Billy Gillispie is currently unemployed on the heels of a University of Kentucky press conference yesterday announcing that Kentucky basketball was going to take a different direction. The university’s president, Lee Todd, and Director of Athletics, Mitch Barnhart, teamed for the press conference to announce their decision. There has been speculation of a Kentucky split with the head coach for weeks and it seems as if the fan base was universally split on which path should be taken. On one hand, there were the Gillispie supporters who felt strongly that two seasons was not enough to get a true evaluation of a coach. The other end of the spectrum were those who felt that Gillispie just had to go for any number of reasons from bad coaching to bad personality.
The national media, of course, has thrown their two cents in on the situation. There has been talk of Kentucky basketball on basically every media outlet across the nation. I was surfing channels on Sirius during a long drive last night and it was really amazing to hear the Wildcats being discussed on so many different channels. I have heard the entire ESPN basketball gauntlet giving opinions on the subject. I have literally listened to hundreds of opinions on the subject of Billy Gillispie’s dismissal at Kentucky. One thing I have observed across the board is a disconnect in the opinions of those in the national media as opposed to those that are close to Lexington and the Kentucky program.
When the first news station, WHAS 11 in Louisville, broke the story, a breaking news message scrolled across the screen. It popped up on the screen, “UK Coach Fired,” indicating that the university’s administration had reached their limitations and decided they had no choice but to get rid of a known problem. As it turned out, WHAS was given a statement later that night that said Gillispie had not been fired and no decision had been made. Of course, we now know that there was a brief meeting between Gillispie, Todd and Barnhart the next day in which Gillispie was made aware of the decision to let him go.
After the meeting that spelled the end for Gillispie, there was a press conference held and Todd and Barnhart informed the public of their decision. After a few introductory statements, Barnhart stated:
“This is not a place I thought we would be at this point, or one that I would want to be. However, after long and deliberate discussions, President Todd and I have decided we must chart a new direction for the University of Kentucky men’s basketball program. Unfortunately, there are times when a situation and the people involved simply do not create the right chemistry or right fit. It is our belief that is where we are and where we find ourselves with Kentucky basketball today. For that reason, we’ve decided to not bring Coach Gillispie back to lead our men’s basketball program. We firmly believe that moving in a different direction will be in the best interest of everyone involved with this program….”
Barnhart’s statements sounded as if he and Todd were backed into a corner that left them with only one decision – fire Billy Gillispie. The way I interpret the statements, they did not necessarily want to get rid of Gillispie, but they were in a very difficult situation and had to choose the lesser of two evils. Barnhart hired Gillispie, after all, and one would assume that his intentions were for the coach to succeed in abundance for many years in Lexington. It was obvious to me that Barnhart and Todd were in the camp of believers that felt Kentucky had to get rid of Gillispie.
Once word was out that Kentucky was canning Gillispie, it raced through the national media. I first saw and heard about it on ESPN. They immediately had a breaking news article on ESPN.com that read:
Billy Gillispie out as coach of Kentucky Wildcats in second season
The first thought that came to my mind as I clicked on that article is that they made sure to throw in the “second season” reference. I immediately knew that the University of Kentucky and the Big Blue Nation should prepare for an all-out assault from the national media. That particular article began:
LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Billy Gillispie thought winning at Kentucky would be enough, that adding a Final Four banner to the rafters at Rupp Arena would endear him to one of college basketball's most ardent fan bases more than any handshake, autograph or toothy grin ever could.
He won, but not enough. He shook hands, but not enough.
After just two years, Kentucky had had enough…
Notice how they make reference to “just two years” once again.
Next, the television analysts started chiming in. I listened as they all described the Kentucky fan base and administration as a bunch of basketball fanatics that run great coaches out of town. They beautifully painted Gillispie as a victim that had no idea what he was getting into with a program like Kentucky. There were several remarks about how twenty-two wins would get you an extension at many programs, but not at Kentucky.
