Coaches dish to us on best 🏀 hires, top players, 5-in-5 lawsuits, gambling, the top team of the 21st century and much more

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1:04Mercury is a FinTech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided through choice financial group and column NA members FDIC. Hey there, I am Gary Parish. Welcome back, CBS Sports Ion College Basketball Podcast where we sometimes discuss camera fighting Dota Birds and Likki Black Matt Norlander is here with me and today we are going to revisit our candid coaches series that wrapped up on Friday. We asked roughly 100 coaches, nine different questions. We granted anonymity and exchange for what we hope is honesty. Norlander we started this thing back in 2012. So at least 15 years in the books provided we didn't skip the COVID year. I didn't skip the COVID year. I was hoping we didn't. Anyway, how you doing? Good to see you on a Tuesday after a long time. For a Labor Day weekend, did you celebrate labor?

2:06Did you spend the weekend celebrating labor? I celebrated labor all weekend. I did not. I celebrated my mother. Happy birthday to my mother, whose birthday fell on Labor Day this year. Also took a dip into New York City in San old college friend and had a good time there. It was not our 15th edition. We did not do candid coaches in 2020 because we are in the midst of the worst pandemic of our lifetimes. There was no live recording period that year and honestly we are all dealing with a lot. So we punted on that. So this was our 14th edition, I guess. Next year provided we keep up with our habits. It'll be the 15th one. But before we get into the questions, we're going to, this is going to be one huge recap show. Got a lot of interesting responses. I have not talked with G. Sometimes I like when we, we don't have too much contact and then we can just come into a show fresh. Is that Vegas behind? I have no idea where Parishes right now. Do you have a new studio? Is that Memphis and I don't know what recognized the building right behind you? That would be, that's Memphis Tennessee right behind. It is Memphis Tennessee behind you.

3:07Okay. That would be historic Bill Street right behind me. That would be, what's the tallest building behind you there? Yeah. That's the first horizon building. Okay. That would be the tallest building perhaps. One of the tallest buildings in Memphis. Be a very mediocre building in New York City. Okay. Exactly. I knew that you had, I think you took a Labor Day jaunt and I didn't know if you were still away or not. I was like, I don't think that's Vegas. So he's, that's an old Vegas and there's no way that Parishes staying in old Vegas. Do you have a new studio? No. They hear, are you just off in a different part of the building mall? Your typical studio is being used for another show. Exactly right. Often a different part of the building. They got another show going to use the studio that I use at 1230 Central. And so unless we were going to do a 29 minute episode, I was going to need to set up shops somewhere else. I had time to go home, but I need to be back up here at 130 Central, 230 Eastern. By the way, that's our out time today. So I just decided to stay here. We're good. Set up shop in a different room. This used to be the Gris gaming room. We had a gaming team and so they would sit in here and you know, play Xbox all day or

4:11longer, whatever. But now it's mostly cleared out. And so yeah, this is me. That's beautiful build street right behind you. There we go. Okay. One day I hope to get down to your, uh, tier hometown. But that's the way this goes. If you live in Memphis. So like there's never really a reason for me to go and cover the tigers or anything like that, but I do want to get to Memphis someday somehow. Let's, uh, I give you a real quick story. Not many of my CBS colleagues have ever come to my hometown, but every once in a while they do. And Greg Doyle did our old friend Greg Doyle, who's now the commson Indianapolis. Of course, he was once the columnist at CBS Sports dot com. And he was coming in town for, I believe the Western conference finals spurs and grislies. And so he said, G P, I'm coming to Memphis for the Western conference finals. And I'd really like to come down and see your dog. That's just literally how he said it. I'd like to come down and see your dog. And I was like, man, I'd love for you to come down and see my dog because he'd see my dog on social media. I guess. And he said, uh, okay, cool. Can you just like send me your address? And like on Sunday, I guess I'll just come down and see your dog. And I was like, yeah, man, that sounds great.

5:12So I grabbed my wife and I said, hey, Greg Doyle is going to come over on Sunday. And he said he just wants to come see the dog. But like, I think that's his probably his way of saying, I, you know, don't want to invite yourself. But like, let's, let's like, let's get some steaks and let's like get the grill going and let's like make a whole Sunday out of it and just hang out about a pool in the backyard with Greg Doyle's coming down. This is going to be great. She's like, yeah, let's do that. That'll be fun. And so we got it off. We went shopping and we got every all the food and we got everything ready. And I was like, Greg Doyle's coming over and this dude came over and he knocked on the door and I said, great, I gave him a big hug. And he said, where's that little dog at? And I said, she's right over there and he went and pet the dog and then he hung out with the dog for about 10 minutes. And he's like, oh, yeah. I swear to God, he was like, I don't want to get out of here. And I said, I guess he was, I guess he was really serious about it. He just wanted to come see the dog. He didn't want to see my kids. I don't even think he wanted to see me. He just came down, saw the dog and bounced. And I thought it was awesome because he's like, I wouldn't, I wouldn't be capable of doing that. Yeah. But he's very Doyle. Yeah.

6:12So anyway, he laughed and we kept steaks. It was good. Good Sunday. How about that? Good little, good little nugget there. All right, let's dive in because we got to cover nine questions and some will be longer than others. We do have a hard out. This is going to, we know 32 minutes show today, folks. We heard the feedback. Some of you were like, no, I want an hour long shoot around. Well, you got a few of those, but we try to keep it relatively contained. We have broken contain on this here episode. So GP, you want to go through this in the order in which all these questions published? Yeah, we had nine questions. I think Nourlander handled, we all asked coaches the questions and then we get the results. We compile them. And then I think Nourlander handled five of them. I handled four. I think we're going to get you getting that extra one. We started with this one. Yes or no, do you support 2016 years getting a fifth year and being grandfathered into the five for five rule? This is obviously a big topic of conversation, not just in basketball, but athletics around the country right now, especially down in Baton Rouge, where LSU might be on the verge of getting failed from the SEC. They're not going to expel LSU, but I love the fact that this has become the emergent

7:17SEC headline in college sports here on Tuesday, September 8th. We just got to, the SEC has got to a point where they're like, we might just have to kick them out. They won't listen to us. This actually, we need to try and stay relatively focused. But when I saw this headline bubble up all of like three hours ago, I don't know how often or for how long you would have lived with your college buddies in college or after college, but I after college, like I lived in a house with college buddies for a good two, three, three years or so. Listen, at one point it was six of us in this house, and there were a couple of times for different reasons where we had to have like come to Jesus meetings over like, are we are we going to kick this dude out of the house? Because he hasn't paid his utilities or his rent in three months. Like at some point, like we just can't, it can't keep up, we can't keep up with it. We cannot keep doing this. It never got to that point. We want to actually, with one house mate, he kind of knew the deal, his lease, his year and the house was up. He went and he found somewhere else to live.

8:18But that's for this, that's for this feels like you're all trying to live in a house together. There's a problem resident and you're really at the end of it. You're probably not going to be able to have that be actionable. But damn, it is hilarious that through legal means, LSU wants it on the books. Hey, do we need to, do we need to meet Thursday about noon here and see if we're kicking LSU, a founding member of our conference out of the league? Oh boy. And they won't do it for the obvious reasons because as soon as you do, they'll say, hey, we'll act right big 10, come get us. And now you just lost your best football program to the big 10. So it's a, it's a hilarious headline. Probably goes no further than the headline. But we'll see. I didn't think it'd go this far. Anyway, the question, do you support 2026 seniors getting a fifth year, I mean, grandfathered into the five for five rule. 58% of the people who responded said yes, 42% of the coaches said no, what's your main takeaway from this one? Well, before I get to the takeaway, I'm just going to toss in a few quotes from these coaches,

9:21not too many, but I saved a couple of someone, never someone. I know some of you watching and listening didn't read the stories. Please go do so because we put a ton of work into it. And it's all, it's always really enlightening. But I just want to at least invoke some of these coaches, thoughts and voices into this. And then I'll give you my takeaway for those who voted yes. And it was more yes than no. But close to 50, 50 overall, one coach who voted for yes said, making this rule announcing it before the start of classes is maybe the dumbest move of all time. Maybe as dumb as Mark Emert saying, paying players will never happen. Another coach said, I wish it was done either last October and was first being discussed. Or in the spring, however, all of us think our world is the most important. And it's not the if the rule officially changed any other time, football would be 100% more chaotic with losses than what basketball is seeing currently. And quote, I agree with that. Another coach said, simply put many others before them benefited from an extra year. And many others after them will get an extra year. The end of the show roll is out in November, not June. Basically begging to get sued.

