With Ben Howland joining from a bus in the middle of the NCAA Tournament....

Good discussion of his coaching philosophy and his need to adapt to the current generation.

At the 17 minute mark he explains why, when he played for the Bears, his shooting percentage from the arc went from 25% to 75% in the last 2 minutes of games when Cal was down by 20 points or more.

bearister said:

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At the 17 minute mark he explains why, when he played for the Bears, his shooting percentage from the arc went from 25% to 75% in the last 2 minutes of games when Cal was down by 20 points or more.

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He shot .370 from beyond the arc over his 3 years at Cal (139 of 376).

During his three years at Cal he played in 95 games and we lost by 20 or more 8 times. 4 of those were to Monty at Stanford including the 51 point blowout his freshman year. 2 were to Lute Olson's Arizona.

I dont know how many times he was still in during the final 2 minutes and I don't know how many shots he could get off in those two minutes if in, but I don't think your stats are mathematically possible ;-)

I think he is an interesting future candidate. Still hates Stanford. According to Ken Pom his Eastern Washington team was #62 in offensive efficiency, #27 in tempo and was #35 in scoring (Cal was #309).
That is an indicator of good coaching and a playing style that is attractive to top recruits.

His interview is similar to Gates' in their understanding of how to motivate this new generation. Legans is clearly more intense, has more energy, while Gates is more introverted and calm. Interesting that he and Gates were on the same teams, played together, but more often competed for PT.

It will be interesting to see how he does at Portland.

Nice post.

The Portland move is really a head-scratcher. Why make the move when it appears to be lateral? Big gamble. Probably a better chance of staying at EWU another year or 2, riding the momentum he's built and parlaying it into a much better gig. At Portland he's starting from scratch at a very difficult place to win.

BC Calfan said:

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Nice post.

The Portland move is really a head-scratcher. Why make the move when it appears to be lateral? Big gamble. Probably a better chance of staying at EWU another year or 2, riding the momentum he's built and parlaying it into a much better gig. At Portland he's starting from scratch at a very difficult place to win.

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[WAG] Maybe 2021-22 is a rebuilding year at EW and he sees a better roster at Portland.

BC Calfa said:

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At Portland he's starting from scratch at a very difficult place to win.

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Sounds like a good test for the Cal job.

bearister said:

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Sign me up for Gates. I dig his style and vibe and always have. The other guy...not so much.

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Gates got blown out in the ncaa tournament. Legans team was competitive.

oskidunker said:

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bearister said:

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Sign me up for Gates. I dig his style and vibe and always have. The other guy...not so much.

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Gates got blown out in the ncaa tournament. Legans team was competitive.

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Sounds like Gates is a better fit for Cal then.

No thanks.

BC Calfan said:

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The Portland move is really a head-scratcher. Why make the move when it appears to be lateral? Big gamble.

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Perhaps he's rather live in Portland. The vibe in Portland is a lot closer to Berkeley than to eastern Washington.

bearister said:

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Sign me up for Gates. I dig his style and vibe and always have. The other guy...not so much.

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Hmmm . . . are you interested in the AD position?

oskidunker said:

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bearister said:

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Sign me up for Gates. I dig his style and vibe and always have. The other guy...not so much.

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Gates got blown out in the ncaa tournament. Legans team was competitive.

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I like Gates' personality better, i understand that sentiment, I think he would be a better recruiter all things being equal (but they are not) and more popular among the donors but Legan's appears to be a much better Xs and Os coach. His teams play efficient basketball, leading the conference in assists and play at a high tempo. Gates' appears to be more from the defense first, get your guys to "play hard" school, only he uses 21st century motivational techniques instead of 19th century "discipline."

Both knew they did not have a future in the NBA. Gates used basketball to get a Cal Masters degree in 4 years. Legans knew he wanted to eventually be a coach and was a student of the game, even leaving Cal as a senior for Fresno State to play for and then work for his mentor Ray Lopes because at the time he saw that as his best path to a coaching career.

Both are good candidates for Cal to keep an eye on.

