One thing that should have given us a clue about Doherty
by UpperEastSideIrish (2020-07-12 14:31:59)

In reply to: 20 years since Doherty left ND. Great article from Noie (link)  posted by RIBS


Essentially right before game number one, Doherty replaced Marty Ingelsby with Jimmy Dillon in the starting lineup. If I remember, he didn't tell Ingelsby or the team until the locker room before the first game.

I was a student at the time and I thought the decision was the right one for the team. Dillon was more athletic than Marty. Didn't score much but the team ran better with him on the floor. He averaged 6 assists.

But that's not the way smart coaches deliver that news to a player. And player communication was always an issue in Matt Doherty's career. When Brey got hired, I remember him flying to Ingelsby's home town to meet with him. He saw the error in Doherty's ways and realized he would need a Marty Ingelsby who was all in to have a tournament team in 2001. It was unsurprising to me to see Ingelsby on Brey's bench for so long, let alone how many other former players have been assistants. It's nice to see Ingelsby with a head coaching gig now.

Would Doherty have fit in at Notre Dame and done well? I think yes to point one, and maybe on point 2. His coaching career ended up being quite pedestrian, however.

Brey has been a solid coach for ND. I have issues with his substitution pattern at times; I think he caused guys like Burns to transfer when they deserved minutes. I grew up in CT watching Jim Calhoun and a defense first mentality, with teams having one great wing who could score (Allen, Hamilton, Marshall). The offense was so athletic that it took care of itself. And substitutions were a revolving door to keep pressure on. Calhoun was the opposite of Brey - he was a yeller and didn't mind screaming at kids. But one thing they have in common - both coaches had players who adored them.

Brey is more of an offensive coach. He is limited in getting athletes that UConn could always get. But Mike Brey has proven himself to be quite a solid offensive mind - one of the best. And if you look at shooting percentage stats of our opponents, they tend to be relatively low. He does well with what the type of guys we can get, which tend to me solid 3 stars rather than 4s and 5s.

And more importantly, guys study, he doesn't embarrass the school with his behavior and stands up for his players. Remember the Kyle McAlarney situation? He was appropriately suspended for driving while smoking a joint. But Brey never gave up on him and visited the family. Kyle came back and graduated, having a solid career in Europe.

Brey's been a good fit and has had success. I wonder if I'd be saying that if Doherty had stayed.