Why Krystkowiak ain't Jim Boylen or Ray Giacoletti

by JazzyUte on Apr 3, 2011 7:56 PM MDT in Basketball

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Not Giacoletti...yet

I'm going to try something different here and go a bit positive on ya'. I'm not really sure what to make of the Krystkowiak hire, but I'm ready to give it a try.

At least until the first loss.

Okay. So when I first heard Krystkowiak's name batted around (again) last week, I clammed up and instantly thought Boyliac - Utah fans' worst nightmare. I mean, why not? He did, after all, roam around both Giacoletti's and Boylen's old stomping grounds (Big Sky, NBA respectively). However, going positive for a bit, let's try to look at this rationally and optimistically.

It's the least we can do, right?

Ray Giacoletti came to Utah a young and energetic Big Sky winnin' ball of Italian who the hell is this, and, after three grueling and disappointing seasons, we quickly found out exactly who the hell he was - a not so ready for primetime program killer.

In retrospect, we should have known that. Look at his resume at Eastern Washington and try to find anything that jumps out at you:

17-11

17-13

18-13

17-13

I don't know if Giacoletti was OCD, but looking at these results, you'd have to think he had some sick fascination with seventeen wins.

But for whatever reason, the man avoided twenty wins like the plague.

Big red flag. Yeah it's Eastern Washington - but hell, even Randy Rahe at Weber State has been able to easily cross the 20-win threshold three out of his five seasons there.

Now it's true Krystkowiak is another Big Sky lackey and one that didn't even win a regular season championship at that, but he is not Ray Giacoletti. At least outside the ridiculous amount of syllables in both their last names.

If Giacoletti was the epitome of Big Sky Average, Krystkowiak probably deserves to be classified as Big Sky Superstar.

And this I do mean.

Krystkowiak won 24 games in his second season at Montana. Giacoletti, between his stops at North Dakota State and Eastern Washington, failed to do that at any point. He just could not win 20-games. Hell, in Krystkowiak's first season, he even bested anything Giacoletti did when you factor in Montana's NCAA Tournament berth.

But Krystkowiak is Mr. Big Sky Superstar because he's the last guy to coach a Big Sky team to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Prior to that, you have to go all the way back to Weber State's 1999 win over North Carolina in the first round (wow, the Tar Heels were the state's bitch two years running) to find the last time that happened.

The Big Sky just does not produce tournament winning teams.

So score two for the Krystkowiaker.

Then there is our balding mic screamer Jim Boylen.

He was supposed to bring a different layer to Utah basketball. He could look a recruit in the eye and say, "you know, I've been the third assistant on a few teams in the NBA and I can get you to the association..."

Yeah. That never happened. None of Boylen's players can be found on an NBA roster today.

But there is a difference. Krystkowiak has been a head coach in the NBA. Oh sure, it ended badly and ended quicker than a typical Las Vegas marriage - but he can legitimately claim to be a NBA head coach.

That's something Boylen probably only dreamed of doing while he warmed the assistant chairs in Houston, Golden State and Milwaukee (err, they both coached the Bucks...oh Jesus! Wait! So did Majerus...is there some crazy bylaw in the University charter that says the basketball program must hire a former Milwaukee Bucks assistant?).

Boylen also spent his entire collegiate coaching career at Michigan State. This is no knock on Boylen, but they weren't racking up the wins because he was an assistant to Jud Heathcote and Tom Izzo. Truth be told, their last really great season (when they won the whole shebang in '00) came when Boylen was lost in NBA obscurity.

In fact, Boylen was only around as lead assistant for a grand total of two seasons and none resulted in a deep tournament run (the Spartans were bounced in the first and second rounds his two years there).

He also wasn't a head a coach. Ever. Not at any point in his career. Krystkowiak, even if briefly, can say he was. Yes, it was for only two seasons and they happened five and six years ago, but that's still two more than Boylen brought to the table.

So it's like Krystkowiak lived out Jimmy B's dream. He was a head man at the college level (twice) and led his own NBA team.

Now does that mean good things for Utah? I don't know. But after deep reflection (serenity is a good thing), I have come to the conclusion that while Krystkowiak does have some issues, he certainly is not Jim Boylen or Ray Giacoletti. Or some hybrid monster of both.

He's got a far better resume than either when they accepted the gig and because of this, I expect he'll do vastly better than his two predecessors.

Of course, both did set the bar pretty low...

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Comments

New Utah Coach

For me Rick Majerus and (John Wooden) are the standards I use to benchmark future Utah coaches. With the fat man, we had a great run and he brought the program to heights that are hard to duplicate.

I don’t know Coach Krystkowiak, but from what I read he is a fiery competitor, a positive trait in common with Majerus and Wooden when used constructively.

