Oso planning to go pro
ViperThe UNC game was an unreal experience. The game against Russia and Al's last game might have been crazier, but all must attend games.
I was at all three. The Russian game was the best, by far.
The Mecca was/is a dump. Intimate venue yes and great basketball environs due to rowdy fan behavior (and winning), of which the behavior is outlawed today (must during live play, toilet paper, obscene chants, paper machete mascot). Smoking was allowed at your seats, where the haze layer would have outed the Bradley Bat and likely killed a number of fans. Yes, you could drink beer, but in the hallway, not at your seats. The food selection was reheated hot dogs from the Bucks game. FF is the best fan experience by far. The BC was louder because the students were seated together. And STH's filled in behind the one basket which is important as students aren't even in session for many BE games in the expanded schedule. Mecca was a great bandbox because of great team and brand. Those days have passed.
I will go on record today to say we beat Baylor - our defense will be closer to mid season form and we handle Baylor who won't be prepared for it.
The Arena was a great place for fans. No bad seats, close to the action, intimate feel. I understand the Bucks' need for a bigger place, but it was a nice sized arena for college hoops.Still, one of my favorite "home" games during my time at MU was the 1980 game against Duke. Had to be moved to Dane County Coliseum because there was a conflict with the Bucks (IIRC), so only Marquette fans who really wanted to be there attended (very few sweater vests). The place was rockin', and we won a close one against a highly ranked Duke team that had Gminski, Banks, etc. What a blast!
It's hard to do the math of subtracting Lewis, Morsell and Kuath while adding Wrightsil, Jones and Ross and figuring we come out ahead.Any prediction for a big step forward is an exercise in blind faith. It's not necessarily wrong to believe in development and continuity, but there's objectively less seasoned basketball ability on the roster right now.I'd be happy with another season similar to last. Making consecutive NCAA tournaments would feel like a small step in the right direction. You do wonder when Shaka cranks it up a little bit. I would think there's a fairly low ceiling with his current recruiting strategy.
Beating Baylor would significantly raise my expectations for the rest of the year.I have not done a prediction, because I simply do not know if the amazing February run last year was a fluke or something Shaka can pull off again. I do think we have a good chance to finish 5th in the Big East.
Seems to me that you are contradicting yourself here. You stated the reason that you have not done a prediction and then say we have a "good chance" at finishing 5th in the BE. While that is not exactly a prediction, please explain how you arrived at that conclusion. My "prediction" for this coming season is really just a wild guess, and I suspect some of the others who posted theirs would admit to the same. Others actually do research to arrive at their predictions. I hope I never see another post like the one last October where someone did not make a preseason prediction "because I have not seen them perform on the court yet".
I appreciate what Shaka's doing. He's got a legitimate program-building strategy that doesn't involve beating UK and UNC at their own game (accumulating stars and rolling the ball out). That's smart (rimshot).But if you take off the blue and gold glasses, this team does not appear to be especially talented. We are all counting on continuity and development, and that's the magic dust that allows us think we'll overachieve again. But until we have some proof that the magic dust is indeed magic, it's blind optimism.Again, big fan of Shaka, and he's got a lot of rope as far as I'm concerned. It'll be interesting to see how much development the team shows and if/when he's able to start landing a higher caliber of player.
But if you take off the blue and gold glasses, this team does not appear to be especially talented. We are all counting on continuity and development, and that's the magic dust that allows us think we'll overachieve again. But until we have some proof that the magic dust is indeed magic, it's blind optimism.
Three reasons why I am optimistic about them--Continuity. Core guys will have played a bunch together and been through the gauntlet of a BE season.-More looks offensively. Having another ballhandler will help a ton. As will a true pick and pop big in Gold. -Pace. For all their positives, Lewis and Morsell were halfcourt players. Run on everything. The depth is there.Obviously concerned about rebounding. Going to need the guards to chip in more on that front.
TAMUI do know, Newsie is right on you knowing ball.
RoyaleI try very hard not to have blind optimism and last year I felt they would overachieve simply based off the Shaka factor and I think they did. That said, I am giving Shak the benefit of knowing if we have enough talent or not. Considering the lack of available room for newcomers it appears to me that Shaka is 100% in on the guys he has on the roster. If he is going into this season and next with sub-par talent, he better be a helluva of a game coach. I have said several times that I think all of the returning guys are athletic, basketball players and not just athletes. IMO, we need every guy to be a bit better and 2-3 to be much better and I like our chances. I do believe that there will be parity with 5-7 guys and will make playing time difficult for everyone. That is a situation that could free up roster space for next year.Again, if Shaka ends up dropping the ball, I will be one of the first to get all over him on Scoop. To date, he has not given me any reason not to believe he was/is the right guy for the program. The fact that we did not lose one guy to the transfer portal confirmed to me this guy connects with the guys.
Appreciate this post, and I wasn't trying to imply that those that are optimistic are foolish or wrong. I think you've made good points about where any glass-half-full thinking comes from. In particular, Shaka does likely deserve a certain amount of faith. However--and not to change subjects--I still think he's a bit more unproven than most (VCU was up-and-running when he took the reins and his Texas tenure was what it was).As with all of us, I really want this team to be good. But I just keep looking at the roster, and I have a really hard time getting there. It's not hot seat time or anything, but I think this is a pivotal season in gauging what Shaka is. If this team falls short of the NCAA tourney, it suggests his read on his talent might not have been especially good. Because, externally that's the read, and I would think there were opportunities to add talent to the roster. He chose not to.