Iowa State AD Jamie Pollard faces ultimate reality with Fred Hoiberg

By Brian Spaen | Jun 18, 2014

Fred Hoiberg has been the belle of the ball in the NBA head coaching vacancy throughout the playoffs. Nearly every team that had an opening considered the man that’s turning Iowa State into a powerhouse, and none of them had a shot to get him. But the Cyclones’ athletic director knows what’s not always going to be the case.

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Myron Medcalf of ESPN breaks down multiple situation where ADs that have hot head coaches, like right here in Ames or VCU with Shaka Smart, and what they have done to keep them around.

A new practice facility funded by Steve Sukup and a $600,000 raise are some of the big moves that were made to show that Hoiberg will continue to receive updated resources and will be happily paid in a community that absolutely loves him.

And why wouldn’t they? As long as he’s around and the basketball team continues to get these results, fans won’t care how much tickets cost. They’ll happily throw a blank check anywhere, telling the person behind the glass to just shut up and charge whatever they want for two tickets for the season opener against UNC-Eastern Athletic Shore YMCA State.

He went from skeptics thinking it was a death sentence for Iowa State to hire a former player to national sports writers telling everybody how they can’t underrate the Cyclones any longer…

But Pollard knows that Hoiberg has bigger intentions in his life. The Mayor loves Ames just as much as Ames loves him. He’d take one look at the “Hooray for Ames” video, probably shed a tear afterwards, and tell you all the great things about the video. But there’s no doubting he has NBA interest.

That led to Pollard telling ESPN in that article the smartest thing that’s been said about Hoiberg all offseason long.

"“Do I think he would coach in the NBA? I think yes, at some point he will,” Pollard said. “Just look at how he runs our team. He runs it like it’s an NBA team. I think he’s wired to do that but at this stage in his life with his young kids and his family situation, I think he’s in the right place for him personally at this point and time. So I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about it.”"

Pollard will do everything he can to keep Hoiberg here, but he’s smart enough to know when to let go when, or if, that very sad moment comes.

Nobody knows exactly what Hoiberg has in mind. But he’s smarter than all of us. He’s become the 15th-best coach in college basketball after just four seasons. He went from skeptics thinking it was a death sentence for Iowa State to hire a former player to national sports writers telling everybody how they can’t underrate the Cyclones any longer and actually picking them to win the Big 12 tournament last season.

And they did.

He’ll know when the time is right to leave his home. Maybe, just maybe, it won’t happen. But that’s hard to believe based on how much he follows the NBA, what his preparation are with building a team, and his style of play.

The clock is ticking, but fans don’t have to start looking at their watch just yet. Why leave now or anytime in the near future when you have some of the best job security in America, raising kids in a place you love, and are absolutely thriving in the national spotlight?