[quote="firestorm" post=350695]Let me preface this by saying I am wholeheartedly impressed by everything I've seen to date from Mike Anderson. I'm optimistic he is going to retool our program in a very positive way.
That said, the pundits on The Athletic flag him as the worst hire of the off-season. Read/discuss...
https://theathletic.com/987587/2019...-underrated-hires-of-the-offseason-whos-next/
What was the worst hire?
Top result: Mike Anderson, St. John’s (7)
Also: Jerry Stackhouse, Vanderbilt and Mick Cronin, UCLA (2); Nate Oats, Alabama and Dane Fischer, William & Mary and Mark Fox, Cal (1).
What we said
• “Mike Anderson to St. John’s. This is difficult because I look at a lot of the hires that were made and nod my head in approval. I think Anderson is still a good coach, and it might work. It just seems like a strange fit considering he’s spent his career in the South and Midwest.” — CJ Moore
• “Mike Anderson. I think Anderson is a good coach and a decent guy, but this one was a real head-scratcher. He doesn’t have much of a recent track record, and he has zero ties not just to New York City, but to the Northeast in general. Then again, given the dysfunctional mess that St. John’s revealed itself to be during the search process, I’m not sure it matters much who got the job.” — Seth Davis
• “I hope I’m wrong, because I’ve always liked Jerry Stackhouse and the lack of African-American head coaches is alarming. But this just seems like a really weird fit that only happened because he’s buddies with Vandy AD Malcolm Turner.” — Brian Bennett
• “Mick Cronin, UCLA. Start with the fact he was, what, the Bruins’ eighth choice? Add that he has exactly zero West Coast connections, having spent his entire life in Ohio and Kentucky. Oh, and his personality is distinctly not Hollywood. Wait, one more thing: He hasn’t been out of the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament in seven years. Other than that, the program John Wooden built nailed this hire.” — Kyle Tucker
• “Dane Fischer at William & Mary, and I say that not because I know so much about him but because I think Tony Shaver was the dumbest firing of the cycle. He was as successful at that school as anyone could be, so I’m not sure what a change of direction there was going to help.” — Dustin Dopirak[/quote]
He may wind up being a failure - because who knows - but this is basically a bunch of dudes who don't know how to answer a question grasping at the straw of "he has no NY ties and that's an easy thing for me to write as the reason why he'll fail". Literally makes no sense given that he's already hired 1 assistant with NY ties who has already signed a NY kid (after this article was written) and another NY-tied assistant potentially on the way. In a million years I don't think i could be convinced why it is necessary for a head coach to have NY ties to coach in NY in the college basketball world of today with 2 assistants with NY ties out recruiting.