Fwiw, our next steps as far as coaching goes a person who I trust and is well connected to the college landscape told me pitino wanted the sju job badly. He wanted to come for 3.5 million and if sju would of agreed, he was ours... Sju wanted mullin from the start. Lavin knew this and discussions with mullin started a while ago. Lavin was a dead man walking as soon as sju knew mullin would accept.
It's important to remember how Lavin acted after the February 21st game at CA versus Seton Hall. Mullin was honored at the half and sat with Louie during the game, which we won. After the game, when addressed the press, Lavin (unprompted) defended his tenure and his development of the program. That raised a few eyebrows, and, in retrospect, might have been an indiciation that he knew the univeristy was already talking with Mullin.
These posts above are very good. I always tried to watch Lavin's press conferences -- any coach of a team I root for in fact. It's important to see how the coach handles himself and to see his demeanor. I thought Lavin did a lot of deflecting, usually. But he was on high alert with Mullin there.
At halftime, I believe, Mullin was interviewed. Maybe it was pre-game. Mullin was classy but he indicted the program. He said there is a way to do it at St. John's & you have to use local kids, that the city wants to root for their own, etc. At that time, I was not thinking about Mullin coming in here, but I had a feeling if the higher ups asked him about Lavin, he would not have endorsed him.