Shaka Smart (VCU)
Pros: He’s young (37 years of age), energetic, plays an exciting style and is a winner. In six years as the head coach of VCU, he won 74.4% of his games. In his second season as a head coach, he took VCU from a “play in” game to the Final Four. His teams have made the NCAA Tournament and won at least one game in four of his six seasons as a head coach.
Cons: He isn’t likely to take the Tennessee job after turning down Marquette (he’s from Wisconsin), UCLA, and a host of other programs in recent years. He makes $1.5 million and UT would have to offer him well over $2 million to even get him to listen. He would win big at Tennessee, but Hart and Co. would be fortunate if he even listened to their overtures.
