Fire Leitao and/or DePaul Athletic Director??

[RedStormHoops]

I know DePaul's talent way more than you do. It is very average.....very.

Here is one of them. But this is just one of many in other threads by a small group of Leitao defenders.

Leitao is a bad coach, it is not a talent thing.

Can you read? I asked for a post that said they have NO talent. Since you've been suggesting that someone on here put forth the idea they have no talent. A DePaul fans post that you copy and pasted said their talent is average. And that is 100 percent true.

Let's put this in a way that a hard headed nova fan like you can understand. Jay Wright couldn't take this team to a tournament. Their talent level isn't great. That's why fans want to give Leitao a chance to get his own guys in there. I don't understand why you can't comprehend that but oh well.

[DemonLS]

Nova,

You are really showing your immaturity. Please share with everyone your age.

DePaul has AVERAGE talent. I know. I see it every game. DePaul does not score well at all from the perimeter, has no low post scorers, etc.

You don't know and do not watch them in-person.

FreshJive....please step in here!

[OmahaGuy]

Also, let's be real here. If DL were to get canned like after this season or next year. That'd be the equivalent of dropping a NUKE on the program. It'd show the program has no stability and the hot name coaches that DePaul fans would want (Like Hurley if he were still at Buffalo, Bryce Drew, etc.) wouldn't at all consider coming to coach at DePaul. That'd be a MAJOR turnoff for coaches that saw that the last coach got fired quickly if DL were to get axed fast.

[billyjack]

Leitao is from the Jim Calhoun coaching tree, so i remain hopeful about his chances at DePaul.

Other coaches from Calhoun's tree are:

Kevin Ollie, national championship.
Steve Pikiell, who's done a great job at Stony Brook.
Tom Moore, who's done a nice job at Quinnipiac.
Karl Hobbs, who had some good years at George Washington.
Glen Miller, who had mild success at Brown and Penn.
Howie Dickenman, who has had some decent years at Central Connecticut.
The Woodward guy at Maine was the only disaster.

So, except for Ollie and maybe Hobbs, each of these guys took on really difficult jobs. Each has had moderate to good success at weak programs. For the most part, each has stayed put for a while at their school. Leitao might be the only Calhoun guy who has jumped around. Actually Ollie was in a tough spot taking over at UConn, and GW is a tough place to win but Hobbs did.

Also, Leitao is a SE New England guy, so i have a soft spot for him. From New Bedford, a real tough working class town. A lot like Calhoun.

[stever20]

Leitao is from the Jim Calhoun coaching tree, so i remain hopeful about his chances at DePaul.

Other coaches from Calhoun's tree are:

Kevin Ollie, national championship.
Steve Pikiell, who's done a great job at Stony Brook.
Tom Moore, who's done a nice job at Quinnipiac.
Karl Hobbs, who had some good years at George Washington.
Glen Miller, who had mild success at Brown and Penn.
Howie Dickenman, who has had some decent years at Central Connecticut.
The Woodward guy at Maine was the only disaster.

So, except for Ollie and maybe Hobbs, each of these guys took on really difficult jobs. Each has had moderate to good success at weak programs. For the most part, each has stayed put for a while at their school. Leitao might be the only Calhoun guy who has jumped around. Actually Ollie was in a tough spot taking over at UConn, and GW is a tough place to win but Hobbs did.

Also, Leitao is a SE New England guy, so i have a soft spot for him. From New Bedford, a real tough working class town. A lot like Calhoun.

Hobbs really was a meh coach at GW. he was there for 10 years. 166-129 was his overall record(so 16.6-12.9 avg record), with in conference play a very mediocre 84-76- and that's with a 16-0 year. His teams went to the tourney 3 times(but 2 of those as auto bid in a situation where they don't go to the tourney if they don't win)- in a period where the A10 was as bad as it's ever been. He was mediocre at best.

[NovaBall]

How does DePaul's talent stack up against Norfolk state?

I think 90% of women's high school coaches in Alaska could take this DePaul team and beat Norfolk state by a dozen. Leitao is a bad coach.

[stever20]

How does DePaul's talent stack up against Norfolk state?

I think 90% of women's high school coaches in Alaska could take this DePaul team and beat Norfolk state by a dozen. Leitao is a bad coach.

2 things he's already made a HUGE difference with...

defensive rebounds. Last year they gave up 35.5% offensive rebounds to the other teams. Think about that. Last year they only got 64.5% of all missed shots. That's horrible(was #332 in the country). This year that number is down to only 29.5%(still can get better- but already #153).

2pt%. Last year teams shot 52.7% from 2 pt range. every year of the Purnell era they gave up over 50% from 2 pt range. This year so far, that number is 45.9%. That's just a huge difference....

[sciencejay]

For the love of God! Would you all please stop arguing with Nova and let this end? He is unwilling to appreciate/accept that coaches get 2-3 (or more years) minimum to make a go of things (unless something untoward is going on in the background).

Nova: you absolutely hate the DL hire and think that it was a huge mistake and that he and DePaul will kill the conference.

We. All. Get. It.

[ivet]

For the love of God! Would you all please stop arguing with Nova and let this end? He is unwilling to appreciate/accept that coaches get 2-3 (or more years) minimum to make a go of things (unless something untoward is going on in the background).

Nova: you absolutely hate the DL hire and think that it was a huge mistake and that he and DePaul will kill the conference.

We. All. Get. It.

[NovaBall]

I just don't understand why this y gets a free pass to further bury one of our teams for the next half decade. Nobody can point to anything positive he has done. Coached under Calhoun? Sure. And he took Calhoun's thriving Northeastern program and lost 24 games in his second year and was fired.

I believe in stability. I think coaches should be given a chance. But when the red flag goes up, you need to pull the trigger. The biggest mistake St. John's made was hanging on to Norm Roberts 3 years past his expiration date. Providence should have moved on from Tim Welsh years prior to his firing. Hanging on to a coach too long can really bury a team for another half decade.

Look at Nova under Lappas or Georgetown under Esherick.
Lappas was at Nova for 9 years, had made the tournament in 4 of his last 7 years, including 3 teams that were 3 seeds or better, and only finished outside of the RPI top 50 twice in his 9 years. 7 of his final 8 years he 18 wins (back when that number was tougher to get to) and 20+ in 6 of those seasons. That's so much better than anything Leitao has done. But the school saw that recruiting was starting to slip and made the move. It was controversial at the time, but it was the right move.

Esherick had 19 or more wins in 4 of his 5 years as head coach (again, 19 wins was a tourney caliber team back then) and had a record of 93-64 as head coach. Georgetown pulled the trigger on him at the right time.

Providence fired Keno Davis after only 3 seasons. The next guy is doing fine.
UNC pulled the trigger on Matt Doherty after only 3 seasons. The next guy is doing fine.
Billy Clyde Gillispie was among the hottest names in the business in 2006. Goes to Kentucky and is fired after 2 seasons. The next guy is doing just fine.


You don't let rotten food stink up your fridge longer than it should. That's all that's happening at DePaul right now. And nobody has anything to defend that comment other than they think we should just let it keep happening.

DePaul has too much talent this year for the results we have seen so far.