Kelvin Sampson and the Phi Slama Jama

[WVSooner]

Kelvin Sampson has Houston ranked #1 for the first time since 1983, back in the day of Clyde Drexler and Hakeem Olajuwon.

Sometimes I miss Kelvin Sampson...

 

[Plainosooner]

When he became an NBA assistant coach, he learned how to coach offense. At OU, they spent half their practice times playing with a lid on the baskets to promote defense, toughness and rebounding. He had tough teams. But against teams who played good defense, we usually had some trouble scoring the ball. The most frustrating game of Sampson's tenure was the year Syracuse beat three or four highly rated Big XII teams on their way to the natty. That included a regional finals win over my favorite ever Sooner basketball player, Hollis Price his senior year. We'd been the the Final Four but laid an egg in the national semifinals. OUr point guard, Quannas White, got hurt in practice before that game, but Indiana was down a couple of players including missing their point guard. We could have pressed them out of the gym, but Kelvin didn't like that affecting his half court defense. But it allowed IU to do what they did best. And they shot lights out. Kelvin's learned.

Kelvin really had no clue about how to attack the Syracuse 2-3 zone, partly because all the good teams in the Big XII played primarily man defense. When he took the Indiana job, he didn't last for a lot of reasons, but amongst the highest was his attitude about defense first, second and third and we'll score enough on offense. He now is a much much better head coach than he was at OU. And at Houston, he can really recruit as well or better than he could at OU.

I'd have him back as he is now. Not so much the way he was in the first decade of this century. And it hit the fan, with his intentional violations of NCAA phone call rules.

 

[JConXtsy]

I'm not sure any coaching by Kelvin would have been a difference maker against the Orangemen in 2003. They had 3 NBA'ers; Hakim Warrick, Gerry McNamara, and Carmelo Anthony. The only Oklahoma advantage was age, as those three guys were freshmen and sophomores.

Our one NBA'er, Najera, got his noggin jarred and shouldn't have returned to the court. He was lost. I'd be surprised if he even remembers the end of that game to this day other than what he's seen on TV since then.

 

[humblesooner]

I've followed KS since his OU days. He is a great coach. He can make a bunch of no-names competitive with future NBA players. That is coaching.
Just wish he had been a little smarter about NCAA rules and had a desire to adhere to them.
I wonder if it wasn't about $$$.
Lots of college coaches have the majority of their income from outside sources - clothing contracts, etc. Want a good contract? Better put a top team on the court. Need a top team? Bend the rules to get them.
With Fertita footing the bill, I wonder if he doesn't have to worry about outside influences.

 

[JConXtsy]

Wasn't he like the Rules Committee Chair when he got busted at OU? Wasn't that ironic.