DIPRIMIO: Woodson Looks to Blend Old and New
3/30/2021 11:45:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By: Pete DiPrimio
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Scott Dolson got it right.
In Mike Woodson, Indiana has the perfect coach to restore men's basketball program glory now and for the future.
Woodson is a 63-year-old blend of something old (a former Hoosier All-America and Big Ten MVP) and something new, an old-school coach with a new-school approach whose Monday press conference started by thanking Hall of Famer Bob Knight for bringing him to Bloomington and showing him how to be a man.
"Coach Knight took a chance on me coming out of Indianapolis," Woodson said. "Indiana will always be Bob Knight. Always."
Now Indiana will also be Woodson, who was everything Dolson, IU's first-year athletic director, wanted in a coach -- the right fit as a high-caliber person and as a first-rate teacher with deep Cream and Crimson roots.
"It was clear the priorities I identified in the vision for the program, he got it," Dolson said. "There was an immediate connection.
"We're building on this tradition, but it's about our vision for the future and where this program is headed."
That vision got Knight's blessing.
"We are all very pleased to have Mike Woodson as the person in charge of our program," the former coach said in a statement. "He will do an excellent job. He will be an outstanding disciplinarian and teacher, working with his team. I've never known a better person than Mike. He is just a great man."
Woodson has coached for 30 years, all in the NBA, 11 as a head coach.
Switching to college is a challenge he says he's ready for.
"Basketball is basketball. Sure, I've never coached in college, but I've coached at the highest level. I've coached some of the greatest players to ever grace the basketball world.
"Yes, there are going to be challenges, but at the end of the day, coaching is coaching. I've got to recruit quality student-athletes to help this program move in the right direction. I've got to groove these young men on and off the floor.
"I'm going to surround myself with people who can help me navigate those challenges."
Dolson talked about a unified vision and a collaborative approach, about building a bridge from the past to the future. He recalled Woodson saying, 'Scott, you and I will be joined at the hip. This is a partnership.'
"That was music to my ears."
Woodson will run an NBA-style offense that will feature lots of 3-point shooting and pick-and-roll options.
"Offensively, the three-ball has changed the game," Woodson said. "We've got to recruit guys that can shoot and share the ball, guys who can dribble and make plays for one another."
As for defense, Woodson said, "When I look at college basketball, they're taking things from (the NBA), switching defenses, a lot of zone.
"I think I can bring in a system that I can recruit players who can defend three and four positions. That's how I did it in the pros."
Woodson will go after the best, and for those who think he lacks recruiting experience, think NBA free agency, which requires recruiting as well as money.
His recruiting pitch is clear: "There's no better place in the country to play basketball."
Dolson said he's "100 percent confident" in Woodson's ability to recruit.
"I will sleep great knowing Mike Woodson is in the homes of recruit talking not just about basketball, but the important qualities IU will value in players. Recruiting is about relationships and trust."
The first recruiting step is the current players. Several have entered the transfer portal, including guards Armaan Franklin, Khristian Lander and Aljami Durham, and forward Race Thompson. Also, All-America forward Trayce Jackson-Davis is considering entering the NBA Draft.
Woodson spent Monday afternoon meeting with players individually.
"I will talk about staying in Hoosier Nation," he said. "If I've got to plead and beg a little bit to keep them here, I'm going to do that. But they have got to make the final decision on what they want to do."
Success will come from a team approach led by Woodson, Dolson and Thad Matta in the newly created assistant athletic director for basketball operations.
Dolson will provide the resources and support, and when it comes to basketball, Woodson won't lack for anything. Since the Hoosiers built Cook Hall, spent $40 million on Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall renovations, and invested in other upgrades (including the locker room), IU's facilities are as good as any in the country. The same goes for salaries, recruiting and other needs.
Dolson made it clear Woodson is the coach, but Woodson wanted a partner much like he had with the New York Knicks and then general manager Glen Grunwald.
Enter Matta, who grew up a fan of IU's 1976 unbeaten national title team. He will bring college insight that comes from a hugely successful coaching career at Butler, Xavier and Ohio State that produced five Big Ten regular season championships, four Big Ten tourney titles, two Final Fours and 439 victories.
Matta's role will include ensuring basketball has all the necessary resources. While he won't go on the road to recruit, he can help. As coach who once landed former state of Indiana high school superstars Mike Conley and Greg Oden for Ohio State, he has plenty of in-state high school connections the Hoosiers will exploit.
"He's a great basketball mind," Woodson said. "My ego has always been intact in terms of being able to accept great basketball minds and what they're thinking. It can do nothing but help me. I'm grateful Thad is on board."
