Dec 20th at Oregon. Utah Valley won. 77-72. They beat Colorado in the NIT at CU 81-69. They beat Cincy 74-68. Pretty good wins in my book. Might be a sleeper.
He's referring to these coaches with Cal ties or reported Cal interest that were not hired for reason or another. Missouri(Dennis Gates) Georgia (Shareef Abdul Rahim's brother) Arkansas(Eric Musselman) and Pasternak.
Right: But, when did Georgia offer AAR? I spotted his nephew, Jabri Abdur-Rahim (Shareef's son) plays for the Bulldogs. But, true, none of those named coaches were hired or accepted any offers...
Well said, Nick. Great article and dead-on balls accurate.
I don’t hate the hire, but from what we know of Jim Knowlton and his limitations as an AD, the fact that this offer leaked before a major announcement could be made is concerning…if Madsen receives massive blowback or bad PR, is he a threat to bail out at the last minute, leaving Knowlton dead in the water? This scenario would be directly on brand for the overmatched Colonel…I can only hope that Madsen’s commitment is strong and real after Steve Kroner let the cat out of the bag.
However, let’s proceed under the supposition that UVU loses its NIT semi-final game Tues to UAB in Vegas (??) and it is announced Wednesday that Madsen has agreed to become the Cal Men’s basketball Head Coach. He definitely brings things to the table, hopefully including some talent from Orem, as he’s got 4 guys that would be more than solid P12 contributors day 1 in Berkeley.
Here’s my thing: how quickly can he get Cal relevant again? As like everything with Jim Knowlton, his open and forthright statements to Mark Fox that he basically “faced a tremendous challenge and a long rebuild” helped set the tone for the excuse-riddled mess we had the last 4 seasons. There was no urgency. Knowlton continued to enable the dreadful Mark Fox for the entirety of his tenure in Berkeley. So, despite an unheard of 3-29, I would argue Madsen should not have a long leash…whether it’s Knowlton holding that leash or not remains to be seen.
In this era of college basketball, where the NIL and transfer portal are front and center, with the right mix of players, a team can get good rather quickly. Unfortunately, from the looks of it, Knowlton still fails to see just how important these tools are, which is not surprising because one of if his key advisors is Mike Montgomery, who hates the new normal in college hoops. But somehow, Madsen is going to have to make early progress to get people fired up again about Cal hoops. A slow and steady crawl is not going to build excitement…Knowlton’s incompetence has made sure of that. Hope Mad Dog can light a fire, quickly, keeps key players and the recruits in the fold and more importantly, brings in difference makers early. We shall see…
Agree Jimmy, it is great work from Nick, as is your comment. The only quibble I have is that many fans -- and more importantly donors -- enabled JK during covid, and didn't hold his feet to the fire. They bought into the CoB excuse; they bought into 'give the coaches a pass the first covid year, and then the next covid year.; they bought into what HK was selling. Extend everybody.
Meanwhile, 100+ other D1 programs were going strong.
From what I hear, Madsen appealed to a certain segment of the Old Blues, and not necessarily basketball season ticket holders, which is a concern. Are Olympic Cal blue bloods going to start pumping $$$ into the NIL for hoops? Dunno, and that’s ESSENTIAL to turn this around.
I also think appealing to the younger donor base is vital…not sure Madsen does that. Winning will maybe do that, but I think AAR offered the most upside. Him not actually having that much interest is real. So it was likely Madsen, Joe P and Stan…I liked JP, but hell, among those you could argue it’s a coin toss. With Monty and Jay John chirping in Knowlton’s ears, guess where that was gonna go…
I would have made a all-out pitch to AAR, but tbf, he has/will have much better opportunities so I can understand why he'd be hesitant. Ditto JP, and since he was at best #2, I understand why he'd re-up at SB.
Everyone says that MM has west coast connections but how deep are they? Does he have the coaches at Oak Tech )or Castlemont or Crenshaw or Notre Dame or Centennial or Fairfax) on speed dial? Does he have an in with the local clubs? Sure, family is from the suburban BA, and he attended a private suburban Junior University, but he only has two CA on his current roster and both of those were juco transfers. Can he reach out and make connections? Absolutely but then so could AAR, particularly if a guy like Jaylen Brown is making some intros.
The plus side with Mad Dog is that we'll get Monty for a free advisor. (I have missed his inbound plays for a quick bucket.). Monty will want to make sure his recommendation does well. Heck, with a little luck, the Chancellor will start calling him directly for advice on how to run the Athletic Department. (Yeah, he has no experience in running a P5 shop, but his zero experience is still more relevant than JK's.)