I spent a few hours in the car last night and took the opportunity to listen to several sports talk shows on Sirius Satellite Radio. I ended up settling on most of The Gresh Show, hosted by Andy Gresh, on Mad Dog Radio. I listened to roughly fifty phone calls and probably forty-eight of them involved Kentucky basketball and Gillispie. Gresh and his loyal following basically described Kentucky fans as a bunch of hayseeds that are only satisfied with thirty-plus wins and a Final Four appearance. Gresh even stated that Kentucky was no longer a top ten program. Gresh felt that it was ridiculous to fire a good coach after only two seasons. Every single Kentuckian that called the show last night tried to explain that there was more to the story and that wins and losses were not the basis of Barnhart’s decision, but the host was having none of it. Again, it was the national media’s perception that the Kentucky fans have unreal expectations and we have once again chased a great coach out of town. The national media is off base on this one.
If the problem is not wins and losses, what could have possibly prompted Barnhart and Todd to dismiss Coach Gillispie after only two seasons?
As Paul Harvey used to say, since the Kentucky press conference ended, we have began to understand the “rest of the story.”
It has been common knowledge for sometime around the fan base that Billy Gillispie:
- Is not a great public speaker and many times appears quite abrasive with the media
- Is a pretty stubborn guy that is set in his own ways
- Uses some stern motivational techniques on his players
- Failed to sign a true contract for two years
- Struggled with relationships and speaking engagements that are expected of the head coach at the University of Kentucky
- Has provided two seasons worth or bizarre substitution patterns and unimpressive game strategies
- Watched Derrick Jasper transfer to UNLV and Alex Legion leave for Illinois
- Kicked walk on Dusty Mills off the team
- Had some strange altercations with ESPN’s Jeannine Edwards during a pair of halftime interviews
- Followed up the embarrassing Edwards’ stuff with a weird attack on Tom Leach
- Stated that he was not an ambassador for the university during the SEC Tournament
- Stated that coaching at Kentucky is just another job
A few of those things ultimately led to Gillispie’s demise, in my opinion - particularly the strange altercations with Edwards on national television and the idiotic statements about his job. Another damaging blow is the fact that many people believe Gillispie caused permanent damage to Jasper’s knee by rushing him back to competitive play too soon, which probably led to his departure.
The aforementioned issues could have probably been resolved through meetings and perhaps even a probationary period, but there were other problems that most people were not aware of. I feel that those unknown demons are the primary reason why Billy Gillispie is currently unemployed. The problem that surely caused the most concern was the brutal treatment of the Kentucky players.
I watched a couple of disappointing losses several weeks ago and I made the comment that Gillispie had “lost the team.” I had no facts to base that opinion on, but I could see something very noticeable with the team’s demeanor. I felt that something was very wrong behind the scenes.
It was rumored that several of the key players for next season would have transferred or gone pro if Gillispie remained at Kentucky. Only minutes after the press conference yesterday, Jodie Meeks’ father was quoted with some very strong comments:
"You don't want to throw gasoline on the flames, but, clearly, a lot of things happened behind the scenes that made it difficult for the kids to play basketball and focus on winning," Orestes Meeks said.
Of his relationship with Gillispie, the elder Meeks cited his son's UK record 54-point performance at Tennessee on Jan. 13.
"I got calls from every coach he ever had: baseball, basketball, all of them," Meeks' father said. "Except his current coach. His current coach never called. That said a lot to me. ..."
"When you start placing blame, tell them when the ship misses the harbor, do they blame the harbor?" he added. "I don't think it's anybody's fault but his own."
Then, Matt Jones at KSR passed along some insight that really makes me feel sorry for the Kentucky kids:
- Coach told Jodie Meeks in a number of games to stop shooting and decried him for his selfishness, even during his 54-point performance in Knoxville. He told Meeks he should quit on a number of occasions and even threatened to kick him off the team in his last game ever, in South Bend during the NIT.
- At halftime of one game, he forced a player to sit in a bathroom stall with the door closed during the entire break because he said he couldn’t stand to look at him.
- On more than one occasion, when a young player went into his office to ask for advice on how he could get better, he returned from the office having been berated by the coach and crying as he returned to Wildcat Lodge.
- On one road trip, a player who had been injured but was deemed to be too “soft” by the Coach was told to walk to the hotel from the arena, and only after teammates said that they would be get off the bus and walk with him, was he allowed back on.
- On another road trip, a player who felt the criticism was so strong that he locked himself in a room crying, while the team bus waited outside.
