Ok, I'm on record now, just as I was with Wojo in '08:

This is not about morality, right/wrong, or anything else. College basketball, Merl Code, TJ Gassnola, and others have disposed of those ideals. We need to play ball in this new reality.

This is about putting a spark into a program that desperately needs one. This is about buying low and selling high. This is about a guy that really knows how to coach basketball and needs a 3rd or 4th chance to finish his career on positive terms.

We need butts in seats in the Convo next year. Not a bunch of hopes and dreams from 3,500 people in Meigs, Hocking, and Athens County. We need people making the trip from Columbus, Cleveland, and Cincinnati to be a part of an electric atmosphere. We need a splash on the sports (home) pages across the country. Ryan

I said 100x about TOS back in the day - A monkey can win 20 games at Ohio. A coach like Rick Pitino - like him or not - but that guy can win big in Athens (or wherever else he gets his next gig).

Once and for all - he would be my first call. Again, I would probably hold my nose while making the call, and I have no idea if he would pickup - BUT - His price tag is depressed, He's a great basketball coach, He can recruit (maybe too well), He can assemble a staff, He will put A LOT of people in the seats, He will generate a ton of revenue, and He needs a second chance.

Tell me where the equation departs the real world.

I buy low and I sell high. Maybe that makes me crazy, but in this case - I think it makes me the sanest guy in the room.

--LOVE

He is a scumbag, no thank you! I dont need to win that bad. Plus, he will have a high major job by April/May.

Yeah, I'm sure Pitino will be on the first flight to Athens, Ohio.

Oh, and Urban Meyer will come out of retirement to coach our football squad...

To add to another point, or really to ask this as a legitimate question... you're right Pitino's price is certainly lower than it once was...

... but undoubtedly so is his cachet. He can obviously coach, but what will his effect be on recruiting now that he's damaged goods?

It does in today's college basketball landscape. Reference = Any college basketball headline + Adidas in the Summer of 2018.

Also, who'd you vote for in the '16 Presidential election?

Let's not all get a bunch of phony baloney, self righteous, holier-than-thou crap going up in here.

As far as Carpetbagging, if the guy put 10k asses in seats every night - I'd let it go this one time.

May I suggest you check out ESPN's 30-for-30 "A Day in the Knight".

Neither one is going to materialize, but I would be more in favor of hiring Pitino than Knight. And I have zero interest in Pitino.

And scene.

On behalf of all the small minded folks on here, welcome back. Not sure how we survived all these years w/o you.

Andrew: When one person has utter contempt for the other, it's really hard to have a dialogue. A dialogue has to start with at least a modicum of mutual respect, not utter disdain.

How do you know what the market is for Pitino? Appears he was in talks with UNLV which are falling apart due to the higher ups being scared off by his past, and him not wanting to replace Marvin Menzies (his old Asst).

I'd say the market dynamics dictate his price and right now he's turned in a Greek Championship with a middle of the road team that he inherited mid-season, and seems to be untouchable by a higher mid-major.

Frankly, the facts (sorry for using them) say he's right in our market right now.

Which market dynamic dictates that it talks fall apart for a job that pays ~1,000,000 annually you turn around and take one for half of that? That he's in consideration for the UNLV job tells you, roughly, what the market is. And UNLV offers a bigger budget, media market, and a better conference. He'll be considered for more UNLV level jobs, which is exactly why Ohio isnt a real possibility.

We're so oblivious as a fan base it's hilarious. That you think your seven year old Wojo idea somehow lends you credibility here is super telling. Dude went from Duke to Marquette directly and is paid 1.2 million a year, and you're still convinced he was a real possibility in Athens and are simultaneously lecturing about market dynamics as if everything you say isn't evidence you completely misunderstand them.

First off, who are you again?

Second, didn't you suggest Ohio as a jumping off point for the Sean Miller redemption tour? WTF. Also, you keep pimping Dustin Ford. I love the guy but he's not exactly a hot commodity based on wins and losses the past 6+ years. Also, didn't you throw out a Marquette Assistant as an option? So I'm an idiot saying Wojo should get a call from Ohio SEVEN years ago, but you are a bona fide genius thinking their Assistant will leave for Ohio now? Again, why I don't post anymore....

Third, if UNLV is a no go for Pitino, that tells me where the bar is set. He's not getting a better job than that. So what is just beneath UNLV and how far below THAT are we? Richmond? Is the gap that distinct? Also, everyone keeps jockeying about money. How do you know money is the driver for him at this stage in his career?

Grab one of these crap assistants, and my courtside seats will be un-purchased and un-used again - as will the other 10,000 seats that will have no ass marks in them the entire year. Time to make a splash and spark this thing....

It won't happen - but, I'm 100% with Love on at least making the attempt. Our program is as moribund as it's ever been right now. A splash hire - and this would certainly be one - is needed. It's time to blow the whole thing up and do something radical.

Nevertheless, I know enough about the players involved (Nellis, Schaus) to realize that the hire will likely be less than inspiring.