Link of the Day

Well I know it's April Fools' Day and I thought it was a joke myself when I heard it, but it appears Mark Few could be on his way out of Gonzaga and on his way to the Pac-10 to fill the vacancy at the University of Arizona.

Now, if you're close to Gonzaga University and don't know me, I know you'll be crying yourself to sleep tonight, thinking the best thing to happen to the Zags since John Stockton is leaving. Gonzaga has been to the Dance every year since Few took the reins and his departure raises several questions about the Bulldogs' future.

However, those who do know me know that in my eyes, this news is too good to be true. I'll commend Few for his job here and thank him for the memories, but if he leaves, Gonzaga will be better off for a few reasons.

First, Gonzaga isn't going anywhere under Few's leadership. If you are vehemently pro-Few, you must be satisfied with early-season wins against big-name opponents and winning about 95 percent of games against the rest of the WCC. You must also be satisfied with being knocked out early in the NCAA Tournament year in and year out. I'll admit, this season was different in that North Carolina was just a much better team than Gonzaga, so despite having their best squad, they didn't have their best chance of going deep. That was in 2006, when the Zags squandered a 17-point lead en route to Adam Morrison shedding tears in a loss to UCLA. Other notable Gonzaga losses in March under Few include a first-round loss to #11 seed Wyoming in Dan Dickau's senior season and a second-round rout as the #2 seed Zags fell to #10 seed Nevada in 2004 by 19 in a game which they weren't within eight points in the last 32 and a half minutes.

Second, Gonzaga hasn't been able to play defense with Few at the helm until this season and even that abandoned them in the Tournament. The Bulldogs were second nationally during the regular season in defensive field goal percentage (and because I hate Google more than Few, I can't find the exact number, but it was well below 40 percent) and allowed 61.3 points per game. But in games against Akron, Western Kentucky and North Carolina, Gonzaga allowed an average of 81 ppg and 48 percent shooting. And in regards to 3-point defense, where Few is notoriously awful in his defense, the Bulldogs nearly allowed their opponents to shoot 50 percent in three games (33 for 67), capped by the Tar Heels shooting 11 for 19 in the Sweet 16 shellacking. Ouch.

Third, Few's in-game management of his players contradicts what a coach looking to win games would want to do. I remember my dad mocking Few for removing players who got hot. On the contrary, he remained loyal to struggling stars Josh Heytvelt, Jeremy Pargo and Austin Daye while limiting minutes for dynamic freshman Demetri Goodson and the vastly underrated Micah Downs (though to be fair, Heytvelt was either awesome or awful, while Pargo busted out of his slump, at least somewhat, toward the end of the season). And their tallest player in, oh, I dunno, history, 7'5" Will Foster has spent so much time riding the pine, his seat on the bench comes with a nameplate. In one game against Memphis, Foster got zero minutes, even though the Tigers thrive with slashing guards attacking the rim. No way a 7'5" guy could help stop that, right? His press also has failed to work against any team higher than D-III, but he sticks with it for no real reason. Maybe I'm bitter.

Anyway, if Few goes, the future of the program is up in the air. Whoever takes over probably won't have the big-name status that Few had and recruiting may suffer because of that. If the hire is in-house, the system will likely remain the same, but hopefully the change in coaching doesn't just tweak that system, but reinvigorates the program as well. If the hiring comes from elsewhere, it will be a breath of fresh air for a team which could use one after a decade of mediocrity. The talking heads may say that Arizona is getting a steal by prying Few away from the comfort of Spokane and they'll never admit that the change is good for Gonzaga.

But after watching this team for 10 years with high hopes and, come March, being at least a bit disappointed, I wouldn't be opposed to becoming underdogs again and hoping for a run of upsets like in 1999. And I wouldn't be opposed to becoming a better team because a weak link bolted for sunnier skies.