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Self Responds to Billy G Question
Published: 3/27/2009 9:35 AM
Last Modified: 3/27/2009 9:35 AM

I agreed to do a freelance piece several years ago on Bill Self's group of assistant coaches at Tulsa. Warning for all people who are considering freelance assignments: I never got paid.
But at least I learned something out of the ordeal -- something besides the fact that freelance sometimes is more "free" than lance.
I asked Self why he hired each assistant. Self said that, when he first got the TU job, he put out word through the grapevine that he wanted to hire the best recruiter in Texas.
Feedback indicated the best recruiter in Texas was a fellow named Billy Gillispie. Self hired Gillispie, who has since rocketed up the career ladder to secure one of the best and worst (yes, simultaneously) jobs in college basketball -- head coach at Kentucky.
Gillispie, two years into the UK job, is expected to find out today if he will be back for a third season.
Self, now Kansas' head coach, was asked a Gillispie-related question at an NCAA press conference Thursday.
The question, according to a transcript of the press conference, was something along the lines of "what does it say about the coaching profession when you can be on the hot seat after only two seasons?"
Said Self, "You know, I don't think it's fair. Nobody cares what I think. You know, you've had a lot of coaches out there in time, over time, that struggled in their first few years on a job. One of 'em lives and resides in Durham, North Carolina. You know, 10 Final Fours later and three national championships later they're probably glad they didn't move on that. I think Billy is the same way. Billy, given time, he'll have Kentucky competing for championships again.
"But obviously in today's time, patience is not one of our society's virtues. It's win and win now. It's a quick fix on everything. Players want it when they go to schools. I want to play immediately. Fans want it. We want to give to schools, win immediately. Sometimes I think you got to step back and think big picture, what would be best over time. There's no doubt in my mind they got the right guy at the helm. But he's going to need a little bit of time."
Will Gillispie get more time? It's the big question of the day in Kentucky. In fact, it was a big question yesterday -- big enough for one TV station to interrupt prime time programming to report that Gillispie is done.
Meanwhile, Kentucky released a statement saying that Gillispie has not been fired.
Being in the public eye and having people speculate about your future can't be any fun. There's got to be a better way to make millions. But it does pay slightly better than freelance writing assignments.



Reader Comments 1 Total
OSUArthur (4 years ago)
Maybe a large part of why he turned down the OSU job (that is besides the obvious of being at a top-5 job).
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Tulsa World sports writer Jimmie Tramel is a former class president at Locust Grove High School. He graduated magna cum laude from Northeastern State University with a journalism degree and, while attending college, was sports editor of the Pryor Daily Times. He joined the Tulsa World on Oct. 17, 1989, the same day an earthquake struck the World Series. He is the OSU basketball beat writer and a columnist and feature writer during football season. In 2007, he wrote a book about Oklahoma State football with former Cowboy coach Pat Jones.

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