If Dan Hurley has a million critics, Jay Bilas is one of them. If he has one critic, it’s still Bilas.
Bilas isn’t exactly Jeff Goodman in the sense that a relationship with the UConn head coach has dissolved over his criticism. But that also doesn’t mean Hurley has fond feelings for the ESPN college basketball analyst. When Hurley took aim at the “Skip Bayless wannabes” in the national media, perhaps he pointed the finger at someone who used to coach his brother, Bobby, at Duke.
The longtime ESPN analyst claimed that Hurley’s sideline antics earlier this season were just an excuse for bad behavior. When those sideline antics ran rampant in the NCAA Tournament, Bilas took it upon himself to call some changes after UConn was eliminated by the Florida Gators.
“He should change some things, yeah,” Bilas admitted on The Dan Patrick Show on Monday. “I think the way he comparts himself on the sideline should change. And I think some of the the things he says after the game — like we say in the hallway. Was that a huge deal? No. Is that what you should do? I think the answer is no, too. And, look, I get it that the response is: ‘Well, that’s just who he is.’ I tend to think that’s an excuse for bad behavior. It’s not a crime. It’s not a big deal.
“So, on one hand, you go, ‘Well, we don’t have any characters in the game anymore,’ and he is clearly a character. But, would it be so bad if he was kind of superstitious and this crazy competitor and wears superhero socks and all that stuff, and we cut out the other stuff? I mean, yeah, I think that would be OK. I don’t know that the way he he talks to officials actually benefits him. I know the officials don’t care for it.”
That’s because when Bilas was critical of Hurley back in January, that was probably the first time in his lifetime that officials told him to “keep going.”
“Usually, they don’t like what I say,” Bilas quipped.
Bilas isn’t arguing that Hurley change who he is. Maybe he can’t change. And if so, don’t worry about it.
“I would think maturity would be helpful in these situations,” said Bilas. “I just don’t believe — and I used to talk to [Bobby] Knight about this when he would embarrass a reporter. I saw him at clinics when an unprepared, lazy coach would ask him a stupid question, and he would educate that coach and be somewhat what I would call empathetic, I guess. Then, a reporter asked a question that he thought was a stupid question, and he would embarrass the reporter.
“I was with him one time at Texas Tech, and I said, ‘Why do you do that?’ Like, this guy was probably covering a state fair and then a high school football game, and then he’s got to come cover you. ‘Why don’t you help him out and educate him?’ And he goes, ‘I’m too deep into my [career] — I can’t.'”
Bilas believed he could’ve if he wanted to.
“The one thing that I think is interesting about coaches is they love to talk about accountability — and rightfully so,” Bilas continued. “Accountability’s important, but they make excuses with regard to themselves at times. And kind of what you hear from Danny, some of it is reasons, and other parts are excuses. And my thing would be: get rid of excuses … If you’re saying, ‘I shouldn’t have done this,’ then stop doing it. That’s OK. We can do this. He can still be fiery and a competitor.”
Bilas isn’t calling for Hurley to abandon his fiery spirit; he’s just asking for some self-awareness.
If Hurley can find that balance, he might win over more than just the fans in UConn’s corner.
