Friday Randomness

First of all, if you missed it below, all signs indicate Verdell Jones will commit to the Gophers on Monday, giving Tubby Smith a six-man 2008 recruiting class. We can debate whether the Gophers would have been better off signing a big man or a point guard with this scholarship, but either way Tubby is doing what he needed to do--drastically improve the talent level on Minnesota's roster. More on this next week if indeed Jones does pick the Gophers.

*** Minnesota recruit Colton Iverson was named the South Dakota Class AA Player of the Year this week. Good for Colt. Of the incoming players, however, it's Iverson who I worry might have a lengthy adjustment period in the Big Ten. We'll see.

*** In this letter to the editor in the Minnesota Daily, writer Kevin Wendt begins by making a logical, coherent cry for more attention to be paid to scholastic achievements than to athletics. I agree. He writes this in the context of the Royce White verbal, and goes on to state that he's happy to bring Royce White on campus with "conditions." Kevin's conditions? "I say he can attend, but he has to select a major without the word "sports" in it. I say we place him in IT and let his academic potential grow as much as his athletics. Or how about CSOM and an economics program?"

This is where I think Kevin's argument is lost in bitterness.

*** Congratulations to Tubby Smith for being inducted to the University of Kentucky Hall of Fame. Back in the commonwealth for the induction, Smith said "I call it my old Kentucky home. Once you're a Kentuckian, you're always a Kentuckian."

Very statesmanlike of you to say that, Tubby. That said, 10 years from now the Gophers are going to build a new arena named after you. Heck, we might even add a statute once you win back to back national championships. At that point, I imagine Minnesota will be your one and only home.

*** For two other takes on how wrong Star Tribune columnist Patrick Reusse was in this column this week, check out Twin Cities Boys Hoops and Down with Goldy. Reusse criticized Tubby Smith, Joel Maturi and the UofM brass for allowing Royce White to verbally commit to the Gophers because Reusse posits there are some academic issues with White, who was booted from private school DeLaSalle for an admitted "academic mistake." I disagreed with Reusse here, arguing that the columnist has no way of knowing what has transpired between Tubby and Royce, considering Tubby can't talk about recruits until they actually sign.

*** First we dealt with rumors that Gophers assistant and recruiting whiz Vince Taylor might take a head coaching gig at Western Kentucky, an obvious place for him to get his first head man job considering his ties to Kentucky. That job went to a University of Texas assistant and former WKU assistant. Now, in Charley Walters' column this week, he suggests that "There's buzz that Gophers men's basketball assistant Vince Taylor might be able to nearly double his salary by joining alma mater Duke, which lost top assistant Johnny Dawkins to Stanford as head coach last weekend."

It's no wonder Taylor's name would surface to fill a position at Duke. He played there. And he's coached for Rick Pitino and Tubby Smith. He's considered one of the better recruiters in the country. Unless he is offered a head coaching position somewhere, the Gophers should do everything they can to keep him on board. In fact, and I know this is early, but Taylor should be considered the heir apparent to Tubby Smith. If Tubby is to be here another six years, it would be a good idea to make sure Taylor knows he is the likely successor.

Verdell Jones' father has also credited Taylor just as much as Tubby Smith, for Jones' likely commitment to Minnesota.

*** Now for your random movie selection of the week, but with a disclaimer. I have an unhealthy obsession with all movies that star Philip Seymour Hoffman. I think I first thought he was great when he played the snotty butler in The Big Lebowski. But since then I've found his portrayal of characters to be better than any actor of my generation. So, I see every movie he makes. My friends don't understand this strange fascination of mine, but whatever.

I saw The Savages and Charlie Wilson's War in the movie theatre but could never find his work in Sidney Lumet's Before the Devil Knows You're Dead in a theatre near me. So, I rented the selection on a slow day this week and found that of the three movies he was in this year, this one, which also features some nice shots of Marisa Tomei's wonderful chest, was his best of the year. Basically, Hoffman and Hawke are in desperate need for cash. Hoffman has been stealing money from his employer which is about to get audited (never mind a drug addiction) and Hawke is just a typical burnout with no prospects. Hoffman hatches a plan to rob their parents' suburban jewelry store, a plan that was great in theory but didn't really work out that way.

Not the best movie you'll ever see. And certainly not uplifting or comical in any way. But if you're having a PSH marathon anytime soon, I recommend this over his other two pictures from this year.

Thoughts On Vince Taylor and Krys Faber

VINCE TAYLOR STAYS: I'd like to say how pleased I am to see that Vince Taylor did not get the Western Kentucky job. While I of course wish him nothing but the best, his position on Tubby's staff, I believe, is very important.

Taylor was probably as perfect a fit as there could have been for the Hilltoppers. Taylor has the Kentucky roots. He surely knows the recruiting scene in the commonwealth. But the job went to former WKU assistant Ken McDonald, who was earning his stripes at Texas.

Tubby Smith came to Minnesota with the reputation as a great bench coach but a lackadaisical recruiter. Now, I'm not sure I buy that completely. Tubby had some very solid classes at UK, but because he didn't land the likes of Tyler Hansborough and was one of many coaches who underestimated the ability of Chris Lofton, Tubby was tagged with being a soft recruiter.

Not so for Vince Taylor. As I discussed last year when he was hired, Taylor possesses quite the pedigree. He's worked for Denny Crum and Rick Pitino at Louisville. He played at Duke. Taylor also had a journeyman's professional playing career, making various international stops. That has helped him procure a reputation as a recruiter with a knack for international success. We haven't seen that play out too much so far at Minnesota--unless you consider Devoe Joseph's recruitment from Canada and international "get."

