Coaches

Michigan coach Bacari Alexander gives player updates via Twitter

By Jul 8, 2013, 9:05 PM EDT
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Michigan is coming off its best season since the Fab Five days on the early-to-mid 90s, and with that has come added criticism and praise.

Well Wolverine assistant coach Bacari Alexander, fresh off a Twitter hiatus, decided to pile on the praise on Monday, tweeting out progress reports to every player on the Michigan roster.

Here are a few gems that the serial-tweeting Alexander sent out.

It’s an interesting subject to learn that Horford is “on track to finish early”. One would assume that means his degree program (what else would it mean?). Horford averaged 2.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 8.8 minutes per game last season. He missed seven games due to injury.

So long as he keeps that jumper, right?

Alexander also made sure to let fans know that the nucleus of the Michigan coaching staff doesn’t plan on going anywhere in the near future.

Alexander has been at the school since under coach John Beilein. He’s a Detroit native and a product of the famed Detroit Southwestern High School program. He played collegiately at Robert Morris and Detroit Mercy.

Follow David Harten on Twitter at @David_Harten

What can $7,500 get you? A sweet deal at a fantasy camp

By Jun 11, 2013, 9:00 PM EDT
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Fantasy camps have become somewhat of a trend in recent years, mainly when it comes to college basketball. Coaches like Bobby Knight and John Calipari have famously lent their names to a few both on campus and off, and given the select few who fork over the dough the chance to be yelled at by and run wind sprints for them.

Now, Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim, along with various other legends of the game, are throwing themselves into the fantasy camp foray with one in Las Vegas. A mega-fantasy camp, if you will, for college basketball enthusiasts. 

The camp, which centers around Team USA Basketball, will take place July 23-25. It will cost anyone wanting a shot to learn from the legends $7,500. Guests of the camp will stay at the Wynn Las Vegas Hotel, watch the U.S. National Team practice — that means hanging out with LeBron James, Dewyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony and the bunch — and attend the team’s Blue-White Scrimmage. On the court, attendees will go through drills and eventually get to lace them up in a pool play event that will lead to playoffs and a championship game.

But the fee will get you more than just Boeheim’s attention, other prominent coaches will give their time to the effort. This includes Calipari, Billy Donovan of Florida, Miami’s Jim Larrañaga, Gonzaga’s Mark Few, Dan Majerle (who coaches at Division II Grand Canyon), Villanova’s Jay Wright, Washington’s Lorenzo Romar, and former NBA and Seton Hall head coach P.J. Carlesimo, who is the camp’s director.

There will be a maximum of 64 spots available for the camp. The event, which is in its inaugural year, is open to men and women.

“This is about being a part of the ultimate team and experiencing what it feels like to represent your country,” said Jerry Colangelo, USA Basketball Chairman. “The Fantasy Camp will provide a select few with a real-life opportunity to be a part of the preparation for 2016.”

For $7,500, this is a pretty sweet deal. You get to hang with Team USA, listen to the expertise of a ton of great coaches who have forgotten more about basketball than most of us know, and also get to leave with a solid amount of USA Basketball apparel and such.

There’s no way I could get NBC to send me there, right? I mean, of course, just for coverage purposes….

Follow David Harten on Twitter at @David_Harten

Federal tax documents reveal that Mike Krzyzewski made $9.7 million in 2011

By May 15, 2013, 7:47 PM EDT
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Salaries for head coaches have increased exponentially over the years, with increased television revenues (along with revenues from other sources) have allowed schools to pay top dollar to the leaders of their major sports programs.

With four national titles and multiple ACC titles and Final Four appearances, there’s no doubt that Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski has earned his keep in Durham.

How much has he earned? According to USA Today, Krzyzewski received $9.7 million in pay for the 2011 calendar year based on a tax return recently filed by the school.

That amount is a record according to the paper, which has been tracking the pay of head coaches in football and men’s basketball since 2006, surpassing the $8.9 million earned by Louisville’s Rick Pitino in 2010-11.

Some details regarding Krzyzewski’s compensation were also revealed in the tax document:

$1,978,401 in base pay, nearly the same as what he received in 2010.

$5,642,574 in bonus and incentive compensation, nearly $1.9 million more than in 2010.

$1,982,097 in retirement and other deferred compensation, a little over $500,000 more than in 2010. (This is money that Krzyzewski accrued, but was not paid, in 2011; he could receive it in a future year.)

$59,616 in other reportable compensation such as family travel.

$19,344 in non-taxable benefits.

As a private school Duke isn’t required to release its contracts, resulting in the need to examine federal tax returns when attempting to figure out how much a coach is compensated.

Some may wonder why a coach would receive such a salary, but it all boils down to what the market demands.

A successful athletic department, especially in the major revenue sports, can result in more applicants and ultimately more enrollees (not to mention an increase in donations from alumni).

Raphielle can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.

Hall of Fame coach Marv Harshman dead at 95

By Apr 13, 2013, 6:11 PM EDT
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As career highlights go, “last man to defeat John Wooden” is about as impressive as they come.

