DeMatha Varsity Basketball Head Coach Mike Jones '91 has accepted the position of Associate Head Coach at Virginia Tech. Here's a Statement from the administration of DeMatha Catholic High School: (1/4) pic.twitter.com/gtXlgprM2U— DeMathaHighSchool (@DeMathaCatholic) May 17, 2021
This one is huge, folks.
20 years heading up a powerhouse program at DeMatha. Morgan Wootten protégé. 22-time USA Basketball coach and the 2021 USA Men's U16 National Team head coach. Legend.
Maryland, Georgetown, and other admins, alums, and fans have tried to make this move happen for them for years. Jones himself estimates he has been offered at least one college opportunity in each of the past 15 years. Where they all failed, Mike Young succeeded.
If you're just joining the news, the TKP community has had a pretty good conversation since the news broke that Mike Jones was a leading candidate for the AHC vacancy. If you'd like a deeper read on who Mike Jones is, not just what he's done or where he's been, but what he believes and what guides him, you can find a great profile here. Read that and tell me Jones and CMY aren't going to get on like a house on fire.
I'm not exaggerating when I say this could be one of the most significant coaching hires in Virginia Tech history. Mike Young pledged to get it right, and boy, did he. This is a big boy move made by a big boy program set to do real big boy things. Get excited! 🍿🍿🍿
Comments
Interesting hire. Should help with recruiting DMV and WCAC.
Everybody in the DMV (and many, many more well beyond its borders) knows DeMatha and Mike Jones and Mike Jones knows everybody. Effectively, this is as much about bringing in a talented coach and recruiter as it is branding. This hire makes a statement. It expands what This is Home means. We are going to have kids looking at Blacksburg who otherwise would never have. The orbit around Mike Jones is that impressive.
WHO?!
This is the type of hire the football team has been needing to make. Huge pull MY! MY GETS IT!
Miiikee Joooness
The olds in the IG comments section/twitter replies not understanding this joke are giving me life.
Star Lord
HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE.
I love the Dematha connection, but the Team USA stuff is even more important imo. He obviously has great ties to the DMV, but this is a massive get everywhere.
And while we'll obviously talk about how big it is on the recruiting trail, he was also 2019 USA Basketball developmental coach of the year. Great recruiter. Great mentor of young talent. Great coach. He could be in Blacksburg for only 2 seasons and still make a significant impact.
That popping sound you hear is hundreds and hundreds of top high school basketball players hitting the 👀 emoji.
I have no idea if it will make a difference, but this also makes me weirdly interested in the future of our Nike contract considering how integral Nike is to USA Men's Basketball.
I think Nike is here to stay... I interpreted Whit's comments about Nike as a quality deal was already in the works.
Big win for the bball program.
This is A MAJOR HIRE for our BBall program. I think some fellow ACC coaches just had a little sweat break out on their forehead. The future is getting brighter and I'm ready to wear some shades.
This is an assistant hire that I wish football had made at any point since 2005. I'm not sure there's an analog here, but adding a guy who not only knows everyone in premier hoops circles, but is a guy others want to know, is just so huge. Fuck and yes Mike Young.
100% agree, but you gotta wonder if maybe this helps football recruiting as well, with Dematha also being a football powerhouse
The analogy, though not the same because football isn't as connected as basketball is Texas Tech hiring Art Briles. This assumes we ignore his history of covering up players indiscretions.
Ole Miss hiring Hugh Freeze (the first time) also comes to mind. Ignoring his connection to Michael Oher and the other recruiting violations that happened from his transition.
Maybe Chad Morris is a better example?
The analog that pops to my mind immediately is Clemson hiring Brent Venables.
So VT MBB is the new Clemson FB?
But yes - I agree with your analog. When Clemson hired Venibles, it was an 'oh shit' moment, and everyone in the sport took notice. It was a clear message to all of CFB that Clemson intended to contend for NCs.
It's hard to make a comparison because football and basketball recruiting are such different animals. You can have a tremendous football program at Highland Springs that puts out some P5 talent each year, but private basketball "high schools" like DeMatha or Montverde are straight-up basketball factories. Families seek them out because they're NBA pipelines who compete nationally with Nike, UA, and Adidas money backing them. You constantly get guys from all over the country looking to find a spot with them. There isn't a good comparison in football recruiting. And that doesn't even begin to discuss the world of USA Basketball.
