I'm going to create my own coaching hotboard since we won't get one until Fox is officially let go. I'll categorize them.
EXTREMELY unlikely (The ones folks like to dream about, but just aren't happening):
1) Billy Donovan - The current Oklahoma City Thunder head coach, Donovan has a decent nucleus around him, but it is unknown if the Thunder will retain him at the end of the year. It is also unknown whether Georgia would even wait that long to find out and even more unlikely that Georgia would pay what it would take to actually land him if everything else seemed to work out.
2) Gregg Marshall - Simply put, Bama told him to name is price and he wouldn't do it. He's compensated more than fairly at WSU and is a god in Kansas. Not saying you don't try to contact him, but don't expect anything.
QUITE unlikely (Maybe you give them a call, but don't expect much conversation/or they would listen, but Georgia is quite unlikely to call):
1) Fred Hoiberg - The current Chicago Bulls head coach has had a little tougher time with his pro stint than Donovan as his situation was not nearly as stable as Donovan, it is more likely that he could be looking for another coaching situation. He would likely look to the college ranks once again to resume his coaching career. He would be a hot commodity amongst searching programs due to his success at Iowa State (his alma mater).
2) Chris Mack - Xavier's current head man, Mack has seen tremendous success as the Musketeers' head coach and is also an alum of the school. Funny how that works, huh? It would likely take a blank check to make him think twice about looking elsewhere and even then, I would bet Xavier would up its pay to the point he would just sit tight.
3) Rick Stansbury - Western Kentucky's embattled head coach and former Mississippi State Bulldog head man, Stansbury is known to cut a few corners and isn't thought of as being very 'clean'. It is unlikely that Georgia would look towards Bowling Green to fill a potential vacancy.
4) Richard Pitino - The day Greg McGarity hires a Pitino is the day that hell freezes over. Probably should be under the EXTREMELY unlikely category.
FAIRLY unlikely (Give them a call, because you never know what can happen):
1) Steve Forbes - Currently killing it at ETSU, Forbes completed his 1-year show cause he received as part of an NCAA investigation into the Vols basketball program and hasn't looked back. Forbes would listen to Georgia if it came calling, but it would still be considered unlikely that Georgia would reach out with his past transgressions.
2) Buzz Williams - The current head coach of the Virginia Tech Hokies, Buzz has seen moderate, but improving success in Blacksburg. Likely to make a second straight tournament appearance, his salary tops out at around $3.3 million/year. It would likely take $3.5 mil/year to have legitimate conversation with him unless he feels there is a ceiling at VT.
Neutral (These guys would probably listen, but still aren't a high probability):
1) Thad Matta - Currently unemployed due to health issues (back), Matta is an elite coach when his health allows him. Matta has a career record of 439-154 (a ridiculous .740 clip) and is best known for his extensive tenure at Ohio State which saw him eclipse 20 wins in every season but his last over a 14 years stretch. Matta also eclipsed the 30 win mark three separate times at Ohio State with five sweet 16 appearances, three elite 8 appearances, two final 4 appearances and one title game appearance in '06-'07. He will likely be pursued hard by the big dogs once he decides to return.
2) Dan Hurley - Hurley is currently doing an excellent job at Rhode Island and has his squad primed for an NCAA tournament run with strong guard play. His base salary as of 2017 was listed at $950k, although it is assumed his incentives take him up to the $1.3-1.5M range. Hurley would likely entertain an offer from Georgia, but hailing from New Jersey originally, a strong offer from Pitt or UCONN would likely be hard to turn down.
FAIRLY likely (These guys would listen and there's a fair chance they would be intrigued):
1) Chris Beard - Texas Tech's head coach, Beard is a hot new name in coaching circles for his quick success at UALR and Texas Tech. Originally from Marietta, GA, Beard graduated from the University of Texas where he was a student assistant under Tom Penders. Beard's salary is a bit convoluted after a bit of research, but it is thought to be in the neighborhood of $1.5M not including incentives for graduation and tournament success.
2) Steve Prohm - Prohm is in his third year at Iowa State after having taken over for Fred Hoiberg. The Cyclones are struggling a bit this season after having lost 7 members of their 2016-2017 squad, but have several signature wins of late. Prohm is an Alabama graduate, but played his high school ball in the Dalton, GA area. Prohm is very familiar with the south and would likely entertain the Dawgs if they made a strong offer. Currently, he brings in ~$1.5M/year not including any incentives.
