No Wojo With Homer/Long Closed Door Meeting With Team

[Lighthouse 84]

*Mullin

Why do you think Mullen is "likely useless?"  I think he has done well.

Unless you're the Pope.

[GGGG]

Unless you're the Pope.

<hat tip>

I actually did that because I realized I made the same mistake earlier but still...

[MU82]

There was just some sentiment here that ridiculed Mullin and Ewing as head coaches, and to me that seems a little out of place as our coach hasn't exactly blazed an incredible start to his career.

Many people have a negative knee-jerk reaction to everything. Then those people dig in because they don't want to be wrong.

Not any Scoopers that I can think of, but "many people."

[Its DJOver]

Agree with bolded.

Sure...but not quite fair comparison with Mullin now in Year 4.  However, every year they've improved in Pomeroy from 211, to 99, to 74 last year, to 40 now (all of which are worse than MU under Wojo

Ewing in Year 2.  Too early to really measure him against Wojo

There was just some sentiment here that ridiculed Mullin and Ewing as head coaches, and to me that seems a little out of place as our coach hasn't exactly blazed an incredible start to his career.

Takes 5-years to judge, right?

Bolded is absolutely correct.  My fear with Ewing is that there were quite a few rumors about him only taking the Gtown job because he couldn't get a HC job in the NBA, and that if one were offered to him, he would immediately jump ship.  Now rumors are often not true, and he might really be enjoying his time at Gtown and want to stay, I just think that the allure of the NBA might be too much for him to turn down, which would mean Gtown would start over again.

[barfolomew]

Back to the original topic, has anyone heard why Howie Long requested a closed door meeting with the team in the first place?

[Heisenberg]

I think former NBA players and coaches just have a different vibe.  It drives me nuts to see college coaches micro-managing everything and screaming incessantly on the sidelines.  Mullin and Ewing both seem to choose their words carefully letting the players figure it out.  A lot of other successful college coaches have as well. 

The current head basketball coach at Georgia completes agrees with this.

[Floorslapper]

Many people have a negative knee-jerk reaction to everything. Then those people dig in because they don't want to be wrong.

Not any Scoopers that I can think of, but "many people."

Yep.  And then you have the rainbows and unicorns crowd that preaches patience and along the way grasps at straws to rationalize mediocrity. 

And then you have those who knee jerk to positivity, like I did around Buzz within his first 10 games as head coach at MU.  As you know, I did just the opposite around Wojo and kneejerked to negativity. 

So.  Each case is unique with a coach.  Just funny that those who have been so supportive of Wojo ridiculed Mullin as a coach.

[Mr. Sand-Knit]

The ridicule of Mullin is hilarous and quite ignorant since we are tossing the word around.  Brewcitys calculations and observations have SJU as a poorly coached bad team.  Well they are 13-1 and just whipped MU by 20.  In their 1 loss they led at Seton hall by 10 with minutes left and had the ball in their hands with 3 seconds left and the lead when the ref blew the whistle n chose to take it away and give it to SH.
Mullin recruits and is the leader n motivator.  Gary St. Jean spent his career in the NBA and is the Xs n Os guy who will call a play after discussing with Mullin or draw one up.  Is working for them.
Seems we once had a coach that said he was the leader n his asst was the xs n os guy.  Not sure there is a specific firmula beyond adding up the Ws

[jesmu84]

Yep.  And then you have the rainbows and unicorns crowd that preaches patience and along the way grasps at straws to rationalize mediocrity. 

And then you have those who knee jerk to positivity, like I did around Buzz within his first 10 games as head coach at MU.  As you know, I did just the opposite around Wojo and kneejerked to negativity. 

So.  Each case is unique with a coach.  Just funny that those who have been so supportive of Wojo ridiculed Mullin as a coach.

Evidence for this statement?

[MU82]

Yep.  And then you have the rainbows and unicorns crowd that preaches patience and along the way grasps at straws to rationalize mediocrity. 