No matter how much credit Taylor deserves for Tubby Smith's first class, which ranks in the top 10 to 20 nationally depending on your expert of choice, Taylor has the drive the Gophers need to build on that. Taylor will certainly be a head man someday given his track record and coaching pedigree. But for Minnesota's sake, let's hope he continues to help Tubby hit the recruiting trail.

And, hey, Tubby Smith isn't going to be around forever. Maybe Joel Maturi should have a conversation with Taylor about grooming the assistant to take over down the road. That's certainly a path that has worked well for Purdue, for instance.

KRYS FABER: After flirting with the Gophers for months and telling recruiting services that the Gophers were his #1 choice, Los Angeles big man Krys Faber has decided on DePaul, according to the PiPress' Gophers blog.

Minnesota's need to add big men is no secret. The Gophers lacked size this past season, and the departures of Dan Coleman and Spencer Tollackson certainly won't help that cause. The additions of Colton Iverson and Ralph Sampson III will give the Gophers the same number of interior players they had this past year, and that includes hybrid, inside-outside threat Damian Johnson.

The Gophers' incoming class is already five players deep. But because Travis Busch and Jamal Abu-Shamala were on one year contracts, Tubby has room to add more talent. Now, we should keep some scholarships available for next year when Minnesota products Royce White and Rodney Williams become available, but the need to add big men, and simply talent for that matter, is important now.

The Gophers are still in the running for point guard Verdell Jones, who is also being sought after by Tom Crean at Indiana, Bruce Pearl at Tennessee and Billy Gillispie at Kentucky. Point guard is the other glaring need for the Gophers. Al Nolen played OK as a freshman. Tubby's recruitment of Jones would also indicate that the coaching staff views Devoe Joseph as a two-guard.

We'll see how this plays out, but no matter where Jones goes, this has been an impressive recruiting class for the Gophers. But let's hope Jones lands in Dinkytown, if for no other reason then we can say that Tubby Smith, for the second time, landed a recruit his successor was after at UK.

Vince Taylor: A Closer Look

If there is one assistant coach on Tubby Smith's staff to be excited about it's Vince Taylor.

He has recruited for a big-time basketball program (Louisville), has played for Duke and has gotten at least a little bit of NBA experience both as a player and coach. He's ambitious and eventually wants to run a program. If he can help Tubby turn the Gophers around, Taylor may in fact be called upon to run a big-time program of his own.

Taylor worked under both Denny Crum and Rick Pitino at Lousiville, before spending a year with the Minnesota Timberwolves. He's still well liked in Louisville, and the Courier-Journal, while bashing Tubby's chances of success in Minnesota, lauds Taylor.

Taylor has a pedigree few assistant coaches can match. He played for Mike Krzyzewski at Duke, worked for Pitino at Louisville and now joins Smith at Minnesota. He is 46 and wants to lead his own program one day. This is his chance to upgrade his profile by recruiting well and helping Minnesota shock the Big Ten.

Smith's final difficult seasons at UK proved that he needs assistants who can deliver in the recruiting world. Recruiting is not Smith's passion.

While some Gopher fans may point to certain successes Tubby has had in the recruiting wars over the years, for a fan who is willing to listen to some of the complaints Kentucky diehards made about Tubby, the hiring of a recruiting ace like Taylor eases some worries. Taylor earned his reputation before Pitino's stint in Louisville. He was recruiting for Crum in the late '90s and the Cardinals' typical recruiting base was drying up. In 2000, ESPN's Pat Forde noted Taylor's work overseas.

Louisville was producing fewer blue-chip recruits, and the only two future pros of recent vintage -- Derek Anderson and Scott Padgett -- starred at arch-rival Kentucky. Ouch.

Slow reaction to the shifting recruiting map has left scars. The Cardinals haven't won 20 games in a season, won an NCAA Tournament game or beaten Conference USA kingpin Cincinnati since Wheat was a senior in 1997.

Now Louisville's recruiting response to hard times has been a seismic shift from provincial to international. A program that used to make hay inside the city limits has gone through customs in attempting a return to glory.

...

The foreign legion has landed in Louisville in large part through the efforts of the Cards' international affairs expert, assistant coach Vince Taylor, who played ball for 13 years overseas. He's helped make Crum a late, but enthusiastic, convert to the worldwide recruiting.

In a report from 1999, Hoop Scoop Online also lauds Taylor's "international contacts." Before earning his reputation in Louisville, Taylor had a journeyman's basketball career. He was drafted by the New York Knicks in 1982 after earning All-ACC honors at Duke. He struggled in the NBA before moving to Europe, where he played 13 seasons according to published reports. During his last two seasons in Europe he served as a player-coach.

Taylor took that experience and came back to the States. He coached briefly at Pittsburgh and the University of Wyoming before getting his opportunity at Louisville. Now, after a year with the Timberwolves he's back in the college ranks. He has told the Star Tribune that recruiting this year and next will be critical.

"I coached at Louisville and have been a part of some great recruiting classes," Taylor said. "All the coaches are going to be out there [recruiting]. This year and next year is crucial to getting the program turned around."

Taylor couldn't be any more on point. The Gophers will lose Spencer Tollackson, Dan Coleman and Lawrence McKenzie after this season. Tubby will have plenty of scholarships available to him to rebuild, and we've already heard plenty of names that could make us quickly forget the Dan Monson era.

Fellow assistant coach Ron Jirsa has had his chance to run his own program and it hasn't worked out. While he'll be trying to prove his worth in Minnesota, Taylor will be trying to prove to the world he can run his own program. Taylor can prove that by bringing talent to Minnesota--local, regional or international.

This is the third installment of PJS' look at new assistant coaches in Minnesota. We previously discussed Jirsa and Mike Dunbar. In the following weeks, we'll look at Everett Withers and Saul Smith.