Avi was mentioning that Madsen played with the Oakland Soldiers, a relationship that Mark Fox maybe could have paid more attention to, tho he did land the BOD guys. If that’s the case, it bodes well for Cal renewing a link that’s gotten them Powe, Ubaka, Rabb.
I guess the questions for me are:
1. Will Madsen stick around long enough for Cal to reap the benefits of having him as a HC? Sure, all HC’s are candidates to be poached, but usually an HC that gets nabbed has improved a program in his time there, sometimes substantially. Madsen could conceivably jump NEXT year after a 7-8 win season at Cal, tho I have to think Knowlton has contingencies in place for that in terms of buyout language, etc. Then again, Knowlton is an f-ing incompetent boob so maybe he doesn’t.
2. Can Madsen succeed at a P5 school in the NIL/Portal era? His champion, Mike Montgomery, is openly critical of the new college basketball landscape, and if that disdain has filtered down to Mark, he will struggle at Cal. Likewise, will Cal alums and fans support the NIL, even those donors that wanted a different coach. I’ve heard Knowlton’s decision will absolutely impact funding of the CALEGENDS collective, which is already a potential problem. This program likely can’t be substantially fixed without the portal and NIL, that’s just a fact. Knowlton has clearly disregarded those valuable tools because he is an awful AD with no vision and no concept for what a school like Cal needs to do nowadays to be successful. Like Fox, like Monty, like Jay John, he’s a dinosaur whose view of major college basketball is circa 1999. If Madsen shares that mindset too, we’re in trouble.
Best case scenario is JK gets dragged off campus within the next six months. Mad Dog has a good start, and Stanford woos him with a lifetime supply of milk after finally having enough of Hasse. Cal finally gets a good AD (maybe the least plausible part of this thoroughly implausible scenario), and then we get a Cal guy for the job.
There will be great excitement when Knowlton is finally removed….like, “Ferris Bueller singing Twist and Shout from a float as it travels through the streets of Downtown Chicago” excitement…..
Your optimism, while kept in check, concerns me. I will jump on board should Madsen be successful, but atm I don't see him as a good fit for Cal. For furd, sure ~ but not Cal.
It should concern you, GEAT…when have you known me to be optimistic? ;-) I’ve been called a nega-Bear for my anti-Wilcox sentiments, but I’m working on that…
I think he’s gotta strike with something quick, first year…get some portal wins, a solid transfer, maybe keep Rodney Brown in the fold, and keep Celestine and Newell out of the portal. He can’t go full rebuild and win 7 games next year, even though that would be double the win total. I want 10-12.
And I’m not completely optimistic…I think Knowlton is such a tool that I have not completely ruled out the possibility that Madsen gets cold feet and leaves us at the alter, and then we’re completely screwed. THAT would be so on brand for Knowlton its ridiculous.
As one of my buddies said: As long as we can't pay football or basketball in a swimming pool,we are going to suck, as much as our institutional support sucks.
It’s hard to take a process as objective when it involves 3 old white men cutting themselves off from the rest of the base to make this decision The result is entirely predictable. Given this is 2023 and this is Berkeley of all places, I expected better.
UCLA fan here: I think this is a great hire for you guys and Stanford will be kicking themselves for years for keeping Haase when Madsen was available.
As for the hiring process...all I can say is that UCLA's process was quick, quiet, and painless when we hired Steve Alford and an absolute embarrassing circus playing out across the national media when we hired Mick Cronin. It's all about the result.
Well, other than the fact that Madsen is associated with THE two sports teams that I loathe more than any other in this world, it seems that this hire could turn out okay...or it could be a disaster. I remain ambivalent about Cal MBB as that leave me less vulnerable to false hopes.
Hard to know if the process was good, but if it's Madsen then he isn't an obviously bad hire. He's a guy with west-coast connections who has had success coaching at a smaller school. A reasonable choice.
Would I have preferred Pasternack? Yes, but I also have to acknowledge that when picking between these mid-major coaches with similar resumes it's hard to know who will hit and who will not. We'll see!
Has there been any more insight on why AAR (apparently) isn't being offered the job? Was he never a legit option, despite appearances, or something in the interview gave pause? Not sure if anything credible leaked.
Check out Aziz Bandaogo, a 7’ RS SO from Senegal that averages 11 pts, 10 reb per night…a beast. He already transferred from Akron, tho, so not sure he’ll be eligible to move again…but kid can ball.
I know this might not be the comparison that we'd like to hear, but Madsen could be to Cal basketball to what Harbaugh was to Stanford football. Sometimes you need an energetic, intelligent, focused, winner to come in and set up an identity. Utah Valley, if you watch them, are a damn well coached team.