EDIT: this is why it's frustrating to see fans on other sites, forums, comment sections, etc, saying things like "ugh a high school coach?? can you imagine if Fuente did this blah blah blah". It's comparing football apples to basketball Formula 1 racers.
I guess the HC at Fork Union or Hargrave's prep teams would be the closest comparitor? Maybe the HC at Lake Travis? Idk.
Probably closer to stealing the Head Coach from IMG Academy.
The connections with USA Bball don't really have an equivalent in football
are you suggesting F1 racers are...fruits?
👑
Only hearing really good news about this hire. So, as a hokie fan, am I the only one wondering what terrible news will come out tomorrow to offset this?
Any of these should get us balanced back.
honestly, I believe we have plenty of balance within the department right now, as-is (with apologies to all the other programs who are absolutely killing it)
Whit: Great Job Coach Young!
CJF: Did you say me?
Whit: Is your name Coach Young too?
CJF: No, that's why I'm so f*cking confused!
logged in just to give this a leg...
THE BONES ARE THEIR MONEY!
Pretty cool. All his experience with DeMatha and USA basketball will likely be useful for both recruiting and player development. He has worked with some superstars, especially at USA basketball.
In the Class of 2022, there are two 4-star DeMatha players in 247's top 100: Tyrell Ward (53rd) and Rodney Rice (89th). The Hokies, along with plenty other schools, have already offered both. Of course, this hire leads one to speculate whether one of them might be more inclined to play in Blacksburg to reunite with Mike Jones.
The impact will be felt far beyond DeMatha, but it's a great place to start!
281 330 8004
That's my cell phone number, 5 star recruits, hit me up on the low.
This is how I want to feel about every VT assistant coaching hire across all sports: grateful for the results we had with the outgoing coach and wishing them well, and yet super excited for the new incoming coach.
Mark Berman has a write-up in the RT. Some highlights:
I particularly like this bit:
#basketball school
MBB going to be a fixture in March for years to come.
From the Washington Post:
we good to tweet prospective coaches then?
So we should just constantly tweet at Saban to the point where he just believes he is the VT football coach? I think this would be a form of gaslighting that I can get behind.
I'm glad that we hit Mike Jones up on the low, because I have a feeling that Mike Jones about to blow. Just look at his recent National Coach of the Year rankings:
2nd
8th
1st
3rd
3rd
0 (Did not Qualify)
8th
0 (Did not Qualify)
0 (Did not Qualify)
4th
He's still tipping on 4 stars, and I think we'll see some 1st Round Draft Picks coming.
This was a big dick energy kind of move from Young,
Seriously, this is the kind of move that sends shockwaves through the recruiting community. Jones is an all star at the high school level. Adding him to our staff to be paired with Ace Custis is going to create a legitimate talent pipeline from the DC regions to Tech.
I mean hell, I know rumors are that Webster is potentially heading to Florida, and after a move like this, I halfway expect him to add Steve Smith from Oak Hill, just for the hell of it.
I thought about making a coach Smith joke as a replacement for Webster. But, then I know that man will never have a need to go anywhere else.
The rest of the ACC coaches hearing that Mike Young just hired Mike Jones
Ace walking into the office every day
Great reference. Leg for you.
This is a Mike and Mike I can support.
The only question now is - do we build a roster exclusively of McD's AA Top 25 players who will be 1-and-dones or do we get the lower tier 5-star guys who will stick around longer?
Give me one 1 and done, 1 low 5 star four year player, and one to two 3-4 stars.
Every year, we'd have 1 x 1 and done, 4 x low 5/high 4 star players, and 8 x low 4/high 3s.
It's a fun question to ponder. Give me whoever the Mikes want.
Mike Miller - Memphis
Mike Rhone - Colorado
AME - All Mike Everything
Very well played.
Gotta wonder if there was some discussion of the future of the head coaching job.
Not sure how long Young can go, so could be a coach in waiting scenario. Give him a few years for grooming and to get settled in ACC college basketball and then release the hounds.