10:22And another coach who voted no said, yes, I will either be warden, norton. And his office are red meeting up with Andy on the beach in a month's time. I thought that was a very funny quote for a couple of coaches that voted no. One said, no, timing is messed up, not sustainable, no rules. And where does it stop? Fair point. Another coach said, I'm against it. And yes, I will take one or possibly two if we'll feel confident they'll play. So some of the coaches were open and honest about the fact that like, I have a stance. I have an opinion, but yes, I will act in a hypocritical manner. If there's an avenue or a player that wants to play for me is going to take a legal matter. Yes, I will do that. But you're asking me what my opinion on it. This coach said, no, I thought this was interesting. He said, at the end of the season, I had a senior come into my office. And he wanted to try and come back. My compliance director, in addition to Darren Heitner, who's obviously the very online lawyer who's represented a number of these players and a number of these cases, even he said, even Heitner said, the player then, Mrs. Back-and-Like, March or whatever, had no case. So then the coach went on to say, so we went about finding him an agent in his first overseas job. We were told very specifically for a long time that the five for five would not pass then.

11:27So now we have to upset the apple cart and quote. And then another coach who said, no, just ripped the bandit off. We could go back every year and say the same thing. If so, this coach is obviously a former player. He said, let's go back to 2008 so I can get some money. There's even more quotes in the story there. I'm not surprised. This is close to 50-50. This has obviously been a very, very high topic. We'll probably get to more of it even later in the week on the show. The coaches that voted on either side of this GP, I understand where they are coming from. And I feel that. The one thing that I want to say just about every coach that invoked this feeling or opinion as I talked to him or texted with them is they want it to be one of the other. They want it to be okay. If we're doing this, it's nobody or it's got to be everybody. And as I told a number of these coaches, I'm sorry man, that's not how this is going to go. The way you want it to be, that's not how it is. Because what's going to probably happen here is that there will be some players that lose. There will be either the NCAA or whomever is going to win at the legal level.

12:30It's primarily NCAA here, the SEC stuff being a complete aside with all that stuff. So you'll probably have some players that want to get it and they won't get it. But others, guess what? They are going to get it. They're going to win out. I believe. I don't. I can't see a scenario in which the NCAA, although to this point on September 8th, it's been able to kind of hold steady GP a little bit. It's legs in the boat or wobbly. Don't get me wrong, but it has not been a blow. If they've won a couple of stays in these cases, have been pushed down the pike a little bit. But the way that these coaches want it, it's not going to be how it is. I can't tell you the percentage. I don't know if 40% 50%, 75% of players are going to get cleared. But they will. And then there's going to be other players who for what will seem like from a far, completely arbitrary reasons, they will not be allowed. That additional, again, we're talking specifically, graduating seniors in May of 2026 that want that bonus year. It's just going to be inconsistent across the board. This will be a one-off year theoretically knock on what it should be. But it hasn't stopped this from being the topic in all of college basketball. The number one in this offseason.

13:30Perhaps there was no perfect time to implement this rule change, but there was a better time. Well, on that note, though, this is my speculation after having talked to a couple of people. The NCAA changed this quite literally the day after the end of the 2526 academic athletic season. So the college world series ended on whatever the day that was in late June. The very next day, the NCAA came out and voted on and said, okay, here's our rule. And I think they did that to protect them legally down the road for what they knew was coming. I don't disagree with you, and particularly as a pretext of basketball, it impacts there. But I don't find it to be a coincidence that they did it as from a calendar standpoint, quite literally the first day possible that they could have done it and instituted it. They waited until the previous season's worth of sports finished, and that's why they did it. Just for clarity's sake, but I know where you're getting it, and I'm not even disagreeing with that. Yeah, and just what I heard from a lot of coaches, and I think this is this is the main issue, and you touched on it a little bit. If you ask them independently, do you think guys who played in the NBA summer league should

14:35be coming back to college basketball? They will almost all say no. If you just say, like, does it feel right? Just like, just doesn't feel right. Forget the rules and laws. Does it feel like what college basketball is? Does it sound like what you got into this to do? You used to recruit 17-year-olds at a high school. Now you're recruiting out of the NBA summer league. Does it feel right? Almost all of them will say no, of course not. And then you say, okay, but I got an all-American available $2.5 million. You want him? Yeah, I might take him. I mean, that's where you're at. These guys will say, I don't think former pros should be in college basketball. This is sickening. And you say, okay, what are you doing tomorrow? Jump it on a plane and fly in a Serbia to look for a former pro. So, there's also that inconsistency. Undeniable. Yes. Right. For the amount of oxygen this topic has gotten, it really should just be a one-year thing. And that's why I don't disagree with the people who

15:39think that the NCAA might have just big picture. Just stayed out of it. Just been like, hey, whatever you guys want to do, let them come back. Yeah. And just we're not going to fight every fight across the country. But they've decided to fight. And so now we've got fights going on everywhere. But the coaches, you know what they told us, was 58% of them are okay with it. 42% are not. We can keep moving along because we got more to talk to them. But there's a good chance we're going to talk about this in the next episode. So we'll have more to say on this topic. In general, but that was the first one that we rolled out. JPL take the next one here. The next one was question two was who's going to be the best player in 2026, 2027, men's college basketball. 16 players received at least one vote. There was an overwhelming winner. And it's Tommy Halk got a Florida, got 43%. Then you got Jeremy Fears Jr., who had 15% Tyler Tanner of Vanderbilt, had 14% those are the only three players that received a double digit percentage in the voting return. And then I think there really was a top five overall. The Halk was on his own tier. Fears Jr. and Tanner on tier two.

16:39And then tier three was David Merckovich of Illinois, who had 6% Tyron Stokes, the incoming freshman at Kansas, received 5% if you want to vote any other players. GP feel free. My only quick thought on this and then take it away and we can go to the next one if you want. I think I might have mentioned this on the show recently. I understand why Halk got a big percentage of the vote. He probably would have been a lottery pick. He comes back to college basketball. I get all that. Just I think there are going to be nights peppered here and there where like Halk might be the third most impactful player on Florida's team because of all the talent that they have around him. So I'm not surprised that he won. I think I expected him to win, but I don't agree with the margins here. I think when we get to the end of March and we've essentially voted on our 2627 National Player of the Airman's College Basketball, if it is indeed Halk, which is obviously very possible, I don't think that I don't think he's going to have run away with the award. That's what I'm kind of getting in here. So I was a little bit surprised by how big the margin was in relation to fears and Tanner,

17:42who are point guards who are going to have the ball in their hands way more often than Halk will on a prepossession basis and fears in his specific case. You know, he could be preseason and consistent top 10 team. So that was my my primary takeaway. Stokes getting 5% didn't surprise me. I think some coaches that voted for him are going on talent alone. Others they know there's just been more stuff attached to them. They kind of want to see how that whole experiment works at Kansas. I'm with you on how I mean, if you just want to do best player on best team, certainly on paper, that's the guy. But the safer picked to me for all the reasons you laid out, it would be fears or Tanner, just because they we know like how it's going to be Florida's best player over the course of a season. I don't know that he's going to be Florida's most productive best player every night. Jeremy fears is going to be Michigan State's best player every night. Tanner's going to be Vanderbilt's best player every night. And so I might go with one of the little guards who are also going to be on top 25-ish teams.

18:42Michigan State top 10 with most people Vanderbilt borderline top 25-ish. But Halk should be best best player on best team. I'm not surprised that he won the vote. But if you told me right now I could 100 bucks take the field or him, I'd comfortably take the field. Then let's just segue the best team here. Florida wins in dominant fashion. I don't think I went back and checked every... We do this question every year like we do as player and the one after this we'll talk about. I don't think this was our most dominant return, but 55% for Florida, 16% for Duke, 7% for Tennessee, which I found. I actually kind of like that because I'm high on Tennessee. I think I'm higher than your average voter on Tennessee. I did not expect the balls to be the number three team in this return, though, which is why I love doing the series. Yukon and Illinois both tied with 5% of peace. Just a quick couple of quotes here on these and then give me your thoughts on this. We don't have to linger too long. Florida winning being the overall number one. It's not remotely shocking. One coach said there's, I think there's no excuse for Florida not to sit at number one.

19:43For most of the year, 80% of the scoring back with three true front court monsters that probably eclipse most teams total salaries by themselves. That's a... What I believe to be an accurate quote. Another coach said, not even close in my opinion. The combination of great returning players along with Todd Golden and Carl and Hartman at the helm is unmatched. Aberdeen being somewhat clear to play a fifth year is just icing on the cake. Really tough schedule obviously, but I could see them dropping only four games before the SEC tournament starts. One coach who was in on Duke said I'm buying on Duke. I think they had the best blend of returning talent and acquisition. Plus the way they're years ended the last two years and collapse. They're due for some good luck. Maybe that's right. And then one coach gave me that spoke on Illinois. I said, I think Illinois with the best team in the country, they have skilled toughness and chemistry. Brad Underwood knows how to win with this group. Plus it looks like the players actually like each other from the outside looking in. Chemistry matters in this landscape. And quote, believe I got that from a big 10 coach by the way. So we're not stunned by Florida. I don't think we were even remotely surprised by the gap. But we must note that Florida 55% to Illinois 16% almost looking at that there.

