Isiah Thomas' tenure as head coach at Florida International didn't start well -- one of his first official acts as head coach was to rescind several scholarship offers made by the previous regime, which served to annoy just about every influential high school coach in the Sunshine State.
But things are looking up for Thomas and FIU. This week, Thomas received a verbal commitment from Dominique Ferguson, a power forward ESPN/Scouts Inc. has ranked among the top ten prospects in the class of 2010. An Indiana native who will complete his high school career at Hargreave Military Academy in Virginia, Ferguson also drew interest from the likes of Kentucky, Duke and UCLA -- but decided that his home-state hero gives him the best chance to reach the NBA.
For those of you who were wondering whether or not Thomas' name recognition -- as an NBA hall-of-famer and Indiana Hoosier legend -- would trump his more recent failures as an NBA executive and coach -- the answer seems to be, "Yes." With Ferguson and point guard Phillip Taylor set to suit up for the Golden Panthers starting next season, Thomas and his staff have already shown the ability to draw big-time talent to FIU and the Sun Belt Conference.
But let's not call Thomas a success at the college level just yet. Don't forget -- there was a time when his acquisition of Stephon Marbury seemed like a good idea.
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