The list of boosters/employees, etc. who would love it if Ray Giacoletti came back to EWU is a LOT longer than the list of those who are mad at him for defending one of his best friends. The bigger questions are whether Coach Giac wants the job and whether EWU can afford it if he does.
It's going to be interesting to see who ends up with this job. It would be nice to know who is interested and the current time frame for hiring a coach, but with the beat writer of the newspaper not being a "go-getter", AD Chaves being very guarded with information and the general apathy over the basketball program, it's likely we won't know anything until the university announces a press conference to name the new coach.
It would be nice to know who is involved in this decision. Obviously, AD Chaves and President Arevalo are. But who else? Maybe not names, but a number of people would be nice. Are public interviews with finalists part of the plan?
What is the wish list for the ideal candidate? Does a D-1 assistant have an edge over a lower division head coach who has not coached at the D-1 level? How important is it for the new coach to be able to recruit in Washington state and the Northwest? Should the new coach be comfortable with raising money? Will there be pressure to make a minority hire? I think there are only two minority coaches on the entire athletic department staff (Hunter and Adams with football) and only three women head coaches.
My gut is telling me four things and I don't know if I trust any of them being right. In no particular order:
1. The job will go to someone most of us never heard of, who has a past connection to AD Chaves.
2. The job will go to the best suited minority applicant.
3. It's coach Giac's job if he wants to take it.
4. Rodney Stuckey will make the decision by promising a big donation if his favorite is hired.
We will see. My guess is it should happen in the next week or two. And if it doesn't happen in that time, then I will be worried that they are not finding any takers among the best candidates.