Should a
report from the Times’ Bill Knight hold true, then neither Tim Floyd nor Billy Gillispie will be the next head basketball coach at UTEP.
Current Miner assistant Randall Dickey seems to be the guy.
And while it may pain many of you to hear it, it is indeed what’s right for this program. (I said right, not best).
Dickey has had a hand in building the current Miners team. And while he may choose to bring a different coaching philosophy should he be in charge, there’s no one that knows the strengths and limitations of these players better. That’s key if you’re not looking to disrupt what should be a team littered with senior starters next season that made the NCAA tournament this year.
Bring in Gillispie, Floyd or anyone else for that matter and you potentially make a mess of a good thing. And if you ask me, Gillispie was never really in the running. A little too rich for El Paso all these years later. That’s evidenced by the fact that he only got a phone interview.
Floyd’s got way too much baggage. By all accounts, the NCAA is expected to rule by next month on transgressions that may have occurred at USC recently while Floyd was coach there. Could mean scholarships lost. Could mean nothing. Either way, don’t think he’s allowed to do ANYTHING for UTEP until he’s cleared by the infractions committee. That could mean the Miners would have their hands tied while potential recruits are sought by other schools.
Dickey, meanwhile, brings no problems. He also brings the opportunity of a light pay day, something those other two guys don’t give you. Many complain about UTEP’s unwillingness to get big money for their coaches. But the fact is, UTEP isn’t exactly flush with cash. How many times did the Don sell out last year? How many people are in the Diamond Club of donors? Most fans gotta spend their money elsewhere. I understand that, and there’s nothing wrong with it. But don’t think that UTEP can miracle a bale of cash out of a few sellouts and some T-shirts.
Dickey will keep the ship rolling next season. And if he happens to string together a few winning seasons after that, I’d call that a good hire.
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