Georgia Basketball: 8 candidates to replace Tom Crean as head coach

Jonas Hayes

When it comes to these types of searches, though true at all levels of college basketball, having some sort of prior connection to the school often helps you stand out. In recent years, there hasn’t been a ton of success at Georgia and they haven’t exactly been a trove for young or standout coaches across the country. Still, there’s someone with a ton of Georgia experience who might be one of the favorites for this job.

Hayes was born in Atlanta and played his collegiate ball at Georgia in the early 2000’s. He’s spent most of the last two decades as an assistant coach, including a six-year stint at Georgia under head coach Mark Fox. For the last four seasons, Hayes has been on staff at Xavier, now serving as associate head coach of the Musketeers.

He does not have any head coaching experience, but he has a ton of experience with Georgia. An alum of the basketball program, it’s the kind of hire to reenergize the program, but you have to wonder how it would fit from a basketball perspective. Hayes is talented, but has never been a head coach and has just these nine years of experience at the power conference level. He’s an intriguing option, but would it be wise to tab someone who’s already run their own program?