3) Kermit Davis - Davis is in his 16th year on the job at MTSU. Kermit had a rather lackluster first half of his tenure with the Blue Raiders, not making the NCAAT until his 11th season, but the last 5-6 seasons have seen considerable more success. With back to back round of 32 appearances, look for Davis to make one more career move which could likely be his last as he is already 58 years young. It is to be seen how Georgia views his longevity in whether they would pursue talks with Davis.
4) Ron Hunter - The Georgia State coach is oft remembered for his squad's improbable run in the NCAAT during the 2014-2015 season where it saw the Panthers claw their way back to beat Baylor in a spectacular finish. Georgia State would go on to lose to Mack's Xavier squad by 8 in the round of 32. The Panthers were lead by R.J. Hunter (Ron's son), Ryan Harrow and Kevin Ware, both transfers from the bluegrass state. Georgia will likely shoot higher than Hunter, but he could be a backup plan in case things go awry.
VERY likely (These guys would most likely drop what they're doing and be in Athens tomorrow):
1) Tom Crean - The former Indiana and Marquette head coach, Crean was let go after a mediocre 2016-2017 season for the historic Hoosier program. Crean's squads can be seen as often inconsistent. He took over an Indiana program that was in total disarray and brought them back to respectable success, but couldn't ever seem to capture the tough crowd there in Bloomington. He finished his tenure at IU with a 166-135 overall record and a sub .500 conference mark during his 10 seasons there. He did however make three sweet 16 appearances while there. His tenure at Marquette was more successful from a wins and losses standpoint, tallying a total record of 190-96.
2) Matt McCall - A Florida grad and disciple of Billy Donovan, McCall coached two seasons at UTC and had a terrific first season for the Mocs posting a 29-6 overall record and an NCAA first round appearance. After a 19-12 second year campaign at UTC, McCall bolted for UMASS where he currently has a 10-11 record in his first year on the job in Massachusetts. It will be interesting to see if Greg McGarity opts for the young coach with whom he has connections. I personally think they should reach higher.
3) Earl Grant - Grant is currently in his fourth year at the College of Charleston and is widely regarded as one of the hottest up and comers in the coaching industry. Known to be an excellent recruiter, the former Georgia College standout will soon find himself coaching at the highest level within the next five years. It'll all come down to who will give him his first opportunity. Grant and Jonas Hayes would make a formidable duo on the trail.
Obviously this list isn't exhaustive, but I figure it would give us a good pre-mature conversation starter. There will be other names that surface over the coming weeks.
EXTREMELY unlikely (The ones folks like to dream about, but just aren't happening):
1) Billy Donovan - The current Oklahoma City Thunder head coach, Donovan has a decent nucleus around him, but it is unknown if the Thunder will retain him at the end of the year. It is also unknown whether Georgia would even wait that long to find out and even more unlikely that Georgia would pay what it would take to actually land him if everything else seemed to work out.
2) Gregg Marshall - Simply put, Bama told him to name is price and he wouldn't do it. He's compensated more than fairly at WSU and is a god in Kansas. Not saying you don't try to contact him, but don't expect anything.
QUITE unlikely (Maybe you give them a call, but don't expect much conversation/or they would listen, but Georgia is quite unlikely to call):
1) Fred Hoiberg - The current Chicago Bulls head coach has had a little tougher time with his pro stint than Donovan as his situation was not nearly as stable as Donovan, it is more likely that he could be looking for another coaching situation. He would likely look to the college ranks once again to resume his coaching career. He would be a hot commodity amongst searching programs due to his success at Iowa State (his alma mater).
2) Chris Mack - Xavier's current head man, Mack has seen tremendous success as the Musketeers' head coach and is also an alum of the school. Funny how that works, huh? It would likely take a blank check to make him think twice about looking elsewhere and even then, I would bet Xavier would up its pay to the point he would just sit tight.
3) Rick Stansbury - Western Kentucky's embattled head coach and former Mississippi State Bulldog head man, Stansbury is known to cut a few corners and isn't thought of as being very 'clean'. It is unlikely that Georgia would look towards Bowling Green to fill a potential vacancy.
4) Richard Pitino - The day Greg McGarity hires a Pitino is the day that hell freezes over. Probably should be under the EXTREMELY unlikely category.
FAIRLY unlikely (Give them a call, because you never know what can happen):
1) Steve Forbes - Currently killing it at ETSU, Forbes completed his 1-year show cause he received as part of an NCAA investigation into the Vols basketball program and hasn't looked back. Forbes would listen to Georgia if it came calling, but it would still be considered unlikely that Georgia would reach out with his past transgressions.
