Here is the headline on the media release put up by USC this morning.

KEVIN O’NEILL NAMED USC MEN’S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH

Kevin O’Neill. Sure. Everybody had been talking about him. The alumni were all fired up about the chance to bring him in.

Which, of course, is fiction. Kevin O’Neill arrives at USC directly out of left field.

The early speculation, when USC people still were choosing not to grasp that the hoops program has gone radioactive, focused on Jamie Dixon of Pitt (who must have said, “are you crazy?”), Reggie Theus, Jeff Van Gundy, P.J. Carlesimo and Utah coach Jim Boylen. The only hint that someone in Heritage Hall had perceived the depth of the situation was the rumor that Bobby Braswell of Cal State Northridge, whose program has issues of its own (and is Cal State Northridge), might be a backup candidate.

Thus, this hiring comes as a complete surprise to pretty much everyone, including the handful of people who are still paid money to keep track of the Trojans. No leakage into the Los Angeles Times or Daily News or even espn.com, which is where you go to leak stuff you don’t want the local papers to have because you’re mad at them.

What does this prove? That athletic director Mike Garrett and the people around him (including O’Neill) still can keep a secret. (Hunkering down is becoming a strong suit inside the Garrett regime.) And that no one considered on an upward career trajectory was interested in taking over for Tim Floyd, who left a program that 1) has almost no players on scholarship and 2) is likely to be sanctioned by the NCAA over O.J. Mayo and certain cash payments.

O’Neill, 52, is being hired to be the caretaker, for a year or two, of a shattered program. The guy to make sure USC doesn’t go 0-25 — and doesn’t break any more rules. He seems to be a good guy, an old-school guy, but someone the Trojans can jettison with little or no hue and cry after the NCAA sanctions expire and he’s put up another losing season with kids who actually go to class. Meantime, USC hoops will go from flashy and athletic to dogged and below-the-rim, his recruits will be the second-tier guys he can pry away from mid majors, and the Galen Center will empty out as USC struggles to finish in the top seven or eight in the Pac-10. And good luck with this season, because practice starts in about three months.

(Wonder if any competent JC transfers who can survive clearinghouse scrutiny are still out there. We’re about to find out. Either that, or Lil’ Romeo might get some PT.)

One interesting item, far below, is O’Neill conceding the program may be facing some, uh, issues,  in the near future.  That may be the first time anyone involved  in the athletic department has said that, on the record.

Here is the USC press release:

LOS ANGELES-Kevin O’Neill, who has 13 years of collegiate and NBA head
coaching experience, has been named the men’s basketball head coach at USC,
Trojan athletic director Mike Garrett announced today (June 20).

“We’re thrilled to have Kevin O’Neill as our men’s basketball coach,” said
Garrett. “Kevin is the consummate coach. He knows his Xs and Os, he’s an
excellent recruiter and he is very in tune with the academic side of a player’s
collegiate experience. His 30 years of experience at the college and
professional levels has prepared him well for this opportunity. I love his
coaching philosophy and principles: he’s a no-nonsense coach who is very
detail-oriented and prepares his teams well. He stresses defense and I’ve
always believed that defense wins championships.”

Said O’Neill: “I’m very excited about this opportunity to coach at such a
great institution as USC, with its tremendous athletic and academic tradition.
I appreciate Mike Garrett’s confidence in me. I will work my hardest to coach
us to a championship level every single day. I can’t wait to get started.”

He takes over for Tim Floyd, who resigned on June 9 after 4 seasons at USC.
The Trojans won at least 20 games and made the NCAA tourney in each of the last
3 seasons, both school records.

O’Neill, 52, has worked in the basketball coaching ranks for 30 years, most
recently spending the 2009 season as an assistant coach and special assistant to
the general manager of the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies.

