Bzdelik Bouncing?

2 years in the life a head couch, even nowadays isn’t a long time. Although the fact that there have been numerous 1-and-Done coaches in the NFL in its recent history.

As a coach you need time to recruit, develop talent and shape a team in the way you envision it. And if you give a good coach time to make his mark on the program they will definitely have success. Coach Krzyzewski was 38-47 in his first three seasons as the head man at Duke. I think he turned out alright.

And Bz, as I see him, is a good and quality coach. Maybe not a HOFer, but rather a guy who is going to go out and recruit (and players will come because he has a tie to the NBA which is key to getting a high profile player to commit to a school) and get the best out of his guys and use ‘his’ system to win.

With the Nuggets he coach a little more than 2 years and in that time he turned around a surefire lottery pick team into a decent squad. His 26 game turnaround of the Nuggs is close to the NBA record. It would be like the Nets winning 36 games next year and in contention in the Easy Playoff Push.

At Air Force he stayed there for 2 whole years and in the second year they made a run in the NIT tourney. You can’t tell me that making the Falcons a good solid team is not a success.

And now at CU, after the Richard Roby era, he has had gradual growth in competitiveness in the Big XII. The Buffs finished 8^th in the conference where 7 teams made the tournament. Where they lost 8 games by less the 6 points which could have sent them to the big dance as a 7 or 8 seed.

Now Bz, why leave?

You have a young team coming back, in a down conference. Cory Higgins could have been a lottery pick if he came out this year and projections for Alec Burks are in the top 10 for the 2011 draft. With 2 NBA Lottery picks sitting in your lap you have a chance to rule the Big XII. Kansas lost Aldrich, Collins and Henry; Texas is without Damion James; Iowa State is going to lose Gilstrap and Brackins.

And for Wake?

Okay, Wake Forest is most likely a better place for die hard basketball fans. But you would still be the step sister to UNC and Duke no matter how well you do. The Demon Deacons are losing Amino and PG to the NBA.

Is it a fair trade? I don’t think it’s even close.

And why would you even put your name out there? Don’t you remember what happened to Jay Cutler and Josh McDaniels? It was right in our backyard and it was the story of the offseason last summer. (And you if you thought the biggest story was Brett Favre last summer, you’re kidding yourself) You can’t go behind the team you are committed-to's back and get away with it. People are not going to be happy with you and situation is bound to emerge.

But, hey, if you think is the right place for you, go right ahead and leave. We have Mighty McClain to take the helm. And if you look at either is coaching career on film or in real life he is a good old fashioned coach. In Hoosiers he was the assistant coach and led the team to the state finals in Indy and they won it all. (Okay, that wasn’t actually McClain, but you have to admit that McClain and Dennis aka Coach Shooter look eerily similar.)

Courtesy Google Images

Dennis Hopper Steve McClain

‘Coach Shooter’ ‘Coach McClain’

McClain is a good coach too though. He went 157-115 as the head coach just north of the border in Wyoming. He led the Pokes to the second round in the NCAA tournament in 2002. So we know, he is a great replacement for Bz.

So, moral of the story is that it would be nice to see Bzdelik remain on the sideline here in Boulder next year, but we don’t need him. Whatever happens there is a very good chance that Burks, Higgins and the rest of the Buffs will play themselves into the big dance.