2) Buzz Williams - The current head coach of the Virginia Tech Hokies, Buzz has seen moderate, but improving success in Blacksburg. Likely to make a second straight tournament appearance, his salary tops out at around $3.3 million/year. It would likely take $3.5 mil/year to have legitimate conversation with him unless he feels there is a ceiling at VT.
Neutral (These guys would probably listen, but still aren't a high probability):
1) Thad Matta - Currently unemployed due to health issues (back), Matta is an elite coach when his health allows him. Matta has a career record of 439-154 (a ridiculous .740 clip) and is best known for his extensive tenure at Ohio State which saw him eclipse 20 wins in every season but his last over a 14 years stretch. Matta also eclipsed the 30 win mark three separate times at Ohio State with five sweet 16 appearances, three elite 8 appearances, two final 4 appearances and one title game appearance in '06-'07. He will likely be pursued hard by the big dogs once he decides to return.
2) Dan Hurley - Hurley is currently doing an excellent job at Rhode Island and has his squad primed for an NCAA tournament run with strong guard play. His base salary as of 2017 was listed at $950k, although it is assumed his incentives take him up to the $1.3-1.5M range. Hurley would likely entertain an offer from Georgia, but hailing from New Jersey originally, a strong offer from Pitt or UCONN would likely be hard to turn down.
FAIRLY likely (These guys would listen and there's a fair chance they would be intrigued):
1) Chris Beard - Texas Tech's head coach, Beard is a hot new name in coaching circles for his quick success at UALR and Texas Tech. Originally from Marietta, GA, Beard graduated from the University of Texas where he was a student assistant under Tom Penders. Beard's salary is a bit convoluted after a bit of research, but it is thought to be in the neighborhood of $1.5M not including incentives for graduation and tournament success.
2) Steve Prohm - Prohm is in his third year at Iowa State after having taken over for Fred Hoiberg. The Cyclones are struggling a bit this season after having lost 7 members of their 2016-2017 squad, but have several signature wins of late. Prohm is an Alabama graduate, but played his high school ball in the Dalton, GA area. Prohm is very familiar with the south and would likely entertain the Dawgs if they made a strong offer. Currently, he brings in ~$1.5M/year not including any incentives.
3) Kermit Davis - Davis is in his 16th year on the job at MTSU. Kermit had a rather lackluster first half of his tenure with the Blue Raiders, not making the NCAAT until his 11th season, but the last 5-6 seasons have seen considerable more success. With back to back round of 32 appearances, look for Davis to make one more career move which could likely be his last as he is already 58 years young. It is to be seen how Georgia views his longevity in whether they would pursue talks with Davis.
4) Ron Hunter - The Georgia State coach is oft remembered for his squad's improbable run in the NCAAT during the 2014-2015 season where it saw the Panthers claw their way back to beat Baylor in a spectacular finish. Georgia State would go on to lose to Mack's Xavier squad by 8 in the round of 32. The Panthers were lead by R.J. Hunter (Ron's son), Ryan Harrow and Kevin Ware, both transfers from the bluegrass state. Georgia will likely shoot higher than Hunter, but he could be a backup plan in case things go awry.
VERY likely (These guys would most likely drop what they're doing and be in Athens tomorrow):
1) Tom Crean - The former Indiana and Marquette head coach, Crean was let go after a mediocre 2016-2017 season for the historic Hoosier program. Crean's squads can be seen as often inconsistent. He took over an Indiana program that was in total disarray and brought them back to respectable success, but couldn't ever seem to capture the tough crowd there in Bloomington. He finished his tenure at IU with a 166-135 overall record and a sub .500 conference mark during his 10 seasons there. He did however make three sweet 16 appearances while there. His tenure at Marquette was more successful from a wins and losses standpoint, tallying a total record of 190-96.
2) Matt McCall - A Florida grad and disciple of Billy Donovan, McCall coached two seasons at UTC and had a terrific first season for the Mocs posting a 29-6 overall record and an NCAA first round appearance. After a 19-12 second year campaign at UTC, McCall bolted for UMASS where he currently has a 10-11 record in his first year on the job in Massachusetts. It will be interesting to see if Greg McGarity opts for the young coach with whom he has connections. I personally think they should reach higher.
3) Earl Grant - Grant is currently in his fourth year at the College of Charleston and is widely regarded as one of the hottest up and comers in the coaching industry. Known to be an excellent recruiter, the former Georgia College standout will soon find himself coaching at the highest level within the next five years. It'll all come down to who will give him his first opportunity. Grant and Jonas Hayes would make a formidable duo on the trail.
Obviously this list isn't exhaustive, but I figure it would give us a good pre-mature conversation starter. There will be other names that surface over the coming weeks.
