UCLA men’s basketball is in a jam. The school can’t really afford the buyout number for coach Mick Cronin, which is north of $22 million. However, the bad publicity attached to Cronin’s recent displays — plural — on Tuesday at Michigan State might have caused irreparable damage. How does UCLA get out of this mess? The answer is clear, though very possibly complicated.
Money
The Bruins simply can’t eat that huge buyout figure. They can’t eat over $22 million — they are not in a position to absorb that hit. If they did, they would have a hard time paying the next coach the level of money needed to attract top candidates. Martin Jarmond painted UCLA into a corner on this one.
Recruiting
The negative fallout from Cronin’s bad behavior could be substantial, especially on the recruiting trail. Why would high school players want to play for Cronin at UCLA?
Going in the wrong direction
UCLA might make the NCAA Tournament this year, but if it does, it will be as a bubble team with a seed likely no higher than 9 or 10. That’s never a good year at UCLA unless a miraculous March run — 2021 — occurs. It’s not as though Cronin is having one bad season. UCLA has been below average the past three seasons, going back to 2024.
Mad Mick
Mick Cronin has been clear and direct in expressing his displeasure at Big Ten scheduling and travel. We can debate whether he’s right, or whether he should have said everything he said in public, but we can’t debate that Cronin is unhappy about many aspects of his UCLA situation. If there’s a time for a reset, it’s now.
Television
It could be the case that Mick Cronin needs a one-year break from coaching. His patience has worn thin. He acts like a coach who is ready for something new and different. Yet, his outbursts aren’t winning over fans, media, or players. A one-year break with work in a TV studio might be the reset button Cronin needs. Then he can go back into coaching for the 2027-2028 season.
Open jobs
Syracuse, Providence, Oklahoma, Wake Forest, Cincinnati (his old job), maybe South Carolina or LSU — a lot of power conference jobs will be available. Schools could do a lot worse than Mick Cronin. There will be opportunities if Cronin wants them.
Best-case scenario
UCLA can’t really fire Mick Cronin. Mick Cronin shouldn’t be the coach of UCLA next season, however. The best outcome is for Cronin to find work elsewhere, either in coaching or on television. UCLA wouldn’t take the financial hit but could change coaches and seek a new leader.
This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Mick Cronin leaving UCLA for another job is best-case scenario
Reporting by Matt Zemek, UCLA Wire / UCLA Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
