Billy Gillispie- the Charlie Weis of College Basketball
Billy Gillispie is a very good college basketball coach and I don’t think anyone will dispute that statement, but what he is doing at Kentucky is less than impressive. Gillispie’s Wildcats got pounded last night at Houston and are on their way to a tough season where it will be hard for them to finish at or above .500.
I don’t fault Gillispie for everything, just like I don’t fault Charlie Weis for everything at Notre Dame. Gillispie will win at Kentucky but he must be given time. I don’t feel it is any coincidence that Tubby Smith resigned his post seeing what he had coming back. I think Tubby sensed that and got out and got a good job while he still could. Charlie Weis will win at Notre Dame in football also and his ability to recruit will be the key. The Irish have the top recruiting class in the country coming in again so success for them isn’t far off and he deserves a chance to see that through. Gillispie will get his recruits in there playing the type of game he wants to play and they’ll win. Gillispie is a Bill Self disciple and is set on the high/low offense that Kansas uses. Tubby Smith had Kentucky playing a more up and down game with a motion offense and believe me that it makes a difference. Coaches love to recruit kids to fit a certain system and Gillispie will bring those kids in.
My one question mark is his recent hiring of Tracy Webster from Illinois. Webster never proved to be that great of a recruiter for Illinois. If a guy can’t recruit local kids coming off a National Championship run in 2005, then how good is going to be trying to fill some holes on a sub .500 team that couldn’t beat Gardner-Webb? Meanwhile, Illinois hires Jerrance Howard from Kentucky and he comes in and closes on 4 top 100 recruits in a matter of weeks, which is something Webster never did.
College basketball needs Kentucky to be good because they are such a national team and a team that has the most passionate fans in the sport. Gillispie is sinking now but years from now Kentucky will be better off for hiring him. He’s underachieving like Charlie Weis as it sits but both programs will return to prominence under them.
