T J

[FallOf81]

This man is definitely, in my opinion, off to the one of the greatest coaching starts in the history of Iowa State . That's quite a legacy.
How we have "stumbled" upon such a great coach, mentor, father, husband, you name it, is beyond me.
I actually expect that who ever we face, we are going to win.
Thoughts?

 

[ForbinsAscynt]

He’s awesome but he’s a human being. Let’s not go overboard.

Reminds me of this.

 

[rosshm16]

When he was hired I was worried because I thought of him as one of "Fred's guys". Fred was successful because he was able to recruit NBA players to run an NBA offense. I worried TJ would try to run Fred's system without Fred's players and it would be a disaster.

How wrong I was.

 

[madguy30]

It's a different era with different rules but so long as ISU makes the tournament he'll be the 2nd coach ever to make the tourney his first three years after Tim Floyd.

 

[Cyched]

I knew he'd be a good fit when hired, but wasn't sure how long it would take to see results. The first season was so fun because it was so unexpected.

 

[FerShizzle]

TJ is awesome. And this style/identity is very sustainable as well. Maximum effort, maximum focus, no peaks, no valleys.

 

[cymac2408]

Count me as someone who was wrong about this hire. I thought Pollard should have looked at some other candidates. I thought he had tunnel vision. I owe Pollard and TJ my sincere apologies.

 

[madguy30]

I knew he'd be a good fit when hired, but wasn't sure how long it would take to see results. The first season was so fun because it was so unexpected.

Like the Fred hire the program needed someone who 'knew' Iowa State so it was at least interesting instead of some random guy from a mid-major after the 20 loss seasons.

 

[alarson]

 

[goody2012]

This man is definitely, in my opinion, off to the one of the greatest coaching starts in the history of Iowa State . That's quite a legacy.
How we have "stumbled" upon such a great coach, mentor, father, husband, you name it, is beyond me.
I actually expect that who ever we face, we are going to win.
Thoughts?

Him being a great basketball coach doesn't make him great at all those other things. Unless you know him personally let's not annoint him...

 

[AlaCyclone]

When he was hired I was worried because I thought of him as one of "Fred's guys". Fred was successful because he was able to recruit NBA players to run an NBA offense. I worried TJ would try to run Fred's system without Fred's players and it would be a disaster.

How wrong I was.

Add me to the I was W-R-O-N-G list.
I didn't like the hire because it was a good ole boy hire by JP.
TJ was a G-R-E-A-T hire for ISU, and I would be a terrible A.D.!

 

[nfrine]

Waiting for ZRF to pontificate..

 

[Cyched]

Since the 2015 coaching search will inevitably get brought up - it's clear TJ is a better fit for ISU than SP was, so in hindsight that would've been the right hire.

But in a way we also benefited from TJ coming in at such a low point. It gave him the latitude to rebuild everything as he saw fit; when you go 2-22 and winless in conference there are no sacred cows. That probably expedited the rebuild.

 

[JM4CY]

Waiting for ZRF to pontificate..

Bring back Prohm!!

 

[IASTATE07]

Since the 2015 coaching search will inevitably get brought up - it's clear TJ is a better fit for ISU than SP was, so in hindsight that would've been the right hire.

Thanks for taking one for the team and bringing it up.

 

[Cyched]

Thanks for taking one for the team and bringing it up.

You are welcome.

 

[CySmurf]

Some of you aren't old enough to remember how awful ISU was in basketball until we attempted to get Bill Frieder...Johnny Orr's top assistant and instead got the head coach himself, Johnny Orr to become head coach at ISU. He gave Iowa State credibility in men's basketball.It paved the way for guys like Tim Floyd, Larry Eustachy, Fred Hoiberg and ultimately TJ to come to Ames! The Hilton Magic we see and everyone refers to today started with Coach Orr. He was one of a kind.

 

[FallOf81]

Some of you aren't old enough to remember how awful ISU was in basketball until we attempted to get Bill Frieder...Johnny Orr's top assistant and instead got the head coach himself, Johnny Orr to become head coach at ISU. He gave Iowa State credibility in men's basketball.It paved the way for guys like Tim Floyd, Larry Eustachy, Fred Hoiberg and ultimately TJ to come to Ames! The Hilton Magic we see and everyone refers to today started with Coach Orr. He was one of a kind.

I think Johnny would be damn proud of how the coaching staffs have evolved. It's not easy. And it's not just the building.

 

[3TrueFans]

And he smells good, he's a great kisser, a generous lover, a good tipper, returns his shopping carts, and always uses his turn signal.

 

[T-oh double D]

I love having TJ as our coach. I think it’s a little early to think about his legacy in terms of where he ranks of all-time Cyclone coaches. However, I agree with the OP- I feel like we have a chance to win every game we play in and that makes every game fun to watch.

TJ seems like a great guy and the thing I like about him most is that he loves Iowa State. You hear it in his interviews and just how he talks about our program- he’s one of us and that’s a huge plus in my book.

The only thing I wonder is if he can get us to that next step- that Final 4 or Elite 8 season on a regular basis. I think most seasons we‘re a solid 20-22 win team and a first or second round of the NCAA tournament, with the occasional Sweet 16 appearance. Just not sure if he can take us to the next level.