/186604068842639360" data-datetime="2012-04-02T00:00:51+00:00">April 2, 2012</a></blockquote>
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Wow. I'm pretty surprised by this. Really thought Boals would be the guy. Christian does know the MAC though, obviously.

Very surprising move...it'll be interesting to see how he fits there. What do you think OU fans?
 
Very surprising move...it'll be interesting to see how he fits there. What do you think OU fans?

After the initial shock wore off, I kind of like the move. TCU wasn't committed to building their basketball program. Gets to go back to a conference he's familiar with. I think Schaus just didn't want to turn this team over to a rookie head coach with no experience. He wanted a guy that could step in right away and hit the ground running. If you thought OU played tough d last year, wait till Christian gets his hands on them. Even if Christian doesn't work out, it's at least good to see that OU is committed to actually building a program. I'm sure it also helped that his wife is an Ohio alum.
 
After the initial shock wore off, I kind of like the move. TCU wasn't committed to building their basketball program. Gets to go back to a conference he's familiar with. I think Schaus just didn't want to turn this team over to a rookie head coach with no experience. He wanted a guy that could step in right away and hit the ground running. If you thought OU played tough d last year, wait till Christian gets his hands on them. Even if Christian doesn't work out, it's at least good to see that OU is committed to actually building a program. I'm sure it also helped that his wife is an Ohio alum.

I was hoping OU wouldn't hire Jeff Boals - he's going to make an excellent head coach for someone. Christian is an interesting hire. He certainly knows the MAC, and adding him will only intensify the rivalry Ohio has with both Kent State and Akron. He recruited more than a few "troubled" players at Kent State, and it will be interesting to see if he does the same at OU.

Here's a potential problem - D.J. Cooper's response:

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2013 recruit Evan Bradds has pulled his commitment from OU..kind of - "I'm going to open it (recruiting) back up and see what happens."

I wonder if Missouri transfer Kadeem Green will follow Groce to Illinois or stay with OU.
 
2013 recruit Evan Bradds has pulled his commitment from OU..kind of - "I'm going to open it (recruiting) back up and see what happens."

I wonder if Missouri transfer Kadeem Green will follow Groce to Illinois or stay with OU.

Certainly not who I expected, but I think it'll be fine. Green is already enrolled at OU, so him leaving would be kind of tricky. I just can't see Cooper sitting out a year to transfer when he only has one year of eligibility left. Just wouldn't make a ton of sense. As for Bradds, you expect that to happen with a new coaching. There's nothing saying that he won't meet Christian, wind up absolutely loving him, and decide to stay with Ohio.

On a side note, I believe Groce and Christian were actually on the same staff together at Miami (OH) under Herb Sendek.
 
Certainly not who I expected, but I think it'll be fine. Green is already enrolled at OU, so him leaving would be kind of tricky. I just can't see Cooper sitting out a year to transfer when he only has one year of eligibility left. Just wouldn't make a ton of sense. As for Bradds, you expect that to happen with a new coaching. There's nothing saying that he won't meet Christian, wind up absolutely loving him, and decide to stay with Ohio.

On a side note, I believe Groce and Christian were actually on the same staff together at Miami (OH) under Herb Sendek.

I don't think Cooper will leave, but you'd think he'd have the sense to either support the move or not comment at all.
 
Coop is a senior, so it might not matter what he thinks.

650k a year, this guy better be a good coach.
 
Coop is a senior, so it might not matter what he thinks.

650k a year, this guy better be a good coach.

In regards to Cooper....as they say, momma knows best: http://woub.org/2012/04/03/mens-basketball-dionne-cooper-says-dj-will-remain-bobcat

When asked if Dj was contemplating transferring, Mrs. Cooper responded, "No. That was never even a conversation."

Just a bit off there. Christian will be making $425k a year, not the originally reported $600k. Still enough to make his highest paid coach in the MAC in any sport.
 
In regards to Cooper....as they say, momma knows best: http://woub.org/2012/04/03/mens-basketball-dionne-cooper-says-dj-will-remain-bobcat



Just a bit off there. Christian will be making $425k a year, not the originally reported $600k. Still enough to make his highest paid coach in the MAC in any sport.

If Cooper gave thought to transferring, I doubt momma would have come out and said that. It will be interesting to see how the Christian/Cooper relationship unfolds next season.
 
Should've went with Boals. Christian did less with more at KSU and lived off the success of another coaches teams and players and fell on his face at TCU. I am not buying his coaching abilities.

Boals is a big time recruiter and could be the next Shaka if given the chance.
 
Keith Dambrot released a statement following consistent rumors that he is/was in the running for the Duquesne HC job:

"I am extremely happy to be the head coach at my alma mater and I am not a candidate for any other coaching positions. I grew up in Akron, my mother taught here and this is where my friends and family live. The University administration and I are committed to our goal of making the Zips one of the top mid-major programs in the nation."