And then you have those who knee jerk to positivity, like I did around Buzz within his first 10 games as head coach at MU.  As you know, I did just the opposite around Wojo and kneejerked to negativity. 

So.  Each case is unique with a coach.  Just funny that those who have been so supportive of Wojo ridiculed Mullin as a coach.

Most of those who ridiculed Mullin immediately -- whether Wojo supporters or not -- were as ignorant as the Johnnies fan whom another post makes fun of.

Now, it is Mullin's fourth season. And unlike Wojo, his first three seasons produced zero winning records, zero NCAA tourney appearances, etc. So I certainly can see why, heading into his fourth season, any basketball observer might say it was put-up-or-shut-up time for Mullin. He appears to be putting up and I'm glad for him.

Same is true of Ewing. A lot of people simply said, "He's Patrick Ewing. What could he possibly know about coaching? Georgetown is doomed." Which, of course, is silliness.

The same, of course, was true of Wojo. Many here who went all-in on Shaka and then reacted to his rejection of Marquette by saying we absolutely had to get a "proven" head coach were against Wojo before he ever coached a single practice.

Some of these supposed MU fans kept rooting against him so they could be "right." Every time we'd miss on a recruit, they'd cackle and say, "I thought Wojo always gets his man." Stuff like that.

Oh, some prefaced their remarks with, "I hope I'm wrong, but ... " Sure. Being able to say, "I told you so" is a powerful drug on the interwebs. In the unlikely case that Wojo doesn't make it at Marquette, those folks will be thrilled to remind us how smart they were.

And yes, Ners, each case is unique with a coach.

[brewcity77]

The ridicule of Mullin is hilarous and quite ignorant since we are tossing the word around.  Brewcitys calculations and observations have SJU as a poorly coached bad team.  Well they are 13-1 and just whipped MU by 20.  In their 1 loss they led at Seton hall by 10 with minutes left and had the ball in their hands with 3 seconds left and the lead when the ref blew the whistle n chose to take it away and give it to SH.
Mullin recruits and is the leader n motivator.  Gary St. Jean spent his career in the NBA and is the Xs n Os guy who will call a play after discussing with Mullin or draw one up.  Is working for them.
Seems we once had a coach that said he was the leader n his asst was the xs n os guy.  Not sure there is a specific firmula beyond adding up the Ws

You really like to obsess over my posts. Not sure if I should consider you a fan or stalker 

[barfolomew]

You really like to obsess over my posts. Not sure if I should consider you a fan or stalker 

Perhaps he's a combination: meet the falker

[Floorslapper]

Evidence for this statement?

Let me modify:  *some of those.

As you know, you recall what users here post, and frequently cannot source/link, but you recall comments made.  Mullin has been ridiculed as a coach by some here.  As I recall, usually when contrasted against Wojo. 

Sorry you still get so sensitive any time anyone posts anything that is remotely critical of Wojo.  You'd have a whole lot more credibility (as would a few others), if you had any ability to ever be critical of Wojo.  At least Sultan, Brew, and Tower have that ability.  And, conversely I've had the ability to be complimentary of Wojo as well (albeit only a small percentage of the time.)

[damuts222]

Or we could all stop telling each other how to be fans...

[Floorslapper]

Most of those who ridiculed Mullin immediately -- whether Wojo supporters or not -- were as ignorant as the Johnnies fan whom another post makes fun of.

Now, it is Mullin's fourth season. And unlike Wojo, his first three seasons produced zero winning records, zero NCAA tourney appearances, etc. So I certainly can see why, heading into his fourth season, any basketball observer might say it was put-up-or-shut-up time for Mullin. He appears to be putting up and I'm glad for him.

Same is true of Ewing. A lot of people simply said, "He's Patrick Ewing. What could he possibly know about coaching? Georgetown is doomed." Which, of course, is silliness.

The same, of course, was true of Wojo. Many here who went all-in on Shaka and then reacted to his rejection of Marquette by saying we absolutely had to get a "proven" head coach were against Wojo before he ever coached a single practice.

