Wheeler: There is nothing wrong with Missouri State being a stepping stone for coaches
Missouri State finds itself in an all-too-familiar position after finding success on the basketball court — without a head coach after the leader has moved on to a bigger job.
In this case, Amaka Agugua-Hamilton has left to take a head coaching job at Virginia after a three-year stint that saw her go to the NCAA Tournament in the two seasons it was held while also winning a pair of Missouri Valley Conference regular-season championships.
"Coach Mox" was everything the Lady Bears needed her to be and more. Now that she's gone, there's a portion of the Missouri State fanbase upset that the university is unable to retain its successful head coaches.
Those fans are mistaken. There's nothing wrong with Missouri State being a stepping stone for up-and-coming head coaches and it's the reality of the university's athletics program. That's not going to change.
More: Is the Missouri State Lady Bears job Molly Miller's to lose? What to know early during search.
Agugua-Hamilton joins the likes of Kellie Harper, Cuonzo Martin and Steve Alford as some of those who have won a lot of games at Missouri State to turn it into what are seen as bigger jobs.
That's not a blemish against Missouri State nor is it a failure on the administration. In fact, they look at it as a positive.
"I say that's a good thing if this is a place where young coaches come to develop into great coaches and then go coach at the Power 5, that helps us bring in another great, young coach who wants to follow in those footsteps," MSU President Clif Smart said on Sports Talk earlier this week. "The other thing I would say is to think back in your own life. I was 32 years old practicing law in Little Rock, Arkansas, and I got an opportunity to come work at Strong Law Firm because I moved and they doubled my salary. I had the potential to work on a bigger stage with better cases and make more money in the long term.
"That's a rational decision for a young professional to make, no matter what field they're working in."
No lies detected.
First off, the school is also not in a position where it can pay coaches the way Power 5 programs can.
Agugua-Hamilton had an average annual salary of $328,000 per year before she was hired away. Her contract figures at Virginia have yet to be disclosed but the school was paying former coach Tina Thompson nearly $690,000 before she was let go. Agugua-Hamilton figures to make at least double what she was making at Missouri State.
According to the USA Today NCAA Finances database, Missouri State had total revenue of $27,776,407 in 2020 and ranked 116th in the country. Virginia? $110,283,933. Missouri State can't compete with that.
Where Missouri State can compete is by grabbing an up-and-comer with some of the best mid-major resources in women's basketball.
Post-Harper, the Missouri State program attracted many top-tier young coaches and it landed one with Agugua-Hamilton. The program is still in a position where it can hire the next up-and-comer who wants to have success in Springfield before going elsewhere.
More: What Missouri State President Clif Smart said about Coach Mox's departure, what comes next
Missouri State Athletics Director Kyle Moats has done it before and he will be tasked with doing it again.
What Moats shouldn't do, and hasn't done in the past, is sacrifice hiring the best possible candidate to try and get a coach who might stick around.
Yes, that would rule out the fan-favorite who doesn't have as much experience as others. Yes, that could lead to Missouri State doing this whole thing again in another three-to-four years.
But it shouldn't matter as long as your team is winning, cutting down nets and appearing in NCAA Tournaments year after year. That's what the Missouri State Lady Bears program deserves.
After all, losing a coach because of success sure beats the alternative of having a losing coach that no other school wants.
Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or Twitter at @WyattWheeler_NL. He's also the co-host of Sports Talk on Jock Radio weekdays from 4-6 p.m.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: It's not a bad thing Missouri State is a stepping stone for coaches