The GoZips.com article also says that, "The University and Dambrot are working together to modify the terms of his current contract" and "details will be released when finalized."
 
Kent State adds another transfer with a criminal record.

Kent State may have landed the junior-college big it coveted on Thursday when former Wake Forest forward Melvin Tabb of Midland College in Texas agreed to sign with the Golden Flashes.

The versatile 6-foot-8, 245-pound forward chose the Flashes over a long list of schools that included Wichita State, Temple, Seton Hall and James Madison. Now he is eager to help KSU fill the void inside created by the graduation of Justin Greene and Justin Manns in May.

“When Kent State started to recruit me, I started really paying attention to them and watching them on TV,” said Tabb. “I loved their up-and-down-the-court style of play, their athletes on the perimeter and then Justin Greene in the post going to work. I feel like that’s where coach (Rob) Senderoff wants me to come in and cover that hole.”

Senderoff will also hope that Tabb can be the next in a long line of successful second chances Kent State has offered to athletes with troubled pasts.

Tabb left Wake Forest in September of 2011 after he pled guilty to charges that he stole an iPod from a classmate’s dorm room and later tried to pawn it. In a telephone interview on Thursday, he did not shy away from talking about the poor judgment that led to those legal problems.

“It was a lesson learned,” said Tabb, who was 19 years old when charges of breaking and entering and possession of stolen goods led to his dismissal at Wake Forest. “I made a mistake, I accepted responsibility and I learned from it. I suffered the consequences.”

Tabb was reportedly ordered to enter a deferred-prosecution program that included 12 months of supervised probation and 50 hours of community services. Once those were completed, prosecutors agreed to dismiss all charges against him.

KSU athletic director Joel Nielsen and deputy athletic director Tom Kleinlein both worked at Wake Forest and still have close ties to the school and to the Winston-Salem, N.C. area. For them to sign off on Tabb, it’s a safe bet they have looked into his past and are comfortable with bringing him to Kent.

Former KSU athletes like Antonio Gates and Tyree Evans in men’s basketball and Abram Elam in football have helped Kent State to a near perfect record in second-chance success stories. While KSU has had its troubles with players running afoul of the law in recent years, the supposedly “risky” recruits like Evans and Elam managed to steer clear of further problems in Kent, earned reputations as good teammates and left with both their degrees and restored reputations.

Senderoff himself has made the most of a second chance at Kent State after his involvement in Kelvin Sampson’s telephone-call scandal at Indiana University in 2007.

Tabb said Senderoff and assistant coach Bobby Steinburg were both honest about what they expected of him in Kent.

“I got a good vibe from coach Steinburg, who recruited me, and coach Senderoff, who came down to watch me play and talked to me,” said Tabb. “He was brutally honest. It is hard to come across coaches who will be that honest with you. Talking about life and academics, he didn’t tell me everything I necessarily wanted to hear, but the things I needed to hear. And then on my visit, I met with the players. I had researched those players and the tradition Kent State has. I felt like I wanted to be part of that tradition. I loved the Kent area and I felt welcome.”

Senderoff’s “tough love” talk reminded Tabb of his mother, Kuniki Tabb, “who has always been there for me ... and has always told me what I needed to hear instead of what I wanted to hear,” he said. “She is a mom who just genuinely cares about her son. She wants me to be happy ... and she thinks Kent State is the perfect fit for me.”

Tabb said he has relied on a large support network to help him get through the last few years and to come to the decision to accept an offer to play at Kent State.

“A lot of people deserve a lot of credit on this one,” said Tabb. “From my mom, my uncle, Tony Edwards, who have been my backbone through this whole thing, to my closest friends Errick Davis, Emmanuel Chapman, Kevin Jones, Anthony Lewis and Dezmine Wells, who plays basketball at Xavier. Those are my closest friends from home in North Carolina. They’ve always been there whenever I needed someone to talk to.”

Tabb is a native of Raleigh, N.C. and a graduate of William G. Enloe High School. He averaged 1.6 points and two rebounds per game in 14 games as a freshman at nearby Wake Forest.

Last year, he averaged 9.1 points and 5.9 rebounds per game for Midland, shooting 48 percent from the field and 61 percent from the foul line.

“I consider myself a versatile forward,” said Tabb. “I love to face up and I think I’m dangerous from 17 feet in. I can knock down the 3-ball, and I can rip and drive, and kick to the perimeter and to open men. I know Kent State wants me to help fill a void inside, though, and I can play with my back to the basket. I’m 245 pounds, and I have some skills that can help me at that size.”
 
How's Christian at recruiting?

I'd say he's pretty good at bringing in talent, it just depends what kind of talent you like seeing brought in. He's definitely big on JUCO's and "troubled" but talented players looking for a "2nd chance".
 

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