Fran deserves more credit than you are giving him.
The Artest going to Miami is a true story. The interview you heard is probably true too. True, the holdovers from Mahoney; Ty Grant, Lavor Postell were key contributors. However, Fran brought the program into the 21st Century if not the 20th Century.
He introduced weight training and conditioning. He was a great recruiter when you consider the athleticism and pedigree he was bringing in. Artest, Barkley, Jessie, Thornton, Glover, Gray. We started hitting 3-pointers, something St Johns never did consistently. We had five guys on the court who could rebound, dribble, pass and shoot.
Fran left the program in much better shape than how he found it.