Trying to rebuild local basketball connections

Despite being the only major conference team in the area, BC doesn't have great relationships with the AAU basketball powers around Boston. The problems and history are long, but it is partially because of admissions issues, JOB's scorched earth, Skinner's disinterest and Donahue not having enough time to build relationships. Jim Christian is trying to change that. Hiring a Boston guy like Spinelli was a first step, but so is getting in early on local talent.

BC just offered 2019 prospect Brycen Goodine. He is a BABC product. BABC is the oldest AAU team in the area and yet recruiting there has been hit or miss for BC. Can this be the start of a different era?

Goodine's graduation year is a long, long way away, so who knows if anything will come of this offer, but I am glad BC is being aggressive. It is just one more step to turning things around.

BC lands Kyran Bowman

Another good sign for BC Basketball -- adding elite talent late in the recruiting cycle. This time it is North Carolina guard Kyran Bowman. He's highly regarded yet somewhat of a unique case. For most of his high school career, Bowman was considered a football prospect. He received offers from many Power 5 teams and verballed to UNC. Later he changed his mind to basketball and reopened the recruiting process. He has one of the better offer lists of recent Christian recruits.

Where Bowman fits will be determined later. He is probably not a Day 1 point guard, but should be a contributer early. He has the athleticism and toughness to do it. Good luck to him and welcome to BC.

Carter is coming

Now we have a transfer! Former Rutgers and Florida guard Eli Carter announced he will spend his final year of eligibility at BC. The graduate transfer is eligible immediately. Carter fills multiple needs for Christian and is a huge get. We now have a proven Power 5 defender. He won't score like Olivier, but Carter can turn it on and should provide solid offensive production. Most importantly, Christian gets some veteran leadership. Carter is already 24 (he played at St. Anthony's and in prep school, plus the college transfer). He's a grown man. This should make a difference on a very young and green BC team.

The recruiting guys gave Scott Spinelli most of the credit for landing Carter. Christian also deserves credit for again being opportunistic. Ideally BC would have their pick of elite recruits. But picking up quality guys late in the process due to coaching changes or other team's musical chairs is not a bad plan. What others might view as scrambling, I view as upgrading talent.

Welcome to BC, Eli. It will only be one year. Let's hope it is a good one.

A philosophical basketball preview

Jim Christian doesn't have a set style. He's not married to any offensive or defensive philosophy that he must stringently implement regardless of his players or opponent. Given his talent this year, that's probably a good thing. If he's smart, he will just give the ball to Olivier Hanlan and get out of the way. 

Hanlan is a versatile offensive player with the requisite skills, speed and build to be a great player. He will be the best player on the court in most of BC's games this year. His talent alone should carry the team to 14 wins. But it is not always that simple. Hanlan couldn't carry last year's team to 14 wins. But the reason for my optimism is that I believe Christian is smart enough to put the pieces together and maximize this group of players.

Hanlan as the offense instead of Hanlan within the offense

For all of our frustrations, Steve Donahue ran a consistently efficient offense. The scheme wasn't dependent on any one player and allowed flexibility in tempo that should have enabled BC to compete with anyone. We know it didn't. But not only did the team not win enough, there were many times where it felt like the movement and patience restricted what the players could be. Think of how many first halfs we had where Hanlan was a non-factor. He would start the offense but never see the ball again. He could drive to the basket at will, yet instead we would eat clock looking to move the ball around the perimeter. In this new era I expect Christian to allow the players more freedom. Hanlan can score if it is there. The offense will also start with him driving and creating instead of waiting. The offense won't be as statistically efficient, but the mindset and aggressiveness should help in the win-loss column. 

The other guys will get their moments, but it will be as complimentary players off of pick and rolls or kick outs. And as long as they adapt and understand, they should be fine.

Defense, defense and more defense

Christian is also not some defensive whiz, but we cannot get any worse. There was very little effort or emphasis put on defense in the old regime. Now practices are defensively focused. Now guys like Owens and Brown will get minutes based off of their D. And then there is Dennis Clifford. Even if he will never be what he once was, he hasn't shrunk. Adding a legit 7-footer will impact rebounding and other teams' ability to score in the paint. Clifford wouldn't have been enough to save Donahue's job, but he will make Christian's life easier this season.

