Is there an actual GM for basketball?

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PaperBear89
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8:18a, 1/21/26
If there is, that person should be fired for the piss poor assembly of players this year.
If there is not, we need to hire the best one we can.
In fact,my hope is that McNamee with his purported business background will start looking at making front office improvements in all the major sports.
Coaches just wanna coach. Need to turn over the cut-throat ball-busting evaluation and culling of talent to the sharks.
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Big12Fan2024
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8:40a, 1/21/26
Yes. Jason Smith. Started as a student manager for Drew back around 2007 when I was in school. He's been the GM the past 2 years. Drew has credited him in multiple interviews as the person who helped construct the current roster.
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PaperBear89
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In reply to Big12Fan2024 • 8:57a, 1/21/26
Big12Fan2024 said:
Yes. Jason Smith. Started as a student manager for Drew back around 2007 when I was in school. He's been the GM the past 2 years. Drew has credited him in multiple interviews as the person who helped construct the current roster.

In that line of work, that is not something I would want to be "credited" for. He may want to leave that "accomplishment" off his resume.
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Big12Bear
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9:05a, 1/21/26
Direct most of the anger towards the Rob Wright camp.

You can be mad at the lack of a point guard, but the fact is, this dude left us at the worst possible time. In football, the Washington QB tried to leave at the last minute for LSU, but was going to get sued and thought better of it. Duke is currently suing Mensah.

I really wish we had done something because he royally screwed us for an entire year. I'd like to see the agents get sued as well because they are the ones actively shopping the players.

If you want to get upset at overpaying for Rataj, that's fine too. Just know that the other pieces to the puzzle would look much different if Wright were with us. He is the biggest component missing from this team. Not the only weakness, but the most glaring.
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PaperBear89
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In reply to Big12Bear • 9:36a, 1/21/26
Big12Bear said:
Direct most of the anger towards the Rob Wright camp.

You can be mad at the lack of a point guard, but the fact is, this dude left us at the worst possible time. In football, the Washington QB tried to leave at the last minute for LSU, but was going to get sued and thought better of it. Duke is currently suing Mensah.

I really wish we had done something because he royally screwed us for an entire year. I'd like to see the agents get sued as well because they are the ones actively shopping the players.

If you want to get upset at overpaying for Rataj, that's fine too. Just know that the other pieces to the puzzle would look much different if Wright were with us. He is the biggest component missing from this team. Not the only weakness, but the most glaring.


Makes sense. And totally agree with using some alumni of our much-touted law school to chip in and hold these kids accountable. Play grown up games, get grown up prizes.
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Bearwhiz
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9:36a, 1/21/26
Baylor isn't serious about anything other than raising tuition and a fake image. Basically like all politicians. They take your money, mismanage it, then ask for more.
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Baylorbears111
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In reply to Big12Bear • 10:08a, 1/21/26
Big12Bear said:
Direct most of the anger towards the Rob Wright camp.

You can be mad at the lack of a point guard, but the fact is, this dude left us at the worst possible time. In football, the Washington QB tried to leave at the last minute for LSU, but was going to get sued and thought better of it. Duke is currently suing Mensah.

I really wish we had done something because he royally screwed us for an entire year. I'd like to see the agents get sued as well because they are the ones actively shopping the players.

If you want to get upset at overpaying for Rataj, that's fine too. Just know that the other pieces to the puzzle would look much different if Wright were with us. He is the biggest component missing from this team. Not the only weakness, but the most glaring.

No that is stupid blame shifting. Baylor has been on a downward decline and trajectory since 2021.

Somehow teams like Texas Tech, ISU, Houston, Arizona, and Gonzaga have figured out how to stay competitive each and every year in the NIL world. Time for Baylor to figure it out.

I'd recommend starting with the defensive coaching staff and their talent evaluations (or lack thereof).

Wright is one dude and only Dave Aranda builds a program off the promises of one player.
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Adriacus Peratuun
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10:15a, 1/21/26
Maybe invert the transfer analysis process.

