Stanford basketball has a major coaching decision to make in coming days

The Stanford Cardinal are looking for their next head coach and have a slew of strong candidates to choose from

Drake v Washington State / Michael Reaves/GettyImages

It has been a couple of weeks since the Stanford Cardinal parted ways with head coach Jerod Haase, and a decision to find his replacement is expected to come in the coming days or even hours.

Well before Haase's firing, Washington State coach Kyle Smith was viewed as the perfect replacement. He was in the process of leading his Cougars squad to a historic season, and Washington State as a program is facing uncertainty due to the collapse of the Pac-12 which could work out in Stanford's favor. Other names like Princeton's Mitch Henderson and Colagte's Matt Langel also emerged, and now that the confirmed candidates are all done for the season (for the most part), the decision is looming.

It is a vital choice for the Cardinal, who lost Kanaan Carlyle, Andrej Stojakovic, and Maxime Raynaud to the transfer portal but could get them back with the right hire. The noise around the program is that Smith is again the favorite to end up in Palo Alto even despite his emotional postgame speech.

WSU coach Kyle Smith on what he’ll miss most about this team: “I’m not gonna miss them. They’re always gonna be a part of it.” pic.twitter.com/h7l3Yfrdjq

— Greg Woods (@GregWWoods) March 24, 2024

Realistically, while there is a lot of noise around the fact that Smith is content in Pullman, if Stanford thinks he's their guy they need to make an offer he cannot refuse. This program is in need of a lifeline and has long been in a slump on the court, having missed out on the tournament for the last 10 years.

If Smith really is happy at Washington State, Stanford needs to move on, and quickly. This roster is in shambles as of now, and the new coach will be tested early in terms of how quickly they can rebuild it. Safe to say the pressure is on for AD Bernard Muir who missed with the hiring of Haase.