When Wyking Jones was promoted to replace Cuonzo Martin two years ago, it raised some eyebrows in college basketball circles. Jones had no head-coaching experience and was only Martin's assistant at Cal for two seasons.
And two years later, Martin's time in Berkeley has come to an end.
The Golden Bears fired him on Sunday, and athletic director Jim Knowlton will look to find a replacement -- but there are some pressing issues that he'll face in his search.
Job description
It's a tough job right now. California was arguably the worst Power 5 school in the country this season, and it didn't win a Pac-12 game until the final couple of weeks of the season. The Golden Bears have finished at the bottom of the league the past two seasons.
The Pac-12 as a whole has struggled in recent years, but California still struggles to compete for talent against the top-tier programs. Arizona consistently mined the Oakland Soldiers grassroots program for talent in Cal's backyard, until Martin was able to convince Ivan Rabb and Jabari Bird to play in Berkeley.
There's also the money issue. Cal was only paying Jones $1 million a year, and the Golden Bears' athletic department is in severe debt. It went into about $440 million of debt due to a renovation to Memorial Stadium, where the football team plays. It's unclear whether the department has the money to attract a big-name replacement.
Who are some of the names Cal could go after?
Who could be in the mix?
Wild card
Jason Kidd: He's going to be one of the primary candidates for the Golden Bears, but sources close to Kidd say he would prefer to get back to the NBA -- ideally with the Los Angeles Lakers. As a result, he might prefer to wait until that job search is complete before showing interest in a college job. Knowlton might not want to wait that long. Kidd played at Cal for two seasons, leading the Golden Bears to two NCAA tournament appearances and one Sweet 16. His teams also made the playoffs in three of his five seasons as a head coach in the NBA, but Kidd was fired midway through last season.