One thing I'd like to throw into the mix as we're considering this is that were the AD to fire KP now, it would also likely throw into tumult the relationship with much of much of the Stanford WBB alumnae.
Based on Tara's statements from our class this quarter, I don't believe she would support letting KP go now. So if the AD did, and brought in an outsider without prior ties to Stanford, then I imagine there's a considerable risk Tara may step back from much involvement with the AD.
It almost certainly means losing the coaching staff, including Jeanette Pohlen and Erica McCall, since new head coaches generally don't retain prior coaching staff members. And those two aren't just coaches, they're also prominent former players.
And it seems like a number of recent alums - Cam, the Hulls, Belibi, etc. - have strong relationships with KP, come back to campus, talk with the current players, etc. Would they be as inclined to do so if KP is sent packing after two seasons, the whole coaching staff they knew abruptly leaves, and a bunch of strangers replace them?
Net/net, I don't think that would set Stanford up well, especially since it would almost certainly send most of our top players into the portal, we have limited ability to attract new transfers in, and whoever that new coach is, they'd be a stranger in a strange land with a cool (at best?) reception from the WBB alumnae.
Lindy Laroque is an interesting option that could blunt some of the dynamics I described above, but even then I suspect only if KP were allowed to transition into another role at Stanford. I could see something like that happening in perhaps a year or two, but I don't see that quite yet. (And honestly, Laroque's team just lost and won't make the NCAAs this year, and she didn't make it last year either, so am I missing something about why we think she'd be an obvious step up from KP?)
In the mean time, I hope BC and others are right that our reliance on the frosh explains some of our underperformance, coupled with the absence of Nunu and Talana. I did find it notable that Swain and Somfai are the first pair of Stanford freshmen to ever start 30+ games, and that the games they + Eschmeyer started together were only the third season in Stanford history where three freshmen were in the starting lineup. That does suggest a very raw team.
OTOH, the KP detractors do have a point that: (a) our offense was very visibly, and obviously, not working most of the time; (b) our players didn't really seem to get much better as the season progressed, with the exception of Ogden; and © our team didn't get better, either, with the defense going from pretty strong to at times quite mediocre down the stretch.
The optimist in me is hoping for (a) some change in the coaching staff to bring in a new mind to help run the offense; and (b) no significant losses to the portal. I think if we retool how we run our offense, and keep the key pieces of our team, next year has immense promise.
Based on Tara's statements from our class this quarter, I don't believe she would support letting KP go now. So if the AD did, and brought in an outsider without prior ties to Stanford, then I imagine there's a considerable risk Tara may step back from much involvement with the AD.
It almost certainly means losing the coaching staff, including Jeanette Pohlen and Erica McCall, since new head coaches generally don't retain prior coaching staff members. And those two aren't just coaches, they're also prominent former players.
And it seems like a number of recent alums - Cam, the Hulls, Belibi, etc. - have strong relationships with KP, come back to campus, talk with the current players, etc. Would they be as inclined to do so if KP is sent packing after two seasons, the whole coaching staff they knew abruptly leaves, and a bunch of strangers replace them?
Net/net, I don't think that would set Stanford up well, especially since it would almost certainly send most of our top players into the portal, we have limited ability to attract new transfers in, and whoever that new coach is, they'd be a stranger in a strange land with a cool (at best?) reception from the WBB alumnae.
Lindy Laroque is an interesting option that could blunt some of the dynamics I described above, but even then I suspect only if KP were allowed to transition into another role at Stanford. I could see something like that happening in perhaps a year or two, but I don't see that quite yet. (And honestly, Laroque's team just lost and won't make the NCAAs this year, and she didn't make it last year either, so am I missing something about why we think she'd be an obvious step up from KP?)
In the mean time, I hope BC and others are right that our reliance on the frosh explains some of our underperformance, coupled with the absence of Nunu and Talana. I did find it notable that Swain and Somfai are the first pair of Stanford freshmen to ever start 30+ games, and that the games they + Eschmeyer started together were only the third season in Stanford history where three freshmen were in the starting lineup. That does suggest a very raw team.
OTOH, the KP detractors do have a point that: (a) our offense was very visibly, and obviously, not working most of the time; (b) our players didn't really seem to get much better as the season progressed, with the exception of Ogden; and © our team didn't get better, either, with the defense going from pretty strong to at times quite mediocre down the stretch.
The optimist in me is hoping for (a) some change in the coaching staff to bring in a new mind to help run the offense; and (b) no significant losses to the portal. I think if we retool how we run our offense, and keep the key pieces of our team, next year has immense promise.