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Gillispie out as Kentucky opts for coaching change

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Kentucky deserves a coach who understands "this is not just another coaching job," and so Billy Gillispie was fired after just two years on the job.

University of Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart said during a news conference Friday that there were times when there was not the right chemistry or the right fit with Gillispie at the helm.

Gillispie went 40-27 in two seasons with the Wildcats. Kentucky went 22-14 this season, tied for the second-most losses in the program's 106-year history, and missed the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1991.
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http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/mensbasketball/2009-03-27-kentucky-gillispie_N.htm
 
There's a lot more to this story than you will ever find on ESPN. This firing had very little at all to do with wins and losses. Supposedly, 6 or 7 players were going to leave the program if Gillispie returned as coach (including both Patterson and Meeks). Stories are beginning to surface that makes him look like a huge jerk. Stories include:

  • Gillispie tried on two occasions to kick Meeks off of the team for being too selfish. One of these occassions occurred during halftime of UK's final NIT game. Coach finally told him he was allowed to finish the season but would never play for UK again. Meeks was so upset that an assistant had to talk him into even finishing the game.
  • At the half of another game, Gillispie forced a player to sit in a bathroom stall with the door closed the entire half b/c he couldn't stand to look at him.
  • On one road trip, a player who was injured during a game (concussion) was called soft by Gillispie and was told he could not ride the bus back to the hotel from the arena. Only after several players stood up for him was he allowed to ride the bus home.
  • Various personal issues including rude, drunken behavior and sexual misconduct.
I admit that I am not certain these events happened and some of them seem to simply be motivational tactics. However, following his termination Meeks said the firing was a good decision and Meeks father has also publicly supported the decision. Statements like these only further reinforce the possibility that these things really occurred. Although I was upset to see him go initially, I'm starting to support the decision.
 
There are so many parallels to the Doherty fiasco at Carolina.....both good coaches and recruiters but miserable failures in every other aspect of the job. I don't see Kentucky getting quite as lucky as the tar heels did with Roy though.
 
I don't think Calipari will go there if he's offered it...ditto for Izzo. They've got great things going at their schools right now without the pressure cooker of UK.

I'm wondering who UK will end up with.
 
CedarPhin said:
I don't think Calipari will go there if he's offered it...ditto for Izzo. They've got great things going at their schools right now without the pressure cooker of UK.

I'm wondering who UK will end up with.
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I agree. I think that both Cal and Izzo will use UK to get a raise but neither will actually truly consider coming here. My guess is we end up hiring Travis Ford. Not my first choice by any means, but I think it could end up getting ugly with how many coaches turn us down.
 
I just don't think anyone wants to take that job, it's like the Alabama football job. I mean, it'd be a good job to take because it's probably one of the most prestigious jobs in the entire CBB world, but I don't know if anyone wants to deal with the pressure that comes with it. Calipari can continue to build a team that wins its conference each year and makes great tournament runs, Izzo dominates the Big 10 and is a god on campus there.

They'd be fools to leave. I could see Travis Ford taking it though.
 
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Well, it appears that Cal really is going to come here. I'm both shocked and more excited than I have been in a long time.
 
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