Dolson didn't use a search committee, but he did contact "a lot of experts," including former and current players during this two-and-a-half-week search. Quinn Bucker, a member of the 1976 national title team with strong college and NBA connections, had a key advisory role.
Dolson asked current players what they wanted in a new coach. He said he came away with three priorities -- relationships, player development and a style that makes sense in the modern game.
Woodson said he had applied for the IU job once before and didn't get it, "But never stopped being glued to Indiana basketball."
Then Dolson called and Woodson, a New York Knicks assistant coach, scrapped the Zoom approach. He wanted to meet in person.
Dolson flew to New York.
"We had a fantastic meeting," Dolson said.
Woodson pushes substance over ego. He aims to win the right way; he's committed to building a family-oriented program. That includes ensuring all former and current players feel fully vested in IU success.
When it comes to number of games coached, Woodson's total might be higher than anyone in IU history. Plus, he was an assistant coach on Detroit's 2004 NBA championship squad.
While he's never won an NBA title as a head coach, Woodson did win an Atlantic Division title while in charge of the Atlanta Hawks. That was one of three straight playoff appearances for the historically struggling franchise.
He also coached the New York Knicks to a playoff appearance after an 11-year absence.
Former Phoenix Suns coach Cotton Fitzsimmons started Woodson's coaching career.
"From that day, it took off for me," Woodson said. "The juices started to flow."
Woodson has learned from all the NBA coaches he has worked under, including George Karl, Larry Brown Mike D'Antoni, Tom Thibodeau and Doc Rivers.
As an NBA player, Woodson averaged 14.0 points over 11 seasons, with a high of 18.2 with Kansas City for the 1982-83 season.
He was the 12th pick in the 1980 NBA Draft after standout IU career that included a Big Ten MVP award, 2,061 points and a career scoring average of 19.8 points, tied with Calbert Cheaney for the second best in program history.
During the press conference, Woodson contemplated the journey that took him from Indianapolis Broad Ripple High School to IU to all those NBA playing and coaching stops, and now back to Indiana.
"This is a complete circle. I've done everything I wanted to do in basketball."
That's no longer true. Now there are IU games to win, championships to earn and glory to restore so that, a decade from now, Hoosier Nation can proclaim:
Scott Dolson got it right.
IUHoosiers.com
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Scott Dolson got it right.
In Mike Woodson, Indiana has the perfect coach to restore men's basketball program glory now and for the future.
Woodson is a 63-year-old blend of something old (a former Hoosier All-America and Big Ten MVP) and something new, an old-school coach with a new-school approach whose Monday press conference started by thanking Hall of Famer Bob Knight for bringing him to Bloomington and showing him how to be a man.
"Coach Knight took a chance on me coming out of Indianapolis," Woodson said. "Indiana will always be Bob Knight. Always."
Now Indiana will also be Woodson, who was everything Dolson, IU's first-year athletic director, wanted in a coach -- the right fit as a high-caliber person and as a first-rate teacher with deep Cream and Crimson roots.
"It was clear the priorities I identified in the vision for the program, he got it," Dolson said. "There was an immediate connection.
"We're building on this tradition, but it's about our vision for the future and where this program is headed."
That vision got Knight's blessing.
"We are all very pleased to have Mike Woodson as the person in charge of our program," the former coach said in a statement. "He will do an excellent job. He will be an outstanding disciplinarian and teacher, working with his team. I've never known a better person than Mike. He is just a great man."
Woodson has coached for 30 years, all in the NBA, 11 as a head coach.
Switching to college is a challenge he says he's ready for.
"Basketball is basketball. Sure, I've never coached in college, but I've coached at the highest level. I've coached some of the greatest players to ever grace the basketball world.
"Yes, there are going to be challenges, but at the end of the day, coaching is coaching. I've got to recruit quality student-athletes to help this program move in the right direction. I've got to groove these young men on and off the floor.
"I'm going to surround myself with people who can help me navigate those challenges."
Dolson talked about a unified vision and a collaborative approach, about building a bridge from the past to the future. He recalled Woodson saying, 'Scott, you and I will be joined at the hip. This is a partnership.'
"That was music to my ears."
Woodson will run an NBA-style offense that will feature lots of 3-point shooting and pick-and-roll options.
"Offensively, the three-ball has changed the game," Woodson said. "We've got to recruit guys that can shoot and share the ball, guys who can dribble and make plays for one another."
As for defense, Woodson said, "When I look at college basketball, they're taking things from (the NBA), switching defenses, a lot of zone.
