Still don't think you can equate the two. They knew Malou and Lard were on shaky eligibility grounds. That's totally different than 4 random, season ending injuries during the year. One you plan for, one you don't.
Can't believe the team will miss the tournament
- Thread starter Kagavi
- Start date
Still don't think you can equate the two. They knew Malou and Lard were on shaky eligibility grounds. That's totally different than 4 random, season ending injuries during the year. One you plan for, one you don't.
Your list can't be right - Gonzaga and Wisc both have made the tourney 18 straight years...
It certainly wasn't inclusive - I posted the three longest streaks I could find. The only reason UNC is there is because I assumed their active streak would have been much longer. Sorry for any confusion.
!00% agree, but most of the seniors are plenty talented.
The other part of you argument about trading seniors for better players, well of course we all would but Prohm hasn't been able to play any of recruits serious minutes. Which is a whole other thread that's been hashed out.
OK, set aside what you've concluded about Prohm, good or bad - I for one think he's going to work out & love next year's recruiting class, tho' I do still have coaching decisions with which I disagree (need to have one of Young/Holden/Bowie in at all times; Burton can't be our interior defender) - grade is "incomplete" at this point.
Now, step back from any preconceived notion about this team - including the one that we are senior-laden so should easily be top 20.
Now, think about what you've actually seen on the court, separate from coaching decisions with which you disagree. (Bet you even disagreed with a few of the things Fred did.)
And, tell me that you see Monte, Deonte, & Naz playing at a consistency that should lead to this team being a clear NCAA team....I don't see any way how you can do that. Of "all of our seniors", only Thomas has played consistently well (ignore TT game - not in that one). The Big 3 have had their spurts, and if they're all on, we're really tough to beat, but look at how they've been playing. Now, I'm not saying that Prohm is John Wooden, but to blindly state that the resume of this team's players = easy NCAA team this year is to ignore what your eyes have seen actually play out on the court.
Now, step back from any preconceived notion about this team - including the one that we are senior-laden so should easily be top 20.
Now, think about what you've actually seen on the court, separate from coaching decisions with which you disagree. (Bet you even disagreed with a few of the things Fred did.)
And, tell me that you see Monte, Deonte, & Naz playing at a consistency that should lead to this team being a clear NCAA team....I don't see any way how you can do that. Of "all of our seniors", only Thomas has played consistently well (ignore TT game - not in that one). The Big 3 have had their spurts, and if they're all on, we're really tough to beat, but look at how they've been playing. Now, I'm not saying that Prohm is John Wooden, but to blindly state that the resume of this team's players = easy NCAA team this year is to ignore what your eyes have seen actually play out on the court.
Just how talented are the seniors?
Morris- Absolutely. All big 12, but still not a playmaker like Frank Mason, or Isaiah Cannon, or Cameron Payne. Although he is beginning to take over games.
Naz- has made some big shots, but not consistent at all. Not good on defense. Role player in the big 12.
Thomas- great shooter, was good defensively before his injury, but he relies on others to create his open shots. Transition & corner 3's + defense
Burton- freak athlete, but wildly inconsistent. Below average defense and rebounding. Plays out of position. I'm not sure there's a coach in the country that could get consistently good production out of Burton. Honestly, he probably needs to be the guy that brings a spark off the bench.
Holden- rebound and defense guy, and he's average, at best, with those things.
Bowie- Ideally he's the 4th guy off the bench, when there's foul trouble, and only plays 5-10 per game.
Is it realistic to expect a team with Monte Morris, Matt Thomas, naz long, and deonte burton all returning to make the tournament? Yes. Yes it is.
Yes, lowering expectations always leads to success.
This. We arent back down to McDermott levels yet, but goddamn if some of this talk doesnt seem familiar. We had people defending McDermott in his last couple seasons, even though it was clear as day to most people it was not working. So many seem to be ready to do the same now, when quite honestly we have underperformed these first 1.75 seasons.
Does that mean we pull the plug yet? No. Any coach gets more time than 2 years. But if we miss the tourney, that heats things up for next year.
I hope it never gets to McDermott level, but in our defense, as fans, there's not a lot we can do about it. There's no way in hell Pollard makes a move this year, next, or probably not the one after either. I hope to God it never gets to the point where were saying "don't attend the games, show our disapproval by not showing up."
Watching a lesser version of a typical Michigan State team tonight, I watched them pull away from Nebraska in a close game with 4 different players making several big 3's. It wasn't like they were dominating inside at all. It made me think, when was the last game when both Matt & Naz were both shooting well the same game? I mean it seems like some games Matt has the hot hand. Other games Monte scores 25 or 30, or Naz will breakout with 17. While this isn't unusual for teams, it would be great to see all our perimeter guys be 'on' at the same time. With Deonte scoring less, yet dishing out 10 assists, the WV game could have been that game but we all know we couldn't make shots during a long stretch in that 2nd half, most which were good looks. But....guess we really know that if you're not getting points in the paint, you can't expect to outshoot people every game, thus the inconsistency. Probably why Monte often says after some losses, we just didn't make shots.
The question will be:
For recruiting, you generally want to have a contract that goes out a few years. You obviously can't extend the contract in a year we dont make the tournament. So if we miss this year and next, you'd be leaving him with 2 years left on his contract (ends in 2020). Would that be enough? Or would that combined with a downward 3 year trend do enough damage to recruiting going forward that things would just spiral anyway?