Instead of basketing players who meet our skill threshold and then looking for the best athleticism and physicality among that bunch, try the reverse by finding players that are athletic and physical enough to compete in the B12 (and have great motors) and then find the most skilled players from that basket.

We are soft and not athletic enough.
Roach, Agbim, Rataj…….soft and not really athletic.

find guys like Vital, EJ and Davion who need skill work but have physicality and huge motors.
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PaperBear89
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In reply to Adriacus Peratuun • 10:39a, 1/21/26
Adriacus Peratuun said:
Maybe invert the transfer analysis process.

Instead of basketing players who meet our skill threshold and then looking for the best athleticism and physicality among that bunch, try the reverse by finding players that are athletic and physical enough to compete in the B12 (and have great motors) and then find the most skilled players from that basket.

We are soft and not athletic enough.
Roach, Agbim, Rataj…….soft and not really athletic.

find guys like Vital, EJ and Davion who need skill work but have physicality and huge motors.

Always agree with high-motor guys. And per my earlier reply, sign them to binding contracts (and enforce them) or we're gonna have to replace them every single year.
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Bearwhiz
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10:53a, 1/21/26
Maybe get tougher as coaches. Soft coaching creates soft players. Cryer was soft and always "hurt" when he was here. Sampson helped him become a tougher more reliable player by coaching him hard.
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BluesBear
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In reply to PaperBear89 • 11:37a, 1/21/26
PaperBear89 said:
If there is, that person should be fired for the piss poor assembly of players this year.
If there is not, we need to hire the best one we can.
In fact,my hope is that McNamee with his purported business background will start looking at making front office improvements in all the major sports.
Coaches just wanna coach. Need to turn over the cut-throat ball-busting evaluation and culling of talent to the sharks.

JHC - - How many damn administrative roles do we need in this Athletic Entertainment division. It's ridiculous the pork that is on the budgets at Baylor.

I bet there is between 3-4m of waste annually within the Athletic Entertainment budget that could be trimmed and used for NIL...
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PaperBear89
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In reply to BluesBear • 1:49p, 1/21/26
BluesBear said:
PaperBear89 said:
If there is, that person should be fired for the piss poor assembly of players this year.
If there is not, we need to hire the best one we can.
In fact,my hope is that McNamee with his purported business background will start looking at making front office improvements in all the major sports.
Coaches just wanna coach. Need to turn over the cut-throat ball-busting evaluation and culling of talent to the sharks.

JHC - - How many damn administrative roles do we need in this Athletic Entertainment division. It's ridiculous the pork that is on the budgets at Baylor.

I bet there is between 3-4m of waste annually within the Athletic Entertainment budget that could be trimmed and used for NIL...


Agree. Go here and you can find plenty of fat to reallocate for a good GM. https://baylorbears.com/staff-directory

The schools that care about being competitive hire good GMs. Period. Now if you are saying colleges in general spend way too much on sports and should focus on education, that's another argument most rational folks can get behind.
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Stefano DiMera
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2:15p, 1/21/26
Many schools are hiring famous alumni as GM's and assistant GM's .

Trae Young -Oklahoma

Steph Curry - Davidson

Andrew Luck- Stanford

Dame Lillard - Weber State
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Stefano DiMera
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In reply to PaperBear89 • 2:18p, 1/21/26
I think you need to compare peer to peer.

I would expect UT or Michigan to have more admin positions than us.. and us to have more than North Texas and Rice.
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Big12Bear
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In reply to Baylorbears111 • 2:19p, 1/21/26
Baylorbears111 said:
Big12Bear said:
Direct most of the anger towards the Rob Wright camp.

You can be mad at the lack of a point guard, but the fact is, this dude left us at the worst possible time. In football, the Washington QB tried to leave at the last minute for LSU, but was going to get sued and thought better of it. Duke is currently suing Mensah.

I really wish we had done something because he royally screwed us for an entire year. I'd like to see the agents get sued as well because they are the ones actively shopping the players.

If you want to get upset at overpaying for Rataj, that's fine too. Just know that the other pieces to the puzzle would look much different if Wright were with us. He is the biggest component missing from this team. Not the only weakness, but the most glaring.

