The only for-profit Division-I university has fired the only men’s basketball head coach in program history. On Thursday, hours after the cancellation of conference tournaments and the NCAA Tournament rocked college basketball, Grand Canyon announced the dismissal of head coach Dan Majerle.
“GCU has become a premier mid-major basketball destination with its resources, facilities, and student and community support,” Jerry Colangelo, Grand Canyon’s strategic advisor said in the release. “We look forward to the future of the program under the direction of the new head coach.”
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Majerle led the Antelopes to 136 wins over seven years, including at least 20 in four straight seasons from 2015-19, but stumbled to a 13-17 record last year, his worst as head coach. With Majerle out, who might the “premier mid-major” program hire as his replacement?
New Mexico State head coach Chris Jans could be atop the list. A former longtime Gregg Marshall assistant who’s rebuilt his career after the ugly exit at Bowling Green, Jans has done remarkable work in a worse location with worse resources than Grand Canyon. He hasn’t spent much recruiting time in Arizona but has recruited most of the southwest and would be a home-run hire.
Rashon Burno has been one of the top assistants in college basketball for nearly a decade. A former Billy Donovan assistant at Florida, Burno joined Bobby Hurley’s Arizona State staff in 2015 and has landed most of the program’s top recruits over the last five years. He’s a big-school guy already making $400,000 per year in a comfortable job. Would he leave for a WAC job?
Joe Pasternack spent six years on Sean Miller’s Arizona staff before landing the UC Santa Barbara job in 2016. He’s led the Gauchos to three straight 20-win seasons and could be in line for a promotion. Grand Canyon is not a promotion, but if they’re willing to pay?
What if Shaka Smart is fired by Texas? Might he see Grand Canyon as a reboot opportunity to land another big job? Richard Pitino, Danny Manning, or Brad Brownell?
Others to consider: Pacific head coach Damon Stoudamire, UCLA assistant Darren Savino, Oklahoma assistant Carlin Hartman, Southern head coach Sean Woods, Washington assistant Dave Rice, and former Phoenix Suns’ head coach (and Dan Majerle’s former Suns’ teammate) Jeff Hornacek.
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