A North Carolina TV station, WRAL, is reporting that Rick Barnes will remain head men's basketball coach at Texas. Barnes appears to have passed on the opportunity to return to the ACC and closer to hometown of Hickory.
As reported earlier, Barnes will receive a raise from Texas soon. I expect an announcement within a week. Deloss Dodds has done an excellent job as athletic director at Texas of not only recruiting great coaches but also retaining them. NC State is rumored to have offered nearly $2 million per season. I doubt Rick gets that much from the Longhorns but something near $1.6 million is likely.
In conclusion, Lamarcus Aldrige will likely turn pro, PJ Tucker will probably follow, but Rick Barnes and Daniel Gibson will return. Our nuceleus will remain for next season combined with our incoming class of stud recruits led by Kevin Durant and DJ Augustin. A return trip to the Final Four remains within our grasp.
--AW--