Neubauer to Fordham

[belfieldhappyhour]

Jon Rothstein ?@jonrothstein

BREAKING: Fordham has hired Eastern Kentucky's Jeff Neubauer as its next head basketball coach, sources told @cbssports. Story coming.

[explorer88]

Fordham taking some heat over the Neubauer hire. I can't say that I disagree. I like him and even wondered if he would fit for La Salle if G ever left but if you are Fordham in the largest market I think you need to pony-up and get a more electric hire. They have struggled since entering the A-10. Time for that administration to step up and really add some energy.

Looks like a solid hire but uneventful.

[thelasallelunatic]

Fordham needs to go Patriot League.

[MisterD]

Mar 30, 2015 8:11:52 GMT -5 explorer88 said:

I like him and even wondered if he would fit for La Salle if G ever left but if you are Fordham in the largest market I think you need to pony-up and get a more electric hire.

But this gets back to "can Fordham get an electric hire", right? There's zero incentive for a Bobby Hurley or riser like that to take the job, especially if Buffalo is willing to make up the compensation while he waits.

[explorer88]

Mar 30, 2015 8:34:57 GMT -5 MisterD said:

Mar 30, 2015 8:11:52 GMT -5 explorer88 said:

I like him and even wondered if he would fit for La Salle if G ever left but if you are Fordham in the largest market I think you need to pony-up and get a more electric hire.

But this gets back to "can Fordham get an electric hire", right? There's zero incentive for a Bobby Hurley or riser like that to take the job, especially if Buffalo is willing to make up the compensation while he waits.

Fordham has enough money to make a splash if it wants to. It just doesn't want to. Sure Rose Hill is not helping the matter but you need to find ways to achieve your goal. I just think their goal is to just get by.

[thelasallelunatic]

Mar 30, 2015 8:40:47 GMT -5 explorer88 said:

Mar 30, 2015 8:34:57 GMT -5 MisterD said:

But this gets back to "can Fordham get an electric hire", right? There's zero incentive for a Bobby Hurley or riser like that to take the job, especially if Buffalo is willing to make up the compensation while he waits.

Fordham has enough money to make a splash if it wants to. It just doesn't want to. Sure Rose Hill is not helping the matter but you need to find ways to achieve your goal. I just think their goal is to just get by.

which is way they need to go to The Patriot League.

[MisterD]

Mar 30, 2015 8:40:47 GMT -5 explorer88 said:

Fordham has enough money to make a splash if it wants to. It just doesn't want to. Sure Rose Hill is not helping the matter but you need to find ways to achieve your goal. I just think their goal is to just get by.

What I'm speculating is that their money isn't enough to get a young coach to essentially risk his career.

[a10champion15]

I think this is an awesome hire.

One sub .500 record in the OVC which is one of the better conferences. This guy came to La Salle I be pretty happy about it.

Don't need a flashy hire. They already learned that lesson before.

[coqui900]

I can't imagine Eastern Kentucky is a place that has recruits knocking down the door to attend. Also, the OVC has a bunch of other Kentucky state schools with Murray State being a pretty big regional power. He did well in coal country. Not that I've seen a lot of EKU games, but I do remember liking his Princeton-ish system.

I think he'll be a good hire for Fordham. They don't need a flashy coach or flashy recruits. They just need to get a consistent level of talent that improves by fitting into a well-coached system. I think this is a pretty great hire for them.

Compare Neubauer to Bobby Hurley. Bobby's had two years coaching, I think? Jeff has a lot longer track record of success at a really difficult job. He's going to be cheaper (there's a premium on name value, which is good for all of one week's worth of positive press in the back pages of the tabloids) and might be a great fit.

[coachd]

I just pray G doesn't get blown out at Rose Hill the next time we go there... oh wait, never mind! Good luck to Jeff at Fordham except when they play us.

[explorer88]

Mar 30, 2015 8:46:59 GMT -5 MisterD said:

Mar 30, 2015 8:40:47 GMT -5 explorer88 said:

Fordham has enough money to make a splash if it wants to. It just doesn't want to. Sure Rose Hill is not helping the matter but you need to find ways to achieve your goal. I just think their goal is to just get by.

What I'm speculating is that their money isn't enough to get a young coach to essentially risk his career.

Which is exactly why you need to pay $800K instead of $500K offered Andy Toole. You have to do what needs to be done to compete. If Tool was you guy you have to make it happen. Fordham is not going to go broke giving Andy Toole $1.5M more over 5 years if they want to make the right hire.

[MisterD]

But that's the point, Fordham still has to incent a lower level coach to take the job, there's nothing to "the lure of the A-10".

[MisterD]

Put another way, do you think salary is getting in the way of Andy Toole going to Marquette?

[a10champion15]

Yea, but if I were a betting man what attracted Jeff was the A10 compared to the OVC. A10 a much better conference then it once was. A guy with his resume wouldn't have went to Fordham if this was say 5 or so years ago.

[coqui900]

Is Toole a better fit than Neuauer, though? I really like Andy Toole a ton but they seem like a total coin flip.

