NBA Big Ten Basketball

The whole Kobe maelstrom seems to have had a lasting effect on Chicago GM John Paxson: this coaching search he's working through has been relatively hushed. Just last night, through Yahoo!'s Adrian Wojnarowski and Dan Wetzel, we learn Rick Carlisle has already interviewed for the gig. But the bigger news is the rumor Pax's considering Michigan State coach Tom Izzo.

And Izzo doesn't refuse the proposal outright. In fact, it sounds like he really would like to give the league a shot.

"I go back and forth on (coaching in the NBA)," he continued. "I still think it's the ultimate level. There is something about it. I look at it and say, 'It's a real challenge.' But I love what I do too. I go down and look at what the Pistons (coaches) do in preparation and I think, 'That's insane.'

"But I look at what I do in terms of recruiting and I think, 'That's insane.'"

Basically, being a basketball coach at any of the top levels is insane. Could Izzo succeed in the pros? The old canard about college coaches failing in the NBA is overblown and too general. Reggie Theus seemed to do alright this year. Hiring any first-time pro coach is a crap shoot, whether it's a longtime assistant-in-waiting (Mike Brown or Larry Krystowiak), a recent ex-player (Avery Johnson, Nate McMillan), or a college guy (Theus, Tim Floyd).

These labels -- and that's all the talking heads will focus on today, the question of whether a college coach can succeed -- obfuscate the real question: Can Izzo handle it? I don't pretend to know. But if he wants an interview -- and it sounds like he does -- you give him one. Let him tell you what he can do with Ben Gordon and Luol Deng.

This should be filed under the "you have a lot of nerve" section. New York Knicks coach Isiah Thomas is taking his name out of being a possible replacement for the embattled Kelvin Sampson at Indiana. Isiah, apparently, thinks he's got a good thing going, now:

"No, I'm very anchored here (in New York)," he said. "It's a tough thing that Coach Sampson and the university is going through. But I still support 'em. I support the university." Of course, it likely will be anchors aweigh for Thomas at the end of the season. That would free him up for a return to Bloomington, where his son Joshua is a student, should Sampson be fired.

By the way, that was from the New York Daily News.

Someone had to give him the idea of coaching at Indiana ... because there is no way in Hades that the Hoosiers need that. Sure, let's dump Sampson and bring in a guy who has run the Knicks into the ground and pulled them through an embarrassing sexual harrassment trial.

I think that even the potted plants in Bloomington miss Bobby Knight.

I can't tell if this is a truly significant thing, or something beyond trivial, but the Ohio State Buckeyes will not be wearing the traditional Nike logo on their uniforms during the NCAA tournament. Instead, they'll be wearing the LeBron James Nike logo (you can get a better look at it here).

On one hand ...

Never before have the lines between professional and amateur basketball been that blurred. You've got a group of college student athletes taking the floor wearing the logo of a man who had absolutely no use for college. LeBron's very presence almost makes a mockery of college. Not only is he so far past the idea, of college, but now he gets to actually brand the young men who aren't. I'm sure it didn't need it, but imagine the boost that gives to LeBron's ego.

And from LeBron's perspective ... he wants to be a "global icon"? I say this puts him more than halfway there. You see corporate logos on uniforms. You see the Nike swoosh, the three stripes of adidas, the RBK vector ... and now the LBJ23. Is he on that level? And did he get there while playing the most uninspired basketball of his career?

But on the other hand ...

Maybe it's just another corporate logo. Maybe it's just Nike goofing off a little bit, throwing a bone to their star endorser. Maybe it means nothing.

Feels like it does, though.

Pistons head coach Flip Saunders took advantage of the All-Star break by flying back to Minnesota to take part in 25th anniversary celebrations of the University of Minnesota's 1982 Big Ten championship team. Saunders played for the Golden Gophers in the 70's and was an assistant coach for the team in 1982, and if you believe the rumors, he's the favorite to be named the program's next head coach sometime this summer. From Star-Tribune columnist Sid Hartman:

University President Robert Bruininks also has made it clear that Saunders is the top candidate for the job.

Saunders faces a difficult decision on whether to leave the Pistons for the Gophers.

I have known this young man for more than 30 years, from the first day he walked onto the Williams Arena floor. I know he loves this university and bleeds maroon and gold.

I can't see him turning down the chance to have the job he has dreamed about all of his adult life, despite the difference in pay.

Former university athletic director Mark Dienhart recalled how hard he tried to convince Saunders to take the Gophers job before Dan Monson was hired.

"I spent a lot of time with Flip both here and at his cabin trying to convince him to take the Gopher job," Dienhart said. "He was interested, but we just didn't have the money to pay him at that time."

To Saunders' credit, he's done his best to discredit the rumors, explaining that he considers himself an NBA coach and his primary goal right now is to win an NBA title. But if Saunders is actually 100% certain that he wasn't going to take the job, doesn't it seem odd that he hasn't asked the school's president to tone down the public campaigning? After all, if he's not the guy, all of this hoopla will amount to nothing except making the eventual hire feel second-rate.