SEC Basketball: Rating the first season SEC coaches
By Ronald Evans
It could be asked why rate the first-season SEC Basketball coaches now. There are five games remaining in the SEC Basketball regular season, plus the SEC Tournament, so the six first-season guys have opportunities to rise or decline.
My answer is, in my opinion, the ranking provided below will be no different on Mar. 12. According to Team Rankings, only three of the six teams have a greater than .06% chance to win the SEC Tournament. The three are Mississippi State and Missouri at 1.32% and Florida at 2.59%.
As the old saying goes, ‘the die is cast’ for the six coaches.
SEC Basketball: Top New Hires
The top two SEC new hires this season are Missouri’s Dennis Gates and Georgia’s Mike White. Though both Missouri and Georgia have made impressive turnarounds from last season, White had the advantage of seven seasons coaching in the SEC, leading the Florida Gators.
The success of Dennis Gates is not surprising. In the 2018-19 season, Cleveland State finished fifth in the Horizon League. Three seasons later, Gates had led Cleveland State to two Horizon League Championships. As a Florida State assistant, Gates established a reputation as a top recruiter. Last season, Missouri finished the regular season at 11-20 and 5-13 in SEC play. This season, Gates has the Tigers at 19-7 and 7-6; on a path to an NCAA Tournament bid.
Mike White has orchestrated an even bigger turnaround at Georgia. In Tom Crean’s last Georgia season, the Bulldogs were 6-25 overall and 1-17 in the SEC. White currently has the Bulldogs at 16-10 and 6-7.