Really Good Day for the Future of Marquette Basketball

[WhiteTrash]

I know some people don't believe it, but playing for Shaka at MU is very appealing. We will be serious players in the portal.

[wadesworld]

Ok, we can compare him to @MU82 and others here, if you like. Lol

I think a more relevant comparison is his ~100 actual peers

But he didn't just start his career as a D1 head men's basketball coach. Hence why I said the top 0.00001% of his profession. There are a lot of people paid to coach basketball in the world. Many who would love to be where Shaka is. He gets paid millions of dollars to do his job. He's objectively one of the best in the world at what he does. And objectively one of the more successful people in the world, regardless of profession.

[Scoop Snoop]

Ok, we can compare him to @MU82[/member] and others here, if you like. Lol

I think a more relevant comparison is his ~100 actual peers

Nah. Shaka would be one in a bazillion if MU82 did the math.

[rocky_warrior]

He gets paid millions of dollars to do his job. He's objectively one of the best in the world at what he does.

Yes.  And debatable! Lol.  You threw out a stupid %.  Just admit it

Nah. Shaka would be one in a bazillion if MU82 did the math.

Also true.  One of the great mathematicians of our time.

[wadesworld]

Yes.  And debatable! Lol.  You threw out a stupid %.  Just admit it

Also true.  One of the great mathematicians of our time.

I'd guess it's an even greater percentage honestly.

[rocky_warrior]

Cheers man!

[Juan Anderson's Mixtape]

Nice to see the public confirmation we'll be adding portal guys.

But not surprising to hear considering we've already been putting in the groundwork on portal guys for at least a few weeks now.

Great to hear that Shaka's being proactive. 

[Small Orange Soda]

Was Shaka given an ultimatum? Probably not, but that statement today was obviously damage control for the athletic department and Shaka and his staff. As far as it being clear that Shaka knows he needs to change his strategy, well this is two years in a row he doesn't have a competent center, so let's not count chickens before they hatch.

Will he use the portal this offseason? Yes. But that's only half the battle. A few years ago he had a quote about how he didn't know why he would recruit and pay a player from the Mountain West over a guy who has spent his whole career here. Is he going to acknowledge that you do that if the player is clearly better?

[Pakuni]

Great to hear that Shaka's being proactive. 

Sarcasm?

[Scoop Snoop]

Will he use the portal this offseason? Yes. But that's only half the battle. A few years ago he had a quote about how he didn't know why he would recruit and pay a player from the Mountain West over a guy who has spent his whole career here. Is he going to acknowledge that you do that if the player is clearly better?

You got right to the heart of the problem of RGV as an operating system: effectively granting tenure to HS recruits who choose Marquette and circling the wagons to protect them.

I agree that he was probably not given an ultimatum, but he can read the handwriting on the wall. Marquette putting out a statement that encompasses more people than just Shaka speaks volumes. I want the original version of Marquette coach, not RGV coach, Shaka Smart. It is Marquette's team, not his personal team. 

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Was Shaka given an ultimatum? Probably not, but that statement today was obviously damage control for the athletic department and Shaka and his staff. As far as it being clear that Shaka knows he needs to change his strategy, well this is two years in a row he doesn't have a competent center, so let's not count chickens before they hatch.

Will he use the portal this offseason? Yes. But that's only half the battle. A few years ago he had a quote about how he didn't know why he would recruit and pay a player from the Mountain West over a guy who has spent his whole career here. Is he going to acknowledge that you do that if the player is clearly better?

Using the portal is only half the battle? What on earth are you talking about?

What was shared today is objectively great news yet people are still looking for reasons to nitpick, parse words, and live in the past.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

You got right to the heart of the problem of RGV as an operating system: effectively granting tenure to HS recruits who choose Marquette and circling the wagons to protect them.

I agree that he was probably not given an ultimatum, but he can read the handwriting on the wall. Marquette putting out a statement that encompasses more people than just Shaka speaks volumes. I want the original version of Marquette coach, not RGV coach, Shaka Smart. It is Marquette's team, not his personal team. 

RGV and the portal don't have to be mutually exclusive.

[Small Orange Soda]

Using the portal is only half the battle? What on earth are you talking about?

What was shared today is objectively great news yet people are still looking for reasons to nitpick, parse words, and live in the past.

Look, I am optimistic, but -- and I believe you agree -- he needs to get starters in the portal. Two of them need to, along with Parham and James, be our top four players.

[Pakuni]

Do you not understand how many people in this world coach basketball? Think of the number of high schools that have 2-4 coaches per freshman, JV, and varsity team. How many AAU teams there are.

Yes, I'd say 0.00001%.

To be fair, the vast majority of these people are not full-time basketball coaches. They're teachers who coach after school for a stipend or guys who coach part time while having another job on the side.

Shaka is clearly near the top of his profession, but I'm not sure his profession is the same profession as a freshman girls coach or AAU assistant.

[Pakuni]

I'm sure there's an interesting story we'll never find out about why they're pushing this narrative today. Feels like mostly a message to the fan base, and perhaps some of the whales in the fan base. Doing it during a random February game in Cincinnati, as opposed to something like National Marquette Day or Senior Day, is a curious call.

[Scoop Snoop]

I'm sure there's an interesting story we'll never find out about why they're pushing this narrative today. Feels like mostly a message to the fan base, and perhaps some of the whales in the fan base. Doing it during a random February game in Cincinnati, as opposed to something like National Marquette Day or Senior Day, is a curious call.

I like the narrative, and my take is it was crafted to make it look like Shaka has seen the light on his own and the athletic department and prez are assuring him they are onboard and that they will give him the financial support that he needs. The fact that it was not solely from Shaka, I think, speaks volumes. Just my opinion. And yes-"interesting".

[barfolomew]

[wadesworld]

So let me get this straight. We went from "We hired a University President and Athletic Director who will be yes men to Shaka's RGV, going so far as to make the Spirit Shop all RGV, market it everywhere, heck, make it the University'd unofficial motto," to, "Maybe it wasn't an ultimatum given to Shaka, but Shaka sees the writing on the wall that RGV is not acceptable and changes are needed, and the administration is getting word out there" in about a month. Do I have that correct?

[ski44]

I think the discrepancy between the top of the roster and everyone else is evident by the fact that two MU players had a double/double today in a losing cause. AI tells me this has never happened before in MU history, but I don't trust AI...

[Small Orange Soda]

So let me get this straight. We went from "We hired a University President and Athletic Director who will be yes men to Shaka's RGV, going so far as to make the Spirit Shop all RGV, market it everywhere, heck, make it the University'd unofficial motto," to, "Maybe it wasn't an ultimatum given to Shaka, but Shaka sees the writing on the wall that RGV is not acceptable and changes are needed, and the administration is getting word out there" in about a month. Do I have that correct?

Well, no. But we did go from Shaka dismissing Ben Steele's question about transfers a few months ago to the report today. Things change fast when you have the worst team in a generation.

[wadesworld]

Well, no. But we did go from Shaka dismissing Ben Steele's question about transfers a few months ago to the report today. Things change fast when you have the worst team in a generation.

Agreed. If this were a Tourney team Shaka would be working on keeping everyone around. As it is, he's working on finding talent upgrades. He's a competitive guy who's adjusting his strategy to make sure he wins big again.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Look, I am optimistic, but -- and I believe you agree -- he needs to get starters in the portal. Two of them need to, along with Parham and James, be our top four players.

I agree that two starters are needed but I'm still confused by your post.

Are you assuming they're going to use the portal to bring in crap?

If that was the case there wouldn't be any reason to pivot to the portal.