Marv Harshman, former head coach at Washington, Washington State and Pacific Lutheran, had that honor, just one of many moments to cherish from his 40 year career as a head coach. According to the Seattle Times, the 95-year-old basketball Hall of Famer died of natural causes at age 95 on Friday morning. He had one last evening with his son, who read to him from the bible, and then fell asleep, never to wake again.

Coach Harshman led his alma mater, Pacific Lutheran, to four NAIA District I titles before moving up to Washington State, where he came in second in the Pac 8 to John Wooden on two occasions. He continued to be overshadowed by the Wizard of Westwood as head coach of the Huskies, but earned his landmark victory – at last:

Coach Harshman was the last coach to beat Wooden — a 103-81 Huskies victory over UCLA on Feb. 22, 1975.

Coach Harshman’s most accomplished players included Steve Hawes, Louie Nelson, James Edwards, Detlef Schrempf, Chris Welp and current UW coach Lorenzo Romar and assistant Paul Fortier.

It was former NBA star Schrempf who summed up Harshman’s sometimes overlooked impact on the game best, when interviewed by the Times this weekend.

“All the players took the same steps. It was based on team basketball. He didn’t care about showing other people up. Or how many times you can dribble between your legs. He taught me how to play basketball the right way, and that had a lasting impact on me and many people,” Schrempf said.

Eric Angevine is the editor of Storming the Floor. He tweets @stfhoops.

Drake announces dismissal of head coach Mark Phelps

By Mar 14, 2013, 6:06 PM EDT
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To follow along with the 2013 Coaching Carousel, click here.

In the immediate aftermath of Drake’s 2008 Missouri Valley Conference title and trip to the NCAA tournament, there was hope in Des Moines that head coach Mark Phelps would be able to sustain the momentum generated by Keno Davis (who at the time filled the vacancy at Providence).

Unfortunately for the Bulldogs that didn’t happen, and after five seasons at the school Phelps was relieved of his duties as announced by the school.

Phelps leaves Drake with an overall record of 77-86, which includes a 37-53 record in MVC play. Drake’s best MVC finish under Phelps came in 2011-12, when they finished five-way tie for third place.

In the other four season Drake finished in either 7th or 8th place, with their 7-11 record in 2012-13 (15-17 overall) landing the Bulldogs in a three-way tie for seventh.

“A decision like this is never easy,” Drake athletics director Sandy Hatfield Clubb said in a statement released by the school. “However, we believe a change in leadership is necessary to create a sustained level of competitive excellence.

“Drake Basketball is important to our students, faculty, staff, alumni and supporters, and we will continue to invest significantly in the program and have high standards for its success.”

Whomever Drake hires will have some work to do, as three of the Bulldogs’ top four scorers from this season graduate led by 6-8 forward Ben Simons.

According to scout.com Drake holds a verbal commitment from 6-8 power forward Joe Boyd (Scottsdale, Ariz.), the Bulldogs were also heavily involved in Las Vegas, Nev. wing Rashad Muhammad (younger brother of UCLA freshman Shabazz Muhammad). With the coaching change it may be difficult to reel in the Bishop Gorman product.

Raphielle also writes for the NBE Basketball Report and can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.

Fullerton Titans honor fallen coach in emotional home game

By Feb 10, 2013, 2:00 AM EST
A memorial for Monica Quan at Titan Gym (via @AbbeyMastracco) h/t Yahoo's The Dagger.
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Odds are, nobody at Cal State Fullerton was quite ready to get back to playing basketball yet.

Women’s basketball assistant coach Monica Quan and her fiance were murdered just six days prior to Saturday’s home game against UC-Riverside, and the feelings in the building were still very raw. The game could likely have been canceled. Nobody would have blamed the Fullerton family for taking a little while longer to grieve. But the t-shirts the young women wore pointed to another way of honoring the fallen coach. They said “it is the courage to continue that counts.”

It’s a concept that coaches teach athletes: that fatigue and pain can be endured and overcome. That they must be overcome, on and off the court. A pretty tough thing to live up to in a situation like this.

Fullerton guard Alex Thomas lapsed into the present tense when she attempted to describe how Quan would have reacted to the understandable 64-45 loss the Titans suffered in their first game back after the tragedy:

“She’s way big on the little things and the details,” Thomas told the Associated Press. “And today we didn’t really take of the details the way we know we should have. She would have been proud of our effort, proud of us coming out and being there and trying to stay focused. But she definitely would have wanted us to pay attention to the little things more.”

Getting up and getting going again is part of the stage of grief called “acceptance,” and it’s probably a little too soon for that in this case. Fullerton head coach Marcia Foster confirmed that everyone in the locker room was still somewhat in shock. “I don’t think anybody feels like they’re healing right now. We feel like we’re just getting through.”

College Basketball Talk salutes the Fullerton basketball community. Win or lose, the Titans are honoring someone they loved and lost by playing the game she taught them to play. Sometimes that’s all you can do.