I don't think the thought of replacing Mooney is crazy. It is part of the business.
As of today - we are 4 seasons removed from our last NCAA appearance. During that time - we have one NIT appearance. We just lost our best player (Anthony) to graduation, and best shot blocker (ANO) to transfer and two of our frosh have decided to transfer. Even with all of that - it still looks like next year is an NCAA year for the Spiders. They have put together an NCAA caliber schedule, and UR should be a pre-season top 4 team in the A10, which I think it most years gets you on the bubble.
But what happens if we don't make the NCAA next season? Do you think about replacing Mooney then? Its never too early to start thinking about these things because the other factor is - what hot coaches are available or could you potentially get.
I personally think the NIT bought Mooney another year. Meaning if he doesn't make the NCAA next season, I think he deserves one more year. But still - you need to keep an eye out for the coaches coming up or looking for jobs. Of course Beilein is not that person, but its with 4 years of no NCAA appearances, the thought should be in the back of the administration minds. Get the list going, get the roladex of coaches out.
If we had made the NCAA last year, would we have this discussion - of course not. Mooney would be safe for 4 more years. But that didn't happen, and for me - the goal of our basketball team is NCAA appearances. 5-6 years without an appearance - that might be too many for my liking. And next year is year 5.