Neaubauer was also a fantastic student. I have no idea of Toole is/was. But academics are a huge deal at Fordham. That could have been a factor in the hire beyond just the pay check.

Neaubauer also came up under John Bielein or however you spell it. He's on the short-list of best coaches in terms of matching system with talent of anyone in the country.

[MisterD]

Not to be a jerkhead to Neubauer, but when people here start acting like .500 should be our floor and Giannini should be on the chopping block, I don't think EKU's decade long coach is the replacement they have in mind. Fordham not getting Toole by virtue of simply offering Toole sort of supports that, atleast in my mind. The best young coaches wouldn't, the next level needs major incentive, the level below that is realistic.

[MisterD]

I have no idea if Neubauer is or would be better than Toole, but I don't think they're the same in terms of perception. 10 years at EKU means Neubauer isn't getting higher looks, right? If Toole is still at RM in 5 years, maybe its the same path.

[a10champion15]

Mar 30, 2015 10:47:05 GMT -5 MisterD said:

Not to be a jerkhead to Neubauer, but when people here start acting like .500 should be our floor and Giannini should be on the chopping block, I don't think EKU's decade long coach is the replacement they have in mind. Fordham not getting Toole by virtue of simply offering Toole sort of supports that, atleast in my mind. The best young coaches wouldn't, the next level needs major incentive, the level below that is realistic.

This isn't a .500 coach. This is a coach who had ONE sub .500 record in conference play.

His three losing seasons he was no more than 2 games under 500 overall.

Made 5 post season tournaments including the CBI and CIT.

In 2012-2013 they had an RPI of 69, clearly an NIT candidate and didn't get selected.

[MisterD]

I meant ".500 should be La Salle's floor", as in "any coach who comes in will do better than that every year". I don't know that Neubauer's past simply translates up.

[a10champion15]

Mar 30, 2015 11:22:57 GMT -5 MisterD said:

I meant ".500 should be La Salle's floor", as in "any coach who comes in will do better than that every year". I don't know that Neubauer's past simply translates up.

Oh no I didn't mean that whatsoever.

Will see how it goes.

A clear upgrade from Pecora, Hill and Whittenburg

[MisterD]

Yeah, I definitely hope he's better (as a La Salle guy and for the league overall), I just don't know that I see that much of difference in the overall pattern from Whittenburg and Pecora. All three were lower conference guys taking the next step and although the other two were older than Neubauer is now, I don't think any of the three were destined for an eventual major job. All three are max A-10 coaches, no? Or maybe they were over their heads while Neubauer is at his level and has a hope of turning around a dead program? I don't know. Its probably dumb for me to even pretend I know what I'm talking about in terms of the coaching ladder.

[thelasallelunatic]

Toole was a student at Penn, I don't think he was a schmuck when it came to academics...

[coachd]

You have to remember that if Fordham was located in any other place besides New York they'd be out of the A10. The A10 needs the NY market and recruiting base. G needs to start getting some guys from the Big Apple.

[JoeFedorowicz]

Mar 30, 2015 14:58:27 GMT -5 coachd said:

You have to remember that if Fordham was located in any other place besides New York they'd be out of the A10. The A10 needs the NY market and recruiting base. G needs to start getting some guys from the Big Apple.

Name the best good player out of New York.

[baskets123]

Why not have Fordham leave and Buffalo or Collage of Charleston come to A10.Lets face it they stink.

[MisterD]

Mar 30, 2015 16:27:37 GMT -5 JoeFedorowicz said:

Mar 30, 2015 14:58:27 GMT -5 coachd said:

You have to remember that if Fordham was located in any other place besides New York they'd be out of the A10. The A10 needs the NY market and recruiting base. G needs to start getting some guys from the Big Apple.

Name the best good player out of New York.

Real New Yorkers call it "The Big Apple".

[JoeFedorowicz]

Mar 30, 2015 16:27:37 GMT -5 JoeFedorowicz said:

Mar 30, 2015 14:58:27 GMT -5 coachd said:

You have to remember that if Fordham was located in any other place besides New York they'd be out of the A10. The A10 needs the NY market and recruiting base. G needs to start getting some guys from the Big Apple.

Name the best good player out of New York.

Edit. best "recent" good player.

[crayzeeguy]

Mar 30, 2015 17:16:25 GMT -5 JoeFedorowicz said:

Mar 30, 2015 16:27:37 GMT -5 JoeFedorowicz said:

Name the best good player out of New York.

Edit. best "recent" good player.

Chris Mullin? Earl Manigault? Skip to My Lou?

[MisterD]

This is why you research (which I did) before you call something stupid (which I was about to do). I can't believe how long its been; the last elite NY prospect that panned out is Lance Stephenson (2009). Before him, Kemba Walker (2008) and Danny Green (2005). That's pretty much it for the decade. What the hell?

[MisterD]

(And that was a serious "what the hell?" Like are all NYC kids going prep in other states so they don't show up under the Scout.com NY search? That track record seems almost impossible.)