Olson gets loose; search for UK coach marches on
Newton keeps patience throughout process
And the search continues...
Eddie Sutton and Company are now unemployed and their former offices at the University of Kentucky are still vacant.
		
		Dan Brandenburg Cats' Pause Columnist
		
By my count at the time of this writing, three coaches on new athletics director CM. Newton's short-list have turned down the job or simply said they weren't interested in talking about it.
Mike Krzyzewski of Duke, Pat Riley of the Los Angeles Lakers and Lute Olson of Arizona have all decided to sit pat, thank you just the same.
Krzyzewski and Riley apparently never were interested, while Olson was just hours away from hopping a plane to Lexington to check out the campus and have another round of talks with Newton.
But then the head honchos from UA decided that Lute (did someone say "Loot") needed a big raise and a contract extension because he's done such an exemplary job with the desert Wildcats.
All of a sudden, just when Olson seemed to be in the bag, it was "Cancel my reservations."
Looking back, I think Lute may have just wanted to see how well liked he was in Arizona, along with checking into the UK job.
Because of his recent success, Olson was probably in line for a raise anyway. But his chances increased drastically when he made it no secret that he was talking with UK. He had nothing to lose, so why not?
Now, who's next?
Rick Pitino of the New Yorks Knicks is one of four coaches who have made the most headlines concerning the UK vacancy and the other three (see above) have dropped out.
But I'm not sure that he or anyone else knows what Pitino is going to do? Is he interested or not?
At first, he said he wasn't interested. Then he said that he would like to go back to college coaching, but not at this time. Now, he seems to be wavering even more.
One thing is for certain, though: Pitino's Knicks, although they still lead their division and are playoff-bound, have taken a nosedive since Pitino started talking about UK. Before then, the Knicks were playing as well as anyone in the NBA.
Someone said, "Who in their right mind would leave Patrick Ewing and Mark Jackson for Derrick Miller and LeRon Ellis?"
Also, don't forget that Pitino said he wasn't going to leave Providence after taking the Friars to the Final Four in 1987.
One name that I've been pushing which has come up is Seton Hall's P.J. Carlesimo.
No one even knew what state (New Jersey) the Pirates were from when they nipped Kentucky in the Great Alaska Shootout, but they somehow ended up in the NCAA finals.
Now everyone knows what a great coach Carlesimo is and he should be ripe for the picking. No way can Seton Hall match what UK could offer.
But no one ever listens to what I think, anyway.
*      * * By the time this hits the street, UK will be wait-
ing a decision after meeting with the NCAA Committee on Infractions.
My best guesses are that the committee's report will be out about the second week of May and that UK will have a new coach by the end of May.
Other guesses are that the Cats will get two years probation and that TV sanctions will not be too severe because of the financial drain it would have on the entire Southeastern Conference. Also, throw in some limits on off-campus recruiting and scholarships.
I don't think any prudent person would jump into a situation that could be totally taken apart by a harsh NCAA ruling just days down the road.
"Anybody that comes in here would want to know where we're at," Newton told a recent gathering of sports editors in Louisville.
Newton added that he was in no hurry to hire a coach, saying that he could sign one "tomorrow" if he wanted to. "The key thing is to get the right man," he said.
The day before speaking to the sports editors' group, Newton had met for the first time with the UK screening committee in charge of hiring a new coach.
"Basically what we did was eyeball each other and make sure we were on the same page on what we wanted in a coach," he said.
"I shared with them my thoughts on some people and presented those applications that have
(A
Newton won't rush into decision
came in and there have been a number of them."
Newton and the committee came up with a list of five criteria that the new coach should meet.
"We want some who can recruit and coach," Newton said.
"We want someone with a track record of running a program the way it should be run.
"We want someone that can put the student-athlete in perspective.
"Because of the high visibility, we want someone who has had high visibility or someone we feel comfortable can adjust to that.
"We want someone that wants the job, not somebody that we've got to get interested in taking the job."
When someone mentioned that Newton himself seemed to meet all of the aforementioned criteria, Newton said, "I hope whoever we bring in is a whole lot better coach than me and I mean that in
all sincerity."
Newton has ruled out taking the coaching job himself on an interim basis, although he has been hitting the recruiting trail.
He said that three players  whom he declined to name  have been offered scholarships, in addition to lone signee Jeff Brassow of Texas.
One of three was apparently Troy Smith of Fort Knox (Ky.) High School, who verbally committed to Kentucky before changing his mind a few days later and inking with Louisville.
Newton also said that he would recommend a five-year contract for the new coach. "Five years gives you plenty of time to establish your program," he said.
Stayed tuned.
*      * *
From the It's-About-Time Department, the Southeastern Conference finally has its first black head coach in either football or basketball.
The Volunteers from just a few hours down 1-75 in Tennessee snatched up Louisville associate coach Wade Houston to replace Don DeVoe, reportedly after Pat Kennedy of Florida State turned down the job.
However, the significance of this event has been muddied over by two other related incidents.
First, Houston's son Allan is an All-American in everybody's book and had already committed to Louisville when his dad headed south.
Now, it seems that Allan may want to follow.
"Either decision I make, I can't go wrong," said Allan, right after being named Kentucky's Mr. Basketball. "I want to stay home and TVe always wanted to play under my father."
The younger Houston virtually locked up the award when he led Louisville Ballard to the state championship in 1988. He staked his first claim in 1987 as a sophomore when the Bruins were state runners-up.
"I couldn't put a time on when 111 decide," Allan said. "I don't know how it feels to play for my father. But through the last four years, Tve felt he has been a coach as well as a father."
One of the sticking points in his decision is whether he will have to sit out a season. Apparently, Houston would have to miss one season just like any other transfer, but Sean Murphy apparently got around that rule when dad Ed Murphy was named coach at Ole Miss.
Louisville coach Denny Crum said he thought it would be a mistake for Houston to transfer, but did we really expect him to say any different?
"He didn't sign with Wade Houston; he signed with the University of Louisville," Crum said. "It's not in Allan's best interests to go play for his dad."
If Houston does decide to transfer, it would give Tennessee a sweep of Kentucky's top players. Miss Basketball Lisa Harrison of Louisville Southern has signed with the defending national champion Lady Vols.
The other story about the Tennessee job is that UT athletics director Doug Dickey and football coach Johnny Majors have given up their memberships  paid for by the school  to an exclusive all-white country club in the Knoxville area.
There appeared to be some question about whether Houston would be allowed to join and a huge public uproar sparked the changes amid cries of racism.
Houston said he didn't think it was a big deal, although he did admit that membership could have its advantages for the basketball program down the road.
Everybody has denied everything, but you know that old song and dance.