It’s not too late to delete this.

His best was no more than most mid major assistant coaches couldn't achieve. Please, lets not put Dambrot as some established D-1 coach. The guy lived off the coat tails of Lebron and it served him wisely as he made millions in the process. I think he won an NIT game at Akron, but nothing notable. There are SOOO many high level D-1 assistants out there who would take this job for less $ and who would recruit the right type of player that could turn this once formidable program around. A young person who was willing to let his assistant coaches have more say in day to day and game approaches. I see Dambrot's assistants as guys moping on the bench being not allowed to stand up during play by play or hesitant to have a say. Just my take from their body language and from what i've heard from others around the program. Control freak per se. You'd think after building a beautiful facility like the Copper Fieldhouse there would be some serious due diligence/PR campaign to hire someone with the right pedigree. Kind of disgraceful that it has gotten to this point. 

CityDuke wrote:

Rayrich wrote:

His best was no more than most mid major assistant coaches couldn't achieve. Please, lets not put Dambrot as some established D-1 coach. The guy lived off the coat tails of Lebron and it served him wisely as he made millions in the process. I think he won an NIT game at Akron, but nothing notable. There are SOOO many high level D-1 assistants out there who would take this job for less $ and who would recruit the right type of player that could turn this once formidable program around. A young person who was willing to let his assistant coaches have more say in day to day and game approaches. I see Dambrot's assistants as guys moping on the bench being not allowed to stand up during play by play or hesitant to have a say. Just my take from their body language and from what i've heard from others around the program. Control freak per se. You'd think after building a beautiful facility like the Copper Fieldhouse there would be some serious due diligence/PR campaign to hire someone with the right pedigree. Kind of disgraceful that it has gotten to this point. 

If this incredibly premature thread is going to stay up, let's at least try to remain analytical.  Not an established D-1 coach? The man is two wins away from 500. He went to 8 MAC tournament championship games in 10 years.  He won 21+ games 12 seasons in a row.  He dominated the MAC.  In his six seasons here he has gotten off to a start that had been done 3 times in the 45 years prior to Dambrot.  He has done this FOUR times.  Just say you don't like him. But don't revise history.  From almost not watching the game to sharing the decisions you would make as athletic director...quite the transition.  

Lets get real here. Not much success to compare Dambrot against. Lousy AD's, lousy coaching hires, and probably one of the worst programs in the last 45 years. Anything he does looks good at this point. Lose by 9 at UMass without their two best players might even look good to some. Hey man, I'm a lifelong Duquesne fan. My dad was a Duquesne grad who played in the same backfield as his lifelong friend Leon Hart at Turtle Creek High. I had six older brothers who all played high school and/or college basketball. Duquesne Dukes basketball was everything in our house. One of my first full KDKA broadcasts of a game between Duquesne and Cincinnati in 1974 perhaps when I was 10 years old and we had just moved to the Philadelphia area. My grandpap gave me a radio that I could stick out the window to get the most faint of sound of Ray Goss and Nellie King. I had listened to games in 1972-73 when the Dukes had Lionel Big Train Billingly, Jack, Ruben, Roland, etc..The Dukes needed to win to get the last seed/invite into the ECAC tournament at the time. Cincy coached by Gale Catlett (look him up) were heavily favored and the Dukes narrowly lossed 72-70 losing the opportunity to get in the NCAA tourney which they been in numerously times in the years prior. Stayed up late that night as an eight year old having to go to school pretty bummed out the next morning. Flash four years later and the Dukes were coming into the inaugral Eastern Eight tourney in Philadelphia. Of course, my older brother Darcy took my brother Randy and I to the first round game on a Wednesday afternoon in March where we had to skip school and basketball practice to see the Dukes beat Penn state. I remember sitting next to Norm Nixon and his girlfriend at the time in the second of the first round games and Norm signed a 3X5 card for me that day. I said great game and Norm said thanks, but i'll be better just getting over the flu. Went the next night and the Dukes beat Jack Lehman's favored UMass team 89-82. Saturday night was heaven beating Villanova 57-54. I'll never forget the high fives from Thomas, Gamby, Masur, etc... Great game. Norm indeed got better. Been much the same ever since. Played college hoops myself as did a couple older brothers (had six older brothers, all pretty darn good athletes), who even had basketball careers in Europe. Not just a fan, but a study of the game. Study this team, the body language of the players and assistant coaches, study this coach, his post game interviews and perhaps you'll see there is something just not sitting right.
 