20:45What? 40% difference in the percentage total. Gators will be the overwhelming number one going into November. This is one where I mean, it's obviously high. And you got to play the games and all that stuff. But on paper in August, September. Like that's the obvious right choice. That's the obvious right answer to the question posed. Who do you think is going to be the best team in college basketball this season? If you just want to buy into the talent at Duke is overwhelming. And I'm just going to believe in the most talented roster. And the deepest roster. And that's the Duke roster. Fine with me. That makes sense. But if you're really picking between. I mean, I think anybody, I think you can buy Duke's unknown talent and just be like, I believe in that. But outside of Duke, I don't really know how there's another correct possible answer to this question. I mean, Tiddle Illinois. I think Illinois has the case. Yeah, yeah. Okay, that's fine. That's fine. But like, yeah. And by the way, we asked this question.

21:46Mercury, which is going to be back before the start of the season. Right. I don't think all of our voting return had come back. But most of it had. And then the news came out that he was hurt. But like this Florida team, I think maybe people forget because they didn't go to a final four. And they weren't. They got off to a not a rough start, but a little bit of an uneven start, relative to how they're seeing. They just lost all the good teams they played early. Yeah. And so they, but by the end of it, that was a team that won the SEC. I believe by four games. The SEC was, you know, some metrics, the toughest league in the country. They got a one seat in the NCAA tournament. And they bring back six of the top seven scores from that team. I mean, that's a, that's obviously not unheard of, but it's very rare to bring back six of the top seven from a number one seed. It's obviously the byproduct of NIL and all of that stuff. But to me, that's, it came in at 55%. I recognize that's high. If you told me right now, I could take Florida or the field to win the NCAA tournament.

22:47Again, I would take the field. Yeah. But if you told me seven, the percent of the coaches poll just said Florida's, the, I think the pick, that would make sense to me. Because on paper, it's so obviously is. Yeah, I agree. Before we get to another question, we ask every year. There's three questions we ask every single summer because they just make sense to kind of set the table going in. Josh, it's been, it's been a minute since we've had our, I think, I think we need a word from our party. Give me a land man. Come on, land man. Let's go. Land man. I think season, I think we did you know, I didn't know if he had land man in the chamber there. What was that? That was, I was trying to speak it into existence just like, love all dead. Just like love all dead with his kids. I was trying to speak it into existence just like love are did once but it done. Okay. It wasn't anticipating love all draw off on today's show, but we're, we're back. Okay. Fourth question. Yep. Who, who was the best coaching hire of 2026? It was actually competitive at the top.

23:48Two men got at least 30% of the vote, but Randy Bennett at Arizona State was the leading vote getter at 32% followed by Jared Calhoun, 30% at Cincinnati, Michael Malone, Brian Hawkson, Will Wade, Justin Gainey, KSC Alexander, Luke Murray, rounded out the coaches who got at least 2% of the vote. As I wrote, I handled this one. It's sort of interesting that Randy Bennett is the answer to this question because it was starting to look like he would never even be a possible answer to this question. Again, the question is who's the best coaching hire and you got to change jobs to be that. And it didn't look like Randy Bennett was ever going to change a job. But because I really do think you could trace it all back to this. The big 10 killed the pack 12 and then the pack 12 remade itself and then Gonzaga decided that's where we're going to go play basketball. It made St. Mary's a lesser job. If only because you don't have a perennial top 25 program looking back at you. And it free Randy up at this point in his life to go back to his home state and coach in the big 12.

24:57And I saw him at big 12 spring meetings and just caught up with him very briefly, but it was just good to see him. He had had some health issues. I think shortly after he was hired at Arizona State, but he looked good, said he was feeling good and at least the coaches we pull believe he's the best hire of this coaching cycle in 2026. Yeah, and narrowly 32% to cow. And 30% Michael Malone, by the way, 16% of the votes. So those were the three coaches that had a double digit return, but Bennett had twice as many as Malone. When I was making calls and texts on this, this was the horse race between Bennett and Calhoun. Like at one point, Calhoun was like three up, then Bennett caught him, then Calhoun was one up. So from the beginning until the very end when we traded our votes and quotes, I knew it was going to be one of these two. I just had no idea who was going to wind up. When he were if they're going to tie, Bennett wound up getting a win. Here's a couple of quotes from fellas around the industry on him. One coach said, quote, this is probably the first time in a while there isn't a surefire answer on a question like this. I'll go Randy Bennett.

25:58He's simply the coach that has done it at an extremely high level the longest. Another said, most experience on the list. And probably highest winning percentage on the list. Proven program builder has won for a long time. Stayed in the region, really impressive pickup. Another proven winner done it consistently for a long time. And now he's got more money. He's not going to forget how to win. And now he's got more money. Two more that I liked. He knows what he wants and how it should look like. He's not guessing. I love that quote. And then another coach just simply said his record at St. Mary's is truly amazing. He went 589 and 228. That's correct. He's got the best winning percentage. The most wins all of that. There's a lot of reasons why Bennett should have won this poll. The Calhoun being so close, GPI found interesting. One coach said Calhoun is about to become a household name. And the name that any year or two will be rumored to leave for one of the blue blood jobs that's available. I think he's truly underrated and will get Cincinnati rolling fast. He's one of the guys who had an opportunity to sharpen his iron at a lower level with limited pressure. Now he knows who he is as a coach and exactly what they need to be great. As long as Cincinnati is willing to put the dollars behind an NIL,

26:58he will be the next big name. Power five coach to emerge. Another said, best hires should mean best fit what the job actually is. Knowledge of the program. Recruiting. Portal management. Building a program day to day. Calhoun's done that twice at two different levels from the ground up. That's proof. Not projection in my opinion. Another coach said, my gut says to go with Jared Calhoun. That guy can flat out coach some ball and does it innovatively and creatively at a place that is starving for some success. So they will give him resources to do so. Strong recruiter. Good coach. Great resources. New energy. Great hire on Malone. We talked about this on a previous episode. But one coach just said, I don't give a flying bleep about the other candidates and even close Mike Malone is the best hire by far. The guy won an NBA championship. Another said championship level coach coupled with UNC Legacy and Resources. We'll wait with LSU resources and somewhat legal cheating. We'll be interesting to watch playouts. Another coach said we'll be very difficult to argue against Mike Malone given his track record.

27:58And the similarities between college and pro basketball today. You cannot question his coaching acumen and quote unquote recruiting as much more roster building when you have UNC Resources. Coach Malone has always gotten the most out of his teams. The old school can he recruit question for NBA guys is moot here just a couple more GP. On Hodgson, perfect match of coach and fan base. One coach told me for his brash and confidence he is. It's hard to argue with production. He's a really good coach with a really good staff that plays to an identity. They will be a problem in the big east on Luke Murray. Quote an elite offensive coach, a proven recruiter. He had a big hand in UConn success the past few years. He's smart, a grinder and they need a grinder to help turn it around. And then I found it very interesting that will wait. One coach said, was a good quote proven winner and makes the LSU athletic department similar to a real housewives reality show. Keep in mind, I got this quote seven weeks ago. Like way ahead of all this stuff. And he said, none of the other guys scare me, weighed scares me and quote, however, we asked this question obviously last year.

28:59And will waited just gotten to NC State and he finished second in that poll with 22, 23% of that vote this year. Same coach for the most part did get NC State, although barely, but got NC State to the tournament near one at a place that's really looking to get to the tournament every single year. Will wait only had 3% of the vote. And to me, as a couple of coaches actually told me with that first quote I shared with UGP, where they basically said, like, this is the first time in a few years it feels like to me, like there isn't like, oh, that's the guy. So, you know, so some guys took benefits, some guys took a couple and I get all that. Resume wise, it's been a not it's not close, but I get the sentiment of all that. The fact that wait only got 3% to me signifies that a lot of coaches around the country just did not like remotely how he handled his exit at NC State and his entrance into LSU. And the fact that when I'm asking by the way, when we are asking this question to coaches, end of July and into August, LSU has four players publicly available on their roster, four of them. So I think all of these things combine, but his drop off after just a year.

