Caleb Swanigan dead at 25

[ScottyP]

None of us knew Caleb Swanigan, but I bet if we could still ask him, he'd say basketball was one of the most important parts of his life. His time on the court and the memories he made (mostly good for Purdue fans, mostly bad for Iowa State fans) are going to be his legacy of this time on Earth.

I don't think discussing a game he played in is somehow disrespectful of his memory. None of us have said anything bad about him or his play that night. Indeed, I think talking about his career -- even if indirectly and from an Iowa State perspective to focus on that one game where he was relevant to Iowa State -- is actually one of the nicer things you can do for a player. I'm sure when Michael Jordan dies he'll want people to remember him for Game 6 and when LeBron James dies he'll want people to remember him for the block, bringing a championship to Ohio for the first time in forever, and all his other accomplishments on the court.

Same with Swanigan -- he beat us. Prohm or not, the scoreboard didn't lie, and his Boilermakers moved on. I don't see how discussing one of the most important games of his life is inappropriate.

Not only did his team win, but he also played a fantastic game against us. I didn't realize until the stats were posted that he made 3 three-pointers against us.

 

[isutrevman]

If Steve would have gone to small ball earlier, we would have won

Probably. It's also possible Purdue would have adjusted. Painter is one of the best coaches in the country.

 

[Sigmapolis]

Probably. It's also possible Purdue would have adjusted. Painter is one of the best coaches in the country.

Amazing complex systems is a static fashion never works.

"This way worked a few times... JUST RUN IT AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN AND WE WIN!"

Painter isn't that stupid. He would have got Swanigan off Burton or doubled or zoned or something.

Still might have helped, but that game just came down to which team executed with more aplomb the last few possessions. ISU didn't give up many points in the last 5:00 but turned the ball over way too much, and Purdue didn't score much but just enough and they disrupted the ISU offense.

Ergo, Purdue wins. Play that game 100 times and both teams probably win about 50.

Sucks, but that's March sometimes.

 

[isutrevman]

Amazing complex systems is a static fashion never works.

"This way worked a few times... JUST RUN IT AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN AND WE WIN!"

Painter isn't that stupid. He would have got Swanigan off Burton or doubled or zoned or something.

Still might have helped, but that game just came down to which team executed with more aplomb the last few possessions. ISU didn't give up many points in the last 5:00 but turned the ball over way too much, and Purdue didn't score much but just enough and they disrupted the ISU offense.

Ergo, Purdue wins. Play that game 100 times and both teams probably win about 50.

Sucks, but that's March sometimes.

Purdue also hit a late 3 that deadened against the back of the rim and the glass and fell in. That was pretty much the game.

 

[JP4CY]

They ran me out of the Cave because I was too good at presenting evidence counter to their narrative.

Nothing pisses people off nowadays like hard facts that conflict with their preferred version of reality.

Which posters?

 

[diaclone]

On the "natural causes" piece, if memory serves me correctly there were some pictures a while back of him where he looked very unhealthy. I know he'd struggled with his weight over the years.

In any event just tremendously sad. I remember them running features on him having a very tough young life and that basketball allowed him to escape it. So sad to see a life end that young.

Swanigan was homeless at one point and adopted.

 

[Rabbuk]

Which posters?

Pretty sure our thumbs just got tired of scrolling through his pages long diatribes

 

[Sigmapolis]

Purdue also hit a late 3 that deadened against the back of the rim and the glass and fell in. That was pretty much the game.

That one I do remember vividly. Felt like a balloon popped when that went in.

Which posters?

The ones who confused good-faith argumentation with copy-pasting "you're a stupid _____."

The "_____" being something I'm not and they obviously considered heinous.

It just got old and boring. It was lively and fun at first, but it eventually turned into namecalling.