Sunday, November 2, 2008 by WH | A10collegehoops Contributor

I am not an expert on the coaching of basketball and make no such claims. But here is one layman’s assessment of the 14 league coaches and generally the order in which I would hire them – with one change. (If I were hiring a coach, I would put Mooney and Everhart ahead of Baron.)

Sean Miller, Xavier Musketeers

Miller has improved dramatically after some shaky moments in his first two seasons. He is not the A-10’s best game-day coach, but he’s not far off. And now he’s recruiting at a higher level than anyone else. Is No. 1 too high? It’s hard to argue with Xavier’s success under Miller (70.5% winning percentage).

Phil Martelli, St. Joseph’s

Martelli does more with less than any of his A-10 counterparts. His teams are mentally tough and fundamentally sound and seem to peak every year come A-10 tournament time. The challenge for Martelli is to do more with more – the Hawks are often short of quality depth. Perhaps a renovated FieldHouse will allow Martelli to recruit more good players.

Fran Dunphy Temple Owls

Perhaps no other coach in the league except Martelli could have turned Temple around as fast as Dunphy. The Owls are much more efficient offensively compared to the late Chaney years and now the defense is coming around. Dunphy has a great eye for talent and excels at developing players.

Rick Majerus, St. Louis Billikens

Majerus gets a high ranking based on past performance, not on results of his first season in the A-10. The Billikens were competitive despite a thin roster, but it remains to be seen whether Majerus still has the coaching magic. A very good sign is the incoming recruiting class, one of the best in the league on paper.

Karl Hobbs, George Washington Colonials

Hobbs gets high marks for three straight NCAA appearances before last season’s meltdown. Clearly the bad publicity about GW’s admissions policy a few years ago constrained Hobbs’ recruiting – the loss of Jeremy Wise still stings – and the talent level has dropped off.

Yet Hobbs still does a good job of getting long, lean kids and molding them into A-10 caliber players. GW rebounded down the stretch last season and was playing very good ball in the last month (just ask Xavier and UMass) using a 5-8 walk-on as point guard. That’s coaching. Hobbs also kicked three talented players off the team, including Mo Rice, for being disruptive. That’s showing the players he’s still the boss and won’t let things get out of hand.

Brian Gregory, Dayton Flyers

The Flyers would have earned their second NCAA under Gregory if Chris Wright did not get hurt. Gregory has steadily upgraded the talent level and his teams are fundamentally sound. The Flyers play solid defense and crash the boards. The offense has not been especially creative, but higher talent should alleviate that problem. Gregory has had particular difficulty recruiting good point guards.

Bobby Lutz. Charlotte 49ers

Lutz turned the program around last season by reintroducing defense and effort to the players’ vocabulary. Charlotte had been shaky fundamentally since joining the A-10 and the offense was undisciplined. Big improvements occurred in almost every phase last year. Lutz, a good recruiter, also upgraded the talent base. When he’s motivated, Lutz can match wits with any coach in the league.

John Giannini, LaSalle Explorers

Giannini has already shown he can win in the A-10 with just a handful of good players. Now he’s showing he can recruit lots of quality players to LaSalle. Last year, he admitted to a big mistake – no easy thing for a coach – by scrapping a patterned offense after it failed early in the season. LaSalle began to play well once the coach revved up the offense. Knock on wood, but it looks like the Explorers might make a breakthrough in the next few years.

Jim Baron, Rhode Island Rams

Baron gets this ranking based on past achievement, but last year’s late-season collapse has opened him up to deserved criticism – not for the first time, either. Reaching 20 wins was a big accomplishment, but ceding an all-but-guaranteed NCAA bid was a big disaster.

Like Giannini, Baron changed his offense a few years ago when his old ways weren’t working. He gets credit for that. Problem is, the new-look Rams have been mediocre defensively, an area in which Baron’s teams once excelled, and shot selection has been iffy. Add a few demerits. Baron has had a good career at some difficult places to win, but not too many people in Kingston are in his corner these days.

Chris Mooney, Richmond Spiders

If Richmond builds on last year’s success even without the services of injured center Dan Geriot, Mooney would move up the list. He’s quickly restored Richmond to competitiveness with excellent recruiting and coaching. Like Fran Dunphy, he seems to have a great eye for not-so-obvious talent and his players get better under his coaching. There’s no reason to believe the Spiders won’t continue to improve.

Ron Everhart, Duquesne Dukes

Master rebuilder delivered a winning season at Duquesne for the first time since 1994, but his second season wasn’t entirely successful. Everhart substituted players too liberally and he mishandled the point position. It was a good year that could have been better. Now the Dukes are starting over again with almost an entirely new roster. Fortunately Everhart seems to be a demon of a recruiter. The team is very young, but there’s a lot of talent.

Dereck Whittenburg, Fordham Rams

Whit did a good job of stabilizing a shaky program and making it respectable, but he failed in the ultimate task of producing a winner. Last year’s senior-laden team was a huge disappointment. Much of the problem stems from the coach’s inability to recruit a good point guard as well as quality depth – problems exacerbated by the school’s poor facilities. Whit didn’t help matters with a pouty performance on the bench. Body language does matter, Dereck.

Whittenburg is never going to outcoach anyone, so he better get better players and get the Rams back to playing hard every game.

