Georgia Basketball: Steve McClain's Hiring Deserves More Attention
The University of Georgia athletics programs made multiple hires to their respective staffs this off season. More notably are Todd Monken and Scott Cochran to the Georgia football staff. However, Georgia Men's Basketball coach Tom Crean added Steve McClain to the staff back in April, and that hiring hasn't received quite the amount of praise as it should have.
You don't have to look far to see how excited the program was to bring on Steve McClain. Just look at what Tom Crean had to say about McClain just hours before his arrival in Athens:
Crean stated on Twitter, "When @coachsmcclain arrives in Athens tonight, the energy and intensity level will instantly raise in Clarke County. He is a trusted comrade and a true winner. @UGABasketball gets better tonight."
The main thing Crean along with many other names in the college basketball world have raved about McClain is his energy and intensity level, as mentioned in the tweet. It's clear that McClain is fueled by his passion for the game, and when you let passion drive your actions, success is quick to follow.
If you didn't already know, McClain has had multitudes of success. That's why he has been able to be a college basketball coach (head coach and assistant coach) for 38 seasons.
Prior to being hired at Georgia, McClain has held head coaching jobs at Hutchison CC (1991-1994), Wyoming (1998-2007), and UIC (2015-2020) along with assistant jobs like TCU, Colorado, and most notably Indiana, where he coached alongside Tom Crean.
McClain has produced a handful of postseason wins as a head coach, as well as two MWC regular-season championships and one MWC Coach of the Year honor. Adding a coach with that kind of resume was a no-brainer for Georgia.
Furthermore, Crean also mentioned that McClain is a "trusted comrade". Sure, achievements are impressive, but having a staff member that is trustworthy and accountable is even more desirable for almost any coach at any level.
McClain has already proven his accountability at Georgia just from the recruiting trail. Ask any Georgia target what they think about the Georgia coaching staff. 9 times out of 10, McClain's likability as a basketball coach will be one of the first things they mention. Add that to the preexisting recruiting personalities of coaches like Chad Dollar, and you'll soon find many recruits finding it hard to turn Georgia down.
With college basketball players preparing to head to campus soon, McClain will have another opportunity to prove his accountability and versatility through developing the team. More likely than not, you'll see the fruits of that labor first hand when Georgia tips off in November.
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