30:02Now, keep in mind, don't ask the same group of, you know, approximately 100 coaches every single year. I intentionally I cycle out through every four or five years. I make sure I don't repeat coaches year after year. I don't even go back like the coaches that I asked this year, we're still doing this. How about this? The coaches that I asked in 2026, there wasn't a coach on my list that I had asked as recently as 2022. So the coaches that I surveyed this year, I'd gotten them in 21, 22, 2019. The point is, it's not the same sample size from last year's this year, the same grouping of people, but I still found it super interesting that wait only got 3% of the vote. It's never the same group, but I'm opposite you. If I got good responders, I mean, I've got a file. I've got a list of coaches names and I'm like, this dude gets back to you in three minutes. So I will go back to the same people often year after year. And what are the notes I make? Because I wrote this one was that this is one where the coaches tend to get it right. You know, just in recent history, let me make sure I've got it

31:04right. Last year, you know, they told us would be the best. That my problem. Oh, really, McCollum, McCollum wanted it. Ben McCollum and I will want it last year went to the elite eight and year one. That worked out. Year before that, the top two vote getters were John Calaparito, Arkham Saw, and Dusty made a Michigan. That seems to be going well for clearly went well for one. I think it's going well for both. One year before that, the runaway winner was Ripotino at St. John's. That's obviously going well. He is. I know you know this number, but it's just always funny when I go back and look at it. Ripotino is 42 and four against Big E's teams over the past two years. With two outright conference championships and two conference tournament championships off the top of my head. The only coach that best that is Shire Duke at the high major level. It might be in all in every conference period, but that's that's a crazy number. Yeah. So this is one more coaches, at least in the past three years have pretty much nailed it. So if they're telling us Randy Bennett, Jericho, who knows the two best here, then you know, maybe there's something to it,

32:08but like you, I a little surprised Michael Malone didn't get. I wasn't more competitive with them, because to me, it's NBA championship and cool and top five job. That's just a that's a hard combination to screw up. I think I think the reason why he didn't get and he did get 16% of the vote and he's never been a head coach to the college level. Great to do everything with the nuggets and all that. I think it speaks to some of the dysfunction that has been on display at the University of North Carolina. By the way, dysfunction that is continually ongoing. I'll be on the full-ball side, but stuff like that can sometimes seep into other other other. So I think there's some of some of it's that and some of it's just coaches, you know, interview just the variety. Like I definitely some of the coaches I talked to are not yet 35 and others are in their 60s, right? But a lot of the coaches that were say 50 plus that that I hold and surveyed, they just know what they've seen either quite literally by having to scheme against Bennett or Calhoun or maybe even Hodgson who's, you know, a relatively new head coach. They just haven't seen

33:13proof of concept with Michael Malone. And so that's why it's still a respectable number. He did come in third. Well, I will not be surprised if an NBA championship winning head coach goes to a blue blood program and we check in in 2029 and he's done the best of anyone that's hired this year. That will not be a surprise. That's all I'm saying is like a guy who is obviously skilled enough to win an NBA title now has one of the best jobs in college basketball. It guarantees nothing, but that is a hard thing that's a that's a great combination. You know, that I want to say you can't screw it up, but or can't go poorly, but I've been consistent on that. I'll bet on that combination. Let's go to fifth question. Will coaches have more or less or about the same amount of job security with an expanded 76 team in CWA tournament? Here's what coaches told us less job security, 44%, about the same 37%, even more 19%. What'd you make of that? Okay, so fewer than one in five coaches, we pulled, believe that their situations broadly speaking in the profession will

34:16be improved by an expanded and sub-eternimate. To me, that is a notable result. I wanted to go more or less, but I some of these coaches, man, you give them a direct question and they still don't answer it the right way. We're going to get to that on one of these questions here. I knew if I said, is it going to be more or less 15 of these dudes would have said, probably the same amount of change. So I put the option there just to have it in there, 37% fine. To me, the answer is obvious. It being less, it's less secure. You have more spots to get into the tournament, but everyone knows it will be easier now than at any point in the history of this sport to make it into the championship event with that come expectations to do it every year at the high, basically at the high-major level, just about every single program, not everyone. I'm not saying in BC in year one, expects to get to the tournament under Luke Murray, but from the BCs to all the way up the blue blood level, like they're just will not be a lack of making the tournament will not be tolerated. I think it's less. Here's what a couple of coaches told me. One coach simply said less, more money always leads to this. I completely agree with that. Another one said less is this series question.

35:22It gives ADs more reason to justify rast decisions here that once that I think there will be less job security, especially now that revenue sharing is in full swing. I have a coaching friend at a prominent mid-major program. He told me that before a big game last February, the chancellor of the school came into the coaches locker room and said to the entire staff, I did my job. Now it's time to do yours. There will be more pressure and more expectations from administrators and boosters as investment dollars continue to rise. Another coach said, if you don't make the field, you are very likely out. If you make the field, but get beat, you likely get fire too. Making it isn't enough from any programs and not making it is a death knell. One more coach that said less said, I think it will be less. More high-major teams will match up against each other. Advancing will be harder, so they will be evaluated off of advancing, not just getting there. Some coaches that sent along more thought that because there is going to be that many more opportunities, they are thinking was a couple of them said, you know, you checked the coaches that might have had the number 70 team or the 72 team in the past few years and they might not have that job anymore. Now they are

36:23going to get in and save them for at least another year. Some coaches, GP said, that's not how this is going to go. You play in that Tuesday or Wednesday, which now the opening round when there's all these games and you don't win that game against another bad team. That's in many instances in these coaches' opinions, it's not going to be enough to save you. By the pure nature of watering down the tournament, you need to be playing at minimum on that Thursday and Friday when the entire country will truly lock in. The round is 64. The tournament in its platonic ideal, it's best format as God intended, right? That's what's going to matter more than, yeah man, we're a 12C playing another 12C at 415 in the afternoon on Tuesday in Wichita. That's not going to cut it. Yeah, I think it's just going to come down to context. It used to be accepted. If you make the tournament, you're okay. That hasn't been true for a while with certain programs. It wasn't true with North Carolina last season. Now I think it'll be less true for more programs, but it'll always

37:25come down to context. In other words, I don't know. I think if Jeff K. Poole takes pit to the NCAA tournament this season, he will be fine. He will probably get another year. I'm not maybe not. Maybe not. Okay. If he tell me pit makes it into the opening round and loses as a 12C to another whatever team, I'm not convinced that he keeps that job. Okay, that's fine. Let's let's take him set him aside because he's a he's a hot seat coach by definition, hitting it at this season. Let's take just whatever. Let me toss you on. Let's let's let's let's do a quick fun hypothetical here. Let me let me let me give you how I'm just scrolling down here. Jake DeBler goes to the opening round but doesn't win a game at Ohio State and get to the round of 64. He might be in trouble. He might be in trouble. Okay, now give me a coach. Stephen Pearl. Stephen Pearl, same situation. Makes the tournament, but doesn't win a game. Might be in trouble. Okay.

38:25I'll give you a different one. Jamie Dixon at TCU. Maybe not. Josh is giving us Steve Forbes. Steve Forbes is a great example. Josh, appreciate that. Steve Forbes is yet to make the tournament at Wake Forest has a very good contract situation for what I know. That's obviously a private school. Is Wake Forest making the opening round but not winning a game enough to keep Steve for us keep a show. I don't I honestly don't know. Honestly, I got to get to that point. It's I happened to believe and then take it away. You can I happen to believe that we've had plenty of turnover at the high major level and because of a variety of factors since essentially since COVID. I just think we are about to enter into a continual churn at the at the coaching level provided that the contracts aren't outrageous. Don't get me wrong there. Where I just think the average coaching lifespan at the men's D1 level among the power five programs. I think it's going to be shorter over the next decade than it was over the previous two decades. That's all. Yeah, so like we just throw in out random ones here like okay. I'm in Memphis. If Memphis makes the NCAA tournament

39:26I really just don't think Memphis would fire Penny Hardaway, Proudest Alom after a trip to the Incident of the tournament. In fact, I'm telling you they couldn't it wouldn't happen. All right, so for Penny Hardaway it is a pass-fail line I think if he makes the incident of the tournament he'll be fine but there are other coaches at other schools if they make the incident of the tournament they won't be fine and I think it's largely going to come down to expectations with your program big picture and expectations for any particular season. So let's go back to Forbes. Right now would you have Wake Forest in the Incident of the tournament? Oh. You know what given how close this is given how close Wake Forest has been in some of these years under Forbes and they were not close last season. I will I will I'll go soft and I'll say yes right now but I'll put them in the opening Okay, let me I'm trying to I'm not convinced that saves them. Okay, here's what I'm trying to tell you. Wake Forest right now is 97th at Torvik. Okay, okay, take them out. That that suggests they are

