Dr. Tom Davis got fired from the University of Iowa for not winning enough games in the NCAA tournament. Now, almost a decade after his firing, the university has apparently had a change of heart.No, they're not dumping Todd Lickliter and bringing back the Doc. Good grief, in Iowa City they're still happy just to have a coach who isn't Steve Alford. Rather, they're inducting Davis into the University of Iowa Hall of Fame.
There is little question Davis belongs there. You have to be a pretty good coach to lose nine games in the tourney, because that means you made it there at least nine times. Davis also had a good track record at getting his players to the NBA. His obvious stars like B.J. Armstrong and Ricky Davis made it, to be sure, but he also turned Les Jepsen from a player who had fans scratching their heads and saying "Why did they give him a scholarship again? Did he have pictures of somebody?" into an NBA draft pick. And then there's the whole "winningest coach in school history" thing. The real question is, "What took them so long to decide he belonged in the Hall of Fame?"
Okay, he's not Lute Olson. Lute got the Hawks to the Final Four. Dr. Tom never could. And, while Davis' 1986-1987 team was incredible, they weren't quite as dominating as Ralph Miller's 1969-1970 team, the one with "Downtown" Freddie Brown. Olson and Miller both bolted for the Pac-10 when the opportunity came. Davis stuck around. The school gave up on him; Davis never gave up on Iowa.
Besides, as all Hawk fans know, there's a new administration in the athletic department, and maybe Gary Barta has been able to thaw some of the frostiness that had been hanging around. Still, I wouldn't blame Davis if he said "Can I be there for the inauguration? Well ... let me get back to you on that."
