Got this from my brother who has a friend who is an Illinois fan:
Recruting:
He is not a bad recruiter, the problem in the past has been he is a brutally honest guy. He won't sugar coat things for kids and he will tell them where he believes they stand. Jerrance Howard got credit for some guys that Weber actually brought in. He is a little awkward and doesn't relate to the kids too well, but he is a very good person and parents of recruits take to that well. At Illinois he went after kids that he felt he had too... based on their ranking and the Illini community's perception of the player. If he is left alone to go get the guys to fit his system, I think he will be just fine at K State.
Coaching:
He is a very good x's and o's guy, but he really only has one style of coaching and doesn't adapt well to guys that don't fit his system. He only plays man to man defense and doesn't switch defenses to confuse other team's offenses. However, his defenders play hard... or they don't play. His offense is really reliant on guards that can handle the ball and penetrate. If that guard doesn't exist on the team, the offense will really struggle (like the Illini offense has the last 5 years). You will see a lot of possessions where they make 12 passes, pass up 2 good shots, and take a bad one with 3 seconds to go on the shot clock. That could have just been personnel, but it was consistent after the the Deron Williams/Dee Brown/Luther Head trio left. But when it was working when those guys were in Champaign, it was a pretty thing to watch.
Media:
Bruce will win over the local media with his brutal honesty. But he did make some enemies with players by throwing them under the bus in postgame interviews. If they played bad, he tended to let the media know who played awful. That motivates some kids.. but others it alienates and hurts their trust in him. He's an awkward interview, but again.. a very good, honest person.
Overall:
Bruce is one of the good guys in the business. He will not break or even bend the rules to get a recruit (which is why he missed on so many Chicago kids). The guy still uses coupons at the local grocery store... he is very humble and down to earth. His time at Illinois was up, they expect Sweet 16's consistently in Champaign... the crazies expect Final 4's every other year... and he wasn't doing the job. I think a fresh start for Bruce will be good and I do think he will have success if he's left alone to do his job and get the kids he wants/needs to fit his system. I wish him the best and with K State the best with him as well.
