The SMU Mustangs were one of the best teams in all of college basketball this past season, but unfortunately, we didn't get to see them compete in the postseason. Head coach Larry Brown has done a tremendous job of turning the program around since taking over in 2012, but there will always be questions about his future.
Aside from his track record of leaving programs in bad shape, Brown is 75 years old, so naturally there will be questions about retirement. Brown has achieved basically everything you can imagine as a basketball coach, but it doesn't seem like he has any plans of stopping anytime soon.
He will be entering the final year of his contract with SMU next season, but the contract ending won't prevent him from continuing to coach. Brown says that he will continue to coach as long as he is "making a difference" and that he cannot see himself stopping because this is what he loves doing.
Of course, just because Brown is not going to retire doesn't mean he would necessarily stay at SMU. Brown has been well travelled throughout his career as a basketball coach, having stopped in 12 places since getting his first head coaching job with the Denver Nuggets back in 1974. He has said in the past, though, that he likes it at SMU and likes the direction that the program is going, so he has no plans to leave.
Brown has a record of 94-39 since taking over the Mustangs, but he may be better known for the sanctions that his programs usually get. This year, SMU was banned from the postseason, and Brown was suspended for nine games. However, he has left both UCLA and Kansas on probation before, too. Brown is a great coach without a doubt, as shown by the fact that he has both an NBA and NCAA Championship to his name, but there are those that believe he should be banned from college basketball.
Despite the clamoring of some for Brown to be banned, that won't happen, and it seems like he isn't going anywhere anytime soon. This could be both good and bad news for SMU fans because Brown is a great coach that wins but also does some shady business that can leave the program in bad shape after he does decide to leave.
The Mustangs will lose some players from this year's 25-5 team, most notably Nic Moore, but they are set to restock the roster. SMU will bring in the 15th best recruiting class in the nation plus Semi Ojeleye, a transfer from Duke, so they should be a team to watch again in the 2016-17 season.