That thought did run through my mind.
I mean CMY is only 58, Coach K is 74, Roy Williams is 70, Beamer retired at 70, it is wholly realistic for CMY to coach another 5-7 years at least
Long term replacement plan.
But for who? My brain conjured up the scenario that VT is potentially a great stepping stone for Jones to get a HC position at another ACC school (Blue😈, 🍊) after a successful run here. There's a bunch of top tier ACC head coaching gigs coming open in a couple of years.
No one knows how this will all shake out, but if I had to guess, I'd say Jones stays for about 3 seasons, then depending on which HC job he wants (will ODU be available by then?) takes another AHC gig at a Tier-1 P5 or a HC at a mid-major. This is Mike Young's last stop and I hope it lasts for as long as he wants it. I'd personally love to see him as VT's longest-tenured and winningest basketball coach with 12+ seasons and 213+ wins. Once he's ready to hang it up, maybe Mike Jones will be open to coming back to the program he helped build into a perennial ACC contender and Final Four team ;)
Jim Boeheim is 76 so hopefully we have at least 18 more years of CMY!
I doubt Jones will be an assistant until Young retires
This. But, for football.
#Solved #PayMe
Nah, can't have any ludicrous crap like that.
Hey VT Football:
That'll cut into his fishing time though...
If they hire him as a QA coach/consultant, he can telecommute from the pier/beach/boat.
HELP OUR GUY OUT
Can you have puncuation marks in your Twitter handle? If so, Hoo?Lol!MikeJones.
note: @MikeJonesHokieForLife contains too many characters
But it is a damn good name. Just saying, no bias
@MrJones&VT
I like this. Pass me a bottle.
Are we all gonna tell each other fairy tales?!
Someone's going to show me some of that Spanish dancing.
They got a thing going on?
@AllOnMe
@Jonesing4VT
@MrJonesandVT, edit: missed Alum's post above, facepalm
@Who?VT
Set aside an hour in your day and check this out. Mike Jones goes in depth on his VT move. The whole interview is delightful. Jones can spin a yarn with the best.
Among the highlights-
4:13 - The big topic. Making the move to Virginia Tech. Mike Young was the main draw for him and what made this opportunity different from all the others over the years. Other schools over the years wanted to hire Jones because of the kids he knew. They just wanted him as a recruiter. Mike Young wants him as a teacher and a coach, as well. Young came to Mike Jones with a vision for his career, offering to teach him what it means and what it takes to be a college head coach. They're going to learn a lot from each other.
11:20 - Name checks Webbie and Ace and Giltner. Looking forward to working with them.
The stories. Oh man, the stories.
Mike Jones' playing and coaching career
Morgan Wooten, what he was like and what MJ learned from him
Coaching USA Basketball, Don Showalter stories
Coaching FIBA in Brazil in his first game as HC of a perfect team, getting blown out early, winning by 20
Navigating new rules re: contact with players. Struggling with it. It sucks and it's hard because you can't call kids back who you've known a long time and who need your guidance.
His legacy at DeMatha and DeMatha's future
Stories about Billy Edelin
He's going to write books one day about his times at DeMatha and with USA Basketball.
41:50 - USA bball story. Flying to Vegas after winning the gold medal and meeting Kobe, Lebron, Melo, Russ, KLove, etc etc at USA Basketball practice. Kobe off by himself, killing himself doing crazy, all-out footwork drills without a ball. Learning from Coach K, watching him empower his players.
Throughout the interview, Mike Jones' humility, affability, humility, wisdom, humility, and warmth shine through. He has stories for days, and I only wish I had another hour of content to listen to. Love this dude.
Does this mean the Webster to Florida rumblings are waning?
No, not necessarily. Mike Jones just went through this process himself. Even if he knew Webbie was leaving the next day, he'd say the same thing. Just an example of the kind of professional he is and why I included it.
New conversation with Mike Jones from Sons of Saturday. Among the highlights, Jones reiterates his reason for taking the AHC position-
We also get a glimpse into how Jones sees his role as a recruiter-
Love the content you put on here btw--also these quotes by Jones. This also shows just how well CMY is doing with hiring--playing 4D chess here.