In a press conference featuring the atmosphere of a jovial family reunion, Director of Athletics Gary Walters '67 introduced Joe Scott '87 as the 27th head coach of the men's basketball team on Friday morning.
Both Walters and Scott spoke of maintaining the Princeton tradition, and stressed the importance of continuing to build from and improve upon the unique basketball philosophy of Pete Carril.
But, on this day at least, discussions of X's and O's were secondary. More important was the homecoming of a favorite son.
"This decision was about my heart and my feelings for this place," Scott said. "Last night, driving down Washington Road and seeing Jadwin Gym, right then I knew with 100 percent certainty that this is the right place."
Scott spoke at length about his love for the University, the impact of mentors like Carril, and the joys of returning to his roots to see familiar faces and shake friendly hands.
Scott was an All-Ivy League point guard during his playing career under Carril, and spent eight years as an assistant coach with the Tigers, from 1992-2000. His wife, Leah, was an outstanding point guard for the women's team and also briefly served as an assistant coach for that squad.
Walters made it clear that the love affair is not one-sided.
"Most important of all," he said, "we wanted Joe and Joe wanted us."
For Scott, a phone call from Walters telling him he was the University's top choice was enough to convince him to take the job. As a result, the hiring process was completed extremely quickly.
After former head coach John Thompson III '88 told Walters he was leaving for Georgetown on Monday night, Walters began discussions with Scott on Tuesday morning. By early Wednesday afternoon, Walters had his man.
"The highest compliment you can get is when your alma mater calls you and asks you to be the coach," Scott said.
He admitted that the possibility of being offered the Princeton job had crossed his mind and that he discussed the subject with Carril several times in the past few weeks.
"Besides being a great advisor, he's a great friend," Scott said. "I know he's happy today and it meant a lot to me to know that he thought I'm the right guy for this job. Everyone in the country wants to run this offense because of him."
'The next iteration'
Walters opened the press conference by praising Scott's qualifications, noting his fourth place finish in the Associated Press Coach of the Year voting.
In his fourth season at Air Force, Scott led the Falcons to a 22-7 record, a top-25 national ranking, and an NCAA Tournament berth. He did so by using the famed "Princeton offense" and shaping the No. 1 scoring defense in the country. But Walters was quick to mention that Scott would do more than simply run the basic "Princeton offense," but would also add his own innovations to it.
"Each coach here has not simply imitated their predecessors but put their own original stamp on Princeton's style of play and adjusted that style to the talents of the players," Walters said. "It is now Joe Scott's turn to produce the next iteration of basketball here at Princeton."
Scott seconded Walters' words, explaining that while the "staples of solid fundamental basketball" would remain the same, he planned to take advantage of the Tigers' athletic talents from within the normal flow of the offense.
"We have to get better at running the offense so that we know where the one-on-one opportunities exist," Scott said. "If you're more disciplined in the offense, it makes the one-on-one situations more difficult to guard."
Both Walters and Scott also discussed Princeton's bright future. While he did not elucidate specific goals, Scott said he believes there is plenty of room for improvement, even for a team returning all but one player from an Ivy League Champion squad.
"It doesn't matter what the jersey on the other team says, the way we play gives such great confidence to the players," Scott said. "Here at Princeton, we can compete with anyone in America, and that's what we're going to continue to do."
Rounding out the staff
Before the press conference, Scott met with the team for the first time and reported that he "got a good feeling from those guys," saying that they agreed with his perspective on the desire and ability to improve.
Scott also assuaged any fears that the Tigers' recruiting class would be damaged by Thompson's departure, saying he or his assistants had spoken with all the members of the Class of 2008 and that the incoming players were happy with the direction of the program. He stressed that they all had chosen Princeton as a University, not because of a coach.
It is still unclear how Scott will fill out his staff. He mentioned several times that he hoped Mike Brennan '94 and Howard Levy '85 would continue in their roles as Tiger assistants. Both were in attendance at the press conference and appear likely to remain at Princeton.
"I've made it known I want those guys to be part of the staff," Scott said. "I think it's important we have that continuity to help make it a smooth transition."
The third member of the old staff, Rob Burke, was not in attendance. Scott said that Burke, a Washington, D.C. native, was "leaning heavily" towards following Thompson to Georgetown.
Scott reported having spoken to Thompson on both Wednesday and Thursday about the team and the status of his assistants.
If Burke's seat on the Tigers' bench does indeed open up, Scott will likely fill it with another member of the Princeton family — he said he "had some guys in mind," but did not specify any particular individuals.
Mitch Henderson '98 and Craig Robinson '83, both assistant coaches at Northwestern under Bill Carmody, are likely candidates. After a successful season as head coach at Princeton Day School, an area high school, Ahmed El Nokali '02, might also be considered.
Chris Mooney '94, Scott's associate head coach at Air Force, was named the new head coach on Thursday and will retain the rest of Scott's staff.
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