"I think I can bring in a system that I can recruit players who can defend three and four positions. That's how I did it in the pros."
Woodson will go after the best, and for those who think he lacks recruiting experience, think NBA free agency, which requires recruiting as well as money.
His recruiting pitch is clear: "There's no better place in the country to play basketball."
Dolson said he's "100 percent confident" in Woodson's ability to recruit.
"I will sleep great knowing Mike Woodson is in the homes of recruit talking not just about basketball, but the important qualities IU will value in players. Recruiting is about relationships and trust."
The first recruiting step is the current players. Several have entered the transfer portal, including guards Armaan Franklin, Khristian Lander and Aljami Durham, and forward Race Thompson. Also, All-America forward Trayce Jackson-Davis is considering entering the NBA Draft.
Woodson spent Monday afternoon meeting with players individually.
"I will talk about staying in Hoosier Nation," he said. "If I've got to plead and beg a little bit to keep them here, I'm going to do that. But they have got to make the final decision on what they want to do."
Success will come from a team approach led by Woodson, Dolson and Thad Matta in the newly created assistant athletic director for basketball operations.
Dolson will provide the resources and support, and when it comes to basketball, Woodson won't lack for anything. Since the Hoosiers built Cook Hall, spent $40 million on Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall renovations, and invested in other upgrades (including the locker room), IU's facilities are as good as any in the country. The same goes for salaries, recruiting and other needs.
Dolson made it clear Woodson is the coach, but Woodson wanted a partner much like he had with the New York Knicks and then general manager Glen Grunwald.
Enter Matta, who grew up a fan of IU's 1976 unbeaten national title team. He will bring college insight that comes from a hugely successful coaching career at Butler, Xavier and Ohio State that produced five Big Ten regular season championships, four Big Ten tourney titles, two Final Fours and 439 victories.
Matta's role will include ensuring basketball has all the necessary resources. While he won't go on the road to recruit, he can help. As coach who once landed former state of Indiana high school superstars Mike Conley and Greg Oden for Ohio State, he has plenty of in-state high school connections the Hoosiers will exploit.
"He's a great basketball mind," Woodson said. "My ego has always been intact in terms of being able to accept great basketball minds and what they're thinking. It can do nothing but help me. I'm grateful Thad is on board."
Dolson didn't use a search committee, but he did contact "a lot of experts," including former and current players during this two-and-a-half-week search. Quinn Bucker, a member of the 1976 national title team with strong college and NBA connections, had a key advisory role.
Dolson asked current players what they wanted in a new coach. He said he came away with three priorities -- relationships, player development and a style that makes sense in the modern game.
Woodson said he had applied for the IU job once before and didn't get it, "But never stopped being glued to Indiana basketball."
Then Dolson called and Woodson, a New York Knicks assistant coach, scrapped the Zoom approach. He wanted to meet in person.
Dolson flew to New York.
"We had a fantastic meeting," Dolson said.
Woodson pushes substance over ego. He aims to win the right way; he's committed to building a family-oriented program. That includes ensuring all former and current players feel fully vested in IU success.
When it comes to number of games coached, Woodson's total might be higher than anyone in IU history. Plus, he was an assistant coach on Detroit's 2004 NBA championship squad.
While he's never won an NBA title as a head coach, Woodson did win an Atlantic Division title while in charge of the Atlanta Hawks. That was one of three straight playoff appearances for the historically struggling franchise.
He also coached the New York Knicks to a playoff appearance after an 11-year absence.
Former Phoenix Suns coach Cotton Fitzsimmons started Woodson's coaching career.
"From that day, it took off for me," Woodson said. "The juices started to flow."
Woodson has learned from all the NBA coaches he has worked under, including George Karl, Larry Brown Mike D'Antoni, Tom Thibodeau and Doc Rivers.
As an NBA player, Woodson averaged 14.0 points over 11 seasons, with a high of 18.2 with Kansas City for the 1982-83 season.
He was the 12th pick in the 1980 NBA Draft after standout IU career that included a Big Ten MVP award, 2,061 points and a career scoring average of 19.8 points, tied with Calbert Cheaney for the second best in program history.
During the press conference, Woodson contemplated the journey that took him from Indianapolis Broad Ripple High School to IU to all those NBA playing and coaching stops, and now back to Indiana.
"This is a complete circle. I've done everything I wanted to do in basketball."
That's no longer true. Now there are IU games to win, championships to earn and glory to restore so that, a decade from now, Hoosier Nation can proclaim:
Scott Dolson got it right.
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