Eckwood43
05-19-2004, 07:20 PM
Bertman gives Brady raise....But coach's contract doesn't get rollover
BATON ROUGE -- LSU basketball coach John Brady will get at least a $25,000 raise next season, but his contract will not be rolled over another year, LSU athletic director Skip Bertman said Tuesday.
Bertman said he is confident Brady can get the program back on track after a sour finish last season. LSU started 17-4 before an injury to leading scorer and rebounder Jaime Lloreda precipitated a swoon in which the Tigers lost seven of their final eight games. They fell out of contention for an NCAA Tournament bid and played in the NIT for the second time in three years.
Amid the turmoil, Lloreda left the team -- the fourth player to leave last season. Though Brady has been the target of fan criticism for the collapse, Bertman said the moves are part of his "stepping in to help," and that the basketball program in not in trouble.
"I don't think the program is in disarray," Bertman said. "The only thing that happened last year was Lloreda got hurt and they didn't finish the season well. John's accepted responsibility for that. I don't think the people on the Internet and the talk-radio shows have been fair. He's averaged 19 wins a season."
Brady has actually averaged 17 wins per season.
"The pressure of winning the national championship in football and the success of other sports has brought the last three weeks of the season to the forefront," Bertman said. "I'm going to be in there trying to help."
Brady's five-year rollover contract will effectively become a four-year contract, an agreement Brady said he made with Bertman at a meeting shortly after the season. The raise could be anywhere from $25,000 to $50,000, depending on how much Brady uses from that pool toward the two assistant coaches he's preparing to hire. Even with a $25,000 raise, Brady is still among the lowest-paid coaches in the SEC at $700,000 per season.
"I appreciate what Skip is doing," said Brady, who is 120-92 in seven seasons at LSU. "I wanted to send a message that I wasn't satisfied with what happened. The issue is Skip and I will get the program back to where we want it to be. He's doing his part from an administration side, and we're doing ours from the coaching side."
The athletic department has spent $650,000 on improvements to the Maravich Assembly Center outer concourse, including interactive video screens. Roof repairs are expected to be completed in June. Bids will go out June 22 for a $5 million renovation of seating in the PMAC, which is scheduled to be ready for the 2005-06 season.
He is also working with public-relations firms to boost attendance, which averaged 6,548 in 15 home games.
"We haven't done enough to help basketball," Bertman said.
BASS WORKOUTS: Brady said forward Brandon Bass has been invited to work out for the Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls and Detroit Pistons. Bass, last year's SEC Freshman of the Year, has applied for early entry into the June 24 NBA draft.
BATON ROUGE -- LSU basketball coach John Brady will get at least a $25,000 raise next season, but his contract will not be rolled over another year, LSU athletic director Skip Bertman said Tuesday.
Bertman said he is confident Brady can get the program back on track after a sour finish last season. LSU started 17-4 before an injury to leading scorer and rebounder Jaime Lloreda precipitated a swoon in which the Tigers lost seven of their final eight games. They fell out of contention for an NCAA Tournament bid and played in the NIT for the second time in three years.
Amid the turmoil, Lloreda left the team -- the fourth player to leave last season. Though Brady has been the target of fan criticism for the collapse, Bertman said the moves are part of his "stepping in to help," and that the basketball program in not in trouble.
"I don't think the program is in disarray," Bertman said. "The only thing that happened last year was Lloreda got hurt and they didn't finish the season well. John's accepted responsibility for that. I don't think the people on the Internet and the talk-radio shows have been fair. He's averaged 19 wins a season."
Brady has actually averaged 17 wins per season.
"The pressure of winning the national championship in football and the success of other sports has brought the last three weeks of the season to the forefront," Bertman said. "I'm going to be in there trying to help."
Brady's five-year rollover contract will effectively become a four-year contract, an agreement Brady said he made with Bertman at a meeting shortly after the season. The raise could be anywhere from $25,000 to $50,000, depending on how much Brady uses from that pool toward the two assistant coaches he's preparing to hire. Even with a $25,000 raise, Brady is still among the lowest-paid coaches in the SEC at $700,000 per season.
"I appreciate what Skip is doing," said Brady, who is 120-92 in seven seasons at LSU. "I wanted to send a message that I wasn't satisfied with what happened. The issue is Skip and I will get the program back to where we want it to be. He's doing his part from an administration side, and we're doing ours from the coaching side."
The athletic department has spent $650,000 on improvements to the Maravich Assembly Center outer concourse, including interactive video screens. Roof repairs are expected to be completed in June. Bids will go out June 22 for a $5 million renovation of seating in the PMAC, which is scheduled to be ready for the 2005-06 season.
He is also working with public-relations firms to boost attendance, which averaged 6,548 in 15 home games.
"We haven't done enough to help basketball," Bertman said.
BASS WORKOUTS: Brady said forward Brandon Bass has been invited to work out for the Miami Heat, Chicago Bulls and Detroit Pistons. Bass, last year's SEC Freshman of the Year, has applied for early entry into the June 24 NBA draft.