Great article Nick and you really covered the salient issues. The fact is, we probably will never know exactly what took place inside the athletic departments' inner sanctum on this hire, but presumably this was a more competent process than the recent searches.
guys need to look past mad dogs furd history and just look what he can offer based on what hehas done since playing days. he coached fardaw aimaq to 2 time defensive player of yr in the conference and is projected to be drafted in nba. although FA is playing 4 texas tech now via portal if it wasnt 4 mad dog he wouldnt be taken by them
mad dog would be a decent hire at least. if you read all the stories about him on the internet if they r true he seems 2 check all the boxes that cal desires. he would appreciate the hi academic standards at cal and will look 4 certain recruits that seek the same student athlete expectations. he def can coach coming from nba and g league and attending youth camps while as a professional. if hes smart he would surround himself with asst coaches that will teach our young men x's n o's and out hustle opponents thats how he played. he was a laker fav becuz of it and uses his limited talent vs other nba elites to the fullest. hopefully he can inspire the team n new recruits to play for him
For those who want to know more I think reading through his blog (albeit pretty sporadic postings) will tell you all you need to know about him.
I must admit I have / had reservations about him being a Mormon Furdie from San Ramon coaching a team in Utah full of oafy white dudes but after reading a bit about his opinions I feel he is a good intellectual fit.
My worry now goes from “he’ll just bounce to furd when he sees any hinkling of success because furdie” to “he’ll just bounce to a fUCLA type job at the first jingle due to the fact that he is a gym rat type with clearly larger goals than cal and Knowlton is too much of a slap dick to draft a contract that makes that option expensive for him”
Dec 20th at Oregon. Utah Valley won. 77-72. They beat Colorado in the NIT at CU 81-69. They beat Cincy 74-68. Pretty good wins in my book. Might be a sleeper.
When AAR takes Georgia to the final four in three years, I’m gonna be so pissed.
Missouri, Georgia, Arkansas & a Pasternak-led Arizona in the 2027 NCAA Final Four.
What?
He's referring to these coaches with Cal ties or reported Cal interest that were not hired for reason or another. Missouri(Dennis Gates) Georgia (Shareef Abdul Rahim's brother) Arkansas(Eric Musselman) and Pasternak.
Right: But, when did Georgia offer AAR? I spotted his nephew, Jabri Abdur-Rahim (Shareef's son) plays for the Bulldogs. But, true, none of those named coaches were hired or accepted any offers...
Their saying WHEN Georgia hires AAR...
Ahh!!! This makes so much more sense!!! TY!
Well said, Nick. Great article and dead-on balls accurate.
I don’t hate the hire, but from what we know of Jim Knowlton and his limitations as an AD, the fact that this offer leaked before a major announcement could be made is concerning…if Madsen receives massive blowback or bad PR, is he a threat to bail out at the last minute, leaving Knowlton dead in the water? This scenario would be directly on brand for the overmatched Colonel…I can only hope that Madsen’s commitment is strong and real after Steve Kroner let the cat out of the bag.
However, let’s proceed under the supposition that UVU loses its NIT semi-final game Tues to UAB in Vegas (??) and it is announced Wednesday that Madsen has agreed to become the Cal Men’s basketball Head Coach. He definitely brings things to the table, hopefully including some talent from Orem, as he’s got 4 guys that would be more than solid P12 contributors day 1 in Berkeley.
Here’s my thing: how quickly can he get Cal relevant again? As like everything with Jim Knowlton, his open and forthright statements to Mark Fox that he basically “faced a tremendous challenge and a long rebuild” helped set the tone for the excuse-riddled mess we had the last 4 seasons. There was no urgency. Knowlton continued to enable the dreadful Mark Fox for the entirety of his tenure in Berkeley. So, despite an unheard of 3-29, I would argue Madsen should not have a long leash…whether it’s Knowlton holding that leash or not remains to be seen.
In this era of college basketball, where the NIL and transfer portal are front and center, with the right mix of players, a team can get good rather quickly. Unfortunately, from the looks of it, Knowlton still fails to see just how important these tools are, which is not surprising because one of if his key advisors is Mike Montgomery, who hates the new normal in college hoops. But somehow, Madsen is going to have to make early progress to get people fired up again about Cal hoops. A slow and steady crawl is not going to build excitement…Knowlton’s incompetence has made sure of that. Hope Mad Dog can light a fire, quickly, keeps key players and the recruits in the fold and more importantly, brings in difference makers early. We shall see…
Again, great article Nick.
