We’ve been loathe to admit this, but a little part of us fears our big NYC Hoops College Hoops Tour killed all the coaches in the city. Of the seven teams we went to go see the home arenas of, five of them are in the process of switching coaches — only Manhattan and Long Island kept their fellas around. We hope we didn’t somehow accidentally release a virus. Anyway, one of those coaching jobs was filled this weekend: Columbia has a new chap in charge.
Over the weekend, Columbia, one of the few city programs on the upswing, hired Kyle Smith, a St. Mary’s assistant coach. (Not the Post film critic.) He replaces Joe Jones, who did a fine job but left to become the assistant head coach at Boston College, a sublateral move that has to prove a bit alarming. But at least they have a coach.
As we glance through Asher Fusco’s excellent rundown of the coaching situation in Basketball Prospectus, we see that Smith is the last NYC coaching shoe to drop. Since the season ended, we’ve had Steve Lavin to St. John’s, Tom Pecora at Fordham, Glenn Braica at St. Francis (NY), Dan Hurley at Wagner, and now Smith at Columbia. Of all those jobs, our favorite is probably Hurley at Wagner, and not just because Bill Murray’s son is his assistant.
If the virus that accompanied our College Hoops Tour is responsible for Bill Murray’s son coming to town, you are welcome.