Chris Mullin new head coach of St. John's!

[xuofm]

First time posting but have been reading the board since its beginning.

I hope this hire works out great for St. John's, but this has a similar feeling to the University of Houston hiring Clyde Drexler and ND hiring Charlie Weis. Both came with significant name recognition, but could not seem to bring success to the court/field. I just think college world is so different from professional sports. But, like I said, I hope Chris has lots of success at St. John's and he can elevate the program to being 2nd best in the Big East (behind XU of course!).

[Steve Lavin]

Players would be nuts to leave. If I were a player I'd listen much more readily to an NBA HOFer who played on the 1992 USA Dream Team with MJ considered one of the all time greats instead of Lavin the car salesman.

But if they do leave I don't care. I am very confident Mullin will either get the Iowa State assistant known as a very good recruiter in NYC or Slice (the crown jewel) from UK if UK wins the championship and Calipari leaves for the NBA (likely). And to make things even crazier, if Cal leaves after winning his ring, then Slice leaves to come here, Briscoe may decommit from UK and come back to SJU. Man what a turnaround that would be. Of course not expecting it, but it can happen.

Mullin is not a politician like Lavin. He's not the handsome TV media head who blames players going to the NBA for his failures. He's the bread and butter guy who will preach fundamentals, proper shooting form, tons and tons of hard practice, and holding himself and other players accountable. To put it bluntly, he won't take BS and he is from here. He knows what it takes to win and what it would mean to have SJU back in the top 25 every year making tourneys.

[GoldenWarrior11]

It is very entertaining reading the difference in opinions regarding the St. Johns and DePaul hires today on twitter. DePaul is being universally panned and mocked for Leitao and St. Johns is being wrapped with enthusiasm and excitement regarding Mullin. Mullin has not been a head coach before, but his credentials and background speak for himself.

From a marketing and PR standpoint, St. Johns hit a home run. DePaul pretty much hit into a triple play with the bases loaded and nobody out.

[Demon22]

And yet, had DePaul hired Mark Aguirre - basically their version of Chris Mullen, but with more of a coaching background - we all know they'd be getting killed for it.

[Steve Lavin]

Latest rumors are that Mullin will take job (just not formally announced yet) and he will be able to bring the best NYC recruiters in the business. Basically all that's left is filling in his assistant coach slots and the press conference early to mid next week.

You just get the feeling that things we be different this time for the better.

1. The guy is a 5x NBA All Star, NBA HOFer, number retired, played on the 1992 Dream Team with Jordan, Ewing, Bird, etc…the guy is a legend.
2. Home grown kid from Brooklyn. He loves NYC and he embodies the mentality and demeanor of NYC. This is his home.
3. You know that he will stay here for good with no worry of leaving because he left much more money on table in NBA to come here and loves SJU his alma mater.
4. Big difference between a coach like Lavin who can show you video of Mullin vs. your coach DEMONSTRATING how to shoot like a NBA HOFer.
5. Mullin's staff is going to include very close friends he's known since childhood. The chemistry will be there. On same page.
6. He is not just in it for the money. This is the school who made him famous and loves him to death. You know he will go all out unlike Lavin reportedly.
7. Those who worry about recruiting (at least early on)…don't. His name will carry some good ones by itself. Recruits HS coaches grew up watching him on TV.
8. He's not about glamour. He doesn't need a state of the art facility. He is a bread and butter guy. Gritty and simple. Fundamentals and tons of practice. No BS.
9. He was already trending on the New York twitter and he will raise the profile of SJU and also the Big East. Fox is loving it too.
10. You just get the sense that if there's 1 person left who truly loves this program to death and will work harder than anyone else to see it succeed again, it's him.

[Jet915]

And yet, had DePaul hired Mark Aguirre - basically their version of Chris Mullen, but with more of a coaching background - we all know they'd be getting killed for it.

All DePaul had to do was hire Hurley or Drew and they would have been praised and they messed that up...

[DemonLS]

HURLEY AND DREW DID NOT WANT THE FRICKIN' JOB!!!!

[GoldenWarrior11]

And yet, had DePaul hired Mark Aguirre - basically their version of Chris Mullen, but with more of a coaching background - we all know they'd be getting killed for it.

I don't think that's true. The reason they are getting crucified by media is because they hired yet another old, mediocre coach, and in this case, the same coach they had 10 years ago. It screams content to mediocrity - at best.

If DePaul had hired a Hurley, Drew, Masiello or any other young coach, they would have been praised by doing something different. This is the third consecutive hire by JLP that is unenthusiastic and dull.

[Jet915]

HURLEY AND DREW DID NOT WANT THE FRICKIN' JOB!!!!

Is that documented somewhere? Find it hard to believe that both guys came to Chicago to interview and both said no thanks....

[gavitspeaks]

The big knock on Lavin was whether he could coach the talent. How does anyone know what kind of coach Mullin is?

Well at least we know he was a hell of a player himself. Also, recruiting will be a breeze, he knows half of the GMs in the NBA. If nothing else it should be interesting. Also, he's a pretty funny guy.

The stories of Mullin at St. John's and his work ethic are legendary. Mullin broke into Alumni Gym until they finally gave him a key. Stories of him shooting at midnight and into the early morning hours are well known. Can he coach today's player? Can he coach these AAU, entitled kids that are so opposite of what he was about? We will see. Hope so. Big Chris Mullin fan. Hope it works.