El Presidente wrote:

KD was an excellent MAC coach as has been pointed out above and many times before. I agree 100 percent.Unfortunately for him and for the long suffering Dukes fandom, the A-10 is not the MAC. Maybe 1 or 2 MAC teams might compete favorably year in and year out in the A-10 but no more IMO. I do have respect for the man for all that he has accomplished in the game of basketball but it's time for him to move on. Everyone has a shelf life. We do not last forever at what we do. As has also been pointed out many times, there must be some younger assistant D-1 coaches who would love to coach this team and would do a better job of it. Let's please go get one. I'm not getting any younger having graduated from Duquesne in the late sixties for Pete's sake. It's time for a bold move on the part of the AD and administration. Hopefully they will do what has to be done. Certainly some will disagree completely with this but let's hear that argument. I'm waiting.

KD lived off of Lebron's coattails in the MAC for years. Underachieved. I think Akron went to the NCAA tourney once and lost by 50 some in the first round. He had more than talent to work with than anybody in the MAC, but it was Ohio U, Kent State, and others making noise come NCAA tourney time, not Akron.
 

El Presidente wrote:

KD was an excellent MAC coach as has been pointed out above and many times before. I agree 100 percent.Unfortunately for him and for the long suffering Dukes fandom, the A-10 is not the MAC. Maybe 1 or 2 MAC teams might compete favorably year in and year out in the A-10 but no more IMO. I do have respect for the man for all that he has accomplished in the game of basketball but it's time for him to move on. Everyone has a shelf life. We do not last forever at what we do. As has also been pointed out many times, there must be some younger assistant D-1 coaches who would love to coach this team and would do a better job of it. Let's please go get one. I'm not getting any younger having graduated from Duquesne in the late sixties for Pete's sake. It's time for a bold move on the part of the AD and administration. Hopefully they will do what has to be done. Certainly some will disagree completely with this but let's hear that argument. I'm waiting.

Totally agree with this El Presidente
 

FAM wrote:

We all appreciate what he did and I Like him!  But he hasn't been able to get us to either the NCAA or NIT.  Those are facts.  Now, what are folks' thoughts on Coach Joyce or do you know folks from somewhere else that the AD. might take a chance on...if he doesn't renew this contract again after six years and no tournament!

Citiy Duke - this team has my support also!  I want them to win every game and get to a tournament this year...I hope I have to apoligize for posting this question before the season is over.  With that said, I see absolutely nothing that tells me otherwise.  I know the players work hard and so do the coaches.  But Dambrot can't meet a post-tournament in the league.  I doubt it will happen in the next 6 weeks.  But I'm still going to games and still cheering for them.  Again, and not being disrespectful to your or anyone...they Lost to a Mass. team who had their best 2 Players out...and as the announcers said, one was their leading scorer.   We need a new coach for next year.

Haha, yes. What better way to showcase your support than starting a divisive discussion online?

I think that the coach was brought in as many before him to create a winner. I love the DU pedigree being Sid was on the 55 nit team. That being said, this thing was supposed to turn around starting 5 years ago. A lot has happened but it seems clear that this needs skaken up again. The sad thing about it as has been proven numerous times is where do you turn? What is it about Duquesne for the past 50 years that is stuck in the mud?  What makes anyone think that another coach is going to do any good. It's so disheartening. I can remember sitting in palumbo about 5 years ago , the second year that Dambrot was coach sitting across a fan and the consensus was that he was turning the program around and it would be felt within the next 3 to 4 years.well here we are.

