In this situation, I think Loomis would prefer an upbeat fanbase from the time of the announcement.
Considering the casual fan will choose Tibs,because of instant name recognition & success. Along with us geeks understanding that Van Gundy is/was well established as a brilliant basketball mind(and took a pretty lousy team to the 2000 finals). I find the Gentry pick to be,if chosen,simply a Dell Pick for Dell.Gentry's positives do NOT generate enough space between the 3 perceived candidates to make him the choice
Gentry will generate no FAN excitement & he may get booed faster than Monty did if we sputter from get-go.
Thibs & JVG have enough perceived bona fides to w/stand early turbulence.Pain threshold for fans will be much higher for these 2 guys.Normally,I would say that fans should not SWAY a GM's pick,but in this situation,when the 2 entries,other than Gentry are better coaches,Dell better tread lightly if Gentry is chosen before Thibs or JVG.