[Cactus Jack]

Would Danny Hurley(or Billy Donovan) turn down $20 million/year for 10 years? I think not! Offer it! Hurley would be on a plane and in Lexington tomorrow.

They wouldn't turn that down but Gregg Popovich is the highest paid NBA Coach (and is the Spurs' President) and he makes $16 million per. If we're paying 125% of the highest salary in the game, we should go ahead and see if it's enough for Phil Jackson or Steve Kerr while we're at it. $20 million is more than double the salary of the current NCAA leader's ~$9.5 million per.

I don't understand why Drew and Oats are even being mentioned :)

Because they are realistic names. Maybe you swing for the fences and get someone better. More likely, you put out feelers for your Donovans, Hurleys, and the like and get a quick no.

From there, you start needing a safe candidate that you know you can get. If they are also familiar with the college game insofar as the transfer portal and NIL landscapes, that's even better.


Nate Oats plays an exciting brand, is younger, and has a higher ceiling overall. Plus you are taking him from Alabama. There is the issue with his buyout and him being in a Stoops type situation where he'll never be fired for a few mediocre seasons at Alabama.


Scott Drew is more of a high-floor, mid-ceiling type. Not flashy but has a genuine feel that would connect with lots of fans. Baylor is a private school, so he can't go to his State Legislature for funding and though the details of his contract aren't entirely public, he has a relatively low salary and buyout.

He has also shown the ability to adapt, which Kentucky fans will probably welcome in the wake of Calipari. Drew went from recruiter/offensive coach who played lots of (gimmicky) zone to a team that, like many in Texas, including Beard's Texas Tech team, jumped on the aggressive "no middle" man-to-man defensive wave around COVID. To go from playing lots of 1-3-1 and 1-1-3 to "no middle" is a pretty big transition.

Even though the concept and defense itself weren't entirely new, the fact that there are now TONS of high school teams in Texas playing no middle is probably due to the success of the Bears and Red Raiders in consecutive years. Now teams are starting to catch on and Drew's defense dropped back to Earth this season, but the cat and mouse games of strategy continue.

If nothing else, he seems receptive to change in coaching philosophy and a willingness to try and stay ahead of the curve in the same way that Calipari tried to stay ahead in things like recruiting, "Pro Day" combines, NIL, etc.


At the end of the day, he obviously isn't the best candidate on anyone's Dream List, but Dream Lists are just that. There are questions about how he'd translate and what his true ceiling at Kentucky is. He's not the biggest name or a sexy hire, but he's also the most accomplished of the realistic options (read: he, Oats, Pearl, etc.) and would be the first coach in Kentucky history to have an NCAA Championship on his resume coming in.

He isn't Dan Hurley or Billy Donovan, but probably has a Tubby Smith type floor: a likeable guy who wins games, regular season titles, and conference tournaments; doesn't miss the Big Dance; seems unlikely to do anything that would tarnish the program's image; and doesn't come off as someone who thinks that they are bigger than the program and it's traditions.

Worst case, he just doesn't translate well. Year one sees a mish-mash roster but he gets a pass on a piecemeal team that misses the tournament. Years two, three, and four see disappointing regular seasons (by Kentucky standards) and early tournament exits (by last three years of Kentucky standards). Recruiting, the portal, and NIL aren't going well and it doesn't look like there's a solid plan for Final Fours and National Championships in place. Fans revolt, Drew is fired, and we begin the coaching search anew.

Best case, he nourishes the program over an eight to ten year career and is able to win at least one, but possibly two, National Championships while he and the school work on a succession plan that ultimately ends in his retiring with a replacement waiting in the wings.