Recruiting Problems in Dallas/Ronnie Morgan

[mavsrage311]

Doherty faces rift with DISD
New SMU coach will need to repair damage done by Tubbs' firing



10:21 PM CDT on Monday, April 24, 2006
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News


UNIVERSITY PARK – With Matt Doherty starting this week as SMU's basketball coach, there is a wide gap between the university and the Dallas Independent School District.

Jimmy Tubbs, a longtime high school coach and a DISD favorite, was fired this month by SMU.

Some DISD coaches are upset.

Asked about Doherty, DISD assistant athletic director Goree Johnson said, "Tell him good luck. I have nothing personal against him. I have concerns with how SMU is doing business."

SMU officials said they fired Tubbs for NCAA violations.

The DISD has schooled some of the best talent in the state and nation in Chris Bosh (Lincoln), LaMarcus Aldridge (Seagoville) and Darrell Arthur (South Oak Cliff).

SMU hasn't signed a player from the DISD since Lincoln's Bryan Hopkins in 2002.

"Coaches have called me all morning and said SMU is not welcomed in their gyms," Johnson said.

South Oak Cliff coach James Mays said hiring Doherty is a good move. SOC's Ronnie Morgan, a 6-7 forward considered one of the top players in the state, had made an oral commitment to SMU. But after Tubbs was fired, Morgan dropped the Mustangs.

"They want Dallas to show support for their programs but aren't showing support for our programs," Mays said of SMU. "There's a lot of rebuilding to do with the inner city because of what they did to Coach Tubbs."

Mays and Johnson said Doherty should hire a coach with Dallas ties.

Doherty is aware of the divide.

"It's an issue," Doherty said. "You know, every place I've been, there's always issues. The thing that I like is I turn negatives into positives. People in Dallas care, and they care about SMU basketball. This is a profession, and it's all about relationships and building relationships."

Kevin Lewis, an assistant coach at Houston who played at SMU, said Doherty was a great hire.





Well, there's a DISD player that Tubbs would've signed

"The coaches are upset that Jimmy's not there, but Doherty will do OK," he said.

[RGV Pony]

"Asked about Doherty, DISD assistant athletic director Goree Johnson said, "Tell him good luck. I have nothing personal against him. I have concerns with how SMU is doing business."

Funny. Especially given DISD's stellar record of going about doing things. Not everything grand in college bball comes form DISD. And isn't DISD a public school district? How do the many phone callers plan to enforce the 'SMU not welcome in our gyms?' I can see it now..."hi, DISD coach...Coach Doherty...listen, me and my friend George Lynch and local fellow Tarheel alum Jerry Stackhouse thought we'd stop by and give a word of encouragement to your kids, let them know what they can shoot for...what's that? We're not welcome? Oh, well thanks all the same. Btw, you know the Dr. Pepper lecture series we have over at SMU every year? Well, this year one of the speakers will be Dean Smith, but I'm guessing you're not interested, right?"

[BrianTinBigD]

I fear threats from assistant Athlectic Directors of high school districts. It was either that job or teaching shop after his coaching career went down in flames years earlier. Got to tell you that I would never have listened to the advice of any, and I repeat any of the high school coaches I played for. What matters most is what your parents think and how you personally feel about the situation. If Matt can convince the kid that SMU is right for him and his parents are onboard, then his high school basketball coach can pound sand.

[NavyCrimson]

well said BigD

[The PonyGrad]

If these DISD coaches were so influential how come they could not deliver one player for Tubbs?

[Stallion]

If recruiting the Dallas Metroplex is so unimportant and assuming we haven't done well there despite Tubbs' presence-the REAL QUESTION is why SMU can not field a competitive baqsketball program without these Dallas players. You can go right on back to Jerral Sasser, Willie Davis, Damon Hancock, Quinton Ross, Kato Armstrong, Carl Wright, Ira Terrell, Sammy Hervey et al. Most on this board have it backass backwards as usual. The fact is that the failure to sign the very Dallas Metroplex players WE OFFERED and desperately need is the reason we ain't competitive. Good Luck signing National Top 100s without recruiting the Dallas Metroplex. SMU has NEVER and I mean NEVER since segregation recruited a quality BB team without great Dallas Metroplex players.

[MustangIcon]

You better forward that memo on to MD Stallion. He will probably be lost without you.

