***2026 NCAA MBB coaching carousel***

It isn’t so much you can’t find 4 or 5 star guys to do it as you are given certain 4 or 5 star guys that don’t want to do it.

At those schools donors are much more involved in the day to day operations. They will interfere in how the program gets run. That doesn’t seem like something TJ would accept.

As it is I feel better about TJ than Campbell. There were always places that could ultimately lure Campbell. TJ seems to be a Cyclone all the way. His wife is one of the best women players in history at Iowa State. We also could actually have divide everything he needs here which we couldn’t for football. I think most here would be all in on shuttering basically everything to keep TJ.
I think this is really naive. Schools like UConn, Florida, Duke, Carolina, Kentucky, Kansas, Villanova, etc. - they win a lot of titles. They go to a lot of final 4's. They do this because they get 4 and 5 star talent and they get that 4 and 5 star talent to play hard as hell. Most often, the best players are the ones that put in the most work. The best of the best are most often the most relentless in their pursuit of greatness. There is no special magic thing where "5 star kids tend to be more entitled and tend to be more prone to being lazy and not team players". That isn't a real thing. Proportionally, there exists the same % of 3 star players that act entitled and act like they are not willing to put in the hard work.

Also, this idea that TJ wouldn't want donors involved in day-to-day operations... This assumes that elite coaches at the schools above are willing to accept things that TJ wouldn't be willing to accept. I don't know how any of us can know that. Do we think that because we think he's gritty and hard working and those other elite coaches are not? Like TJ is somehow built different?

Truthfully, I think this is all pretty simple. Do whatever it takes to keep TJ happy, including making him one of the Top 5 highest paid coaches in the country if needed and ensure the NIL apparatus is in place to fuel the program's growth and sustainability (at whatever detriment that creates). I worry that our AD might not be willing to do that, because he has shown us 3 crucial times that he's not. He has proven to us that he's not willing to do what is necessary to keep legendary coaches. If you were OK with the "nothing could have been done!..." excuse for Cael, Freddy, and CMC (tagged shortly thereafter with the demonization narrative of the outgoing coach, how it is their fault and they are the bad guy), then you better be OK with it here too. And no, it is not 'different' with TJ.

My hope is in Cook to prevent a scary outcome here.
 
Yes, and it's not like college football where the necessary resources to compete for championships can only realistically be had in a select few places.

He's got great support, a great fanbase, a program with a proud tradition, is coaching in the best conference in America, and he's arguably had a couple teams capable of competing for a national championship already.

More NIL would be nice, but are you really going to attract many more of the type of guys that compete at the level he demands with more money to spread around?
LOL Yes. Literally 1,00% yes. TJ wants 4 and 5 star players and athletes. There are plenty of 4 and 5 star guys that compete at the level he demands, and it very likely requires more NIL to get them.
 
LOL Yes. Literally 1,00% yes. TJ wants 4 and 5 star players and athletes. There are plenty of 4 and 5 star guys that compete at the level he demands, and it very likely requires more NIL to get them.
Sure, more talent is nice, but more talent can also open up more problems. Plus, for all that, you are getting way higher expectations and pressure to perform.
 
I don't think people were exactly lining up to hire the guy that went 29-30 at UNLV.

Jamie took a pretty big swing that worked out.
I don't think it was that big of a swing. IIRC, Jamie wanted to hire him instead of Prohm but the president wanted someone with prior HC experience. TJ had success at South Dakota State. His one year at UNLV just didn't work out, but it wasn't like he didn't already prove he could be a successful coach.
 
I think this is really naive. Schools like UConn, Florida, Duke, Carolina, Kentucky, Kansas, Villanova, etc. - they win a lot of titles. They go to a lot of final 4's. They do this because they get 4 and 5 star talent and they get that 4 and 5 star talent to play hard as hell. Most often, the best players are the ones that put in the most work. The best of the best are most often the most relentless in their pursuit of greatness. There is no special magic thing where "5 star kids tend to be more entitled and tend to be more prone to being lazy and not team players". That isn't a real thing. Proportionally, there exists the same % of 3 star players that act entitled and act like they are not willing to put in the hard work.

Also, this idea that TJ wouldn't want donors involved in day-to-day operations... This assumes that elite coaches at the schools above are willing to accept things that TJ wouldn't be willing to accept. I don't know how any of us can know that. Do we think that because we think he's gritty and hard working and those other elite coaches are not? Like TJ is somehow built different?