40:32not supposed to make the incident of the tournament. My point is if they then make the incident of the tournament. Steve Forbes by definition at least according to Torvik has overachieved. I don't think you fire a coach who by definition just had a good season. Oh no, I'm really diving but okay, is it has he overachieved by definition if he makes the tournament one time and seven years out. I'm not sure. I'm not sure. And one time he made it was when it was an expanded tournament to 76. No, I hear I hear you. I'm not arguing any of that. I just I would I would go. Okay, you didn't move him after year five when he missed it. You didn't move him after year six when he missed it but you you moved him after year seven when he made it. That would be that would be I'd be like okay. And I could be wrong about this as always open to that possibility that likelihood even I think in not even specific to Forbes you can put Wake Forest entirely to the side. I do think we are going to have situations every single year moving forward where it will be that kind of situation where you kind of look like maybe there's enough and it's like oh actually it wasn't

41:33because now getting into the tournament and only getting in the first the opening round and losing before it's a field of 64 proper that's not going to cut it that's not going to be good. I'll take the coach. I'll take the coach who's really going to be in trouble when in this regard. The guy who's at a school that has been good and but but not lately under him. He has a team ranked 17th in the country in the preseason and then they barely sneak into the tournament and lose their first game. You're probably in trouble. All right hot seat coach preseason top 20 but barely made the tournament and then lost your first game. That that by definition is under achieving. You should have been better. You were on the hot seat to begin with now even though you made the tournament it's time for you to go. I think that guy's in trouble but I think the coaches we heard from and then we can move on. The coaches who said this made the most sense to me. Yes we're going to have less job security going forward but it ain't really got anything to do with the instead of the tournament. It's because of this NIL money and the Rift Share money that we now yes that the whole world knows we have it our disposal to buy players with and when we end up

42:37with a bad roster or a bad team it's not like why are people used to just say why are we paying this jerk $3 million a year to lose basketball games that used to be what they directed at us. Now it's why are we paying this guy $5 million a year and giving him $19 million to build a roster with. He's got a that's the that's where the less job security comes. The excuses are done as long as you're just like that quote from that one coach who gave it to you. The AD said I've done my job now it's time for you to do yours. AD's filled that way boosters filled that way fans filled that way. We've set you up for success given you every tool you need to to to roster build and win now go do it and when you don't do it that's where the real pressure comes that's where the real lack of job security comes because you can't blame it on anybody else anymore you can't even whisper about the three other guys in your league cheating nobody wants to hear it anymore and so that's

43:37where the less job security I think it's attached to the money more than is attached to 76 teams in a NCAA tournament. Great. Josh wants one more break before we get to a very juicy question that provided a litany of eye opening quotes we'll get to that but first quick word from our sponsors. Question number six. Yep. Have you ever seriously wondered or known if a player you coached was compromised because of gambling we asked roughly a hundred coaches that question 73% said no but 27% said yes more than one and every four coaches we talked to believe they've had a player compromised by gambling. What do you think? To me this is this is an alarming return. Sometimes with some of these questions every year I try and just think okay what do we what's going to be the return on this what's the percentage house is going to break right and with this one I thought okay I think we're going to get like 10 to 12% of coaches that said yes they've seriously

44:43just wondered or I and I put or known because there was at least one coach that I surveyed who was the head coach at a point when one of his players was busted for it so obviously he knew at that point right so but to be clear pretty much every other coach no coach said yeah I knew my guy was gambling maybe there would have been coached like in his heart of hearts new but a lot of these were just speculating we're just wondering hey listen did you ever have a night a week a month a serious conversation with your staff with your spouse I just don't know what's up with this guy are these two guys like has it ever entered into your mind and the fact that 27% of college coaches have answered yes is extremely concerning I'm not saying it's shocking I'm just saying it's concerning because while I think the watchdogs independent third party watchdogs based out of agus another other places in general the end still has got a couple of different companies and firms that it relies on this they do a really good job because at this point the tracking and the algorithms that keep up with this in the

45:45betting patterns like you bet it's I'm not going to say it's impossible to beat because I do I do believe that this return indicates to me to me personally that there probably have been a player here a player there I'm not even saying in the past two or three years but over the past 10 15 years I didn't put a timeline on this some of the coaches that answered yes to this could have been referring to a player that played that the coach in 2007 or 2013 right GP I think they're probably having players that have done something nefarious and evaded capture essentially I'm going to give you some quotes here I tried to cut down most of these this question prompted so much discussion like if the average is some of my surveys I put out to coaches over text somewhere over the phone and the ones that I had over the phone I'd say I was on the phone for an average of like 30 minutes so if it's an average of 30 minutes this question probably took up like 10 of those 30 minutes on average just coaches just greeting into this topic and why a lot of coaches were flat notes they're like nope never thought about it never been a thing the ones that said no but still

46:48wanted to stay soft GP one I'm cognizant of it very cognizant of it and if I thought I was going on I would turn the player in this is actually a coach that just got a new job this past cycle I think this should be on the top of the list of what we're concerned about guys who get caught speeding it's not the only time they've ever sped all this stuff's going on if you added up with the NBA and college the past two years there's a lot of instances so there's probably more that were reported another one I have not legitimately wondered but we talk about it all the time when there are strange collapses another to me it's the world we live in the access to gambling for players we were all 18 to 22 years old once and if we have the access to these kids have I'll speak for myself I didn't make all the right decisions when I was 18 if that is on your phone and you have the ability to bet it's so prevalent you can't get away from it for two seconds another one I have not but have strong feelings players gamble on other sports mainly football that is from an assistant who has spent a long time coaching at the power five level another one never seriously it was easy to joke about a few years ago now it is a nightmare situation the ease at which bets can be placed now for anyone much less student athletes is scary for a business and for the coaches

47:50who said yes actually another coach brought up a great point of target the s ones he said I never suspected it but the reason why I think it's way more susceptible now beyond the gambling part of it and it being everywhere in our culture he said the portal stuff now and recruiting like these coaches do not invest the the earnestness and the time and the getting to know the players and their families and where you would have a a very natural very strong bond and relationship the way that it wants and now it's just like quick left and right just you know get a player to flip to your team in the portal after nine days of recruiting he thinks that element is actually what could induce us even more I thought that was a super sharp point now to the coaches who said yes admitted yes I have seriously wondered here's a few of them I have word for years of my players being pressured to gambling everyone should be another one always wonder after they make stupid plays during a game sometimes you wonder if they are point shaving again that's just a wild quote another one sometimes sometimes guys play so shitty that you question it another one this sentence

48:53has come out of my mouth this kid has the effing over on turnovers another one I wonder every day especially in speed dating this is similar to I just reference speed dating with the portal not knowing at previous spots what they were exposed to I have no idea but I pray every day that these guys don't make life altering decisions because of greed two more one coach said I've only I've wondered but only one time that player is still playing in the NCAA a couple of coaches are like yeah it was this guy ain't on the team anymore I'm like uh and then the last one said never had a concern until prop bets way easier to control the individual outcome as opposed to the overall outcome obviously a couple of coaches offer that up they they haven't wondered and been concerned about whether their player was trying to throw a game they've wondered like five turnovers or they've wondered like two easy rebound opportunities like the individual prop bets which we've talked about in the show they need to be completely gotten rid of at the college level entirely in the end so they continue to lobby and try and make that quite literally against the law on a federal level and then obviously on state by state um yeah this is a this is a very flammable topic and a lot of

49:57coaches said this thing and I grew with an I wrote it in my story this is the number one most concerning issue in all of college athletics if you do not have the validity uh and author authenticity of your competitions and you have nothing and it needs to be something that quite literally has visual reminders in every hallway every room of your athletic facilities uh there's a lot of coaches that that the idea that they could be coaching someone or people multiple people in the rosters GP that are um manufacturing their own statistics if not potentially trying to throw a game here like it terrifies them uh and and rightfully so so what were your takeaways on this question and what you heard back from coaching um well it's first I think it's important for people to know that this is not like a what if hypothetical question like this is it the it's not like man you you think yeah it's happening we know it's happened a lot it's happened a lot we know that and so it's a little bit like I was rand i was listening to a podcast over the weekend about AI and how there's this recent report that came out where they were testing a bunch of AI

51:04forgive me I don't know all the terms but they were testing something and they were giving a basically a test to these AI thing and just to see if they could work through it and they ended up working through it but by going rogue they literally had to go rogue and defy all the rules and regulations they're supposed to whatever and yeah these AI agents josh is texting me thanks for helping with terminology but like 1200 of them found a message board where they could communicate and they like secretly went to the message board and started communicating and testing things out and it was like some of them knew indicated that they were doing something they know they weren't supposed to be doing but they did it anyway because the ultimate goal was to get to where they're going and so my point is this for a while it sounds like with AI people have wondered like well what would ever happen if the agents went rogue like you know could that happen and then you