Some of these supposed MU fans kept rooting against him so they could be "right." Every time we'd miss on a recruit, they'd cackle and say, "I thought Wojo always gets his man." Stuff like that.

Oh, some prefaced their remarks with, "I hope I'm wrong, but ... " Sure. Being able to say, "I told you so" is a powerful drug on the interwebs. In the unlikely case that Wojo doesn't make it at Marquette, those folks will be thrilled to remind us how smart they were.

And yes, Ners, each case is unique with a coach.

Sure.  All of the above is within reason.  I was more than happy to be open-minded about Wojo, and was optimistic.  Yes, I wanted Shaka, but when Wojo was announced as head coach I had no problem with the hire.

I didn't turn on Wojo until he started Sandy Cohen over Burton, maxed Derrick Wilson's playing time, while Carlino and Duane Wilson were on the roster (guys Buzz couldn't use the year prior), and of course I felt he sh$t on Dawson.  4 minutes of PT and never another chance, burning the kids's eligibility/ability to redshirt.  All of this leading us to a 4-14 Big East record and 13-19 record overall.

Look.  Wojo has improved.  But it is completely fair to call out the above.  Missing the NIT in Year's 1 and 2 is no better, really, than Mullin.  He made NCAA in Year 3 using a few of Buzz's players prominently.  Missed NCAA in Year 4 with all his guys.  Year 5 looking encouraging.  Currently 35 in Pomeroy.  (Not great, but, acceptable in my view.)

[Herman Cain]

Bolded is absolutely correct.  My fear with Ewing is that there were quite a few rumors about him only taking the Gtown job because he couldn't get a HC job in the NBA, and that if one were offered to him, he would immediately jump ship.  Now rumors are often not true, and he might really be enjoying his time at Gtown and want to stay, I just think that the allure of the NBA might be too much for him to turn down, which would mean Gtown would start over again.

I think it is still a good deal for Georgetown no matter what happens down the road. Georgetown needed to transition away from the Thompson for a number of reasons. However, they still needed to retain that close tie to their legacy and they got that with Ewing.  My instinct is that Ewing will stay long enough to restore their program to being a strong competitor in the Big East and making the tournament consistently. When he gets to that point in the road, he will have lots of options.

[GGGG]

I didn't turn on Wojo until he started Sandy Cohen over Burton, maxed Derrick Wilson's playing time, while Carlino and Duane Wilson were on the roster (guys Buzz couldn't use the year prior), and of course I felt he sh$t on Dawson.  4 minutes of PT and never another chance, burning the kids's eligibility/ability to redshirt.  All of this leading us to a 4-14 Big East record and 13-19 record overall.

I think its time for everyone to move on.

[skianth16]

Some of these supposed MU fans kept rooting against him so they could be "right." Every time we'd miss on a recruit, they'd cackle and say, "I thought Wojo always gets his man." Stuff like that.

Oh, some prefaced their remarks with, "I hope I'm wrong, but ... " Sure. Being able to say, "I told you so" is a powerful drug on the interwebs. In the unlikely case that Wojo doesn't make it at Marquette, those folks will be thrilled to remind us how smart they were.

I don't think there's a single person who spend time on Scoop that has ever rooted against Marquette. Gloating when you feel validated is far different than rooting for failure.

I've been a very vocal critic of Wojo prior to this season, but I would much rather see the program succeed than be able to say "I told you so" to a bunch of strangers on the internet. What do I gain even from that? Trying to paint people who disagree with your opinion on Wojo as so selfish that they would root against their alma mater or favorite team is really stretching. (not specific to any single poster, it's been said a number of times)

Can we just do away with this narrative already? Reasonable people disagree. It happens. We all want Marquette to win, but we have different views on how that can happen.

[Frenns Liquor Depot]

Was the closed door meeting a Scoop therapy session?