I am cautiously optimistic about this hiring and hope we can return to our glory days. I would have gone for a 3 year deal but these days coaches are getting paid outrageous terms – perhaps the reason we couldn’t land Gottfried.

by Utah-UCLA alum on Apr 3, 2011 9:25 PM MDT reply actions

He is a competitor...

He was as a player and has been as a coach. It’s interesting, he’s the first coach at Utah with real NBA coaching and playing experience.

I hope that helps him.

And yes, the pay for coaches is outrageous.

You know, it’s funny. Back in 2005, Mark Gottfried became one of the highest paid college basketball coaches in the country when he signed a deal that netted him roughly 1 million a year.

In the Pac-12, that’s standard. Your pals at UCLA pay Howland two million. Sean Miller is paid about that as well.

$950,000 is a lot of money – but would put Kryskowiak at 7th in terms of salary in the conference (excluding Stanford and SC since they are private and haven’t released contact terms).

Go figure.

by JazzyUte on Apr 4, 2011 2:29 AM MDT up reply actions

Great post

This post has really lightened my mood on the coaching situation, he can’t be any worse than the last two coaches.

Go utes!

by utahman13 on Apr 3, 2011 10:38 PM MDT via mobile reply actions

Giac was a horibble hire, Boylen was too big of a ? hire

Compared to those guys Krystowiak is a head coaching god. But that also says a lot about Chris Hill’s evaluation on coaches, the guy has no clue what he is doing. But I’m not going to judge Krystowiak on Hill’s failures. His work at Montana is impressive(albeit short). This guy deserves his shot as coach of Utah basketball.

by utahmanami on Apr 4, 2011 12:49 AM MDT reply actions

Chris Hill

I disagree. While the proverbial what have you done for me lately may apply, Chris Hill’s body of work and hiring moves have been pretty good. Plus it was under his watch that we go admitted into the Pac-12! The greatest thing to happen to the U of U, (cold fusion would have been the greatest).

1) Hired Rick Majerus (the greatest B-ball coach in Utah history) ****
2) Hired Ron McBride, he got our Football program going after decades of dormancy. *
3) Hired Urban Meyer, **
4) elevated Kyle Whittingham ****
5) Got us into the Pac-12 ****

1) Giacolleti -
2) Boylen gets one more negative because he signed him to an extension after we got blown out in the 2009 NCAA tourney. BLOWN OUT.

by Utah-UCLA alum on Apr 4, 2011 10:07 AM MDT up reply actions

edit

somehow my post got garbled.

Ron McBride 3 stars
Urban Meyer 4 stars

Giac 3 minuses
Boylen 4 minuses

by Utah-UCLA alum on Apr 4, 2011 10:09 AM MDT up reply actions

On football, yeah...

Basketball, though? He’s down 1-2 in the count and we’re not sure how this 3rd one will turn out.

I think Hill has run the football program flawlessly. He gave McBride a ton of time to turn around Utah football and take it to the next level, yet made the appropriate change in 2002. He hired Urban Meyer, who was an up and comer – but with limited HC experience. He then managed to keep Whittingham in Utah.

Not only that, but he spearheaded the expansion of RES, was a big part in getting Utah the Indoor Practice Facility (though most credit goes to Urban, since he wasn’t going to stay around if it wasn’t built – which is funny, considering he still left). And, of course, got us into the Pac-12.

On basketball, though, he’s been a failure the last ten or so years.

1. His handling of the Majerus situation, even today, is less than desirable. We need to retire or recognize Majerus in someway, but won’t as long as Hill is the AD.

2. He allowed fan apathy to consume the program. Our attendance sucks now, but it’s been declining ever since the 1998 NC run. He hasn’t remotely done anything to fix the issue.

3. The basketball team is in dire need of a basketball facility and it’s at least a few years down the line. But this was something Majerus was pushing in the mid-90s and it wasn’t until 2008 that Utah officially announced a practice facility. Even then, as I mentioned, we’re still at least two years away from construction.

4. The Huntsman Center is getting old and there is no indication of an upgrade.

5. His hires have been less than stellar. You can question how far down the list they were, but he’s 0-2 post Majerus and he really needs this one to work out for his reputation to not take a big hit.

With that said, he’s made some crucial mistakes during the hiring/firing process beyond just the choices.

Giving Giacoletti a ridiculous 7-year contract. When Utah fired him only after three years, they were owing him a lot of money.

Giving Boylen a $2 million buyout. I understood extending his contract and giving him a pay raise, since he had interest from both Arizona and SC after the NCAA Tournament berth – but a 2 million buyout? Especially when you were still paying off GIacoletti? It was a dumb move.

With that said, I think Giac has done things better this time.

For starters, Krystkowiak received only a five year deal, which is reasonable. We should know, by his fourth year, if this is working out.

And Krystkowiak has a better resume than both Giac & Boylen. I think it’s very likely he does okay here at Utah. He might not dominate, but I could see him winning on average 20 games a year. If that’s the case, we’ll be in a far better position than we’ve been the last six or seven years.