Have you taken into account the fact that maybe Dement and/or Tubbs weren't widely enough known/respected in the basketball world to have recruiting clout outside of Dallas? Not saying that Doherty is Roy Williams by any means, but he is a very notable coach and a proven recruiter. Maybe he can be the one to break your "NEVER" scenario.

[The PonyGrad]

I do not believe, Stallion, that those who think Tubbs was not the answer to DISD recruiting are saying that it is not important. I for one believe that our recruiting will be more promising, not less, with the commitment the school is showing to basketball. You have been one calling for such commitment. But all you can do is look at the negative and wring your hands.

[Stallion]

I have no problem with the support for Doherty-haven't said a bad thing about him. I also was the VERY FIRST person on this board who said Tubbs should be fired by sundown if the hamburler episode was really a slush fund. What I do have a problem with the asinine comments made by totally uninformed posters who claim that there has been no serious long term damage to an essential recruiting ground. Not one of the people making these comments knows the first thing about recruiting in Dallas Texas and its importance to SMU.

[NickSMU17]

There are other schools, private, city based, ect. who have had success recruiting outside their city.

I agree that this is important, but am not sold on us losing these players due to the tubbs incident. These guys want to play for a winner, and I think with Doherty we can build a winning program where kids will want to play.

[White Helmet]

Stallion you seemed to have backed way down from your earlier post, that no one in this area of the country has been good without DISD players, to SMU is bad because of no SMU players. So which is it? I know plenty about recruiting in the DFW metroplex. You ever been to the DISD tournament? Have you ever worked games there? Have you ever seen the types of recruiting that goes on at that thing? If you wanna fire someone for a slush fund then a lot of people would need to be canned there.

[GoRedGoBlue]

If recruiting the Dallas Metroplex is so unimportant and assuming we haven't done well there despite Tubbs' presence-the REAL QUESTION is why SMU can not field a competitive baqsketball program without these Dallas players. You can go right on back to Jerral Sasser, Willie Davis, Damon [deleted], Quinton Ross, Kato Armstrong, Carl Wright, Ira Terrell, Sammy Hervey et al. Most on this board have it backass backwards as usual. The fact is that the failure to sign the very Dallas Metroplex players WE OFFERED and desperately need is the reason we ain't competitive. Good Luck signing National Top 100s without recruiting the Dallas Metroplex. SMU has NEVER and I mean NEVER since segregation recruited a quality BB team without great Dallas Metroplex players.

1. DISD delivered NO ONE to Tubbs has HC
2. Last I checked, MD delivered a national champ recruiting class to UNC without DISD
3. DISD could be very important for MD, but not essential

[mrydel]

SMU needs to becomes Dallas' school. The kids in the DISD need to want to come to SMU first. We need to be able to recruit nationally but for specific needs. We need the DISD to provide us with a consistent base of top athletes. There may be a time we need a pure shooter, or a tall man, or a power foreward and there may not be the perfect fit in the DISD and we go else where. But DISD needs to become a given. Obviously not every single player will want to come to SMU but I would bet that most kids growing up around Duke, NC, Michigan, dream of attending their "nearby" school until such time they are heavily recruited by someone else. Right now we beg and plead for them to consider us. We are never the first thought. The last good one we got is because we made a "brother" deal. Building a solid team with great facilities and winning games and getting national recognition will begin to develope DISD kids. It is not going to happen quick especially considering we are not only not on the radar, our blipper is out of service. MD can help in this aspect. By getting national recognition to the program, if he can develop the program in a positive fashion, the DISD kids (and I include all the area when I say DISD) will begin to notice us. It is back to simple marketing. If you build it they will come.

[smu diamond m]

coming straight out of DISD myself, i can say that they operate crooked. "the way smu is doing business"? meaning: hiring a white guy? truth of the matter is, disd is extrmemly sensitive towards racism against traditional minorities, but doesn't give a hoot about hating white folk. been there. done that. jimmy tubbs could've hired whores for every member on the team, and the only thing people would see would be the fact that southern white university fired a black guy. reverse racism at its best.

[Stallion]

you mean fired a black guy after two years and after giving just about every other white coach since the DP 5+ years including a) one coach with about three 1 win seasons and an 0-6 record against Rice b) another coach whose program was involved in much more serious violations that the REPORTED violations by Tubbs and c) another Coach with an 0-12 season. yeah-the Tubbs firing smells great from South of the Hilltop!