Longtime Phoenix Mercury coach and general manager Corey Gaines has been fired.
Mercury president and CEO Amber Cox will be interim general manager and Russ Pennell - coach at Grand Canyon University - will be interim head coach.
Wow.
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Interesting decision and timing. Will be tough to bring the new guy in with all of the injury issues right now. Gaines didn't ever seem to get comfortable with how to integrate Griner fully into the team.
"Ball don't lie," as they say.
Perhaps the basketball gods are doling out their version of justice in response to last season's antics.
Serious question:
Is there any real incentive for an accomplished college coach to want a gig in the WNBA -- particularly a young up-and-comer like the dude at Louisville or the girl at Michigan?
There you go. Roundball Karma strikes.
Seems to me like head coaches in the big D1 WCBB programs are making serious money. At least based on that linked piece on Warlick's raise a few days ago. Don't know what a W head coach makes but given how tight they are with their player salaries and as frequently as they do combo positions like GM/Head Coach I'm betting that they aren't making comparable dollars. Job security is pretty crappy in either place.
In that context I thought the Michele Smith piece yesterday on traveling with PHX was interesting. I guess I didn't realize that WCBB programs like Tenn and Maryland flew charters to road games. Makes the adjustment to flying coach in the W a bit jarring I imagine. The fiscal wisdom of flying charter in those college programs is more than a bit of a head scratcher.
I guess it's the difference between non-profit and for-profit outfits.
"The GIRL at Michigan?"
Kim Barnes Arico is a WOMAN in her early 40s.
You make it sound as if "girl" means "adolescent brat."
If that's what you got from an inquiry about an "accomplished college coach," you need to either buy a dictionary or get the chip off your shoulder.
What...no outrage for my calling Walz a "dude"?
At my stage of life, they're both kids. I'd apologize for feeling that way, but I don't wear hypocrisy well!
I gotta go with Scamp on this one. Women should not be referred to as girls. That's not appropriate.
I'm a tad confused here -- linguistically challenged, you might say.
What would have been a comparably informal term to use in that context in place of "young lady"?
"Chick" seems way out of date and has some baggage?
Is "gal" to be distinguished from "girl"?
Am I overlooking something obvious?
And, for the record, I wouldn't have guessed Coach Arico's age nearly that high.
You can never lose by using the word "woman." As a high school teacher, I consider anyone 25 and under "young woman" or "young man." After that, they're a grown person for real, and lose any of the "young" excuses and references ;-)
I get your point, Ms. F., and appreciate your time and perspective.
On the other side of the coin, have we not just gotten, at times verbatim, four years of the Kim Mulkey "I may just be a simple country girl, but I'm smart enough to give the ball to Griner" act?
I guess this Old Dude didn't realize he was utilizing such a "loaded" term.
Don't sweat it, Abacus. I know you and know where you were coming from, which is an old school/no maliciousness intended perspective. That's why I wasn't tripping. But Scamp is technically right. A female of any age used to be referred to as a girl as a way to disparage and demean. Even traditional marriage vows are "now you're pronounced man and wife" - a discrepancy. Word usage frames everything, and over the last 30 years in particular, people overall have become much better at using grown people terms to refer to adults: women and men.
But back to the original topic, which was the firing of Corey Gaines. Regarding the answer to your question about college coaches moving to pro, the answer is no. There is WAY more money in the college game. The only reason you saw Anne Donovan move from Seton Hall to the Connecticut Sun this season is because she'd coached in the WNBA before. Jeff House, who was an assistant for the Chicago Sky, just went back to coaching college ball, as an assistant at Kentucky. More job security and money there.
Some years ago in my English class, I granted a student permission to go "fetch" something from his/her locker. I noticed another kid mouthing the word "fetch" in a "Did he really just say that?" sort of way.
Rather than offer an explanation/ vocab. lesson, here's what I did. A day or two later, I concocted a need to step out of the room during that class to go "fetch" something from somewhere.
Funny...I have no recollection of the kid who did the fetchin', but I do remember the one who did the mouthin' -- even her name.
Perhaps I should have been similarly subtle this time!!
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