Quick, efficient search brings West Virginia AD Baker to DeVries
West Virginia Athletic Director Wren Baker operated a fast and efficient search process to lead him to hiring the school’s 23rd head coach Darian DeVries.
It’s almost as if he had nine-months to sort out potential profiles and whittle down his list of candidates in order to conclude that DeVries was the right man for the job. Clearly, we all know that was the case in terms of the search and the quick results reflect the leadership and preparation shown by Baker.
And it’s hard to argue considering his track record of success over his six years at Drake amassing a 150-55 record while taking the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament on three separate occasions. Prior to that DeVries spent 17 seasons as an assistant at Creighton working under Dana Altman and Greg McDermott.
The pedigree is there and when you combine that with the success and culture that he had established during his time at Drake it made for nice match for the Mountaineers program on paper.
But it came down to the in-person meeting which only cemented DeVries for the post. Baker had to ensure that DeVries was a fit and there was no question that was certainly the case.
DeVries checked the boxes that Baker created when he first addressed the job opening March 13 and it took just 11-days for the Mountaineers to get their new coach signed. That is the type of expedited search that reflects the planning that was done since placing Josh Eilert in an interim role last June.
“There is an old saying that if I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend six sharpening my axe. I’ve probably been sharpening the axe for like nine months,” Baker said.
Once Drake had been eliminated from the NCAA Tournament in a very entertaining basketball game against Washington State March 21, it took Baker three days to close the deal. The Athletic Director had always set a soft deadline of the Final Four, but the expectation was it would likely come quicker.
“I would hope we can get it done sooner,” Baker hinted even back then.
There’s no reason to add that pressure to yourself by saying it in a press conference setting, but it was clear that the Mountaineers were going to run an expedited process.
In the end, West Virginia lands a coach that has taken his team to the NCAA Tournament in three of the last four seasons and has gained a reputation as a technician on the sidelines. He will bring an exciting offense that ranked No. 41 in offensive efficiency and a sound defense at No. 72 in efficiency.
Again, hitting that threshold of top 100 on that end of the floor that Baker previously set.
There’s a lot to come with DeVries that’s exciting from a roster building and staff perspective, but before we turn the page to that it’s important to look at what brought us here. That’s an efficient and effective coaching search that displayed Baker’s and his team’s strengths in finding the right fit.
And by the reaction of the fan base Baker has certainly done that.
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