Mark Schmidt, St. Bonaventure Bonnies

Schmidt’s coaching ability looks somewhat better after his old school, Robert Morris, surged to 26 wins. It says Schmidt recruited talented players and did some good coaching. On the other hand, one wonders if a veteran RMU team would have won as many games if Schmidt were coach. Whatever the case, the Bonnies actually overachieved in Schmidt’s first year even though the roster was one of the least talented in A-10 history. And now Schmidt appears to have done a fantastic job of upgrading the talent base in just one year. Only time will tell if the players are any good, though. If they are, then we’ll get a better idea of Schmidt’s coaching ability.

Derek Kellogg, Massachusetts Minutemen

Incomplete. Rookie Minutemen boss is viewed as a great recruiter and he’s learned under one of the best college coaches in the nation. He was given a good roster to start. Let’s see what he makes of it.

Sunday, November 2, 2008 by WH | A10CollegeHoops Contributor

The sophomore class is the only one for which we have evidence of the future trajectory of the league since none of the freshmen have played yet. What follows are quick impressions and a Who’s Who among the A-10’s second-year players.

STARS AND POTENTIAL STARS

An’Juan Wilderness, Charlotte 49ers

Rugged 6-6 forward can score off the bounce and is a good defender and rebounder, especially on the offensive glass. If he can hone his outside jumper, he could be a terrific player.

Chris Wright, Dayton Flyers

The best athlete in the league, Wright is good enough to contend for a spot on the A-10 First Team. Scores inside, rebounds, blocks shots. He’s a pretty good ball-handler and can take defenders off the dribble. With a consistent outside jumper, Wright is an NBA First Round pick.

Damian Saunders, Duquesne Dukes

Saunders can be a force at both ends. He’s a better shooter than advertised and he uses his great athleticism to score, rebound and block shots.

Jerrell Williams, LaSalle Explorers

The 6-8 forward is a tremendous rebounder and he knows how to score inside. Williams is also very quick and can take defenders off the dribble. Like Wilderness, he’s a reliable jumpshot and away from future stardom.

Anthony Gurley, Massachusetts Minutemen

Bigtime recruit transferred from Wake Forest to be closer to home, not because he wasn’t getting any time (He was). Gurley is a tremendous athlete with a quick first step and deep range.

Delroy James, Rhode Island Rams

Brother of Sean James has the full package of inside and outside skills. He could be URI’s next great player if he stays focused in the classroom and plays with poise and intelligence.

Kevin Anderson, Richmond Spiders

He might be the second best point guard in the A-10 in just his second year. Anderson is almost impossible to stop off the dribble by any one defender and his outside shot has improved.

Justin Harper, Richmond Spiders

He’s 6-9, highly athletic and a fine 3-point shooter. Harper has to learn how to score inside and use his length more effectively as a defender, but he just oozes potential.

Lavoy Allen, Temple Owls

Allen is arguably the second best bigman in the A-10 right now. He’s a tremendous passer and rapidly improving low-post scorer. He needs to learn to play with more aggressiveness on offense but with more discipline on defense.

Dante Jackson, Xavier Musketeers

The 6-5 guard is quick and rangy and has All-Conference defensive potential. He’s also a decent ball-handler and shooter and could be a terrific offensive player by his senior year if he continues to improve.

THE NEXT RUNG ON THE LADDER

Phil Jones, Charlotte 49ers

The 6-10 center disappointed as a freshman, but he has great size, soft hands and nice shooting touch. Jones can be as good as he wants to be, but he has to show more urgency.

Devin Searcy, Dayton Flyers

Searcy didn’t play a lot as a freshman, but he showed great energy and a nose for the ball. He runs like a deer and is very long. All he needs is more meat on his bones and some steady coaching to become a good two-way player.

Bill Clark, Duquesne Dukes

The smart 6-6 forward is not a great athlete like his teammate Saunders, but he’s a superb rebounder for his size and a very good outside shooter despite a below-average percentage as a freshman. Clark is unlikely to become a star, but he’ll make the stars on his team better.

Mike Moore, Fordham Rams

Rangy 6-5- guard played great early as a freshman before fading. Moore doesn’t stand out on the court, but he’s a good ball-handler and shooter who can drive to the hoop or drain the trey. His lengths suggest above-average defensive potential as well.

Xavier Alexander, George Washington Colonials

Strong 6-6 forward struggled offensively as a frosh – he’s not a good outside shooter and had trouble finishing. Alexander should become a decent scorer in time, but he’s the ultimate lunch-pail guy, a player who rebounds and defends. He has Defensive Player of the Year potential.

Matt Glass, Massachusetts Minutemen

The 6-7 Glass is a tremendous shooter, somewhat like a more athletic version of former St. Joe’s star Pat Carroll. He is supbar defensively and on the boards, but he will stretch defenses.

Kevin Smith, Richmond Spiders

He doesn’t look like a superb athlete, but that’s exactly what Smith is. He’s very quick and explodes to the rim for spectacular dunks. Richmond coach Chris Mooney calls him a glue guy – a player who defends, rebounds, passes and makes the hustle plays. Smith has shown some range on his jumper, if not consistency. He’s a star if he addresses that problem.

Idris Hilliard, St. Joseph’s Hawks

Coming-out party takes place this season. Hilliard is very quick and strong for a 6-6 forward and he knows how to score inside. He’s a pretty good dribbler as well and should be able take defenders off the bounce.

Jamel McClean, Xavier Musketeers

Powerfully built 235-pound Tulsa transfer is a tremendous athlete who rebounds and blocks shots. He’s not as dangerous offensively as teammates CJ Anderson and Derrick Brown, but he could become a double-digit scorer after his older teammates move on.