FanPost

The case for Tom Crean


As Marquette has started its look for a new head basketball coach, a number of names have been floated by the faithful as people AD Bill Scholl should pursue, while this website has already made an alarm for who Marquette should not consider......

While there are some very good names out there, and some that would not be a good fit, I keep coming back to a name that will probably draw ire - Tom Crean.

Wait, why? Why would we do that to ourselves.

I only got two responses in my comment, including Brewtown Andy who wondered why would we, given his time in Georgia is not going well. BUT he didn't call me crazy, so I am going to expound on that, including why the failure in Georgia is an opportunity for MU.

So, we don't need to rehash Crean's tenure in Milwaukee - third most wins of any MU Mens Coach in the history of the program, just three wins behind Bill Chandler (who happens to hold the most losses of any coach, and had a losing record over 21 seasons). Final Four appearance, Wade, the big three. Also a man who would get lost in the actual coaching of the game. We know him, warts and all, but does that familiarity make us think he is a lesser choice than others (yeah I like Porter Moser, what with his Majerus connection).

He is basically like WoJo on steroids in many ways - recruited well while on Wisconsin Avenue, had problems being a game general. Unlike WoJo, the program moved forward with him, setting up Buzz Williams having his success before he ran like the wind.

A side note on Buzz. I know he made the 'Do Not Hire' list, and I agree. First off, he is not leaving the State of Texas - that is his dream, and that is where he feels comfortable. Sure, he is crazy, but its an energetic crazy and I am fine him being 'eccentric.' He works very hard for his program, and I give him props. I just don't think Buzz would ever look back, and I am ok with him staying in the Lone Star state.

This gets me back to Crean, however, and why he is a good fit, and why his mojo may be found in Cream City, as opposed to leading the Bulldogs.

Crean is a midwest guy, and as a part of the Harbough clan, his extended family is in the midwest. He just fits here better than in the South. Even the connection with Georgia, as his son was to play for the Georgia Baseball team, but is nowhere on the roster, seems to be severed.

I think this is part of why his time in Georgia will fail, he just doesn't have the connection. Basketball is basketball, but why Crean worked in Milwaukee is because he could communicate with the Milwaukee/Chicago/New York corridors that have been the strong stream for MU recruits. While with Buzz he reached into the Texas juice market to find some great players, recruiting in the midwest and NYC is the bread and butter for Marquette. Crean could really work with the alums and backers to find good athletes. His chances of getting another Wade are next to nil, but let us remember that Wade was sought after even then.

Flip that with Georgia boosters and alumni - they are mostly football-driven, and probably always feel they will run second fiddle to the Dukes and NCs of the world. They are focused on the gridiron first, without them, Crean has to build a network for recruiting, one that cannot take him back to his familiar haunts while at Marquette, Michigan State, or Indiana - why would anyone who would be recruited by him to go to Georgia not be good enough to be recruited by a competing Big Ten or Big East .

But Marquette has not had a problem recruiting players, as Buzz and WoJo got the guys on campus, and I will acknowledge that. And this brings up another area of concern with Crean - during his tenure in Indiana, he had the transfer bug hit his teams. Now this is a concern of mine, since one of the main issues with WoJo was he lost players he recruited. There are times a player just finds out that the program or the campus are not a good fit, and any student should be able to feel like they are at the school they want to be at. With WoJo, and with Crean at Indiana, it seems like there were more defections than there should be, which should give anyone pause.

So isn't the bloom off the rose for Crean? Yes, I would say so, but I still come back to this being something that could be a good marriage for both. First, Crean's fingertips are still all over this program, despite being gone for a long time. He helped build the AL.

But I think the bigger item is that a successful Crean makes Marquette a final destination school, instead of a step on the ladder. Every coach after Hank Raymonds has probably eyed the Marquette campus as a stepping stone at some point when they were interviewing for the job, or when they were here. Crean cemented that when he took off for Indiana, Buzz cemented it, and you know WoJo hoped for success to someday take over Duke.

But where Crean is at in this point in his career, he has seen the other side. He has seen what happens when you go to State, with its big budgets, and its expectations to deliver. He has seen what its like to be competing with football.

Also, he now sees how the aura of Al McGuire permeates Marquette compared to the legends of other programs. After the Final Four appearance, Crean probably felt he still didn't do enough, that the alumni and boosters were pushing for more, and he may have felt he could never outrun Al's shadow. Then he went to Indiana, with all its Hoosier lore and Bobby Knight and I feel their unbelievable expectations dwarfed our grips on 77.

I just think if Crean was rehired, he would leave until he retired or was fired.

I would say another boost in Crean's favor is that unlike those other jobs he has held, he can utilize MU alumni, and basketball vets to help with his recruitment cause. It is certainly easier to use Dwayne Wade as a special advisor to his alma mater than, say Indiana. All of those NBA players who Crean saw come through Marquette instantly show this is a place where stars have passed through. Easier than dusting off Dominique Wilkins to tout Bulldog Basketball.....

He has warts, and deficiencies that have not been fixed since he left the sidelines of the Bradley Center. He is not the hot name like are on many lists, so you are not polishing a diamond in the rough. He also is not much different than he was when he was here.He may also realize that Marquette is one of the best jobs out there.