52:06theorize about it we have evidence from the past month that it actually happened now it was confined in whatever but they literally were breaking what amounts to laws to accomplish the task at hand so this is like they bring on the AI expert he's like yeah this is getting wild but his point was we don't have to we can stop wondering do you think this they would ever go rogue I'm tell it's already happened we have documentation of it same thing here we don't have to wonder if players can be compromised it's happening I don't think it's happening to 27% of the basketball programs and I agree with you I agree yes I think some of the responses are I think as a people maybe it's more of an American thing than a human thing but I've certainly noticed it we just like as a people to believe that everything's not on the up and up or that you know like the NBA lottery the Mavericks win it and it's like all it's rigged you know they traded Lucas so they must have been given

53:11the number one pick because it's really like in reality like somebody had to win the lottery and you know the Mavericks didn't have the best chance but they had a chance and nobody had a great chance and so it was they want you to think there you go right and so I guess the new ones Lindsey Clancy like everybody's got opinions on that that run counter to like all of the evidence and so you just hear people talking as they like I but you know what really happened there and like they've got it figured out from Facebook because like you know and I think I get coaches are just watching basketball games sometimes and they're going uh this has to be rigged my players have to be compromised and in many in fact I think in most cases you know what you're gonna find out your players aren't compromised they just suck they're just you know I can remember being on the sideline of a game and I'm in the huddle late game situation and I literally watched the coach draw up the entire play and tell them exactly what to do we're gonna you know set a screen here you're gonna pop out we're winning the game in regulation or losing the game in regulation but you're gonna pop here we're taking a three you're down by two we're not trying to get to the rim we're

54:15taking a three we want the game over note you know boom they come back to me I'm live on CBS Sports Day and now I go back to GP who was in the whatever huddle yeah so I was just in the whatever huddle they're gonna try to win this in regulation I probably in hindsight should not have been saying everything I was saying I was giving the play away but I was like yeah they're gonna try to win this you know here at the buzzer they do not want to get to the rim come out of the time out do got the ball and went straight to the rim Mr. Williams your evidence okay okay I got a text from my another college basketball coach who would happen to be watching the game that night and he was like he was like LL he's like I know you feel ridiculous and the fans are probably gonna be like well the stupid sideline reporter just said they're taking a three he's like I know what happened it happens to me every game you tell them exactly what to do and they won't do it they don't listen and like so the turnover that looks like you must be gambling is just like no you're just not good you just don't listen you just don't listen and I think that's most of it but this is a real thing

55:18this is a real thing got a lot of those like especially mid major it was interesting is you know we pulled plenty mid major coaches a lot of them are like no players are just bad I don't I don't think and some are like no it happens at the mid major I actually had a couple of coaches say I and this actually got bucketed into the no vote not the yes vote because they like me that I've coached no but there have been times we're having in a game and someone on the other team I'm like there's no way how how could they be that bad so that was all so I had some mother coaches say I haven't wondered about my guys I've wondered about the crappy ass opponents in our league multiple times yes I have wondered if they've been on the take there so yeah and it's not just gonna be because I know you talk to coaches who are like I you know we don't know who we're recruiting anymore it's speed dating we don't get to know anybody but like the gambling is so prevalent now you could know somebody as well as you think you could know anybody and it's still pretty easy for a young person to get wrapped up in this and the way it will happen won't just be be because a player decides

56:19I want to make an extra five grand that ain't gonna be what does this what does this is the player is in over their head so deep in debt gambling debt that hey there is a way out of this actually you know what you could do that's that's where you get caught that's the real scary part and it's gonna continue to happen I think you can try to minimize it continue to preach continue to educate but gambling is too you'll net you will never get it out of sports it will never get out of sports now it's tough a last thing on this and let's give it moving but I did have a couple coaches just theorize essentially that you know players at the smaller schools you know there is there is real money envy like they look around they see what teams and what players could talk about and we're hoarded on salaries and they're sitting there and they're making maybe $10,000 a year in an ILO school that just didn't have the capacity for that and those players understandably so could be even more vulnerable in this heightened culture we have with gambling all that stuff so this will not

57:22be the last time we ever talk about the topic on the podcast I'll just say that next one we can be quick on if you got to pick how many games should there be in college basketballs regular season they said a time limit has to element to it because we're about to go from 31 to 32 games couple coaches actually said fewer than 30 games but that was not that that was just a 2% return and then the rest of it 30 to 32 47% the biggest return there 33 to 35 coaches that want to just a few more a little more sprinkling on the regular seasons schedule 30% of the return 36 to 39 got 5% and then 40 or more got 16% I asked coaches to give me an exact number so I got everything from 28 to 30 to 31 32 33 34 35 36 I think I got 138 40 there was one coach at the high major level that gave me 50 games okay which is outrageous I think 31 I was fine with I think 32 is good college basketballs regular season I don't need to go down the list of a coach here we can kind of keep it moving but a lot of coaches said hey man you go beyond 32 like if they squeeze this at 33

58:2234 yes we'll make work we have to make work but you're asking I had two coaches essentially tell me you're asking me this question and I'm still not done my schedule like we can't have any more games other coaches are like man if you go 35 plus like I know we tend to forget this these players are still in college they still have to be academically eligible to play like there's not they can't stood their way out of that although I'm sure someone will try yes right but you really really strain the academic piece of this once you get to like 35 plus other coaches were saying hey man we don't have enough money we always need more money the rosters are going up get us the 35 get us the 40 games we got to pay for these rosters and all that we're at 32 my last thing and take away GP we go to the next one I it's my opening line of thinking this story was it took us 20 years to get from 31 to 32 games since the last expansion the regular season happened 20 years ago I think it will take less than half as long to add twice as many more games so 20 years from go to 31 to 32 I think within the next 10 years we will get from at least 32 to 34 because the

59:23economics of the sport will drive it I don't want to have more regular season games but I think we will get there sooner than than later relatively speaking okay so this is your question in the sense that you came up with this question and then you were like hey here's here's the questions what do you think and full disclosure at the last minute I was gonna maybe try to sub something out for this one because I was like I don't like how many games coaches think they should play I'm glad I didn't I like the answers because they sort of opened my eyes to something most of the responses were we're kind of in the right range you know like 30 uh 77% of respondents landed somewhere between 30 and 35 games so that suggests we're sort of in the range right now but I didn't have any coaches say 50 but I did I did have coaches say 40 or more and I had one coach a big 10 coach and a big 12 coach both hit coaches big 12 and big 10 and they both sort of made similar points to me um we don't play nearly enough games and they were like go look at November December the number of days

1:00:31between games we don't play enough we and if we and if our rosters are now costing this what the coaches told us like in our league our rosters are now costing $20 million we need more money what's the best way to get more money right now play more games so I just wouldn't put up Michigan schedule from last year because they're the rainy national champs they opened on the third and did not play again for eight days like NBA teams will open and then play again two days later right they they played on the third they don't play again to the eleventh then from the 14th to the from the 15 to the 24th they played two games from the 20 November 26th to December no from November 27th through December 6th they played one game there's just big gaps in the schedule and I know finals Christmas and I'm not ignorant to the idea that these are college students but I'm also not going to pretend that they're like college students in any sort of normal way all right

1:01:35we put them on planes we fly them literally from North Carolina to California and they have academic advisors and tutors yeah that's not the same yes we could figure it out and so I'm sort of of the I this sort of opened my eyes to it's not even something I've ever really thought about but I was like should college basketball be playing 40 games and I'm not concerned that much about the scheduling and I'm not being dismissive of like scheduling's difficult I got that but let's say you go from where we at 32 now to 32 now yeah okay to let's say we wanted to take it to 40 regular season games just let's just play more conference games in the SEC you know that's what will happen yeah you got a 24 game conference schedule now and now just fill in your non-legge however you want to do it in theory it would actually free up the the dukes and the Arizona's and the big programs to go out and play hey let's just do another home and home with hey Tennessee what are you doing you want to come to camera we'll come to Knoxville where you got to be this

1:02:35yes yeah so I don't think the scheduling aspect of it would be that big of a hurdle just increase the number of conference games and whatever you know like you can actually make it up all within the conference schedule you could make up all the extra games you need within the conference schedule if you wanted to so I'm I am now I had no opinion on this before we ask this question if somebody on the street would have been like GP how many games should be in college basketball I don't care whatever just tell me just send me the schedule I'll be there but 40 or more makes sense to me we do have big gaps in November and December that I think we could fill in with games and if you're trying to increase revenue that's an obvious way to do it one coach said we practice 150 plus times throughout the season for 33 guarantees there you go that's great for this NBA teams practice like four times the inverse I know I know I know they practice four times I know I know now you can make the case like if you're gonna play versus your college player like I get on that but still it's crazy how that's flipped and then the number of coaches that basically said like 36 plus they're like

