Buzz Williams is a great coach. Is he right for Maryland?
The Terrapins could win big under Buzz. They could also find themselves exactly where they started.
Maryland hired Buzz Williams on Tuesday, closing a tumultuous stretch for a blueblood program that in the last 12 days alone lost its athletic director to SMU, saw its coach leave for Villanova, and lost to Florida in the Sweet 16.
These should have been celebratory times for the Terrapins, who had made it to the NCAA tournament’s second weekend for the first time in nine years. Instead, Kevin Willard, their coach, used every recent opportunity in front of a microphone to share with the world his perceived shortcomings of the Terps’ athletic department. His departure felt inevitable, creating feelings so conflicted that as the band and cheerleaders sent the team off to its game against the Gators, Willard drew quite a few boos from the Maryland crowd.
That’s the game these days. Coaches like Willard have the right to use their leverage as they see fit. Fans, boosters and administrators have every right to voice their displeasure. All is fair in love, basketball and contract negotiations.
So why did Maryland respond to Willard’s departure by hiring Williams?