Shaka Smart
We’re cutting right to the chase this time: there are no inherent connections between Smart and the Hoosiers program but there are numerous reasons why he’d be a great hire in Bloomington. Indiana needs an experienced coach who knows how to recruit and win at the collegiate level and Smart has certainly showed that in different forms of his career.
We first got to know Smart when he led VCU to the Final Four as an 11-seed back in 2011, getting the job done in just his second year as a collegiate head coach. He spent six years apiece leading both VCU and Texas, though he failed to win an NCAA Tournament game in a tough stretch with the Longhorns. Smart didn’t falter and has bounced back nicely at Marquette back in his home state of Wisconsin. He took the Golden Eagles to the Sweet Sixteen last season and has that program in fantastic shape this year, currently sitting in the Top 10.
First and foremost, would Smart lead his comfortable position at Marquette for a major project at Indiana? Seventeen years ago, Tom Crean was in the exact same position and took that same leap, building decent success before fizzling out with the Hoosiers. Regardless of the hard work ahead, Smart has Marquette buzzing and is back in Wisconsin; is he really going to leave for another big-time job when it didn’t work out at Texas?