He began his NCAA Division I collegiate head coaching career at Marquette,
where he went 86-62 (.581) in 5 seasons (1990-94) and had 3 post-season
appearances. His initial 1990 team went 15-14 and played in the NIT (the
school’s first winning season and post-season trip since 1987). His 1993 squad
was 20-8 (Marquette’s first 20-win season since 1985) and captured the school’s
first NCAA berth since 1983. That season, he was named the Great Midwest
Conference Co-Coach of the Year, Basketball Weekly Midwest Coach of the Year and
National Association of Basketball Coaches District 11 Coach of the Year and he
was a finalist for Associated Press National Coach of the Year. He then went
24-9 in 1994, helped Marquette to its first-ever league title and guided the
Warriors to their first NCAA Sweet Sixteen berth since 1979. He was selected as
the 1994 Great Midwest Coach of the Year and NABC District 11 Co-Coach of the
Year. His final 2 Marquette teams led the nation in defensive field goal percentage. While at Marquette, he was featured in the 1994 Oscar-nominated documentary, “Hoop Dreams.”

He then became Tennessee’s head coach for 3 years (1995-97), inheriting a
team that had won just 5 games in 1994 and getting the Volunteers into the NIT
tourney by his second season.

He next was the head coach at Northwestern for 3 seasons (1998-2000), where
he went 30-56. The 1999 Wildcats team was 15-14 (their first winning season
since 1994) and played in the NIT, just the third post-season appearance in
school history.

O’Neill then went to the NBA as an assistant coach, spending 2001 with the
playoff-bound New York Knicks and then 2 seasons (2002-03) with the Detroit
Pistons. The Pistons won 50 games, were the Central Division champs and
appeared in the playoffs both seasons (advancing to the Eastern Conference
finals in 2003) and were regarded among the NBA’s premier defensive teams.
He served as the Toronto Raptors’ head coach in 2004. His team started out
25-25 and was in position to make the NBA playoffs, but then injuries struck and
the team finished with a 33-49 record, just missing a playoff spot.

He spent the next 3 years (2005-07) with the Indiana Pacers, the first 2 as
an assistant as the club made the NBA playoffs both seasons and the third as a
consultant.

O’Neill was named interim head coach at Arizona for the 2008 season when
Lute Olson took a leave of absence. His Wildcats went 19-15 and made the NCAA
tourney.

O’Neill began his coaching career as the head coach at Central High in
Hammond, N.Y. in 1980, then spent the next 2 years (1981-82) as the head coach
at North Country Community College in Saranac Lake, N.Y. He was the head coach
at the NAIA’s Marycrest College in Davenport, Ia., in 1983.

He then became an assistant coach at Delaware for 2 seasons (1984-85), Tulsa
in 1986 and Arizona for 3 years (1987-89) before landing the head coaching job
at Marquette. Tulsa won the 1986 Missouri Valley Conference tournament and made
the NCAAs. Arizona captured the Pac-10 title and Pac-10 Tournament crown in
both 1988 and 1989 (it finished second in the 1987 league standings) and
advanced to the NCAAs all 3 seasons (including to the Final Four in 1988).

O’Neill was a 3-year (1976-79) basketball letterman at McGill University in
Montreal, helping the Redmen to a 52-38 (.598) mark in his career. In his 1978
junior season, McGill posted a school-record 28 wins and advanced to the
Canadian Interuniversity Sport national championship tournament.

He received his bachelor’s degree in education from McGill in 1979 and his
master’s degree in secondary education from Marycrest in 1983.
He was born on Jan. 24, 1957, in Malone, N.Y. His wife’s name is Roberta.
He has a son, Sean.
# # #

KEVIN O’NEILL’S YEAR-BY-YEAR HEAD COACHING RECORD (NCAA DIVISION I AND NBA ONLY)
1990 Marquette 15-14 9-5 3rd NIT First Round
1991 Marquette 11-18 7-7 5th tie —
1992 Marquette 16-13 5-5 3rd tie —
1993 Marquette 20-8 6-4 NA NCAA First Round
1994 Marquette 24-9 10-2 1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen
5-Year Total 86-62 (.581) 37-23 (.617) Midwestern
Collegiate/Great Midwest
1995 Tennessee 11-16 4-12 6th East —
1996 Tennessee 14-15 6-10 5th tie East NIT First Round
1997 Tennessee 11-16 4-12 6th East —
3-Year Total 36-47 (.434) 14-24 (.368) Southeastern
1998 Northwestern 10-17 3-13 9th tie —
1999 Northwestern 15-14 6-10 8th NIT First Round
2000 Northwestern 5-25 0-16 11th —
3-Year Total 30-56 (.349) 9-39 (.188) Big Ten
2004 Toronto Raptors 33-49 — 6th Central —
1-Year Total 33-49 (.402)
2008 Arizona 19-15 (.559) 8-10 7th NCAA First Round
1-Year Total 19-15 (.559) 8-10 (.444) Pacific-10

12-Year Collegiate Total 171-180 (.487) 68-96 (.415)

TRANSCRIPT OF VIDEO STATEMENT FROM USC ATHLETIC DIRECTOR MIKE GARRETT:

Hello. I’m Mike Garrett, athletic director for the University of Southern
California.