No that is stupid blame shifting. Baylor has been on a downward decline and trajectory since 2021.

Somehow teams like Texas Tech, ISU, Houston, Arizona, and Gonzaga have figured out how to stay competitive each and every year in the NIL world. Time for Baylor to figure it out.

I'd recommend starting with the defensive coaching staff and their talent evaluations (or lack thereof).

Wright is one dude and only Dave Aranda builds a program off the promises of one player.

Incredibly low IQ post.
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Ewalker80
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In reply to Big12Bear • 2:29p, 1/21/26
Big12Bear said:
Baylorbears111 said:
Big12Bear said:
Direct most of the anger towards the Rob Wright camp.

You can be mad at the lack of a point guard, but the fact is, this dude left us at the worst possible time. In football, the Washington QB tried to leave at the last minute for LSU, but was going to get sued and thought better of it. Duke is currently suing Mensah.

I really wish we had done something because he royally screwed us for an entire year. I'd like to see the agents get sued as well because they are the ones actively shopping the players.

If you want to get upset at overpaying for Rataj, that's fine too. Just know that the other pieces to the puzzle would look much different if Wright were with us. He is the biggest component missing from this team. Not the only weakness, but the most glaring.

No that is stupid blame shifting. Baylor has been on a downward decline and trajectory since 2021.

Somehow teams like Texas Tech, ISU, Houston, Arizona, and Gonzaga have figured out how to stay competitive each and every year in the NIL world. Time for Baylor to figure it out.

I'd recommend starting with the defensive coaching staff and their talent evaluations (or lack thereof).

Wright is one dude and only Dave Aranda builds a program off the promises of one player.

Incredibly low IQ post.


When Rob wright was tampered with I suggested Baylor should sue BYU for intentional interference with contract. Would like to know why they didn't but in any case this season is lost as a result of that tampering and millions of donor dollars wasted. There's literally a Rob wright sized whole in the middle of the program. It caused tens of millions in damages to the program and at this point the Pr hit from suing seems worth it to me. Use settlement proceeds for more players and deter future tampering.
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PapaBear2458
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9:23p, 1/21/26
It seems to me that we ought to hire a good basketball GM who is not necessarily an old friend of the coach- someone with real credentials. Coach Drew also has at least one former player on his coaching staff- Tweety Carter and I'm not sure how good of a basketball coach he is- Baylor has lost several very good assistants to head coaching jobs over the last 5 years ago and their replacements don't seem to be nearly as good as they are.
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True Grit
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9:34p, 1/21/26
I have little faith in those who put the rosters together for this season and last season to figure it out for next season.
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boykin_spaniel
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9:10a, 1/22/26
CSD has a well earned lifetime contract. He can retire or leave when he wants.

No excuses but we have had bad luck. We're like the 49ers of college basketball. EJ, Josh O, Langston Love, Cryer, Bodo Bodo this year, Skillings, etc. Wright left us at the altar for a bag from BYU. Then Drew was a little too good at talent evaluation with Missi and Sochan, both guys expected to be on the roster beyond 1 year.

Why we've had multiple seasons without a legitimate point guard is a fair critique. Why we've been unable to play consistent defense since the title is a fair critique.

We don't have NIL on par with Tech and BYU. We have good NIL. Many of the players we brought in were highly rated. I think we are in a range where when reconstructing the entire roster it was fill out a whole team and hope a shooting guard or small forward can run some point or getting a point guard and hoping some small major dudes can step up in other spots.

Also, we have an entire new roster and that was going to have some growing pains. The growing pains being in the same places like defense is tough to watch but the staff did better in getting longer this portal go around. Skillings can mix it up in the paint much better than Celestine.

I'd expect Drew to really pursue a true PG for next season. The difficult thing is that true PGs are like left tackles in the transfer portal. There's really only a small number of legit power conference level players and everyone goes after them. Basketball has even more teams in pursuit.
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bear2be2
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In reply to Big12Bear • 9:24a, 1/22/26
Big12Bear said:
Baylorbears111 said:
Big12Bear said:
Direct most of the anger towards the Rob Wright camp.

