Sampson pleased by Capel hire
By BILL HAISTEN World Sports Writer
4/14/2006
The former Sooner coach says the choice is a 'slam dunk' for Oklahoma.
Fans and media might have been surprised at the University of Oklahoma's hiring of basketball coach Jeff Capel, but Kelvin Sampson was not. To some extent, Sampson apparently was involved in OU's search for his successor.
Speaking by telephone from his Indiana University office, Sampson said he and OU athletic director Joe Castiglione maintained a line of communication during the search for a coach. "I don't know if consult is the right word, but we talked a lot," said Sampson, who last month resigned from OU to become Indiana's new coach. "Please do not give me credit for anything. The only thing that needs to be said about that is Joe and Kelvin are extremely close, and they talked a lot during the process.
"I take some ownership in that hire. The players who are coming back and the recruits who are coming in -- those are my guys, my kids. Now they're Jeff's kids. I want them to have a good coach, and Joe hired a good coach. Don't ever, ever, ever question Joe Castiglione. He's the best."
An attempt to contact Castiglione on Thursday was unsuccessful. Sampson described the Capel hiring as "a slam dunk."
The 31-year-old Capel, a former Duke guard who spent the past four seasons as the Virginia Commonwealth head coach, was introduced as the new Sooner coach Tuesday.
"I know Jeff well, and I knew of his father when I was growing up in North Carolina," Sampson said. "Jeff's father played against my father's teams in high school. Jeff's father was a heck of a high school basketball player. He played at Pinecrest High School and my father was the coach at Pembroke Senior High. They were in the same league."
During Capel's Tuesday press conference on the OU campus, Sampson was at the Lloyd Noble Center.
He was back in Bloomington, Ind., on Wednesday, and he and Capel had a telephone conversation. Sampson said Capel is planning to meet with him soon in Indiana.
Sampson reiterated that each of his five November signees -- including McDonald's All-American Scottie Reynolds -- will honor their commitments to play for the Sooners.
"They'll all stay and they'll be great for Jeff," Sampson said.
In 12 seasons at OU, Sampson's had a school-record winning percentage of .719 while making 11 NCAA Tournament appearances. His 2002 squad advanced to the Final Four before losing to Indiana in the semifinals.
Sampson's OU predecessor, Billy Tubbs, had during his 14-year Sooner run a .716 winning percentage, nine NCAA appearances and a loss to Kansas in the 1988 NCAA championship game.
"I thought Kelvin did a great job and I hated to see him leave," Tubbs said by telephone on Thursday.
"We developed a really good friendship. He kept Oklahoma basketball going and maybe took it up another level."
Capel's hiring at OU was no more a surprise than Sampson's hiring at Indiana.
Sampson said he has been uplifted by congratulatory phone calls from his former Sooners who now play professional basketball overseas.
Aaron McGhee called from Korea. Ebi Ere called from Belgium and Hollis Price called from Germany.
"My time at Oklahoma was a great ride," Sampson said. "I feel great about the future of the program with Jeff Capel. Billy Tubbs handed a great program to me, and I think we've handed a great program to Jeff Capel."
Originally Posted by william_brasky