But none of that negates the fact Utah basketball withered away to its worst state under his leadership. Sure, the football program is performing at an elite level and is one of the top teams in the west – but I see no reason why we can’t have a great football team and a good basketball team. Especially given our tradition and, even if not fantastic, our facilities.

If Krystkowiak can get Utah back to being competitive again, the job will then become more lucrative, even if he doesn’t work out. The Pac-12 and the money we bring in will allow us to pay 1.5-2 on the next guy.

And hell, maybe we’re ten-twenty years from even getting a next guy. Maybe Krystkowiak is the guy and if he is, well by that time, I don’t think anyone will ever remember Giac/Boylen…or even care.

But Hill’s got to play this carefully. No overreacting to a good season. You pointed out Boylen’s NCAA Tournament loss and you’re absolutely right. That game gave me a lot of pause as a fan because I felt we were far better than our performance.

Come to find out, it was a typical performance from a Boylen coached team.

So no overreacting this time. If, in his second season, Krystkowiak guides Utah to the tournament, do not give him a contract extension outside an extra year (which is probably built into his contract) unless the program makes a deep run.

by JazzyUte on Apr 6, 2011 3:32 AM MDT up reply actions

That's the spirit...

I am taking the same approach. Let’s see what we have here (and then throw a fit if we don’t like it).

by Rashadabd on Apr 4, 2011 4:54 AM MDT reply actions

Truth be told.

When it comes down to it this is totally different then getting a football coach. A proven coach is not going to leave a strong program, regardless of what conference they are in, unless they are going to a top flight program and subsequently getting paid top coin. That is why the tournament is such a huge benefit to the smaller schools. It gives them a much better chance of keeping good coaches. Utah offered neither of these after Boylen. Funny is we offered both of these when Majerus left but we blew it. That is why the hire of giaclotti was such a big screw up. Now we are back to square one trying to find a coach with potential that ends up hitting it out of the park.

by uteusmc on Apr 4, 2011 7:04 AM MDT reply actions

Sorry, still can't go positive.

When this season started going down the dumps, and especially right about the time of the first BYU game, the only thing that got me through the season was the knowledge that Boylen would be gone, and a new era would begin, and we could go get a coach, to help restore this program.

I’m not sure how I’m going to make it through the next 3-5 years now.

by UnHoly Ram on Apr 4, 2011 7:33 AM MDT reply actions

After Seeing Both Giac and Boylen..

Make the Tourney in their first two years, mainly due to players left over by their predecessor, I’m just not willing to give Kystko all of the credit for taking Montana to the Tourney.

He gets the coaching cred, but not the recruiting cred, and Recruiting is more important in college basketball.

by UnHoly Ram on Apr 4, 2011 7:39 AM MDT reply actions

Great post!

I have a “wait and see” approach to this.

I think this could be a good hire. Its not the glamor name we thought we would get, but its someone who is going to give a fresh perspective.

Now, should we update the transfer watch?

Formerly SportsInUtah
Follow me on twitter: @BigBenSportsGuy

by BigBenSportsGuy on Apr 4, 2011 8:45 AM MDT reply actions

I, for one, welcome our new basketball overlord

I keep accidentally eating my pets. Maybe I should get something less appetizing, like a cat instead of a Twinkie.

Sort-of-daily sort-of-funny sort-of-thoughts at danoftheday.com

by CrimsonUte on Apr 4, 2011 8:48 AM MDT reply actions

Time will tell

Outside of some unrealistic choices like Brad Stevens, Mark Few, John Calipari, etc. there weren’t many prospects I could get overly excited about. College basketball is so different than football because one player can really take over a game, ie. Harold Arceneaux.

With that in mind, it will be interesting to see how our own Coach K. is able to recruit. I’m hoping he will be able to attract and develop some good low post players, because he knows what it takes to play in the NBA.

Now that the hiring has been officially announced, I’m more excited and optimistic.

by UteinBrooklyn on Apr 4, 2011 11:25 AM MDT reply actions

This could be an important point

I’d bet Krystkowiak’s playing experience in the NBA will be more relevant than his coaching experience there, especially if he proves to be good at coaching big men; after all, he played nine seasons in the league and was in the playoffs four times (including his one year with the Jazz). He’s a dude from the Mountain West (region, not conference), he knows and obviously loves that part of the country — something which can only help, and was obviously not true of either of your previous coaches.

But, yeah, he’d better be able to hire a couple really good recruiters — including one with a lot of strong California connections — or y’all are probably hosed.

by The Ancient Mariner on Apr 4, 2011 11:48 AM MDT up reply actions

So much of College Sports is your ability to develop players too.

While recruiting is important, it is also important to be able to find a way to develop a players you have. Hopefully his experience will help him do that.

"From the end spring new beginnings." - Pliny the Elder

by daedalus17 on Apr 4, 2011 1:10 PM MDT up reply actions