ESPN: Marquette has reached out to Ben Howland

[Xudash]

Some "insiders" in the muscoop board speculating that a hire is near and it will be an "impact" hire. Doc Rivers is supposedly involved in hiring. Likely announced Wednesday, some saying it's Smart.

http://www.muscoop.com/index.php?topic=42932.0

If that is true, the A-10 is going to take a large hit and the ESPN machine is going to look pretty stupid.

[xsteve1]

Hope its Smart. I would love to see Howland coaching in the BE as well. DePaul cold use a guy like Howland to clean up that mess. I'd love to have Howland at X if Mack can't get it done in the next couple of years. He sure would bring a defensive toughness to any team he goes to.

[Burrito]

If we keep seeing articles (such as the one below) that Marquette and Howland are in discussions this weekend. And if the Marquette message board is hinting at a possible announcement in the next few days, I'm guessing it's Howland.

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketb ... ts-opening

[Schickrateez]

Marquette is in a very interesting position, one that I would not envy my school going through. With all the ESPN slant/bashing going on, I am sure they are feeling the pressure to make a "splash" with this hire. Someone that cannot be questioned, and someone who grabs headlines. This thought process could lead them to make a quick knee jerk hire for a good/great coach, but someone who may not fit their culture or long term plans. I hope they take their time, interview a good collection of candidates and find someone that is right for them. Now, I could be completely wrong, and the people at Marquette know EXACTLY what they're doing...just sharing my thoughts.

[badnews24]

Take it from a PC fan whose lived it over the last 30 years, it's the proverbial "Catch 22." You want the young guy with his career ahead of him because of the enthusiasm he brings (Ricks Pitino and Barnes). On the other hand, you'd like the more established guy (Pete Gillen) who might stick around a little longer and brings some stability. Then you have the "hot" young guy who turns into an old, tired guy real quick (Tim Welsh).
I think the Friars, at least for the time being, are fortunate with Cooley. He's in his hometown. He's getting paid. The school is spending money. And he's been able to recruit at a high level and can win, which I think can also be said for most of the programs in the league now except for DePaul.
Bottom line, from the names being mentioned Marquette is in good shape regardless. You also gotta remember, the grass is always greener to some of these coaches. Most are never satisfied until they get burned once or twice and realize they need to settle down. It's why I might be a little leery of Smart, but he is from Milwaukee. That's why in the end if I was a fan of the Warriors (I'll always call them that, just like it's Redmen) I would lean towards Howland, but I can see the other side as well.

[jayelan]

Wow Shaka Smart from Milwaukee, didn't know that. Hard not to back home. He has a good resume but not spectacular, one year advancing from the playin to the final four, but then pretty much back to normal. Be interesting to watch if it happens.

[FormulaX]

Smart would be a good PR splash. Wouldn't be to excited about seeing havoc in the conference. Would it end the "vcu to the big east" speculation if Shaka went to Marq?

[Mufan15]

Wow Shaka Smart from Milwaukee, didn't know that. Hard not to back home. He has a good resume but not spectacular, one year advancing from the playin to the final four, but then pretty much back to normal. Be interesting to watch if it happens.

Smart is from Madison and wasn't all that fond of his time there (experienced problems with racism, or at least that's what I've read on message boards). Most think he doesn't feel that strong a connection to the state. Never know though.

[ruechalgrin]

Either Howland or Smart would be great high-impact hires.

Again, A-10 fans like myself know the BE is a step up from the A-10 and Marquette is a top 25 job in the country so all A-10 coaches would see it as a step up. So if we lose Smart or another coach to the BE, not a surprise or a big hit.

Saying that, I think UCLA is a higher profile job than Marquette (hope I am not offending anyone) so I don't know why Smart would take Marquette, but not UCLA. If you get him, awesome job recruiting a huge upgrade IMHO over Williams.

Again, either Howland or Smart would be seen as fantastic hires.

[marquette]

Either Howland or Smart would be great high-impact hires.

Again, A-10 fans like myself know the BE is a step up from the A-10 and Marquette is a top 25 job in the country so all A-10 coaches would see it as a step up. So if we lose Smart or another coach to the BE, not a surprise or a big hit.

Saying that, I think UCLA is a higher profile job than Marquette (hope I am not offending anyone) so I don't know why Smart would take Marquette, but not UCLA. If you get him, awesome job recruiting a huge upgrade IMHO over Williams.

Again, either Howland or Smart would be seen as fantastic hires.

I doubt you're shattering anybody's reality with the statement that UCLA is a higher profile school than Marquette. There are a couple of reasons why I could see a coach turn down the UCLA job but be willing to take one at a school like Marquette. First, the expectations are outrageous at UCLA. They ran Howland out of town after a year in which he won the PAC12 (although he did flame out in the tourney). He also had 3 final 4s at UCLA, but still got canned. Second, we spend more money on our program than UCLA does. Marquette is behind only Duke in the country in expense per basketball player. The results haven't been comparable, but we spend the money. Third, Smart is from Wisconsin. He may or may not have had some negative experiences in Madison, but I have to imagine that a young guy would still have some pretty strong ties to the area.

I would be absolutely ecstatic if we got Smart. However, if he turns the job down and we wind up with Howland I won't exactly be in the corner crying about it.