As if there really was any before, O'Neill has no chance what-so-ever to return as the assistant coach. Olson has hired a replacement. Russ Pennell is a former ASU Asst. Coach, and has a lot of recruiting ties to The Valley. Could be a great move... but I'm curious to know more. Either way it can't be anyworse than what happened last season (combination of KO and Olson's LOA).
Technically he hasn't been hired yet. That announcement is still a week and a half off.
I think this move is a disappointing sign of the state of the program, or maybe of college basketball in general. Has Olson ever had to use the "hire a high school kid's coach to secure his recruitment" move to get players, especially those from Arizona, to join his program? Maybe the addition is in the sincere and immediate interests of the program, but the rational part of me says that this is a recruiting hire, which kind of worries me as a fan of the program.
You're making the assumption that Olson hired Pennell to get one of his club players and that is his only real value. Is that pure speculation or do you know something the rest of us don't? I would think if Olson really wanted the kid, and that was the only criteria he was using to select an assistant, then he probably would have hired the kids' high school coach or even his Dad. On top of that Olson's contract expires before this kid would suit up for the U. Maybe Pennell was selected becuase he's a good coach. I'm not buying your theory. The rational part of me says that Olson hired the guy becuase he likes him and think he's a good coach. Of course, given that Olson also pulled the trigger on O'niell, I can understand a certain amount of angst.
AZCatsFan: The guy isn't just a high school coach. He's got a lot of experience at the College level and has been running specialist camps for the past several years. The way the article was written certainly makes it seem as though this might have been a recruiting move. But the talent that has been coming out of Phoenix in recent years, and from my understanding that program, tells me this guy isn't just an iconic assistant like Miles Simon.
Although, I am still pretty skeptical. Olson has not been doing a very good job with his hiring of assistants in recent years. The last one I agree with based upon track record is Josh Pastner. Outside of that, it appears rather worthless aside from having a pair of puppets and a dodo bird on the sidelines.
Keep in mind that Lute's days at Arizona are numbered (roughly 730 or so). I can't imagine a coach of any caliber, even HOF, could lure in an assistant who today was hire-able as a head coach. Since Lute's successor (who will be hired through a national search, dammit) will likely clean house when he arrives, this hire actually makes sense because it potentially gives Pennell a springboard to something else bigger and better when he's let go in 2010, and it gives Lute more recruiting power and someone who knows some X's and O's. I like it.
The last three assistants Olson hired were Reggie Geary, Miles Simon and Kevin O'Neill. I think that all three hires were made to improve and help with recruiting, although O'Neill was supposed to instill a strong defensive presence. He dismissed O'Neill and Jim Rosborough, both of which are more seasoned in coaching and college experience. Pennell might bring a coaching background -- it didn't really blow me away when I read it -- but it's easy to see the recruiting implications of the hire. Matt Carlino is no new name to dedicated Arizona fans. And even though Olson's contract runs out before Carlino goes to college, Olson stated today on the radio that he planned to coach, with hope, for at least three years past that point. I think that part of it is Olson liking the addition to the staff, and the other part is him wanting to secure Carlino's commitment. Maybe Olson feels the need to secure his borders with the growing ASU program. It might not be a bad hire, but the apparent motives behind it are a sign of state of the program. That's just the way I see it. Maybe I need to be more optimistic.
Overall, I feel Pennell is (will be) a solid hire. He's highly regarded by others in the coaching ranks and has had several opportunities to coach in college (one to be a head coach at a DII school), but turned them all down. Take that for what it's worth, but I think the assessments and opinions of his coaching peers are worth a lot. He has had success at the college level and it's pretty impressive when you consider the teams. Oklahoma State, Ole Miss and Arizona State had limited success before he joined those programs AND since he left, but while he was there, they did very well. Oklahoma State tied Kansas for the league championship in 1990-1991, won the preseason NIT in 1991 and went to two Sweet 16s. During his run at Ole Miss, they won the SEC, went to consecutive NCAA tournaments and reached #10 in the national polls. In his three years at ASU - and we all know how few postseason tournaments they've been to in the last twenty years - They went to the NCAA tournament once and the NIT twice.
His hire will definitely help with Carlino and Johnson (Nick, another Arizona target), but here's the other reason I like it... After ASU lost Phelps to Drake, they started talking to Pennell about their opening. If Pennell had ended up at ASU, he could have brought Carlino and Johnson with him (same situation as last year with Harden).
The one thing that confuses me a little is that Pennell is known primarily as an offense-minded coach, but he's replacing KO who was brought in to restore some toughness on defense. However, I expect that we'll see more coaching moves in the coming days and that could help in terms of maintaining balance. I think we may see Miles go and another assistant hired very quickly.
The staff is going to look MUCH different next year (and in the coming years), but I think it will also be much, much better. I'm encouraged by what they're doing, but hope that they can get it all done quickly to minimize the impact on recruiting. If negative recruiting based on Olson's age and impending contract expiration wasn't enough, coaches are already starting to point to instability in the coaching staff as another reason to shy away from Arizona. Although Pennell's locked up, they need to make the other change(s) quickly.