1:03:37I one coach is like I understand this doesn't apply to a decent portion of the college basketball but like if we're trying to try and get a lot of these guys acclimated for the professional life he said not even just the NBA but like overseas wherever like we want to try and get close to half an NBA season can we get to 40 they play 82 game season like we can't squeeze a few more in so we'll see we will it will expand again not in the next couple of years I think we're gonna stay put at 32 for just a little bit two or three seasons but I'm just telling you the economics of this board I think are gonna mandate an expansion okay next one which got a lot of expected fan response I guess I don't know if we just neglected the ask it last year on a big you know a big number like 2025 but but regardless we asked if this year who was the best men's college basketball team of the 21st century 2324 Yukon won the poll at 17% and then it was 2001 uh 2000 2001 Duke at 14% this past season Michigan team tied per second place with 14% then 2017 18 Villanova had 12% the 0607 Florida team

1:04:40came in fifth with 11% 2011 12 Kentucky at 10% and then 14 15 Kentucky that did not win the title had 7% the only other teams that received multiple votes I think uh 05 Carolina and 09 Carolina I think they combined for eight total vote I think um and then everyone else that received at least a vote was 0102 Duke which lost in the sweet 16 so that was the team that went the had the shortest life in the end of the tournament that still received one vote the coach who gave me that was like I know they didn't make the final four I know they went the title I'm just telling you that team was loaded and it's the most forgotten about like great team I was like oh cool I love I love variety that sounds good one coach gave me 0405 Illinois one coach gave me 0506 Florida not the second Florida team but the first one which actually did finish higher in Kenpon uh one only one I didn't get one I couldn't believe it you got the 0708 Kansas well I didn't get one coach that gave me 0708 Kansas one coach gave me 14 15 Wisconsin in which beat undefeated Kentucky but did the Duke team that won that year to receive a vote um actually that Wisconsin he's got a lot of

1:05:40athletes to it and then Baylor uh it's title team got one vote and then the first you con title team under early 2223 that got one vote as opposed to most people voted obviously for the second you con team um fan bases have uh been furious at this they've been accusing I think you and me for this we did not have a vote this is the opinion of coaches from the eight from as young as I I think there's probably a couple in their early 30s to quite literally coaches that have been in this game for more than four decades we ran the gamut far and wide high majors mid majors um uh personally if if a coach that I interviewed or surveyed was coaching at that program I did not allow them to vote for their own team because if you if you did that you would have what would be you know a return that would not be as true to form as it should be so um so yeah so I just didn't I didn't allow it to happen um and uh and so I tried to get as best a return as possible lasting from egp I think I would take 2000 2001 Duke is the best team of this century I think

1:06:42that's my pick but you con from a couple of years ago absolutely as a case I love the 05 Carolina team I actually thought it should gotten more votes 2011 12 Kentucky only getting 10% is kind of insane to me that team was ridiculous and then as I wrote in the story if the cat Kentucky team had won the title we would not be even asking this question the answer because there would not be another would not but but it's wild they went 38 and one and they almost got beat by Notre Dame the elite eight that was one of the best tournament games I've ever covered in person that was awesome and Cleveland that year and then yes they lost to Wisconsin they didn't even make the championship game that team got 7% of the vote I'm not surprised that it finished seventh in the overall tally but it's crazy to me how one result uh just one loss by them affected uh and it's not an easy thing we're asking you got to pick why the coach I said you got to pick one team it's one team from the past 25 years and so yes it was there perhaps a little bit of recency bias with

1:07:43Yukon and Michigan maybe but like Yukon's tournament run was insane and statistically unprecedented what Michigan did and many facets was top two top three of the past 25 years in terms of efficiency margin uh that front court and what they did with their dominance they had their best road record it by a big 10 team in five decades so I get some of the recency bias harrying about this uh I love asking this question and I love getting the feedback from it um um I like they they this might be the right answer like 2024 Yukon might be the right answer um that was but you know that was not the most talented team that might have been the best team no way was that the most talented they put five dudes in the I mean they were yeah but all five starters are in the NBA or at least very very talented that's not the most talented that that 2001 Duke team was unquestionably more talented I think go five Carolina was more talented Kentucky uh this so as it this was this was a very very fun question to what's interesting is if you look at just the top seven vote getters I could go through the whole list but like 2024 Yukon 2001 Duke

1:08:482026 Michigan 2018 Villanova 2007 Florida 12 Kentucky 15 Kentucky the only coach who's still at the job is Hurley yes everybody else is either out of the sport or has changed jobs Cal obviously now at Arkansas I was surprised as well that 2012 Kentucky didn't get more votes because like 38 and 2 clearly best team that won the title and you had the top two picks in the draft like that's a that's a pretty good combination I've actually 2015 Kentucky strong and though it might look like recent sea bias and might even be recent sea bias with 2024 Yukon in 2000 to our past three national champions coming in the top three vote getters but that lines up with what we've been talking about like the best teams are better right now that they have been in at least decades past yeah because they're older they're more talented they're more experienced in in part because of in that in part entirely because of NIL and Repshare like yeah does

1:09:53I quote about that about Michigan someone basically said what Michigan have this past season probably wouldn't be possible in a non NIL era and that's why they're voting for that's why they voted for them specifically which I thought was was pretty interesting and inaccurate yeah um 2018 Villanova I would have considered as well that team was awesome and I would go second Florida team over first Florida team and I know that that Florida team the second one took I guess five losses but they just got bored I mean I know but I almost count that as a mark against them that's all I know I know what you're saying though they're just bored they just like nothing nothing mattered for them it was like they had their early season game against Kansas that was high profile and then it was just like all right we got to go back to the tournament wins it start we got to win that go back to back then we'll go to the NBA but everything between them they just kind of got bored and that's how they took some of those losses the Baylor team I'm not surprised you didn't get voted for because it was the coach of the year I think I got one yeah I got one yeah but that team was awesome you look back on it um yeah in 2008 Kansas I think I did get one

1:10:58or two votes for it but like look back on it in terms of talent and record and everything and they they want a final four with three other number one seeds there yeah so fun question and that was what's your number one you got it I I'm going 2000 2001 Duke that that Duke team had two guys that won national player of the year awards that year Jay Wilhelm's and Shane battery both won national player of the year that's that to me that's the team narrowly but that's the team if you had to pick one though I'm putting you on the spot I'm going with the team that's how hard would I argue against plus I just flew to Portugal with Shane baddie oh you know it's same playing we said that to you all the time that's what me yeah it was see what why was he going just vacation vacation holiday yeah he's just him and his wife and his son and me my wife and so we just sat there keep my wife had on a grizzly sweatshirt so he was like uh oh yeah so that that struck up the conversation then we start talking everything it was good it was good to see him that's good stuff yeah um the last thing we can go to the last question the thing that like is uh

1:11:58there are a lot of these teams have something about them that that you know a lot of coaches are like man that Florida team was preseason number one and they went and they did it and coach a couple coaches that voted for oh nine carolina the last one to do it and there's something to that you come win on a 30 to nothing run on the elite eight 30 nothing against Illinois just and they they and they went back to back you know they and they had the greatest tournament margin uh ever all that stuff uh wonderful wonderful bar bar room question here and I and Kentucky fans were not happy whatsoever I hear you Kentucky fans but just the coaches opinions on ours all right last one you can give the voting returns um we had never asked this I went back and checked on all our candid coaches questions try our best not to repeat the ones that we know to every single year and we had not asked this question who was the most powerful person in college basketball GP what do the coaches say 25% of the vote that's your leading vote getter went to Greg Sanky the SEC commissioner but after that it was the agents the lawyers and the judges in that order the agents got 23% the lawyers got 9% the judges got 8% in fairness under the agents we did get some answers that were

1:13:02just like the agents then we got some very and not the same agents like I got a lot of player agents but yeah like you you had this one you bucketed it but like Brett just who's a coaches agent he received a number of votes and you just I said just however you want to do this you know bucket it then unfortunately I wanted actual people but a lot of these coaches were just like I'm it's an agent I literally got answers like that just said the agents are the most powerful people now and then I got specific answers like the agent who is sending all of his Eastern Europeans to Brad Underwood that's the most powerful dude I got I got that answer to he's like he was like he's got Brad Underwood under his spell so but the agents lawyers and judges came in at I think 40% of the vote yeah after that we got 6% no one nobody's powerful so annoying a couple of the coaches that like a relationship like I'm not accepting this answer and I made them pick someone some of the

1:14:03coaches are just like it's no one and that's honestly it's the heart of why I asked the question we can keep going with with your return here but you're very quick to me when you look around college basketball like right now in this era to me it feels like you know you go back to John wooden John Thompson Dean Smith Mike Shashewski Roy Williams even into the 2000s and maybe not even always necessarily coaches but you know Nolan Richardson any variety of really prominent successful but outspoken and influential coaches to me the sport probably is that it's biggest leadership void in its history and certainly since wouldn't retired I think or pre wouldn't I get like pre wouldn't maybe early 60s and I think that is a significant issue for the sport and it's a hell of a commentary on college basketball while this is not a surprise that Greg Sankey won the fact that the commissioner of the foremost football first conference wound up actually being the comfortable

