New DMN Story - more info
Posted: Thu Apr 06, 2006 9:00 pmHow good were these kids he was eyeing?
Guess what, a Blackistone article is coming!! imagine that...
These are good quotes-
"Kimball coach Royce Johnson said that SMU tried to find
a shortcut to success, and hired Tubbs because of his connections.
But he said SMU didn't invest in other parts of the program, such as facilities."
My office at Kimball almost looks better," Johnson said.
"Dallas is probably the hot spot in the U.S. in basketball talent,"
Mays said, "and you've got a college right here that can get no one."
Tubbs fired after two years at SMU
08:54 PM CDT on Thursday, April 6, 2006
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News
SMU basketball coach Jimmy Tubbs was fired Thursday afternoon.
Tubbs had completed only two seasons of a four-year contract signed in March 2004.
Tubbs, 57, declined comment.
Retiring athletic director Jim Copeland made the decision to fire Tubbs and said in a statement, "SMU holds its coaches accountable for high standards of compliance with NCAA rules and university procedures in all areas of their programs."
Copeland refused to answer questions for comment.
SMU officials reached a contract settlement with Tubbs, paying him the remaining two years of his contract in full. Tubbs' attorney, Michael Pegues, did not return a call seeking comment.
Tubbs leaves SMU with a 27-30 record. The Mustangs were 13-16 in 2005-06.
Starting Thursday afternoon, Tubbs began to clean out his office. He took down two pictures, one of him posing with a basketball in front of an SMU sign, the other of a story in a frame. Also Thursday, he informed the players he would not return as coach next season.
Several players expressed shock when told that Tubbs will not return.
"I'm a little hurt," freshman center Bamba Fall said after the 35-minute meeting. "He took it like a man."
Fall, who set a season record for blocks this season, said he's thinking of transferring.
"I don't know yet," he said. "I have to sleep on it."
Dez Willingham, a sophomore point guard from DeSoto, said Tubbs was calm during the meeting with players.
"That was a low blow," Willingham said. "He presented himself well. He always talks to us about dealing with all facets of life. He told us to call him if we needed anything.
"I didn't see this coming. But it's out of our control and it's part of life."
Freshman power forward Brian Morris, who was given the nickname Big Baby by Tubbs, said he was too upset to talk.
Junior forward Donatas Rackauskas, who was not present at the meeting, will now play for his third coach at SMU. Rackauskas was recruited by Mike Dement, who was fired in 2004.
"It's going to be different," he said. "I would never think I would have played for three coaches in my career in college. I just have to make the best of it."
In February, SMU launched an investigation into the program when Max Williams, the grandfather of freshman player Matt Williams, said he gave Tubbs money to purchase meals for players.
Sources said Tubbs paid for meals for Fall and Morris, but out of his own pocket.
SMU officials are also investigating if Tubbs conducted practices for more than the NCAA-mandated 20 hours per week. Tubbs' phone records are also being reviewed to determine if he called prospective recruits more than the NCAA allows.
Copeland said in his statement that is not the sum of the alleged violations in the program.
When Tubbs was hired, Copeland said one of the main reasons was his ability to recruit some of the best players in the area.
Some of the top players have not come to SMU in Tubbs' two seasons.
However, this weekend, SMU was to receive campus visits from South Oak Cliff forward Ronnie Morgan and Collin County Community College forward Eugene Spates, who graduated from Hillcrest.
Tubbs was also in the running for Fort Worth Dunbar guard Chris Roberts. Courtney Wallace, a 6-8 forward from Woodlawn High School in Baton Rouge, La., was also considering SMU.
But Tubbs' tenure at SMU will come to an abrupt end with no major area talent on the roster and a mediocre record.
E-mail [email protected]
Guess what, a Blackistone article is coming!! imagine that...
These are good quotes-
"Kimball coach Royce Johnson said that SMU tried to find
a shortcut to success, and hired Tubbs because of his connections.
But he said SMU didn't invest in other parts of the program, such as facilities."
My office at Kimball almost looks better," Johnson said.
"Dallas is probably the hot spot in the U.S. in basketball talent,"
Mays said, "and you've got a college right here that can get no one."
Tubbs fired after two years at SMU
08:54 PM CDT on Thursday, April 6, 2006
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News
SMU basketball coach Jimmy Tubbs was fired Thursday afternoon.
Tubbs had completed only two seasons of a four-year contract signed in March 2004.
Tubbs, 57, declined comment.
Retiring athletic director Jim Copeland made the decision to fire Tubbs and said in a statement, "SMU holds its coaches accountable for high standards of compliance with NCAA rules and university procedures in all areas of their programs."
Copeland refused to answer questions for comment.
SMU officials reached a contract settlement with Tubbs, paying him the remaining two years of his contract in full. Tubbs' attorney, Michael Pegues, did not return a call seeking comment.
Tubbs leaves SMU with a 27-30 record. The Mustangs were 13-16 in 2005-06.
Starting Thursday afternoon, Tubbs began to clean out his office. He took down two pictures, one of him posing with a basketball in front of an SMU sign, the other of a story in a frame. Also Thursday, he informed the players he would not return as coach next season.
Several players expressed shock when told that Tubbs will not return.
"I'm a little hurt," freshman center Bamba Fall said after the 35-minute meeting. "He took it like a man."
Fall, who set a season record for blocks this season, said he's thinking of transferring.
"I don't know yet," he said. "I have to sleep on it."
Dez Willingham, a sophomore point guard from DeSoto, said Tubbs was calm during the meeting with players.
"That was a low blow," Willingham said. "He presented himself well. He always talks to us about dealing with all facets of life. He told us to call him if we needed anything.
"I didn't see this coming. But it's out of our control and it's part of life."
Freshman power forward Brian Morris, who was given the nickname Big Baby by Tubbs, said he was too upset to talk.
Junior forward Donatas Rackauskas, who was not present at the meeting, will now play for his third coach at SMU. Rackauskas was recruited by Mike Dement, who was fired in 2004.
"It's going to be different," he said. "I would never think I would have played for three coaches in my career in college. I just have to make the best of it."
In February, SMU launched an investigation into the program when Max Williams, the grandfather of freshman player Matt Williams, said he gave Tubbs money to purchase meals for players.
Sources said Tubbs paid for meals for Fall and Morris, but out of his own pocket.
SMU officials are also investigating if Tubbs conducted practices for more than the NCAA-mandated 20 hours per week. Tubbs' phone records are also being reviewed to determine if he called prospective recruits more than the NCAA allows.
Copeland said in his statement that is not the sum of the alleged violations in the program.
When Tubbs was hired, Copeland said one of the main reasons was his ability to recruit some of the best players in the area.
Some of the top players have not come to SMU in Tubbs' two seasons.
However, this weekend, SMU was to receive campus visits from South Oak Cliff forward Ronnie Morgan and Collin County Community College forward Eugene Spates, who graduated from Hillcrest.
Tubbs was also in the running for Fort Worth Dunbar guard Chris Roberts. Courtney Wallace, a 6-8 forward from Woodlawn High School in Baton Rouge, La., was also considering SMU.
But Tubbs' tenure at SMU will come to an abrupt end with no major area talent on the roster and a mediocre record.
E-mail [email protected]