Personally, I think Tubby’s staying…
Personally, I think Tubby Smith is staying in Minnesota.
Sure, there are rumors of several schools being interested in luring him away. That’s only natural when you have a legendary coach leading your program. But Tubby indicated after the Gophers were bumped from the NCAA Tourney by Xavier that everything out there is “just talk” and he was looking forward to coming back next year.
The most legitimate report so far is that Oregon has offered Smith $2.0 million a year to coach the Ducks. That might seem tempting, but you have to keep in mind that Minnesota is already paying Smith $1.8 million in overall compensation, and there is talk of an extension and a raise in his near future.
Once you’re making that kind of money, is an extra $0.2 million going to be that much of a lure? I suspect not. Sure, Oregon is a decent program that only needs a little rebuilding; but Smith’s nearly done rebuilding Minnesota. The hard years are pretty much behind him, and in that stretch he’s taken Minnesota to the NCAA Tourney twice, and come within one game of winning the Big 10 Tourney this season. And that, while “rebuilding.”
That means Smith should be hitting his stride starting next season, and if he can land Devoe’s brother Cory for Minnesota, I doubt he’ll be going anywhere else, any time soon. That’s a prediction that ought to be as reliable as car insurance.
