The challenge with any first time head coaches

 

Michigan assistant and Boston College alum Howard Eisley is another recurring name in this BC coaching search. Eisley has a lot going for him. He is a key assistant at an elite program. He had a long NBA career and then transitioned into NBA assistant roles. He is a proud BC guy looking for his shot. Oh, and it also helps that he has a son who is an elite prospect. But I don't think BC should hire Eisley or any first time head coach this time around.

I am sure Pat Kraft will talk to some guys who have never bee head coaches. Names floated include Celtics assistant Jay Larranaga, Gonzaga's Tommy Lloyd (who I advocated for in the past) and Villanova's Kyle Neptune. All have great resumes and promising upsides. The issue is we don't know their downsides.

BC is in a better position than it has been with regards to basketball hires. We have more money. We have facilities upgrades close to becoming official. We are in the elite conference yet there is potential to break into the top half of that conference. We don't need to take a risk on an unknown. Pat Kraft can go out and show BC is serious about basketball and get a proven winner. 

There is always the risk that the proven winner might not win at BC and that one of these assistants we pass up goes onto great things. I am okay with that potential trade off. I want BC to get back to respectable and fun basketball. Let's go find as close to a sure thing as we can.

Let's talk about Howard Eisley

I don't know if BC will fire Jim Christian. I think they should, but the point of these coaching profiles is "where does BC go from here?" and "who is the right guy for the program?" Part 1: Howard Eisley.

There is only one major conference program that would hire Howard Eisley as their Head Coach this season and that's Boston College. That is both a problem and an opportunity.

No one else will hire Eisley this year for some simple reasons like he has only been a college assistant one season, has no head coaching experience at any level and is rather anonymous to the media and casual fans.

BC would hire Eisley because he is a well-regarded alumni from a very successful era of BC Basketball, he would be something different after giving the job to a series of mid-major coaches, and he is respected among basketball people. It doesn't hurt that his son is a highly touted 8th-grader, so he is familiar with the AAU circuit, process and network, which would help in recruiting.

If anything, the model for hiring Eisley would be his current boss at Michigan, Juwan Howard. Howard had no prior head coaching experience and no prior recruiting experience. There are some notably differences too. Howard took over a much more stable situation at Michigan and was a more accomplished assistant in the NBA (Howard was known as Miami's big man coach and defensive expert). Howard's higher profile in the sport and among Michigan fans made the transition less controversial.

Eisley is not the way I would go now. Like any blank slate, he has great potential. But the program is in such a delicate spot, I would hate to see it continue to stumble. If we were to go the Eisley route, he would have to emulate one of Juwan Howard's critical steps -- bringing along an experienced head coach (Howard hired Phil Martelli). I don't know who that guy would be for Eisley, but that right hand man who has been through the process is invaluable.

Will Eisley get the job? He doesn't fit the model of other coaches hired by Jarmond, but I assume he will be interviewed. If he emerges as a real candidate, I will dive deeper into what BC Basketball would look like under Eisley.