1:15:03winner in this particular poll because while agents technically came in second that's not a specific person Sankey clearly won out over anybody else that was specifically mentioned by the coaches that we pulled I thought it was interesting that if you would have asked this question say 10 years ago 20 years ago 10 years ago you might have got John Calipari yeah and he'd get some votes or Mike Shashewski as the leading vote getter in 2026 no coach got more than 5% but John Calipari did get the most among coaches at 5% followed by John Shire at 4% you would have also gotten 10 years ago 20 years ago 50 years ago in C double a president would have been on the list whoever that person was and they literally got zero Charlie Baker got zero votes and this is what I heard coaches gave me answers because we asked the question but but the sentiment to this the sentiment to this question was the problem is nobody's that powerful who do we look to who do we turn to

1:16:07at a Hall of Fame level coach say that the problem is there's no obvious answer to your question I'll go with Greg Sankey because he's the commissioner of the most powerful conference but how much power does he really have he's getting pushed around right now by LSU so to me that's but is he is the question oh but maybe not like he's pushed back like they're asked he's pushed back yes so hey we we about to find out that's correct hey how much power hey hey the moment came on Friday night and LSU did not roster those players yes they blinked yeah like said that's that's a win for Sankey so so we'll say on that but we're going to find out but um I thought Greg Sankey getting the most votes but but but literally in real time in a fight in his own conference suggest how little power people actually have in college basketball and the NCAA president getting zero yeah like it never even the only place in C double a president came up in my conversations or text with coaches was was when they said has anybody voted for Charlie

1:17:10Baker and and it was a rhetorical question they they knew the answer was no and they would say that's your real problem the NCAA president has no power yeah and and and therefore nobody has any power none of us really know what we're doing right now yeah I had a big 10 coach asked me I can't remember which person uh he gave me but it wasn't Charlie Baker and then he said had anyone asked Charlie Baker and I actually got sent you that quote he said see that's a problem the president of the facility doesn't have a vote you can't get bleep done because then he really puts in and gets beat down a court it's it's a problem I I also know Bill has got some votes I think a decade ago he would have gotten at least twice as many um but he did get votes time is we got some votes Tony Petiti got he I didn't get a single coach give me Petiti but I had a couple of co coaches give me Sankie and Petiti and I was like well it's one of the other and then so they obviously picked Sankie Rick Patino I think got a couple um I think the actual answer is Dan Gavett who did get a few votes you know the SVP of of college basketball at the NCAA level as essentially run the

1:18:15NCAA tournament here for the past uh close to a decade and a half um he does have real juice not as much as as I think some coaches wish that he would but so the answer's got to be someone and I think sport wide it's still I actually think it's still Gavett over Sankie but there's still you know there still isn't someone that uh that can speak and act consistently loom as a presence of both positivity but potentially like you know some some fear I guess on behalf of college basketball and I think that is a problem and it speaks to greater issues in college athletics if you ask the same exact thing in college football I think Sankie would come back quite literally with like 50% if not more than the vote college basketball it's not that simple it's not that easy it's not that clear cuts not that transparent um couple quotes here and then we can we can bounce out of here one quote that just a coach gave me I think this is after he didn't know who to who to vote for he might have landed on Sankie he said not a coach not a commissioner not an agent not the players it's whoever's writing the next round of transfer total excuse me transfer portal professionalism

1:19:17and revenue sharing legislation the people making the rules control the sport more than the people coaching it right now these people who have been uh scared of their own shadow instead of leading with character integrity and setting the tone for guard rules for our sport have changed the whole landscape of our game it will heavily and negatively impact the growth and development of these young athletes in a way that's impossible to currently measure a very profound quote I really appreciated that kind of introspection there um I had a couple more in that kind of vein couple on Sankie he has as much influence as anyone in college athletics and has been at the forefront of navigating all the changes involving NIL lawsuits eligibility in the future of structure of college sports uh Greg Sankie basketball always follow football money is a power and he runs a league with a lot of both another said he's the most powerful person in college sports he doesn't always assert himself with basketball but when he does it moves the needle many of the significant changes that have occurred like tournament expansion can't be traced to him and then on the agent uh one coach said the rabbit has the gun very very accurate another said they determine the market they are the reason we have to go to our ad constantly asking for more money they have

1:20:19the ability to impact the mentality of players which then impacts their teammates and coaches you used to build relationships with parents but those conversations are now happening through the agents they can lead a player to set out games or practices to have surgery to shut things down and etc the president of the NCAA the conference commissioners 80s and presidents they have the ability to set the rules but the actual behavior and demands of the people you interact with daily are influenced by the agents that makes the the those agents the most powerful as long as our current system is in place that was a hell of a quote very very accurate and I would agree more than a judge which obviously can change the role with the hearing more than a lawyer which instigates the lawsuit to happen without a doubt I think the the figure that has the most power right now in 2026 immense college basketball is the agent specifically the player agent it's not one specific agent there isn't one agent that looms like a Jimmy sex and on the coaching side and football in the SEC they don't have that but the agent and the amount of sure chaos uncertainty transactional nature

1:21:23of college basketball I think that is the true answer it's not a specific person it's a figure and I want to thank the coaches for all the question but this one in particular man they had a whole hell of a lot to say on it and that last quote I just shared with you I thought was was really really insightful and very true yeah that quote resonated with me because I do think the agents have that kind of power and it reminded me of this when you'd hear about recruiting scandals cheating in the old days you'd be like okay so this assistant coach gave this a you coach 200 grand and then this this this this player signed with that school and and and I think some people's you know would start connecting dots and be like well so the coach must have made the player he made the player go there told the player to go there even paid the player to go there maybe in some cases but often you don't because I've talked to coaches and they were like GP you're dealing with 17 year olds you don't have to make them do anything you can shape the entire

1:22:24experience so like you're being recruited by this school that school that school you need to funnel this kid to this school you don't you don't say hey young man you've got to go to this school you just you're just talking man that that place over there is amazing and yeah yeah yeah this other school you we're gonna do that visit but like I don't even know like they know they can text to me in two weeks have they been out in touch with you like I mean these guys over here they're really showing love they can't wait to get us here I don't know why now that's now take the agent replace that voice with the agents voice I know I can get you more money over here over at this school they they you know what the you know what the starting point guard makes at this school and buddy they want you I can I can make your college experience I can everything you want it to be or I can convince you it's not what it should be just in a phone call and you can really mess up somebody's roster like so when we heard from the coaches it's the agents and let me tell you why that that all

1:23:27makes perfect sense to me like you that all of that I agree with you the agents are the most powerful people in college basketball right now in a variety of ways and just to cap it off I'll reference something that I wrote about back in June and we talked about on the show I happen to be with Dusty May a week removed from the national championship because he was in St. Louis that given the coach of the year award and all that so we spent some time that afternoon he was on the phone he got a call from a player his player in the portal committed to Michigan and Dusty May committed to him I said that's awesome can I report that oh no no no that's that's that's not done yet what do you mean oh we got to deal with the agent that player went on to verbally commit to the Michigan staff I believe three times in the ensuing next two weeks a player will not be at Michigan next year and he didn't he never committed to Michigan publicly he went to a different program that was going to pay a much more money gets the agency to him now so that's just one encapsulation of what happened so frequently and shows just truly the power of the agent and in the moment like it was a great phone call

1:24:29Dusty was happy to get to be like you think I think I'm getting this player right now because you just made that phone call no once the agent tells me he's going there and we've actually agreed to the price then it'll happen and that's obviously part of the reason why Dusty because it a good agent a convincing agent talking to a college age student in one conversation can convince you that you are lucky to be where you're at or that you are you are crazy to be where you're at and you're getting screwed and agent can convince a basketball player and I don't know if that's about anybody a good agent can convince you man you're lucky to have what you have you should really be appreciative or man you're getting screwed here they're not taking care of you a good agent can change your perspective like that and that's happening all over the country I don't believe every young man that gets in the transfer portal really wants to leave I think sometimes they're just being told like you you have no idea what's out there and what I can get for you but you got to get in that transfer portal and I can make your whole life better they have that kind of power

1:25:29and and they're executing it and I you know I don't blame anybody everybody's doing what's best for them but this is but this is where we're at no question fun show that is a show hey look at the back live with the GP you have to be back live with you that's a show Shasta Devon Downey Chester South Carolina Terry Tico he's a legend Hutt Lornell Hormuz you not subscribed please go subscribe anyways subscribe to podcast like everyone Spotify there's more of us than there are of them that should be reflected in the comments so do that and we will talk to you again real soon till then take care you are more than just a heart patient at Trinity Health of New England we get to know you which can help us diagnose a problem and start treatment faster our cardiovascular team offers

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