Posted by ettaexpress on 3/12/2014 10:46:00 PM (view original):
That's the big question IMO.
Bama under Wimp was a solid, not spectacular but solid program. Pretty good spot for a coach -- league isn't too tough, tops in the state by default, pretty good level of high school talent in state and nearby (the reason Gottfried didn't crash and burn despite being a rubbish coach).
Agree about Gottfried. Decent recruiter, not a good coach. I was in favor of firing him long before his off the court stuff got him canned, and it's sad that he's doing way better at NCSU than his replacement is at Bama. I'm sure they'll run him out of Raleigh eventually too.
If Bama's administration would make a commitment to being top notch at basketball, there is zero reason it couldn't happen. My impression is too many of the people in control just don't really care, as long as the football team is winning. I hear the "but Bama's a football school, they can never win at basketball" argument too much. It's just a loser's mentality.
One of Grant's problems was the crackdown on hand checks. His defenses have always been very "handsy" and the team did well when the officials allowed it..which was sometimes yes, sometimes no. Now that it's a point of emphasis, Bama's defense is just plain mediocre and foul prone. And the offense is terrible as it always has been. He literally never has a full roster of players, despite supposedly wanting to run an "uptempo" style (note in reality Bama is always like 300th in the nation in "tempo").
It's really a no-brainer for an athletic dept with the resources of Bama to fire this pair of clown shoes making top-25 money.