When the University of Tulsa announced Danny Manning as their new head basketball coach, the response was across-the-board praise for a classy hire that brought the spotlight back on Tulsa as a mid-major program. While recent years have brought mediocrity, Manning’s arrival could bring the program back into the national conversation.
Cole Aldrich believes as much and discussed his opinions in a recent interview.. In fact, he calls it a “steal” for the Golden Hurricane.
“I think it’s a great hire for them. In my mind, that’s a steal to have a guy that talented of a coach, even though he hasn’t been able to show it as a head coach.
“I think his talent obviously as a teacher for myself and big guys, and even for guards, is huge,” Aldrich said. “He knows the game very, very well. Obviously, he played 15 years in the league and led KU in ’88 to a national title. So he knows the game and he knows how to play and he knows how to coach. He’s going to do a great job up there.”
As one of the “big guys,” Aldrich knows well what Manning can teach a player. Aldrich is currently with the Oklahoma City Thunder and is one of several Kansas bigs in the NBA. Thomas Robinson will be next with a chance to be the best of all of them. Part of that is thanks to Manning.