You can be mad at the lack of a point guard, but the fact is, this dude left us at the worst possible time. In football, the Washington QB tried to leave at the last minute for LSU, but was going to get sued and thought better of it. Duke is currently suing Mensah.

I really wish we had done something because he royally screwed us for an entire year. I'd like to see the agents get sued as well because they are the ones actively shopping the players.

If you want to get upset at overpaying for Rataj, that's fine too. Just know that the other pieces to the puzzle would look much different if Wright were with us. He is the biggest component missing from this team. Not the only weakness, but the most glaring.

No that is stupid blame shifting. Baylor has been on a downward decline and trajectory since 2021.

Somehow teams like Texas Tech, ISU, Houston, Arizona, and Gonzaga have figured out how to stay competitive each and every year in the NIL world. Time for Baylor to figure it out.

I'd recommend starting with the defensive coaching staff and their talent evaluations (or lack thereof).

Wright is one dude and only Dave Aranda builds a program off the promises of one player.

Incredibly low IQ post.
Feel free to elaborate. I didn't see anything in his post I disagree with.

Baylor fans make excuse after excuse while ignoring how many schools with comparable or lesser resources have passed us right on by.

If Iowa State can be competitive in the NIL era, there is no good reason for Baylor not to be. And if our coaches and athletic administrators can't figure out what their peers at all of these other schools have managed to with similar budgets, it's time for them to move on and make way for folks who can.
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bear2be2
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In reply to Ewalker80 • 9:27a, 1/22/26
Ewalker80 said:
Big12Bear said:
Baylorbears111 said:
Big12Bear said:
Direct most of the anger towards the Rob Wright camp.

You can be mad at the lack of a point guard, but the fact is, this dude left us at the worst possible time. In football, the Washington QB tried to leave at the last minute for LSU, but was going to get sued and thought better of it. Duke is currently suing Mensah.

I really wish we had done something because he royally screwed us for an entire year. I'd like to see the agents get sued as well because they are the ones actively shopping the players.

If you want to get upset at overpaying for Rataj, that's fine too. Just know that the other pieces to the puzzle would look much different if Wright were with us. He is the biggest component missing from this team. Not the only weakness, but the most glaring.

No that is stupid blame shifting. Baylor has been on a downward decline and trajectory since 2021.

Somehow teams like Texas Tech, ISU, Houston, Arizona, and Gonzaga have figured out how to stay competitive each and every year in the NIL world. Time for Baylor to figure it out.

I'd recommend starting with the defensive coaching staff and their talent evaluations (or lack thereof).

Wright is one dude and only Dave Aranda builds a program off the promises of one player.

Incredibly low IQ post.


When Rob wright was tampered with I suggested Baylor should sue BYU for intentional interference with contract. Would like to know why they didn't but in any case this season is lost as a result of that tampering and millions of donor dollars wasted. There's literally a Rob wright sized whole in the middle of the program. It caused tens of millions in damages to the program and at this point the Pr hit from suing seems worth it to me. Use settlement proceeds for more players and deter future tampering.
Rob Wright would have been band-aid, not a cure.

Our program has more and bigger issues than any one player can solve.
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IowaBear
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In reply to bear2be2 • 9:28a, 1/22/26
I can promise you ISU's Nail fund is less than Baylor's. I know what a few of their studs make.. Rataj makes more than Milan for perspective
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bear2be2
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In reply to IowaBear • 9:31a, 1/22/26
IowaBear said:
I can promise you ISU's Nail fund is less than Baylor's. I know what a few of their studs make.. Rataj makes more than Milan for perspective
I know it is. Their AD came out a long time ago and said they can't operate at the revenue sharing cap.

Iowa State is poor, even by Big 12 standards. And yet, they continue to finish above us in the standings in every major sport.
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IowaBear
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In reply to bear2be2 • 9:36a, 1/22/26
Yup it's why I scoff at those saying BU can't compete in the B12 in the NIL era. Obviously we don't know the exact numbers but BU is widely considered to have a top 25 NIL budget for CBB. The results aren't slighting with the budget. No other way to spin it
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