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NC State Basketball: Five potential replacements for Mark Gottfried

By Carmine Carcieri

Feb 11, 2017; Winston-Salem, NC, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack head coach Mark Gottfried reacts to a call in the first half against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 11, 2017; Winston-Salem, NC, USA; North Carolina State Wolfpack head coach Mark Gottfried reacts to a call in the first half against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 5, 2017; Madison, WI, USA; Indiana Hoosiers head coach Tom Crean responds to a question to the post-game news conference after the game with the Wisconsin Badgers at the Kohl Center. Wisconsin defeated Indiana 65-60. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 5, 2017; Madison, WI, USA; Indiana Hoosiers head coach Tom Crean responds to a question to the post-game news conference after the game with the Wisconsin Badgers at the Kohl Center. Wisconsin defeated Indiana 65-60. Mandatory Credit: Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Tom Crean

Before I get into why Tom Crean would be a perfect fit at NC State, let me say this: I don’t believe Crean should be fired at Indiana. Yes, the Hoosiers are 5-9 in the Big Ten and are not likely to go dancing this season. Yes, the Indiana fan base has high expectations and that in turn has created #FireTomCrean on Twitter.

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But let’s be honest: The Hoosiers won the Big Ten last year. They beat Kentucky in the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Sweet 16 before losing to a team that reached the NCAA title game. They also have battled injuries all season long (OG Anunoby, Collin Hartman, James Blackmon Jr.).

We’ve also seen this story before though. When expectations rise and fans become unrealistic, coaches sometimes see a benefit of moving on. Look at Jamie Dixon, who accepted the TCU job after the fans weren’t satisfied that he made 11 NCAA Tournaments in 13 years.

NC State isn’t exactly an easy job (remember Gottfried got fired for making four tournaments in six years and Herb Sendek was fired after he made five in 10 years), but maybe the Wolfpack will be a bit more accepting of Crean and commit long term to a coach that is very good at developing his players.

Crean has made four NCAA Tournaments in nine years in Bloomington and sports a 163-131 record. He also helped Marquette reach five Big Dances in nine years and was the coach of the team that reached the Final Four in 2002-03.

Crean would take a step up to the ACC. And NC State would get one of the hottest coaches on the market. The Wolfpack would have to bring out the big bucks!

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