While many fans of the UNM men's basketball team are voicing their displeasure over the surprise hiring of Ritchie McKay as the new Lobo head coach, the players want to know the coach better before making an assessment.
Similar to the fans, several of the UNM players did not know too much about McKay, except that his father, Joe McKay, wore a Lobo uniform from 1960-63. With a lack of knowledge about the new coach, some players did not want to weigh in on the hiring.
"I don't really know much about him, besides what I have read in the paper," freshman forward Chad Bell said. "And that his dad played for the University of New Mexico and that is about it."
Other players are indifferent about the change.
"My job is to play basketball, not worry about who the coach is," freshman forward Jamaal Williams said.
One of McKay's first duties after being named head coach late Thursday night entailed calling several of the players to let them know he had the job.
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Junior guard Ruben Douglas said the first time he learned about the hiring was a telephone call he received from McKay, who is in Atlanta for the Final Four, early Friday morning.
"He introduced himself to me, and he told me the expectations of the program and that he is going to get it back to the level it needs to be at," Douglas said.
Williams said he also talked to his new coach.
"He called me to see how I was doing," Williams said. "He seems to be a nice guy."
Both players said they did not pay much attention to the coaching search that eventually landed McKay.
The 11-day odyssey saw fans and the media debate numerous potential candidates while Athletics Director Rudy Davalos journeyed across several states in search of the next boss of the men's basketball program.
"I haven't been keeping track of it; I have just been going to school and going to practice," Douglas said. "I haven't been keeping up with the coaching situation because I feel Rudy Davalos and (associate athletics director) Bill McGillis and those guys would pick the right guy."
Although it is yet to be determined if McKay is the correct choice for the Lobo program, Douglas said he has to talk with his new coach face to face and get to know him before he can make any judgments on McKay.
"I haven't played for him yet, I don't know his coaching style," Douglas said. "He just introduced himself to me, and I talked to him briefly. I am sure he can bring something to the team, obviously, that is why Rudy and his staff hired him."
Douglas' only encounter with McKay was back in 2000 when McKay was the head coach of Colorado State University. Douglas was on the bench in street clothes for both team's battles after transferring to UNM from the University of Arizona.
But he said he remembers getting a good view of how hard McKay's team played.
"I thought he did a good job there because he got a lot out of his players," Douglas said. "He didn't have that much collective talent, but he got the most out of it."
McKay said he wants to bring a run and gun style of play to the Lobos, but needs to evaluate the team's talent before making any decisions on his approach.
The style of play could largely be determined with a decision whether to reinstate former Lobo point guard Marlon Parmer, who quit the team in January.
Parmer has said numerous times that he would like to return to the team if former coach Fran Fraschilla left. After Fraschilla's resignation March 16, Parmer said he would play for any coach that UNM brings in.
With the new Lobo head coach in place, Parmer said he wants to take a wait and see approach.
"I don't know what I am going to do," Parmer said. "I'm just trying to stay low-key."
McKay said he needs to research Parmer's departure before he makes any decisions.
"I will have to sit down with my staff, and I want to meet with some of the players when we get back," he said. "As we gather more data and hash this over a little bit, I will be able to come up with a decision. I certainly know Marlon, and I thought he was a good player when we competed against him. I don't want to make any commitment one way or the other as what we would decide as a program."
