Is Jae Crowder and Al McGuire Type Player?

[UticaBusBarn]

Thinking about Jae Crowder's throat slashing gesture on Monday, lead to the thought of the technical he picked-up in the North Carolina NCAA game. In that game, if my memory serves, he had just cut the NC lead to 11. On the technical NC went and scored 3, or 4, points, Warriors momentum ended, game over.

Reflecting on this, did not raise, "He's a senior, he should know better", but rather this guy plays like Al's players. That is, with great intuition, passion and intensity.

Certainly Coach McGuire had superb talent, beginning with the great George Thompson. But, the bulk of his team were guys like Pat Smith, 'Vator Ulich, Gary Rosenburg, et al, who played with a passion and fire that is rare in the game of basketball today.

Today, it is all wing span, athletic ability, technical precision, etc., as it should be. But, when one reflects on what Jae Crowder did, in the second half against Louisville, between points, stops, and rebounds, one can only conclude that this player is simply cranked-up another emotional notch that players of greater "ability."

Simply put, Jae Crowder is a throw-back to another era, when heart and passion ofter prevailed. I am sure Coaches McGuire and Ramonds are smiling. Jae Crowder is their sort of player.

[DCWarriors04]

Did he have grass in front of his house?

[Stretchdeltsig]

Al recruited quality over quantity.

[CTWarrior]

I find it amusing to hear that college kids don't play with the passion and heart that they used to.  In general, basketball players at the high D-I level are much more dedicated to the game with both their time and effort than they ever have in the past.  Because they have to be.  I guarantee that Buzz's guys would consider Al's practices a relative walk in the park.  Do you think Butch Lee would carry all that extra weight today?  Or that Bo Ellis wouldn't be in the gym night and day all off season bulking up?  I'm guessing 20 years from now people will be recalling how tough 2012 guys were compared to 2032, but they'll be wrong then, too.

What has changed is the outward chest-thumping celebration of self that is much more prevalent today, even expected.  Al going off on a referee about a call in the heat of the moment is much different than a calculated strutting throat slash gesture.  I'm a big fan of Crowder (both the kid and the player) and I hope after looking back he wished he hadn't done that.  I doubt it, though.

[dgies9156]

Thinking about Jae Crowder's throat slashing gesture on Monday, lead to the thought of the technical he picked-up in the North Carolina NCAA game. In that game, if my memory serves, he had just cut the NC lead to 11. On the technical NC went and scored 3, or 4, points, Warriors momentum ended, game over.

Reflecting on this, did not raise, "He's a senior, he should know better", but rather this guy plays like Al's players. That is, with great intuition, passion and intensity.

Certainly Coach McGuire had superb talent, beginning with the great George Thompson. But, the bulk of his team were guys like Pat Smith, 'Vator Ulich, Gary Rosenburg, et al, who played with a passion and fire that is rare in the game of basketball today.

Today, it is all wing span, athletic ability, technical precision, etc., as it should be. But, when one reflects on what Jae Crowder did, in the second half against Louisville, between points, stops, and rebounds, one can only conclude that this player is simply cranked-up another emotional notch that players of greater "ability."

Simply put, Jae Crowder is a throw-back to another era, when heart and passion ofter prevailed. I am sure Coaches McGuire and Ramonds are smiling. Jae Crowder is their sort of player.

Reminds me of Bob Lackey.

[GGGG]

I find it amusing to hear that college kids don't play with the passion and heart that they used to.  In general, basketball players at the high D-I level are much more dedicated to the game with both their time and effort than they ever have in the past.  Because they have to be.  I guarantee that Buzz's guys would consider Al's practices a relative walk in the park.  Do you think Butch Lee would carry all that extra weight today?  Or that Bo Ellis wouldn't be in the gym night and day all off season bulking up?  I'm guessing 20 years from now people will be recalling how tough 2012 guys were compared to 2032, but they'll be wrong then, too.

What has changed is the outward chest-thumping celebration of self that is much more prevalent today, even expected.  Al going off on a referee about a call in the heat of the moment is much different than a calculated strutting throat slash gesture.  I'm a big fan of Crowder (both the kid and the player) and I hope after looking back he wished he hadn't done that.  I doubt it, though.

Your first paragraph is spot on.

Your second paragraph is a little overstated...and a tad grumpy.  A lot of that stuff went on in the 70s as well, you just didn't see a lot of it.

[muwarrior69]

What has changed is the outward chest-thumping celebration of self that is much more prevalent today, even expected.  Al going off on a referee about a call in the heat of the moment is much different than a calculated strutting throat slash gesture.  I'm a big fan of Crowder (both the kid and the player) and I hope after looking back he wished he hadn't done that.  I doubt it, though.

This is PC run amok. Crowder's jesture IMHO was not self centered. The basket he made was the dagger that insured the victory. The game at that moment only had a few seconds left and would not have evovled into the Cincy/Xavier game. If Al were still alive today and doing game commentary I guess he would no longer be allowed to say "That's it, Tap City" when Crowder made the basket.

[96warrior]

In another thread that referenced the throat slashing, it was mentioned that it appeared Crowder apologized to Pitino and took extra time in the post-game opposing team handshake line, so my guess is he did feel bad about the gesture. That thread also mentioned that it seemed to be a response to what a Louisville player did during our game with them last season.

I love Jae, I think he's a great player and an integral part of this team. I also think he needs to get his emotions in check a little more. I was at the Georgetown game and he was jawwing with one of the refs, who was mocking him in return. He can be late getting back down the court because he's spending a few extra seconds protesting a non-call. Sometimes this emotion serves the team well but would be better to let it fly in the huddle and not on the court, certainly not to the refs.

[muspc]

Utica, I agree with the entire thread, but for the younger posters, I believe you are refering to the 1974 NCAA championship game when Marquette lost to the North Carolina State Wolfpack lead by David Thompson, as Marquette beat the North Carolina Tarheels for the 1977 national championship. Not to nitpick, but just want younger MU fans to know the team's history.

[CTWarrior]

This is PC run amok. Crowder's jesture IMHO was not self centered. The basket he made was the dagger that insured the victory. The game at that moment only had a few seconds left and would not have evovled into the Cincy/Xavier game. If Al were still alive today and doing game commentary I guess he would no longer be allowed to say "That's it, Tap City" when Crowder made the basket.

First off, the victory was secured well before that 3.

My son tells me I'm a grumpy old man all the time, and he's probably right.  I grew up in the 70s and there is no way that stuff was as common then as it is now. It's funny, there was more fighting back then because when there was trash talk, it usually escalated to fists pretty quickly.  But trash talk or flaunting gestures are expected now.  It is the norm.  So I don't blame any individual kid because that's just the way things are now.  The same way I don't blame kids now for wanting to sit in front of a TV or PC playing video games now.  I probably would have wanted to do that stuff, too, if it were available.  It's the way of the world.  Each generation moves the civility bar a little in one direction or the other.  I don't have to like it, though.

[lab_warrior]

I find it amusing to hear that college kids don't play with the passion and heart that they used to. 

Absolutely agree with this...
that's because this is a dead-horse beaten, middle-aged, white, sportswriter CLICHE.

[Les Nessman]

Didn't Cordell Henry have to make an apology and write a letter to the other team after making the throat slashing gesture once?

[Jay Bee]

Is UticaBusBarn and uw-m grad?