Niko to Colorado State

[Paladin91]

I don't think he'll have much success at CO State. No qualms with him going for the bigger paycheck, but he did absolutely nothing for Drake.

[Paul C]

Yeah, at least he rebuilt and turned around a program for us.

At Drake he went .500 with a Sr laden team and left after one year, and is taking two of the assistants with him.

[fufanatic]

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story ... 451503002/

Really, really bad look. I guess we should be happy he stayed at Furman as long as he did. I'm sure he was looking after that first CIT year.

Pretty stunning Colorado State can pay a million. I feel like they are such a forgettable university, especially among the other teams in the MWC.

[Paul C]

Ken Pom rankings

94 Furman
156 Drake
225 Colorado St

[Fessor]

Colo St is a $1mm/yr job. More than double what he was making at Drake.

Gotta make hay while the sun shines. And Drake was going to suck next year so he was going to be 3 years or more from another opportunity.

Well, I told Jane I would take her to the prom, but then Mercedes with the big boobs and the trick pelvis broke up with her boyfriend ...

It's interesting: I was a fan of Drake; now, I think I'm a fan of whomever is playing CSU. (BTW, CSU's figurative boobs don't seem that big. Not sure about CSU's pelvis.)

It's also a lesson, or reminder, of where the FU is on the totem pole of NCAA BB HC'ing jobs. (Breast implants anyone?)

[tya1]

From what I saw in a Colorado paper, it appears Medved will be paid in the $700,000 range at Colorado State. He was apparently in the $400,000 range at Drake. The former coach at Colorado State was getting about $1,000,000 but they were not expected to pay as much to Medved, at least at the beginning.

Colorado State made the NCAA tournament the last two years Medved was there as an assistant and probably has more flexibility academically than Drake, which has tougher requirements than most of the rest of the MVC. The Mountain West is rated as the 8th best conference by Sagarin and has a greater chance of getting at-large bids. This year the Mountain West has three teams rated in Sagarin's top 64 - two in the top 50.

Despite those logical reasons to move I was really surprised Niko left after less than one year.

[CharlieFU]

I don't think he'll have much success at CO State. No qualms with him going for the bigger paycheck, but he did absolutely nothing for Drake.

That’s not exactly true. They won more games this year than the previous 3 years combined. 3rd place in MVC. Post season for first time in forever. If they can somehow hang on to most of the recruits, then there was definitely a boost. (That last one is a big IF)

[Jasper]

Obviously there is big money to be made in coaching college basketball these days at many levels. That is attracting a different type of person than the old days of Wooden, Frank Maguire, Carnesseca, Massimino, McKillop, et al. The new breed's prime motivation is money and they make that very clear. They are no different than the hustlers who dominate so many high paying fields like Wall Street and jump from firm to firm. I don't know Medved well at all and maybe had 5 conversations with him during his tenure but his behavior does not surprise me at all. He is a smart young man who says what he knows his listeners want to hear. He followed the money path along a well traveled road and in a very short time is now only one step away from the really big time. His loyalty is to himself and his family and it is foolish to think otherwise and expect him to forsake a few hundred grand because he had a sip of Scotch with his Drake AD and belted out a few bars of the old alma mater one night. Drake got what they paid for - respectability and some fan base fun for one season. Remember that they courted him knowing full well that he had just signed a new contract with Furman. Medved delivered what he was paid for. It's just what it is nowadays.

[Fessor]

We can rationalize this all day, but I think less of him at the moment.

[The Jackal]

I mean, at the end of the day Medved is chasing bigger and bigger jobs. A school like Furman would do well to see that their coaches are always looking to move up the ladder.

I feel bad for Drake, though.

[Jasper]

We can rationalize this all day, but I think less of him at the moment.

Very understandable. I didn't mean to imply that I thought highly of his behavior. It is just what I have come to expect and I am rarely disappointed - unfortunately.

[soconjohn]

I don’t know this for a fact but I would say Niko had an attachment to Furman he didn’t have to Drake...it wasn’t the same there as it was here...he got pretty close to the seniors at FU and that type of dynamic was harder to duplicate at Drake right away.

[soconjohn]

I still like Niko...like I said our program is better off because he stayed four years...I can’t speak for Drake but I am grateful for what he did for Furman and I am grateful for his friendship...I don’t think less of him...that’s a no-brainer...Colorado State is a better job...it is unfortunate for Drake but that’s life...it would be hard to argue that just anyone could have turned around Furman’s program the way Medved and Richey have...Furman is blessed to have had both of these guys, who dug in and worked hard to get us out of the college basketball gutter.

[soconjohn]

I shed no tears for Drake...they came after Niko like Jasper said...like why would I feel sorry for Drake?

[Fessor]

I don’t know this for a fact but I would say Niko had an attachment to Furman he didn’t have to Drake...it wasn’t the same there as it was here...he got pretty close to the seniors at FU and that type of dynamic was harder to duplicate at Drake right away.

New movie: "Day 2: Rise of the Apologists"

He left FU abruptly for a job that not even 12 months later he was looking to jump from. He wasn't attached enough to stay long enough to coach that class in what turned out to be their last game of the season.

More likely, he was at FU as long as he needed to be. As soon as he changed from an unproven HC commodity to a somewhat proven HC commodity, he was looking to parlay it into a move into the next HC salary bracket.

I don't think he owes FU anything. It was a mutually beneficial transaction. I think it was more the shock of the revelation that we're (well) below Drake on the salary totem pole.

I also get it from a career standpoint. I've left a job in less than a year to take an opportunity that gave a 50% raise in base salary, but I didn't recruit any 18-year-olds to join me at the first job. (BTW, Uncle Sam takes most of that raise.)

I get that these guys work for a long time to get a break and then they need to make hay before the sun sets. As long as he's honest during recruiting about his career aspirations, then it's probably acceptable. (However, I doubt that any current Drake recruits were told "I may not be here by the time you arrive on campus later this year". The AD hung him out to dry, not a show of appreciation).

Just don't play it as leaving for a special place. ("It's not you. It's me") Be honest.