What was Wojo's alternative?

[Henry Sugar]

fixed for ya. the bad process produced all of it.

Individual awards over team success. That's a good encapsulation of Wojo's results.

[Golden Avalanche]

Individual awards over team success. That's a good encapsulation of Wojo's results.

Having a player on the First Team, a player on the Second Team, and a player on the Freshman Team is the very definition of team success.

Atypical for an unsuccessful team to accomplish this feat.

[Jon]

and ALSO produced the best non-conference for Marquette in nearly a decade. and ALSO produced the Big East player of the year and an All-American. and ALSO produced a Big East Second Team player. and ALSO produced a Big East Freshman Team player

fixed for ya. the bad process produced all of it.

and ALSO produced a disastrous end to the conference season and ALSO produced a shameful loss to Seton Hall in the conference tournament and ALSO produced a humiliating first round loss to a mid major of very slender accomplishment and ALSO produced the defection from the program of two extremely important players and ALSO produced massive discontent within the locker room and ALSO produced a team where the players have almost universally lost faith, trust, and confidence in the head coach

Fixed it for ya. Indeed, the bad process is why the Marquette Men's basketball program is in a state of chaos, turmoil, and disarray.

I get that you have zero visibility into the program. But those who do know that Wojo has lost this team. Things are a LOT worse than simply the Hausers leaving.

[MU86NC]

Looking back on it maybe it was the best strategy to run the Markus Show.  When he lost his ability to jump stop / fade away everything changed.  The groin injury and the wrist took his edge away and I guess Wojo didn't have any other plan that late in the season...  But if that hadn't happened we probably would be celebrating a great season instead of this.

[Henry Sugar]

Having a player on the First Team, a player on the Second Team, and a player on the Freshman Team is the very definition of team success.

Atypical for an unsuccessful team to accomplish this feat.

You are correct. It is atypical for an unsuccessful team to accomplish this feat.

MU finished 1-6, choked away the conference title, and got embarrassed in the NCAA tourney. That is an unsuccessful team.

[Golden Avalanche]

You are correct. It is atypical for an unsuccessful team to accomplish this feat.

MU finished 1-6, choked away the conference title, and got embarrassed in the NCAA tourney. That is an unsuccessful team.

No one disputes that Marquette was a bad team in March.

It just strikes me funny that revisionist historians on Scoop want to deny that in November, December, January, and February Marquette was a very good team even if they hated each other and the coach.

[BM1090]

You are correct. It is atypical for an unsuccessful team to accomplish this feat.

MU finished 1-6, choked away the conference title, and got embarrassed in the NCAA tourney. That is an unsuccessful team.

I really wouldn't expect this level of drama out of you. The last 7 games were an unsuccessful part of an overall solid season. After 5 months of play we had the 17th best resume in the country. That isn't "unsuccessful". Disappointing? Sure. Process is flawed? Sure. Maddening, even? Yup. Not an unsuccessful team.

[4everwarriors]

Y'all are watchin' Coach Dukiet v2, live up close and personal, aina?

[Nukem2]

Y'all are watchin' Coach Dukiet v2, live up close and personal, aina?

Dukiet never made it to the NCAAs in 10 years as a Div I coach.  Wojo has already done it twice in 5 years.

[StillWarriors]

Y'all are watchin' Coach Dukiet v2, live up close and personal, aina?

Not even remotely close. We were practically a D3 program under Dukiet

[4everwarriors]

Wojo ain't dunn yet workin' his magic, hey?

[hairy worthen]

I really wouldn't expect this level of drama out of you. The last 7 games were an unsuccessful part of an overall solid season. After 5 months of play we had the 17th best resume in the country. That isn't "unsuccessful". Disappointing? Sure. Process is flawed? Sure. Maddening, even? Yup. Not an unsuccessful team.

When the losses come in the season matters. Knowing what we know now it sure looks like wojo lost the team. That's a failure plain and simple. Also, if Wojo has lost this team, then he is dead man walking I am not sure how he comes back from that.

[Warrior Code]

Don't know if this has been mentioned yet, but "very slender accomplishment" has to be in the Scoop meme tournament, yeah?

[cheebs09]

Looking back on it maybe it was the best strategy to run the Markus Show.  When he lost his ability to jump stop / fade away everything changed.  The groin injury and the wrist took his edge away and I guess Wojo didn't have any other plan that late in the season...  But if that hadn't happened we probably would be celebrating a great season instead of this.

Isn’t that the crux of the problem? When the Markus show wasn’t working anymore, Wojo didn’t rein it in. It sort of fet like our strategy was to hope Markus could shoot his way out of it rather than working through Sam.

I commented many times that we went away from Sam in the short corner that was so successful last year. Maybe it was the addition of Joey, Ed, and more Theo.

Also, one of the lowest points for me was at the end of the Georgetown game where Wojo was looking at an official to scream at over a foul. It looked like a guy who didn’t have any answers.

[jesmu84]

Isn’t that the crux of the problem? When the Markus show wasn’t working anymore, Wojo didn’t rein it in. It sort of fet like our strategy was to hope Markus could shoot his way out of it rather than working through Sam.

I commented many times that we went away from Sam in the short corner that was so successful last year. Maybe it was the addition of Joey, Ed, and more Theo.

Also, one of the lowest points for me was at the end of the Georgetown game where Wojo was looking at an official to scream at over a foul. It looked like a guy who didn’t have any answers.

Except that it was a foul. Wojo was correct. It cost MU the game.