Agree Jimmy, it is great work from Nick, as is your comment. The only quibble I have is that many fans -- and more importantly donors -- enabled JK during covid, and didn't hold his feet to the fire. They bought into the CoB excuse; they bought into 'give the coaches a pass the first covid year, and then the next covid year.; they bought into what HK was selling. Extend everybody.
Meanwhile, 100+ other D1 programs were going strong.
From what I hear, Madsen appealed to a certain segment of the Old Blues, and not necessarily basketball season ticket holders, which is a concern. Are Olympic Cal blue bloods going to start pumping $$$ into the NIL for hoops? Dunno, and that’s ESSENTIAL to turn this around.
I also think appealing to the younger donor base is vital…not sure Madsen does that. Winning will maybe do that, but I think AAR offered the most upside. Him not actually having that much interest is real. So it was likely Madsen, Joe P and Stan…I liked JP, but hell, among those you could argue it’s a coin toss. With Monty and Jay John chirping in Knowlton’s ears, guess where that was gonna go…
Totally agree.
I would have made a all-out pitch to AAR, but tbf, he has/will have much better opportunities so I can understand why he'd be hesitant. Ditto JP, and since he was at best #2, I understand why he'd re-up at SB.
Everyone says that MM has west coast connections but how deep are they? Does he have the coaches at Oak Tech )or Castlemont or Crenshaw or Notre Dame or Centennial or Fairfax) on speed dial? Does he have an in with the local clubs? Sure, family is from the suburban BA, and he attended a private suburban Junior University, but he only has two CA on his current roster and both of those were juco transfers. Can he reach out and make connections? Absolutely but then so could AAR, particularly if a guy like Jaylen Brown is making some intros.
The plus side with Mad Dog is that we'll get Monty for a free advisor. (I have missed his inbound plays for a quick bucket.). Monty will want to make sure his recommendation does well. Heck, with a little luck, the Chancellor will start calling him directly for advice on how to run the Athletic Department. (Yeah, he has no experience in running a P5 shop, but his zero experience is still more relevant than JK's.)
Avi was mentioning that Madsen played with the Oakland Soldiers, a relationship that Mark Fox maybe could have paid more attention to, tho he did land the BOD guys. If that’s the case, it bodes well for Cal renewing a link that’s gotten them Powe, Ubaka, Rabb.
I guess the questions for me are:
1. Will Madsen stick around long enough for Cal to reap the benefits of having him as a HC? Sure, all HC’s are candidates to be poached, but usually an HC that gets nabbed has improved a program in his time there, sometimes substantially. Madsen could conceivably jump NEXT year after a 7-8 win season at Cal, tho I have to think Knowlton has contingencies in place for that in terms of buyout language, etc. Then again, Knowlton is an f-ing incompetent boob so maybe he doesn’t.
2. Can Madsen succeed at a P5 school in the NIL/Portal era? His champion, Mike Montgomery, is openly critical of the new college basketball landscape, and if that disdain has filtered down to Mark, he will struggle at Cal. Likewise, will Cal alums and fans support the NIL, even those donors that wanted a different coach. I’ve heard Knowlton’s decision will absolutely impact funding of the CALEGENDS collective, which is already a potential problem. This program likely can’t be substantially fixed without the portal and NIL, that’s just a fact. Knowlton has clearly disregarded those valuable tools because he is an awful AD with no vision and no concept for what a school like Cal needs to do nowadays to be successful. Like Fox, like Monty, like Jay John, he’s a dinosaur whose view of major college basketball is circa 1999. If Madsen shares that mindset too, we’re in trouble.
aha, thanks for posting the Avi insight.
1. Knowing JK's contracting skills, he probably added a clause where we will pay MM a bonus to take another job.
You’re absolutely right.
I’m honestly not convinced we’re gonna actually get him. Tim Miles is still the leader in the clubhouse if Madsen gets cold feet…just saying.
Best case scenario is JK gets dragged off campus within the next six months. Mad Dog has a good start, and Stanford woos him with a lifetime supply of milk after finally having enough of Hasse. Cal finally gets a good AD (maybe the least plausible part of this thoroughly implausible scenario), and then we get a Cal guy for the job.
Agreed, Nick & Mr. C, both spot on. I can't trust anything this AD does so we're left waiting and wondering, as always it seems.
Hope for the sake of Cal sports, that guy is the next domino to fall.
There will be great excitement when Knowlton is finally removed….like, “Ferris Bueller singing Twist and Shout from a float as it travels through the streets of Downtown Chicago” excitement…..
I've already wept for the future. Many times.
