The DePaul University men’s basketball team is no stranger to coaching changes, with the recent dismissal of Tony Stubblefield marking the sixth high-major coaching change in the last seven seasons.
Stubblefield’s departure comes as no surprise given the team’s struggle to make its mark in the competitive basketball landscape. DePaul, a member of a high-major conference, has failed to live up to its potential for decades, ranking 99th over the past 25 years in KenPom.com’s database of programs since 1996-97.
The program’s lackluster performance is evident in its absence from the NCAA Tournament for the past 20 years. The coaching turnover has become a pattern for DePaul, with the team only garnering attention when a coach gets fired rather than when one gets hired. The underwhelming coaching hires have left the team floundering, unable to sustain success and relevance in the basketball arena.
Notably, Stubblefield’s affiliation with DePaul followed his tenure as Dana Altman’s assistant for 11 seasons at Oregon. With a disappointing 28-54 overall record and a challenging 9-38 performance in Big East play during his two-plus seasons at DePaul, Stubblefield’s dismissal brings attention to the program’s tumultuous journey.
Altman, hoping to potentially reunite with Stubblefield, emphasized the uphill battle that the former DePaul head coach faced due to the team’s underfunding and the challenges posed by the evolving regulations on Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) in collegiate sports. Despite the tough circumstances, Altman remains optimistic about Stubblefield’s coaching abilities and anticipates multiple job offers for him in the near future.
DePaul’s struggles in the competitive basketball landscape, coupled with the recurrent coaching changes, highlight the need for a transformative approach to revitalize the men’s basketball program. As the team navigates another coaching transition, there is hope for a brighter future, with potential opportunities for rebuilding and redefining its presence in collegiate basketball.