[79Warrior]

No one disputes that Marquette was a bad team in March.

It just strikes me funny that revisionist historians on Scoop want to deny that in November, December, January, and February Marquette was a very good team even if they hated each other and the coach.

Finishes are what matters. Nobody cares how you played in November.

[Henry Sugar]

No one disputes that Marquette was a bad team in March.

It just strikes me funny that revisionist historians on Scoop want to deny that in November, December, January, and February Marquette was a very good team even if they hated each other and the coach.

You are correct. Let me clarify.

The very good results and the very bad results are two sides of the same coin. It’s all part of overweighting the usage towards one player. The variance of the results is a feature, not a bug.

Overweighting usage towards one player is a strategy most commonly used by bad teams. Good teams, like Marquette, should minimize variance of results.

The primary reason to avoid overweighting usage is exactly what happened. Injuries are a fact of life.

Wojo opted to use a risky strategy and it worked until it imploded. I believe that this was a coaching mistake by Wojo because of both the theory and the data.

[Henry Sugar]

I really wouldn't expect this level of drama out of you. The last 7 games were an unsuccessful part of an overall solid season. After 5 months of play we had the 17th best resume in the country. That isn't "unsuccessful". Disappointing? Sure. Process is flawed? Sure. Maddening, even? Yup. Not an unsuccessful team.

I don’t believe in Wojo anymore.

I can make a compelling argument, with theory and data, that Wojo’s coaching inflexibility is a tax on Marquette that has/will negatively impact results for three consecutive years (last year, this year, next year). He is inflexible, under-coaches as a result, and Marquette underachieves.

Saying this brings me no joy.

[brewcity77]

I don’t believe in Wojo anymore.

I can make a compelling argument, with theory and data, that Wojo’s coaching inflexibility is a tax on Marquette that has/will negatively impact results for three consecutive years (last year, this year, next year). He is inflexible, under-coaches as a result, and Marquette underachieves.

Saying this brings me no joy.

My biggest disappointment this year was definitely Markus' usage. I was hoping for a 2017 redux, when we had numerous options & threats all over the floor. What frustrates me is we've seen the kind of offense Wojo can run, but too often he allows ball dominant players to overpower what would likely be a more effective team approach.

[NickelDimer]

I don’t believe in Wojo anymore.

I can make a compelling argument, with theory and data, that Wojo’s coaching inflexibility is a tax on Marquette that has/will negatively impact results for three consecutive years (last year, this year, next year). He is inflexible, under-coaches as a result, and Marquette underachieves.

Saying this brings me no joy.

Agreed. I’ve been steady in my belief, which predates the Hauser fiasco, that next year would be Wojo’s last. The question marks surrounding his ability/inability to coach shouldn’t still be questions five years in. And now we can openly question his leadership. I wish they’d have pulled the plug after the season.

[ATL MU Warrior]

You are correct. Let me clarify.

The very good results and the very bad results are two sides of the same coin. It’s all part of overweighting the usage towards one player. The variance of the results is a feature, not a bug.

Overweighting usage towards one player is a strategy most commonly used by bad teams. Good teams, like Marquette, should minimize variance of results.

The primary reason to avoid overweighting usage is exactly what happened. Injuries are a fact of life.

Wojo opted to use a risky strategy and it worked until it imploded. I believe that this was a coaching mistake by Wojo because of both the theory and the data.

What troubles me about this is this:  is overweighting usage towards one player truly a strategy or is it an outcome of an imbalanced roster? 

I have a hard time believing that any coach is going to say ahead of time that he wants one guy to take 30-40% of all shots. I think that guy takes that percentage of shots as the result of a combination of factors including a) ability to create, b) lack of that ability by others, c) reticence to shoot by others, etc., etc. 

It’s fine to look at it after the fact and draw conclusions based on the data, but to somehow say that it was the team’s strategy going in seems like an awfully big reach.

[Goose]

Henry

I pointed out during the good run that Wojo was basically coaching in a win now philosophy. The early wins were highlighted by individual(s) high level performance and he ran with that until ran out of gas. In his five years at MU, he is utilized this system. From Carlino, to Henry, to Rowsey and then Howard, the system has been hoping one or two guys could carry a team.

IMO, it is either he has little or no confidence in majority of the talent level or he does not know how to coach. In all my years of watching MU ball I have never seen so many individual performances. This is the exact point I was making a month ago in regards to a lack of system. Having one or two guys score 60, 70 or higher percent of points is not a way to build a foundation. Worse, it causes animosity among the ranks.

IMO, it comes down to the talent recruited. There are guys on this team that likely could have been coached up and been real contributors if Wojo has the chops to coach them up.

Lastly, it is virtually impossible to have long term success when team success is counting on a guy to score 40. As I have said many times, I believe Wojo is in way over his head.

[rocket surgeon]

Agreed. I’ve been steady in my belief, which predates the Hauser fiasco, that next year would be Wojo’s last. The question marks surrounding his ability/inability to coach shouldn’t still be questions five years in. And now we can openly question his leadership. I wish they’d have pulled the plug after the season.

yes, but one has to think the admin had to have had some knowledge that there was discord at minimum.  that being said, i guess the admin wanting to stick with our mission statement prevented them from interfering err sumpin

[Henry Sugar]

Goose, I think you are on point.

[forgetful]

IMO, it comes down to the talent recruited. There are guys on this team that likely could have been coached up and been real contributors if Wojo has the chops to coach them up.

Do you mean like Theo John and Sacar have been? They've made tremendous strides. So has Howard.