Knowlton is so snooty…
Snotty
Your optimism, while kept in check, concerns me. I will jump on board should Madsen be successful, but atm I don't see him as a good fit for Cal. For furd, sure ~ but not Cal.
It should concern you, GEAT…when have you known me to be optimistic? ;-) I’ve been called a nega-Bear for my anti-Wilcox sentiments, but I’m working on that…
I think he’s gotta strike with something quick, first year…get some portal wins, a solid transfer, maybe keep Rodney Brown in the fold, and keep Celestine and Newell out of the portal. He can’t go full rebuild and win 7 games next year, even though that would be double the win total. I want 10-12.
And I’m not completely optimistic…I think Knowlton is such a tool that I have not completely ruled out the possibility that Madsen gets cold feet and leaves us at the alter, and then we’re completely screwed. THAT would be so on brand for Knowlton its ridiculous.
Let's offer Madsen for Taylor, straight up swap. Dump Wilcox and Haase.
only if we toss in JK at no charge. We'll even keep paying his salary for 8 years.
As one of my buddies said: As long as we can't pay football or basketball in a swimming pool,we are going to suck, as much as our institutional support sucks.
I like the hire of Mark Madsen very much. Hopefully he gets the support of Cal's Administration!
It’s hard to take a process as objective when it involves 3 old white men cutting themselves off from the rest of the base to make this decision The result is entirely predictable. Given this is 2023 and this is Berkeley of all places, I expected better.
UCLA fan here: I think this is a great hire for you guys and Stanford will be kicking themselves for years for keeping Haase when Madsen was available.
As for the hiring process...all I can say is that UCLA's process was quick, quiet, and painless when we hired Steve Alford and an absolute embarrassing circus playing out across the national media when we hired Mick Cronin. It's all about the result.
Well, other than the fact that Madsen is associated with THE two sports teams that I loathe more than any other in this world, it seems that this hire could turn out okay...or it could be a disaster. I remain ambivalent about Cal MBB as that leave me less vulnerable to false hopes.
Hard to know if the process was good, but if it's Madsen then he isn't an obviously bad hire. He's a guy with west-coast connections who has had success coaching at a smaller school. A reasonable choice.
Would I have preferred Pasternack? Yes, but I also have to acknowledge that when picking between these mid-major coaches with similar resumes it's hard to know who will hit and who will not. We'll see!
Has there been any more insight on why AAR (apparently) isn't being offered the job? Was he never a legit option, despite appearances, or something in the interview gave pause? Not sure if anything credible leaked.
Hear! Hear! Article and Chitwood very solid. I now know what I'll be doing Tuesday night.
Check out Aziz Bandaogo, a 7’ RS SO from Senegal that averages 11 pts, 10 reb per night…a beast. He already transferred from Akron, tho, so not sure he’ll be eligible to move again…but kid can ball.
I know this might not be the comparison that we'd like to hear, but Madsen could be to Cal basketball to what Harbaugh was to Stanford football. Sometimes you need an energetic, intelligent, focused, winner to come in and set up an identity. Utah Valley, if you watch them, are a damn well coached team.
Great article Nick and you really covered the salient issues. The fact is, we probably will never know exactly what took place inside the athletic departments' inner sanctum on this hire, but presumably this was a more competent process than the recent searches.
guys need to look past mad dogs furd history and just look what he can offer based on what hehas done since playing days. he coached fardaw aimaq to 2 time defensive player of yr in the conference and is projected to be drafted in nba. although FA is playing 4 texas tech now via portal if it wasnt 4 mad dog he wouldnt be taken by them
mad dog would be a decent hire at least. if you read all the stories about him on the internet if they r true he seems 2 check all the boxes that cal desires. he would appreciate the hi academic standards at cal and will look 4 certain recruits that seek the same student athlete expectations. he def can coach coming from nba and g league and attending youth camps while as a professional. if hes smart he would surround himself with asst coaches that will teach our young men x's n o's and out hustle opponents thats how he played. he was a laker fav becuz of it and uses his limited talent vs other nba elites to the fullest. hopefully he can inspire the team n new recruits to play for him
For those who want to know more I think reading through his blog (albeit pretty sporadic postings) will tell you all you need to know about him.
I must admit I have / had reservations about him being a Mormon Furdie from San Ramon coaching a team in Utah full of oafy white dudes but after reading a bit about his opinions I feel he is a good intellectual fit.
My worry now goes from “he’ll just bounce to furd when he sees any hinkling of success because furdie” to “he’ll just bounce to a fUCLA type job at the first jingle due to the fact that he is a gym rat type with clearly larger goals than cal and Knowlton is too much of a slap dick to draft a contract that makes that option expensive for him”
www.markmadsen.com