When Roberts left, everyone celebrated that the nightmare is over. Lavin left and many people thought that finally the team can rebuild the right way. Mullin is gone (the greatest player left on bad terms and hopefully this rift can eventually be healed), and now everyone is saying the nightmare is over and this team can be rebuilt the right way.
I’m not saying that Mullin needed to go, but I’m also not celebrating that he’s gone. The bad news is that President Gempeshaw is 0/2 with initial hires. The good news is that he seems to learn from his mistakes.
Maybe this time with this administration SJU can finally be on the right path for sustain respectability and winning.
I’m optimistic, a little sad, but not celebrating yet.
Fortunately, this situation is far different that the last two.
When Norm was fired the school didn't really have a plan as to who was going to replace him. There the delusions that Repole would have been able to per$uade a Pitino or Billy Donovan to come to Queens. When it became clear names like those weren't ever coming here we wound up getting conned by a snake oil salesman who hadn't coached in 7 years.
When Lavin was let go, the school couldn't say no to the the fund raising coup that hiring the prodigal son to resurrect the program would be. The thought wasn't terrible, that a guy who had been around basketball his entire life could succeed at coaching if he surrounded himself with the right people. And he wasn't wildly unsuccessful, but better is needed.
With this hire, you have a guy like Cragg that is putting his entire reputation on the line and a guy like Hurley who needs to be successful in this position. Lavin always had the TV fallback. Mullin would always be fine if he failed at coaching. That's why they got lazy. Hurley's career is at stake here. He's going to work his ass off. Cragg needs it to work too. He will give Hurley everything he needs to be successful within reason.