Why Miller would think of leaving

Over the past few days as news has trickled out that Sean Miller is seriously entertaining an offer to become the next head coach at the University of Arizona many Xavier fans have been left scratching their head.
The Musketeers have a top-10 caliber team returning in 2009-10, a top-flight schedule and recruiting commitments lined up down the road. Why would Miller want to leave that situation for Arizona, who will have a bare cupboard after the expected departures of Jordan Hill and Chase Buddinger to the NBA?
While the situation at Xavier is still very enticing to Miller, and still might hold up to a comparison with any job in the country at the end of the day, the position at Arizona warrants a look from Miller simply because it suits all of the things that he desires in a dream job. Here is a rough list of three things that Miller would have to have to leave Xavier, and how Arizona matches up:
Membership in a winnable major conference- Miller wants to be able to play a schedule where his team will be tested every time out on the floor, and where he can win 19 games and still make the Tournament in his first few seasons. Certainly, he would like to eventually get to a point where he can dominate a conference on a year-to-year basis the way that North Carolina does in the ACC or UCLA does in the PAC-10. He has expressed to people close to him in the past that the Big East does not seem like a place where he could achieve that kind of success, with the depth and talent that is in the conference on a yearly basis. That is part of the reason why a return to his alma mater, Pittsburgh, is not as attractive to him as many national pundits might think.
Why Arizona? The Wildcats are part of the PAC-10 conference. While UCLA will be difficult to dismantle from the top spot in the conference, Miller could quickly mold the program into perennial contenders, hopefully joining UCLA in the top tier above contenders USC, Oregon, Stanford and Arizona State.
A Primary athletic focus on basketball- Miller wants his program to be the main money maker for the athletic department, and thus be given preference when asking for monetary improvements to the basketball program. He has such a situation set up at Xavier, but it is not as strong as it could be. The men’s basketball team is the only program turning a profit at XU, and carries the weight for everything from women’s basketball to golf. Going to programs such as Virginia or Georgia where he would be given the leftover money from the football program was not as attractive to Miller as staying at Xavier and getting the first pick of athletic funding.
Why Arizona? Arizona would not only give Miller the free reign in spending that he needs, and the total commitment that he demands, but would be able to take away some of the sting of carrying the entire athletic department. The UA football team has been on the rise in recent years, and would be able to provide a solid second income for the athletic program, possibly covering the costs of the rest of the sports.
Program Prestige- Miller wants to be able to go to a program that has won before, and has a fan base that is used to success. At Xavier, he enjoys celebrating the firsts, and striving to be the first Musketeer coach to reach a Final Four. However, being in a place with championship banners, and a name that is on the minds of pundits nationwide is always appealing.
Why Arizona? The Wildcats won the NCAA title in 1997, and have made 25 straight NCAA Tournaments. Their alumni have dotted NBA and international rosters for years. The program can reasonably be considered among the elite in the country. Miller would likely embrace having the legendary Lute Olson around campus in the same fashion that Ben Howland has with John Wooden at UCLA and Roy Williams has with Dean Smith at North Carolina.

For Miller, taking a look at Arizona made sense now because the list of schools that fit even this small list of criteria here is very small. Arizona is one of maybe 10 places in the country—some of which, such as North Carolina, Duke, Kentucky and UCLA don’t figure to be hiring soon—that fit a description for a school that Miller would leave for.
Speculation in recent days that Miller may bolt for more money is unfounded—the man did not even know how much his yearly salary was a year ago.
He simply got an opportunity to pursue a job that met his strict criteria. In reality, I would be scratching my head if Miller did not at least explore such a unique opportunity.