[Loose Cannon]

Perhaps he's a combination: meet the falker

I remember the movie.

[MU82]

Sure.  All of the above is within reason.  I was more than happy to be open-minded about Wojo, and was optimistic.  Yes, I wanted Shaka, but when Wojo was announced as head coach I had no problem with the hire.

I didn't turn on Wojo until he started Sandy Cohen over Burton, maxed Derrick Wilson's playing time, while Carlino and Duane Wilson were on the roster (guys Buzz couldn't use the year prior), and of course I felt he sh$t on Dawson.  4 minutes of PT and never another chance, burning the kids's eligibility/ability to redshirt.  All of this leading us to a 4-14 Big East record and 13-19 record overall.

Look.  Wojo has improved.  But it is completely fair to call out the above.  Missing the NIT in Year's 1 and 2 is no better, really, than Mullin.  He made NCAA in Year 3 using a few of Buzz's players prominently.  Missed NCAA in Year 4 with all his guys.  Year 5 looking encouraging.  Currently 35 in Pomeroy.  (Not great, but, acceptable in my view.)

The fact that you still occasionally bring up your problems with Wojo's strategies as a first-year head coach -- which in sports is an eon ago -- says more about you than him, Ners.

I also strongly disagree that successfully recruiting one of the best players in the country, winning 20 games, winning the Barclay's event and renewing excitement in the program in Year 2 was "no better, really, than Mullin" going 14-19 in his second year.

The fact that Wojo followed up with an NCAA tourney season that included a victory over the No. 1 team in the nation while Mullin's third season ALSO had a losing record ... that's not only you looking for negatives to state your weak case but is very disingenuous.

If Wojo had gone 30-60 in his first three seasons, with not a single winning record, zero NCAA appearances and a 12-42 BEast record, you would have been calling for him to be fired. And I probably would have joined you.

Mullin's accomplishments in his first three years were not even close to Wojo's. Not even close. To argue otherwise is just you arguing for the sake of arguing so you can again bring up how Wojo "sh1t on" a low-D1 player who averaged 8 points as a senior at Liberty.

Frankly, it's why you have trouble getting respect here sometimes.

But I'm glad you've kind of come around on Wojo.

[Boozemon Barro]

Nothing is more important than being respected on muscoop.com

[MU82]

I don't think there's a single person who spend time on Scoop that has ever rooted against Marquette. Gloating when you feel validated is far different than rooting for failure.

Obviously, neither of us can know if there's never been a person here rooting against MU so they can say "I told you so" about Wojo.

But I will take your word that you have never done so, and it's reasonable for you to say that few (if any) actually have done so. I allow that it might have been hyperbole getting the best of me.

I hope you will stay open-minded as to Wojo's ability to lead our lads back to excellence, and that you will resist the temptation to gloat every time the team hits a bump in the road.

Go Marquette!

[skianth16]

I hope you will stay open-minded as to Wojo's ability to lead our lads back to excellence, and that you will resist the temptation to gloat every time the team hits a bump in the road.

Go Marquette!

Personally, I've turned the corner this year. The biggest thing to get me on board with Wojo has been the improvement in defense. He's done a nice job of developing Theo from a raw, physical talent into a smarter, more controlled player, and he's always been a strong recruiter. On top of all that, the players sure seem to love having him as a coach. The interactions I've seen with him on the sideline this year with Sam, Joey, Markus, and others show this time and time again.

I think Wojo is rounding out into a more complete head coach, where before I thought he was better suited as an assistant whose forte was recruiting. I still think he's a bit robotic and lacks some personality, but that's a minor quibble that doesn't come close to clouding the success he's having on the court.

[BrewCity83]

I think Wojo is rounding out into a more complete head coach, where before I thought he was better suited as an assistant whose forte was recruiting. I still think he's a bit robotic and lacks some personality, but that's a minor quibble that doesn't come close to clouding the success he's having on the court.

Buzz certainly raised the bar on our expectations when it comes to personality.