What you Dambrot supporters don’t realize is the following, his out of conference schedule has been the easiest in Duquesne history, thus his sparkling record, the A ten has been at its lowest point in his six years, his player retention is ridiculously horrible (not one player has stayed except forRotoff in 6 years)) no player relationship what so ever to speak of, his in game coaching is terrible, his team preparation for the next opponent is horrendous, his use of timeouts is ludicrous. He is supposed to be a defensive coach, no evidence of that, his inside out offensive has never surfaced in six years. He was given a million dollars a year and has showed nothing. This is more than any other coach in DU  history. Not only that, he was given a new playing facility,  a psychologist for the team, new uniforms and every other thing imaginable to be successful, and nothing. Most of Dambrot supporters have disappeared except for City Duke. They disappeared because there is no defending his resume at DU. Yes he was successful at Akron, but he stepped up and failed miserably at DU even at the A Tens lowest point. Time for us to part ways with the coach, because most of us supporter’s are in our 60’s or older, and don’t have too many rebuilding years left in us. The administration is the most supportive in 50 years and time to move on.

indygjm wrote:

There are threads on almost every A10 team's message board calling for the coach to be replaced after a disappointing loss.  This year, I've seen similar comments posted about Rhodes, Schmidt, Mooney, and even Grant.  Do I wish we had more success?  Yes.  But, at least the present coach didn't state he needed 10 years to turn this around.  I'm disappointed, but not disheartened.  The A10 is a tough league.  I expect Dambrot will finish his contract and possibly retire after next season.   Whatever happens, we are in a measurably better place than we were  6 years ago when few coaches were interested in taking this job.  Duquesne is now respected and no longer considered a graveyard for coaching.   

WVU fans are calling for a change with Huggins. I agree Dambrot will no doubt retire after next season. A10 in a better place with the hiring of the new coaches. Good news portal can change struggling programs. Duquesne does not have a HS gym like Lasalle, Bonnie’s, & Fordham.

I am very disappointed in the direction this team is headed, and I don't disagree with a lot what has been said about Dambrot, and I totally agree with The Dome comments about how weak this team is playing right now and Dambrot's use of players and putting guys in the doghouse.  However, I am not ready to throw in the towel just yet on this team.  I still believe that this team has enough talent to get hot and win it all, but things have to change.  Grant and Clark had more rebounds than Reece, Williams, Rotroff and Gun combined.    While Barre and Dixon rot on the bench. I don't get it.  I could say more, but I won't.  I hope Dambrot can turn things around, it is not too late.

 

I am in agreement with you CLK, Wildwood, Rayrich and others concerning the state of this team and the talent level, which I commented on in the game thread.  Let me repeat KD's own words, "I was brought here to win championships", well here we are in year 6 and we are not sniffing it IMO.  And about the talent let's remember that KD said before last year that the roster was his "best" at DU, well what do we think about that talent evaluation?  I am not saying he hasn't improved recruiting, but he has not really recruited to the talent level to "win championships".  Too much MAC and not enough Power 5 is the simple answer.  I am pretty sure KD also said that once Brewer was healthy, after the appendectomy, he could score 20+ a game.......hmmmm.  I hope we can turn it around and I would certainly like to see more of Burre, Dixon and Horonsky, but one can't help but be cynical.  Dixon makes one bad play and he is yanked.  I don't get it and clearly we are not contending with the upper half of the A-10, even in a down year as noted by others, with Williams and Reece as our primary bigs.  Something has to give here guys.

CityDuke, I just have one question.  Where are all those diamonds Dambrot collected here at Duquesne? 

I am glad, however that you cleared up the mystery of why Dambrot can't get the job done.  It is this message board.  After all no other coach in the country has to deal with negative comments on social media.