Before I start blasting the blessed on, let preface this by stating the following: I am a huuuge UofA fan. I am a huuuggggeee Lute fan and consider him one of my personal heroes', and a man that has provided me with great personal joy and heartbreak thru his coaching career. I went to the first game ever played at McKale, (some pack of traveling gypsies Snowden brought in) died in the Ben Lindsey year, and was reborn by Lute. I grew up a block from the U, live and die with the red and blue ....... but....
Lute will not hire a successor. Hie ego will not allow it. He tried it, I think, with O'Neill, but we all see how everyone associated with last year failed. Horribly. Lute, Kevin and Liven as a whole utterly failed the Univ and all parties. That was an ugly, dirty affair, whose end game has yet to be played. Lute will not allow another episode to sully his rep, as is his right. Maybe Pastner, but even then????? It for sure isn't Simon or Pennell or Geary.
Look at the Pac-10 and the type of coaches who have been hired and have been successful, primarily USC and UCLA and WSU. Look at the brand of ball they play, the coaching mentality. I fear that Lute's 'push the ball and outscore' brand is passé' in these new times. It'll still be fun, it'll still entertain the fogies at gametime but it'll be tough to win without the elite talent. He's always got by with great 2's and 3's but name the last great big guy he ever had? Frye and Woods were passable and in the league, BrianBisonWilliamDele was a transfer as was Chris Mills, Sean and Luke were point forwards etc ... The points are too numerous to name BibbyTerryStoudamire(x2)Gardner et al.....
IMHO we either need to go to a power game or to a D game. The days of filling the wings and popping the three are over.
Why is there not any out lashing towards Livengood? All he has done is hire two horrible football coaches, make shambles of a top basketball program by the lack of proper succession planning and allowing Lute to "wag the dog". As the AD, he needs to be making the decisions, right wrong or indifferent. I am not saying KO is the answer, but simply faulting Livengood for what he should have done years ago from a succession planning. Perhaps he lacks the insight to understand that Lute will not coach forever. <o:p> </o:p>
Although I am a die hard AZ fan, let's evaluate Lisa Love's record.....Hired Erickson - great coach; hired cendek; jurys still out but it looks OK so far.<o:p> </o:p>
Mike Dunlap, a very highly-regarded assistant coach, currently with the Denver Nuggets, may be the next to join our staff. He's currently interviewing for the Bulls post, but Lute's met with him several times already and he's showing interest. He'd be a huge get for us, and having him and Pennell on our bench would be a significant upgrade from recent years.
I think Arizona needs to get back to being accountable for consistent defensive efforts and rebounding, but I don't think eliminating the transition game or the motion offense needs to go. One thing I really like about Olson's offense is that it spreads the floor. There are usually three men moving away from a high screen, which I assume next year will be set by Hill or Withey, both players capable of rolling or hitting a 12-footer. With the speed, shooting and athleticism Arizona will have away from that screen, I think Olson's offense will thrive.
The passing needs to be crisp for the offense to work really well, and that could be a problem collectively, but I think Jennings will be an absolute terror to defenses with the ball in his hands. Arizona might not need so many "extra passes" with the way Jennings locates and distributes to open players. Players moving along the baseline will be rewarded.
Hill's presence away from the high screen will demand defensive attention. He can bring himself out 15 feet and set an off-ball screen for a slashing or curling wing, establish position down low and score easy against single coverage or draw a double and kick it out for an easy shot or dribble penetration.
Arizona's offensive issues in recent years can be attributed in part to the defense of its opposition, but at the same time one must understand that Shakur failed to develop as a complete player. His lack of a shot and tendency to get out of control hurt the team for four years. Not just in results, but in the way teams game-planned for him.
The one thing that did work during that stretch, for one season, was having a good inside-out combination in Stoudamire and Frye. Arizona had a good inside-out combo with Bayless and Hill last year, but the pieces around them weren't sufficient to compete at a consistently high level and they played in a different offense under O'Neill. The combo should be there again this season, except there are probably better supporting pieces this time.
I don't think going to a slow-down offense is the way to go. When a team has an athletic advantage it works in their favor to get more shot opportunities. The key, as you've noted, is improving defensively. If they do a better job rebounding and defending then pushing the tempo will yield more high-percentage opportunities in the transition game and tire opponents as the game goes on.
I'd like to see Olson's teams getting back to pushing the tempo for the first thirty minutes, wearing down the other team and then applying an intense, pressing man-to-man defense for the rest of the game. That's what his best teams have done. It requires a bench, one of the big reasons why bringing Wise off there is important. Without him there, Olson has no backup point guard. With him there he can rest Jennings while at the same time replacing him with energy and relatively good offense.
I don't know. I think I'm just being redundant at this point. I'd love to end with some sort of closure here, but I've been reading all night and my brain has just hit a wall.
I think we may see Miles go and another assistant hired very quickly.For any who've not yet seen it, this is now a done deal. The new asst. s/b announced in the next few days, and it'll be a huge upgrade, IMO. Replacing KO and Miles with Pennell and Dunlap is good from a tactical standpoint, but it will hurt from a recruiting standpoint. Now Lute's got to work on keeping Josh in the program. He's invaluable as far as recruiting is concerned.
