Crean probably the best the Hoosiers could do

It's hard to say if Tom Crean will finally be the man who makes Hoosier fans forget about Bob Knight.

I think it's easy to say, though, that Crean was the best man available for the job.

I like Crean's rationale for the job. "It's Indiana", Crean said.

He's right. It is Indiana. It has a rich tradition; it's a Big Ten school; it has an extremely loyal fan and alumni base; and is the biggest game in Bloomington.

But this is also a program that has several ghosts haunting it. Bob Knight, for starters, is still much revered in these parts. It's not uncommon to see Texas Tech memorabilia on someone's back, home or car. To make matters worse, the last two guys to have the job after Knight have only made the Hoosier masses long for Knight more.


Has the Crean and Crimson Nation finally found its Bob Knight replacement?

This program also faces further NCAA sanctions in addition to what it has already given itself. Thanks, Kelvin.

Also, thanks to Dan Dakich, IU will likely have no returning starters from the '07-'08 season.

Sidebar: Does anyone think that Eric Gordon is making a huge mistake by going pro? I didn't see a guy at the last half of the season that resembles a top ten lottery pick. My friend calls him a "mental midget", meaning that he's big on talent but weak between the ears. I cannot disagree with my friend, and I think that Eric ought to have a heart-to-heart with former Crean recruit Dwayne Wade before he enters the draft to learn how Crean can help Eric position himself for a great pro career. I think he is getting some bad advice from somewhere, and one more year college would do him some good.

In no way was any coach, including Crean, positioned for success.

So, to answer the question ... was Crean a great hire? I don't know. But Crean was probably the best man for the job. He had a successful tenure at Marquette, which one might assume that it is tougher to make the tournament every year with Marquette than with Indiana. So it stands to reason that Crean's success at Marquette might translate to even greater success at Indiana.

And let's face it: there's no way Roy Williams, Bill Self or John Calipari were going to listen to AD Rick Greenspan's sales pitch.

Now that he took the bait, what awaits Crean? Probably the toughest set deliverables in Division 1 coaching:

• Win a Big Ten championship within 3 years
• Stop the talent exports from Indiana (Greg Oden, Sean May, et al)
• Make a Sweet Sixteen appearance in 3 years
• Make a Final Four appearance in 5 years
• Win a championship before his initial contract runs out
• Run a clean, ethical program
• Keep knuckleheads off the team

If Crean fails to do any of these things, he will find himself on the hot seat ... fast. Hoosier fans -- hopefully -- will give him a pass for the '08-'09 season since the cupboard is bare, but once he has a chance to recruit talent and implement his system, the honeymoon period will be over and the Hoosier faithful will be expecting a results.

The fact is that Bob Knight made Indiana a top 5 program. Neither Mike Davis or Kelvin Sampson were able to get IU back to that level.

It remains to be seen if Tom Crean can do this, but you know what? We sure as hell expect him to do it. I hope he's up for the challenge.