Truthfully, I think this is all pretty simple. Do whatever it takes to keep TJ happy, including making him one of the Top 5 highest paid coaches in the country if needed and ensure the NIL apparatus is in place to fuel the program's growth and sustainability (at whatever detriment that creates). I worry that our AD might not be willing to do that, because he has shown us 3 crucial times that he's not. He has proven to us that he's not willing to do what is necessary to keep legendary coaches. If you were OK with the "nothing could have been done!..." excuse for Cael, Freddy, and CMC (tagged shortly thereafter with the demonization narrative of the outgoing coach, how it is their fault and they are the bad guy), then you better be OK with it here too. And no, it is not 'different' with TJ.

My hope is in Cook to prevent a scary outcome here.
Fred wanted out of Ames and to coach in the NBA. He took a job that was doomed from the start (I watch 30 min of NBA a year and I knew…he should have as well). IF the NBA was still an option he’d be there today. I’ve also heard that he tried to come back and JP passed.

We can’t and shouldn’t spend valuable resources on losing money programs like wrestling. Sorry…not sorry. No one cares about wrestling…if they did it would make money. It’s sad we lost another ISU great…but I’m not willing to sacrifice MBB or FB for something no one cares about.

Campbell was always a risk to leave for one of a handful of programs. Pedo state was one of them. Those jobs don’t open often…so he jumped. Given that he was their 5-8th choice…that opportunity was never happening again.
 
I have a hard time seeing TJ's coaching style getting the same level of buy-in with a bunch of 5 stars at UNC.
That’s cope. He isn’t Bobby Knight. He isn’t degrading his players while he’s teaching them.

There are five stars that take pride in the complete game. You think Michael Jordan would have talked back at TJ? Hell no, he would have been yelling at his teammates alongside TJ.

If UNC comes calling, I’m sorry, but, he gone.
 
Keep in mind that since NIL/Pay-for-Play/Rev share was implemented, the blue bloods haven't had as much success.

Kansas has been decent but not the level they were. Self has struggled to manage the roster of high profile recruits (Peterson) and transfers (Dickinson).

Kentucky and UNC haven't been at the same level they were.

Are some of these programs having down years? or is the new landscaping making it more challenging for the blue-bloods?
 
…….Truthfully, I think this is all pretty simple. Do whatever it takes to keep TJ happy, including making him one of the Top 5 highest paid coaches in the country…..I worry that our AD might not be willing to do that, because he has shown us 3 crucial times that he's not. He has proven to us that he's not willing to do what is necessary to keep legendary coaches. If you were OK with the "nothing could have been done!..." excuse for Cael, Freddy, and CMC…..then you better be OK with it here too. And no, it is not 'different' with TJ…...
Where are the million$ at to do this?
 
I trust President Cook to keep TJ. I do think TJ would do well at UNC, but I think he will be at Iowa State as long as he feels he could win a natty here. I think Iowa State is a better job than people think. Field of 68 considered it the fifth best job in the best college basketball conference. Now UNC is a better job, but Davis had a pretty similar winning percentage, and a runner up and still was fired.

This isn't like football where Campbell had a ceiling at Iowa State. TJ can win a natty here and he might even do it this year.
 
That’s cope. He isn’t Bobby Knight. He isn’t degrading his players while he’s teaching them.

There are five stars that take pride in the complete game. You think Michael Jordan would have talked back at TJ? Hell no, he would have been yelling at his teammates alongside TJ.

If UNC comes calling, I’m sorry, but, he gone.
I'm not sure why there's this narrative of 5 star kids being lazy? I mean, how do you think they became 5 star kids?
 
I see this theme a lot. Where does it come from?

In any given recruiting class, at any given year of eligibility, there are 2 star talents, 3 star talents, 4, star talents, 5 star talents, guys with no talent, guys with phenom talent, etc.

Every single group has the same relative distribution/percentage of "players that want to play hard and be coached hard".

I see this weird ideology with our fans at various times, in different sports, and it always follows a pattern like...

"Give me the 3 star kid that is a grinder over the 5 star kid any day!"

LOL!

I think it's supposed to make us feel gritty and like we're "doing it the right way" or whatever. Like - we don't need your fancy money type of thing.

I hate to break it to y'all but the best teams and programs historically have 4 star and 5 star guys that also play really f*cking hard, are also great kids, are also great culture guys, and work hard daily literally just as hard as TJ demands. That's why they win a lot.

TJ wants 4 and 5 star talents. And when he gets them, you can bet your ass that they will play to his standard.
Coping mechanism.