A TALE OF TWO CAREERS: Shaka Smart is one of the most talked about coaches in the country while Grant, who preceded him at VCU, was just fired by Alabama.
Lost in all the chaos that is March Madness came a rather overlooked piece of news out of Tuscaloosa: Alabama fired men’s basketball coach Anthony Grant.
Once seen as an up-and-comer (and the man who could resurrect the Tide’s basketball program), Grant was given a salary nearly double what his former school (Virginia Commonwealth) was willing to give him and a hero’s welcome as he was greeted by a full-raging party following a flight of a private charter jet.
Now, six seasons and only one NCAA tournament appearance later, his tenure at Alabama is over. But in their search for his replacement, an all-too-interesting name has appeared.
Shaka Smart.
Not only is Smart an interesting idea because he has turned out just about every program that’s been looking for a new coach the past half-decade – and, let’s be honest, taking over ramshackle Alabama no longer looks like a dream job – but also because he happens to be Grant’s successor at VCU.
TROUBLED TENURE: Grant was tasked with resurrecting the Alabama basketball program. But one tournament appearance in six years led to the Crimson Tide moving on.
And to really understand the dynamics of that, we need a brief history lesson. Flashback to 2009. VCU has not gone to the Final Four yet. They are, at best, mid-major darlings, oft loved by underdog bandwagoners for the way they took down Duke in the first round of the NCAA tournament in 2007. But two years has passed since and VCU was most recently just eliminated in the first round after securing the automatic bid for the Colonial Athletic Association.
Now, Alabama comes calling (among others), and it seems they can give Grant everything VCU can’t. A bigger paycheck. A program in a power conference. A recruitment base throughout the southeastern United States and beyond. So much to the chagrin of VCU fans, Grant accepts and leaves.
Into his shoes at VCU steps a young, fresh face most people had never heard of: Shaka Smart. A protégé of Florida’s head coach Billy Donovan (much like Grant), Smart seems to have most if not all the same credentials, but there was no track record. And given the option of the unknown of Smart or the Grant with established early success, many of the skeptical Rams fans would have taken the latter.
And yet, here we are. Anthony Grant has made only one NCAA Tournament appearance in six years with Alabama whereas Smart has only missed the tournament field one time. Smart was a replacement at VCU and now some at Alabama would have him be the chosen successor.
This all leads to a very interesting conversation: Anthony Grant obviously left VCU in an effort to enhance his own career, but in doing so has managed to accomplish just the opposite. It is Smart, rather than Grant, that has the better record over the last six years, more postseason wins, and, of course, a Final Four appearance to boot. The two players drafted into the NBA during his tenure at VCU have even had more success at the professional level than the two that have come out of Alabama’s rank during that same time.
THE SMART DECISION: Despite a barrage of offers from bigger schools, Shaka Smart has said he has no plans to leave VCU.
Traditionally, mid-major schools have always been used as stepping stones by ambitious coaches. We all know this and those of us that are mature enough even accept it as the nature of the business. After upstart Florida-Gulf Coast stole the show temporarily in the 2013 NCAA Tournament when they took down #2 Georgetown and #7 San Diego State as a #15 seed, head coach Andy Enfield immediately jumped to USC when the Trojans offered him their head coaching gig. Brad Stevens, who took then little-known Butler to the Final Four in 2011, beat that Shaka Smart-led VCU team, and went on to the national championship, is now the head coach of the Celtics.
And those are just recent examples. John Calipari’s first head coaching position was at UMass. Coach K? Army. Rick Pitino? Boston University. Even the aforementioned Billy Donovan started out at Marshall.
But a case study between the careers of Shaka Smart and Anthony Grant could call into question whether that is the best way to advance one’s career. You see, while we have drawn countless parallels between the Smart and Grant, there is one stark underlying difference: where Grant jumped ship at the first truly great offer, Smart has refused to go anywhere.
In the process, yes, he has become the first million-dollar employee in the history of VCU, but USC, N.C. State and others would have undoubtedly paid him millions more.
Then there’s the prestige factor. Following their run to the Final Four, VCU was still a little mid-major from the CAA.
Taking a job with a school in the Pac-10 (now Pac-12) or ACC would’ve undoubtedly opened more doors at the time. Instead, Smart has stood pat. And under his tutelage, VCU has left the CAA and moved up to the A-10. While it may not be the great ACC, it sent nearly as many teams to this year’s tournament as the Pac-12 and the SEC (where Alabama is a card-carrying member).
MEMORY LANE: Before Shaka Smart endeared himself to Rams fans with success, Anthony Grant was the original young, hopeful coach for the program.
Rather than leaving to commandeer what is seen as a more prestigious program, Smart has rolled up his sleeves and elevated the profile of the school he’s at instead. VCU had the single-hardest non-conference schedule this year because schools like Villanova now see VCU as a school worth playing during the regular season. The Rams started the season pre-ranked well inside the AP Top 25, and with only two seniors departing and another tremendous recruiting class coming in, one would assume that will not change for this upcoming season.
In doing all this, Smart has attained a level of job security that’s unrivaled. One cannot think what it would take for him to be on the outs with VCU. Anthony Grant, on the other hand, is looking for work. And where he was the guy schools were drooling over in 2009, now he’s just an “also available”.
So maybe the art of jumping from school to school like rungs on a career ladder will continue. Or maybe the path Smart has chosen will become the trend. It’s certainly already gaining steam.
Before Smart, Mark Few’s Gonzaga Bulldogs were largely seen as the blueprint for taking a mid-major school and thrusting it permanently onto the national stage. Now Gregg Marshall at Wichita State has followed suit and Ben Jacobsen has Northern Iowa blossoming.
At the very least, Smart and others have offered a viable alternative to those who want to advance their own careers but not spurn the admiration of fans of their current school.
And for those who rather jump from stone to stone, Anthony Grant’s story proves to be a cautionary tale that you can always slip and fall in instead.
