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College basketball: Grading the 2019 coaching changes – Who gets an A?

By Rucker Haringey

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 29: Head coach Buzz Williams of the Virginia Tech Hokies looks on in the first half of their game against the Duke Blue Devils during the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament East Regional Semifinals at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 29: Head coach Buzz Williams of the Virginia Tech Hokies looks on in the first half of their game against the Duke Blue Devils during the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament East Regional Semifinals at Capital One Arena on March 29, 2019 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /
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TULSA, OKLAHOMA – MARCH 24: Head coach Nate Oats of the Buffalo Bulls yells to his team during the first half of the second round game of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at BOK Center on March 24, 2019 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
TULSA, OKLAHOMA – MARCH 24: Head coach Nate Oats of the Buffalo Bulls yells to his team during the first half of the second round game of the 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at BOK Center on March 24, 2019 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

The college basketball coaching carousel is moving quickly. Let’s stop and take a look at which schools made the best and worst hires of the season.

The college basketball season isn’t quite over, but most of the programs in America are already starting to think about next season. Quite a few of them will head into the 2019-20 season with a new coach on the sidelines. Predictably, some schools have made smarter choices than their peers on who should lead their respective programs.

This piece will grade the biggest programs to make changes this offseason. It starts with an SEC program that lost a little general.

Alabama: Avery Johnson to Nate Oats

Avery Johnson’s decision to step aside caught quite a few fans by surprise. It seemed that missing the NCAA Tournament was the last straw for the former San Antonio Spurs star. Johnson succeeded in attracting some big-time talent to Tuscaloosa, but he never seemed to get the program on stable footing.

Alabama’s administration struck quickly after Johnson’s departure to secure one of the hotter coaches on the market. Nate Oats had a really productive run at Buffalo, but he’s got zero ties to the south. He’ll face an uphill battle when trying to equal Johnson’s recruiting success for the Crimson Tide.

Hot. Way-too-early Top 25. light

This seems like a classic example of a Power 5 program reaching out to grab the “hot name” from the mid-major ranks without really concerning themselves about how he might fit at their school. Alabama is betting Oats can translate his Buffalo success to Alabama, but the Tide is taking a massive risk. It’s just as likely that he won’t win as many games as his predecessor.

Alabama officials should have taken a little more time to think their decision through. Finding a guy with ties to the region would have been a big boost to the program. Oats seems like a square peg trying to fit into a round hole.

Grade: C-