I talked to a few friends inside the program and discovered several other uncomfortable situations that were created by Billy Gillispie. I discovered that he was obnoxiously rude to many within the athletic department. He once told a worker that was simply trying to replace a light bulb in the coach’s office to “get out and return when the season is over.” In another instance, a new employee was being introduced to Gillispie. Before the conversation could ever start, Gillispie rudely exclaimed, “I don’t have time for this.”
I was told that he filled the entire department with negativity and the feeling that everyone near him had to “protect themselves from his fury.”
After looking a little more closely into the situation, it is easy to see why a change was necessary at Kentucky. The national media knows a different Billy Gillispie than the people in Lexington know. They see a great coach that has been wronged by a crazy fan base. We see a crazy coach that has wronged the University of Kentucky.
I will issue a friendly warning to any school that joins the national media’s idea of Billy Gillispie:
The smooth-talking Billy Gillispie that was answering questions during a press conference of his own this morning is not the same Billy Gillispie that coached the Kentucky basketball team. The man we saw this morning was the same deceitful being that slid under the Kentucky administration’s radar and planted a sneaky seed of negativity into the greatest college basketball program of all time. That seed quietly sprouted and grew roots behind the scenes. This season, that troublesome plant flourished and depleted the Kentucky basketball soil. Only now has that weed been pulled.
Sources:
Gillispie out as Kentucky coach
Valuable Insight from Matt Jones at Kentucky Sports Radiohttp://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=4021232
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6 comments:
As a UK fan I'm totally embarrassed by how the whole situation with the firing of Billy G came down. I feel as if Barnhart & Todd need to bow out. They looked liked a couple of men with no backbone, Todd reminded me of a beady eyed criminal. They knew who they were getting when they got Billy G or they should have. I don't see this UK basketball program doing anything in the next couple of years but spiraling downward at best in rebuilding mode. Any coach would be crazy to take the job. I guess what ticks me off most is if they were going to fire G then they needed to have a coach lined up. The way it is UK has become a laughingstock in the NCAA and the country. If half of what you say is true why wasn't this addressed as it happened? Billy G. should have been given another year...he got a raw deal.
I don't know Matt Jones personally, but I know that he has solid information. If he says those things took place, then I trust his information.
One would think that Barnhart would have known a little more about what he was getting in Gillispie. I mean, if you hire someone for a job that pays $465,000, you need to make a solid hire. You also don't want to make a hire that is going to set the program back and force you to lose money.
I hope they do a little better this time and I just hope we can recover in a timely manner.
Very good points! I do believe we as UK fans are portrayed unfairly...to a point. Not every UK fan is not basketball educated. They usually side with the masses and then make up their own reasons for their positions on different items.
Dick Gabriel's article last week pretty much sickened me as far as calling the fanbase racist. For the record, I, along with several others, were with Tubby Smith until the Rondo years. He essentially held back what could have been one of the best players to ever don the UK Blue. And his team's performace reflected that.
As far as Billy Clod goes, I think he did deserve one more year at the helm for two reasons. It's hard to judge a coach's performance on two years without his players. The other reason for keeping him another year would be a second chance at a better understanding of what it means to be a UK Basketball Coach. (Call me college basketball elitist, if you must, but if the shoe fits...)
The program is greatly tarnished as it is. They can't hire a fix. They have to hire a longterm plan.
Keep up the great articles, Wiredaddy!
I DO NOT believe what you are saying about Billy G being that way with his team and staff. Because if this was going on then Todd,Mitch and anybody else who knew about this should be fired and punished because you are pretty much saying he abused the team. And there is NO WAY you could have kept that away from the media and their parents. He has already been done wrong do you have to ruin his career too? LIES LIES LIES you should be ashamed.
Actually anonymous, I am only passing along what Matt Jones at Kentucky Sports Radio reported as fact on his site. Jones' information is golden and he has never been one to falsify reports.
Also anonymous, let me be the first to say that I wish Gillispie the best of luck in his future coaching career. It is my opinion, and also the opinion of 99% of the Kentucky fans, that he was a terrible fit at the University of Kentucky. That doesn't mean he's a bad coach. That just means this might not be the place for him to be most effective.
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