Survival instinct

When I was underwhelmed by the Christian hire, I wrote that he feels like a place holder. He's never been anywhere that long and seems like he has limited upside. My thoughts on him haven't really changed, but I think he is the type of guy who will work in this transition year. He's not looking to build something long-term. He doesn't do long-term (he even transferred during his playing days). He's a pragmatic basketball guy who will put the pieces together and install enough basics that our team will be consistently competitive and never terrible. Is that the type of program that will win championships or inspire fans? Probably not, but he's smart enough to keep getting hired. And if he wants to be marketable after BC, then it will be about letting Hanlan, a few transfers and some flawed big men do what it takes.

On the change in attitude and defense alone, I think BC wins 14 games. If Hanlan really gets going we could be .500. If I am wrong about Christian's upside (and even Clifford's upside) then maybe we become a bubble team. Regardless, I just hope for a fun season.

Money talks

Scott Spinelli officially joined Jim Christian's staff Monday. The news was expected and welcome. What I found more interesting was the Washington Post's reporting of the hire:

Spinelli’s deal, the specific terms of which were not disclosed, will make him one of the highest-paid assistants in ACC, a source said. During the 2012-13 season, the last season contracts were made available via an open records request, Spinelli made $202,000 with the Terps. According to the source, Boston College offered Spinelli a significant raise.

BC doesn't release salaries and as a private institution, it doesn't have to release anything (at least until tax filings a few years from now). But this validates some of the speculation that BC increased the budget for the basketball program. We know that Ohio received a $500,000 buyout for Christian's contract. We know that Spinelli got a "significant raise" from his $200,000 salary. All this talk of money raises and answers some questions that have lingered since the basketball season ended.

It appears BC is ready to make a financial commitment to basketball. Spinelli is a nice piece, but I hope we compliment his strengths and Christian's needs by increasing the recruiting budget too. Facilities upgrades would also help. Yet we still don't know Christian's salary. I hope we didn't overpay for him. Not because I don't like him, but because there wasn't a market demand to overpay him. Spinelli is a lead assistant at a ACC/Big Ten school. He can demand an big salary to move. Christian had no such leverage when making the jump from Ohio.

Christian didn't have leverage, but other coaches did (Wright, Howland, McCaffery?, Chris Mack?, Chambers?). Could BC have upped the budget just a bit more to get one of these guys? Should they? I would have but I am not Brad Bates. But looking at the troubles Cal is also going through on their search, maybe some of these guys just decided to wait this cycle out.

The money shows a commitment from BC. It is the first step. Now BC and the Christian staff need to come up with a shared philosophy with regards to admissions.

Spinelli on the way, Rahon potentially gone

Following rumors and speculation, it looks like Scott Spinelli's deal to join Jim Christian's staff is finally done. Spinelli has strong ties to the rejoin and has successfully recruited many New England players to Maryland. This is the type of recruiter Christian needs on his staff.

One of the things Christian and Spinelli can sell is playing time, because it looks like Joe Rahon is gone. Rahon's future has been in doubt for weeks, so today's report isn't much of a surprise. Supposedly he wants to be a true point guard and as long as Hanlan is around, he cannot be that guy. I don't know if this means Hanlan is returning, but either way, this is a big opportunity for Darryl Hicks. Hicks missed last season with a medical redshirt. Now he should get serious minutes. 

I wish Rahon the best of luck at his next stop, but I don't think he would have been critical to Christian's long term success.

The Legend of the Super Assistant

Big Foot. The Loch Ness Monster. The perfect College Assistant. None are real, yet every time we hire a new coach we get excited by one or two staffers who will magically fill in all the voids and weaknesses of our new Head Coach. Unfortunately that's not how it works. It is always more complicated than that.

The latest rumor is that Maryland Assistant Scott Spinelli is poised to join Jim Christian's first BC staff. Spinelli would be great. He's recruited for an ACC program. He's recruited New England. He would be instant credibility on the recruiting trail. I hope the rumors are true. But Spinelli is only part of the puzzle.

Christian's introduction to BC went well. He said the right things and hit the right notes. But ultimately it will be about wins. I hope that given his history as a head coach he knows this and will adapt. Hiring Spinelli is a sign he gets it. Talking to Hanlan about staying is another sign. Now he needs to get the others to buy in and he needs new players ASAP. I remain optimistic and look forward to staff announcements. But I know the staff is only the first part of building a winner.