BeachedBear said:

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bearister said:

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Sign me up for Gates. I dig his style and vibe and always have. The other guy...not so much.

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Hmmm . . . are you interested in the AD position?

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Sure. I'm hiring Matt Barnes as Shantay's assistant. He abandoned Cal. If he gets the gig, he will use us like a stepping stone and dump us again.

oskidunker said:

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bearister said:

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Sign me up for Gates. I dig his style and vibe and always have. The other guy...not so much.

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Gates got blown out in the ncaa tournament. Legans team was competitive.

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Because one game determines the value of a career.

bearister said:

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BeachedBear said:

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bearister said:

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Sign me up for Gates. I dig his style and vibe and always have. The other guy...not so much.

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Hmmm . . . are you interested in the AD position?

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Sure. I'm hiring Matt Barnes as Shantay's assistant. He abandoned Cal. If he gets the gig, he will use us like a stepping stone and dump us again.

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A legacy hire is maybe more likely to stay awhile.

It'd be nice to have a basketball coach again who other programs might covet. Meanwhile, maybe somebody should go knock on Fox's door: I've always wondered what happened to Jimmy Hoffa and DB Cooper.

It's a legacy hire if Fresno State hires him.

I wonder if Legans is in the mix? Doesn't sound like it.

F Cal once, shame on Legans; F Cal twice, shame on Cal.

bearister said:

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F Cal once, shame on Legans; F Cal twice, shame on Cal.

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But in another thread you are rooting for Matt Bradley?

calumnus said:

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bearister said:

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F Cal once, shame on Legans; F Cal twice, shame on Cal.

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But in another thread you are rooting for Matt Bradley?

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bearister doesn't like really short, or really tall players who leave Cal, but if they are average size (for a basketball player... say 6-3/6-4) he often likes 'em fine. I admire a man who has come to know what he likes/dislikes.

calumnus said:

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I wonder if Legans is in the mix? Doesn't sound like it.

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No.

oskidunker said:

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bearister said:

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Sign me up for Gates. I dig his style and vibe and always have. The other guy...not so much.

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Gates got blown out in the ncaa tournament. Legans team was competitive.

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And Musselman got blown out, as did Sean Miller.
So what's your point?

Big C said:

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calumnus said:

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bearister said:

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F Cal once, shame on Legans; F Cal twice, shame on Cal.

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But in another thread you are rooting for Matt Bradley?

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bearister doesn't like really short, or really tall players who leave Cal, but if they are average size (for a basketball player... say 6-3/6-4) he often likes 'em fine. I admire a man who has come to know what he likes/dislikes.

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Bradley looks like he could kick someone's ass. Legans, not so much

calumnus said:

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bearister said:

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F Cal once, shame on Legans; F Cal twice, shame on Cal.

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But in another thread you are rooting for Matt Bradley?

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Matt Bradley loyally stayed an extra year in a dysfunctional and broken basketball program. Legans left a decent program. Why? As far as I'm concerned he played way too much. Maybe he figured his PT was going down.

BeachedBear said:

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Big C said:

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calumnus said:

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bearister said:

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F Cal once, shame on Legans; F Cal twice, shame on Cal.

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But in another thread you are rooting for Matt Bradley?

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bearister doesn't like really short, or really tall players who leave Cal, but if they are average size (for a basketball player... say 6-3/6-4) he often likes 'em fine. I admire a man who has come to know what he likes/dislikes.

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Bradley looks like he could kick someone's ass. Legans, not so much

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Legans did some serious damage to Matt Barnes' forearm.

bearister said:

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BeachedBear said:

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Big C said:

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calumnus said:

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bearister said:

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F Cal once, shame on Legans; F Cal twice, shame on Cal.

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But in another thread you are rooting for Matt Bradley?

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bearister doesn't like really short, or really tall players who leave Cal, but if they are average size (for a basketball player... say 6-3/6-4) he often likes 'em fine. I admire a man who has come to know what he likes/dislikes.

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Bradley looks like he could kick someone's ass. Legans, not so much

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Legans did some serious damage to Matt Barnes' forearm.

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YES! I remember he smeared icky blood all over it.