I am pleased to announce that Kevin O’Neill of the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies will
be joining the Trojan family as our new head men’s basketball coach.

Coach O’Neill, who spent this past season as an assistant coach and special
assistant to the general manager of the Grizzlies, has 13 years of collegiate
and NBA head coaching experience.

Kevin is the consummate coach. He knows his Xs and Os, he’s an excellent
recruiter and he is very in tune with the academic side of a player’s collegiate
experience.

He’s a no-nonsense coach who is very detail-oriented and prepares his teams
well. And he stresses defense — another philosophy we share since I’ve always
believed that defense wins championships.

His 30 years of experience at the college and professional levels has prepared
him well for this opportunity.

But it is not just me who feels this way about Kevin.

The Memphis Commercial Appeal last year called Coach O’Neill a defensive guru,
an X’s and O’s genius who has resuscitated college programs.

It went on to say, “He led Marquette to a pair of NCAA tournament berths. At
Tennessee, after inheriting a program in shambles, he laid the foundation for
four straight 20-win seasons by the time he departed. And as an assistant with
the Detroit Pistons, he was instrumental in crafting the team’s reputation as a
defense-minded unit.”

As impressive as his on-the-court credentials and track record are, his
reputation for integrity and fairness is equally impressive.

I am convinced that in Kevin, we have found the right coach at the right time
for our great institution — a proven winner at the professional and college
level who has demonstrated over the years that he recognizes that what happens
off the court is equally, if not more important, than what happens on it.

We are looking to Coach O’Neill to bring great things to USC basketball.

But enough from me. I will let you hear from the Coach himself.
TRANSCRIPT OF VIDEO STATEMENT FROM NEW USC MEN’S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH KEVIN  O’NEILL:

I’m Kevin O’Neill, and I couldn’t be more proud and excited to be part of the
Trojan family as the new head men’s basketball coach.

When Mike offered me this job, there was only one answer: “yes.” To step onto
the University of Southern California campus as a head coach in any sport is
something one usually can only dream about.

Not only does USC have one of the richest traditions in college athletics, but
this is one of the greatest learning institutions in the world. Cardinal and
gold flows throughout the city of Los Angeles, not only because of the success
USC has enjoyed on its athletic fields, but also because of the countless
contributions this institution has made to Los Angeles.

That said, I recognize that USC basketball has been through a tough time lately.
Like many college basketball fans, I have been following the developments in the
media. One thing I expect people might second-guess me on is whether I made the
right call in taking this job.

While all of us at USC are prohibited by the NCAA from discussing details of
this ongoing investigation, I want to assure you that I made my decision only
after a thorough evaluation.

USC could not have been more forthcoming and honest in answering my questions.
Their answers and the integrity of President Sample, Mike Garrett and the entire
USC organization gave all the assurances I needed of the strength and integrity
of this entire organization. If I didn’t believe in USC — and all of the people
involved — I wouldn’t be putting my name and reputation on the line. But I do
and I am. Enough said.

I’m sure I am also going to be asked whether the NCAA investigation involving
basketball is going to hurt recruiting or the program in general. Let me just
say that if I thought I wouldn’t be able to do my job — do the job that the
University expects of me and equally important that I expect of myself — I
wouldn’t have taken the job.

It wasn’t that long ago that Pete Carroll arrived at USC, and proceeded to
create a level of excitement worldwide for Trojan football that people hadn’t
seen before. Coach Carroll not only created a team of winners, but more
importantly became an ambassador for our university by showing how you can use
athletics to inspire and help the young people of Los Angeles. It’s my goal to
do the same with USC basketball–make it a program that both excites and
inspires our community.

I want to thank President Sample, Mike Garrett and the entire USC family for
showing faith in me, and also express my love to my family for their support
through this process.

I promise you that I will do all that I can to make all of you proud – both on
and off the court.