100% agree. I’m not sold on CM in the least but I also don’t think he’s necessarily proven he can’t win here either.
The problem with Mullin is the same exact problem with Lavin. The situations are remarkably similar, at least in my eyes.
Neither guy hasn't proven that they can't win here. The fans really turned on both guys immediately after they made the NCAA tournament for the first time in 4 years. However, the expectations were heightened prior to those seasons and both of the seasons have and will be looked back on as disappointments.
Both Lavin and Mullin have the same negative perceptions surrounding them:
A) If they couldn't achieve more with what they had in those NCAA Tournament seasons, how would they ever be able to take the next step here? It was unlikely Lavin would ever have had more talent than that 14-15 team and it's unlikely Mullin will have more talent than this year's team, especially after underachieving.
B) There was no reason to believe either coach would build a consistent winner. After 14-15 Lavin was going to have to replace pretty much every important player and we were looking at another rebuild with him. While Mullin could have more back next year than Lavin did in his final year, he's losing his best player and he currently doesn't have even 1 true PG coming in to replace him. Again, another mini-rebuild at the least is on the horizon.
C) Both guys are far inferior to the rest of the conference in terms of in-game coaching and strategy. Lavin's X's and O's deficiencies were obvious after Dunlap left and Mullin's have been obvious for 4 years.
It's like deja vu all over again. If Mullin does leave we'll probably go through this again in another 4-5 years.