Hypothetical Tuesday: Will Minnesota "Court" Anthony Grant?

Consider this your "Link Dump" for the day and before you continue to read please remember...

A hypothetical question is one asked out of interest, as the answer will have no effect on the situation.

That said, ESPN reported yesterday that the University of Minnesota fired its basketball head coach Tubby Smith. OK, good for them. Why should we care? Well, for one the current AD of the Golden Gophers, Norwood Teague, use to be VCU's AD, Coach Grant's old boss and stomping ground.. Oh and then there is this, "Coaches at the top of the search list would include Shaka Smart and Anthony Grant." That is enough of a link for me to ponder the...

Tuesday 'Maybe Not So' Hypothetical Question

What if (AND I UNDERSTAND THIS IS A BIG WHAT IF) Minnesota went after Coach Grant and stole him away from us? Would you be upset and who would Alabama go after? Yesterday, I saw some discussion about this on the twitter and on the boards and figured it was something to discuss.

Will or could it happen? The answer is 'Yes' 'No' and 'Maybe'. It probably won't happen but Grant has had some success at 'Bama (he hasn't exactly fallen on his face) and since there is a relationship between him and the Gopher AD, the possibility is there. There is also the question, "Is Grant happy at 'Bama?"

So, if this did happen, could/would 'Bama pursue Tubby Smith? Would he be a good fit? Does Alabama have enough pull to go after a high level assistant coach looking to make his mark?

I personally feel 'Bama is a good (not great) job and if put in this position Battle needs to go after a coach (that is if Grant leaves) who will install a high tempo, high octane offense. Defense 1st basketball will only take you so far. Kansas, who is known to be a "Defense 1st" type team is ranked 8th in Defense Efficiency. 'Bama, however, is ranked 40th — Not bad. The problem is that Kansas also knows how to play offense. They are ranked 29th in Offensive Efficiency, while 'Bama is 184th. If 'Bama really wants to compete for and win, at the very least, a SEC Championship we need to score...and score MORE.

Just to be clear I am not advocating the firing or moving on of Coach Grant. I understand the season is still going and this is not a "Should we fire Grant" post. TOOFUL DON'T YELL AT ME.