The Final Four is more than just three basketball games. For the 3,000 or so coaches head and assistant looking to move up and the athletic director in need of a coach or even a coach in need of a staff, the Final Four and the annual NABC convention is a giant job fair.
It worked for Paul Hewitt. See continuation
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A more stealthlike approach was how it worked for Paul Hewitt seven years ago when he was presumed to be a candidate to leave Siena for Georgia Tech. A friend who was close to then Georgia Tech athletic director Dave Braine called Hewitt in mid February to tell him as much. Hewitt just didn't hear much until the Friday of the Final Four when ACC associate commissioner Fred Barakat called Hewitt so he could pass along a number to Braine.
"I had a couple conversations with Dave and then we met at the Indianapolis airport on Sunday after the semifinals. We met at the USAir Club for about 2-3 hours," Hewitt said.
By Monday evening, he was back home, but Braine called him and said he wanted to fly up to meet again. The next day, Hewitt had a job offer, and the news conference to introduce him as Bobby Cremins' successor was Thursday in Atlanta.
"The Final Four is like going to Las Vegas in the summer for the AAU tournament: All the best players in the country are there," Hewitt said. "If you're an athletic director, you go to the Final Four and the chances are, anybody you want to talk to will be there and will be more than willing to talk to you. It's one-stop shopping."
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