dook has become Kentucky

[Edward Sargent]

Trent, Bagley and Duval all leaving early with Carter expeted to announce soon.

Gary Trent enters 2018 NBA Draft, joining Duke teammates Marvin Bagley, Trevon Duval

Two most valuable teams in college basketball - all you need to know

 

[Mr. French]

Is this particular recruiting strategy a recipe for coming up short of expectations, or is coaching a college basketball team in the first place a recipe for doing that? It isn't as if Duke and Kentucky have struggled. They're both generally ranked in the top ten and in the conversation for a top seed by selection Sunday. Once you get to the tournament, there's a lot of luck involved.

It's definitely an imperfect philosophy to rely on freshman every year, but the flip side to that would be relying on kids who aren't as talented. Ask Virginia, Kansas, Arizona, Gonzaga, and until recently, Nova, about how reliable that approach is. Sometimes you do sign four year players and it just doesn't work out - look no further than Grayson Allen, who was supposed to be the veteran presence they needed to bust through until he wasn't (incidentally, he did come through as an untested freshman - sometimes you just don't know). Obviously if you can build a roster around multiple five star recruits who stay for three or four years, you do it, but it can be hard to forecast ahead of time who those players are going to be.

Totally agree. That’s why if you’re in that position as a coach and roster-builder, it is a tough situation.

At the same time, if you have the pick of almost every player, sometimes it might be more prudent to fill 1-2 spots with 4* or lower 5* that aren’t essentially guaranteed to leave.

I understand it’s not cut and dry, just that I think it’s got to be a consideration. The counter to my own argument is that if you have the chance for THIS YEAR to choose 1-2 studs and you willingly choose 2 guys who aren’t as talented, you may risk losing that year. I get it.

I just know the IDEAL is to get the guys like a freshman Bazz, a freshman Brunson, even our favorite Grayson...those guys were good enough to be factors ASAP but also going to stay and develop.

I’m not trying to say anything earth shattering. I get why you’d choose the 5 best guys in the country if possible.

 

[whaler11]

They were regular season conference champions the year before he got there. They were conference tournament champs 2 years before he got there.

I mean, they even went to the Final game in the NCAAs 2 years before he got there.

That's hardly on the verge of falling into irrelevance. He walked into a winner, and turned it in to a juggernaut. He deserves all the credit in the world, but let's not pretend he took over some moribund regional school.

They struggled in the mid 70s, but had turned it around before he arrived.

Moribund regional school? No.

You see any other school with a profile like Duke’s that has competed like they have for decades?

You’ve got the last 5 years of Jay Wright at Nova as the only thing that comes close and that’s 20% of what K accomplished.

He beat giants of coaching who died decades ago and is still beating the kids today.

There are people in their mid 30’s that don’t remember them beating UNLV.

 

[gtcam]

With Carter Jr likely to leave and the Gaza Tripper graduating, that's your entire starting lineup not back next year. Top 5 players leaving. lol

Yeah but with their recruiting class they will be in the top 10
Don't agree with the recruiting style but K has to get the top players and all these guys are 1 and dones
I wouldn't like to see UConn turn in this type of factory but the winning is nice

 

[intlzncster]

Moribund regional school? No.

You see any other school with a profile like Duke’s that has competed like they have for decades?

You’ve got the last 5 years of Jay Wright at Nova as the only thing that comes close and that’s 20% of what K accomplished.

He beat giants of coaching who died decades ago and is still beating the kids today.

There are people in their mid 30’s that don’t remember them beating UNLV.

As I said above, he deserves all the credit in the world. He took over a winning program and "turned them into a goshdarn juggernaut". Like nothing anyone else has seen in the modern game. Far more impressive (to me) than Wooden's UCLA period.

 

[gtcam]

Coach K has completely discredited himself as a basketball coach. Remember the commercial from years back when he said, "I'm not a basketball coach. I'm a leader who happens to coach basketball." I used to shout at the screen, "You're a basketball coach, you rat-faced twerp." Turns out he's not a basketball coach, either, never mind a leader.. He's an opportunist using the Duke brand in the hope of striking gold. That is all that's left of the revered Coach K.

Can't agree with this at all
I abhor Duke but K has built a brand that recruits with it's name and to remain at the level that the brand has developed he needs the top players
He's a coach all right but he has become a complainer and that is bothersome

 

[whaler11]

As I said above, he deserves all the credit in the world. He took over a winning program and "turned them into a goshdarn juggernaut". Like nothing anyone else has seen in the modern game. Far more impressive (to me) than Wooden's UCLA period.

Whatever moran

 

[B1GEast]

Two most valuable teams in college basketball - all you need to know

And probably the two most hated as well. They deserve each other.

 

[uconnfan68]

This has got to start negatively affecting their APR

You’d think, but the NCAA just accepts whatever they’re told by certain schools. Fake classes? No worries. Team full of 1&dones? They all stay through 2nd semester I’m sure. Students first, amirite?

 

[whaler11]

You’d think, but the NCAA just accepts whatever they’re told by certain schools. Fake classes? No worries. Team full of 1&dones? They all stay through 2nd semester I’m sure. Students first, amirite?

Literally everyone in the world but UConn understands how college sports work.

We get the rubes who publish legit numbers and then trash the football program because we hired an AD to impress the NCAA with his mastery of fixing the APR.

Maybe the keystone rent a cops can arrest half the team on spring weekend to dial up the difficulty.

 

[MattMang23]

There are people in their mid 30’s that don’t remember them beating UNLV.

<--------------- Yes, right here. Hello.

 

[Kembacity]

This has got to start negatively affecting their APR

HAHAHA good one!

 

[Mano]

Certainly I think we would all agree it would make our lives as UConn fans a lot more exciting to have this turnstile of 5*’s coming in and out year after year while making deep or semi-deep runs in the tourney and winning our conference. I just wonder once some time has passed what will be remembered. Will many of those guys have made lasting impacts on the culture of the school? Will they be thought of with the same reverence as the guys that stayed for multiple runs? Will they be considered all-timers like some that came before? I ask because I’m genuinely curious. I look at Andre, and think of a guy who bleeds blue more than most but of course look back at his time here with a whole lot of meh. Obviously that would be drastically different had they managed to accomplish our loftier goals. Anyway, I guess it would be a happy problem to have, idk?

 

[KemBaller]

It's an 'astounded' laugh, rather than 'ha ha look at them'. Part of it includes the fact that they lose 5 starters, gain the Top 3 recruits, and will be in the Top 10 again. crazy

Duke done gone and perfected Cal's system.

Not even top 10. They're the betting favorites for next year.

 

[KemBaller]

While I agree it takes talent like this to win a title, it's extremely hard to win a title with more than 1 or 2 one and dones in your starting line up. Kentucky has tried it for like 10 straight years now and has one title, even though they're rated very highly every year in the preseason. The key is to keep some of these guys more than 1 year.

And yes, I wish we had these problems right now!

And Kentucky has also been to the final 4 four times and the title game twice since Cal got there. There's like 4 other programs that have been as successful in the tourney over that timeframe (us included).

 

[Huskyforlife]

I'd hate to have great players, what fun is that? Watching my favorite team be top 25 good every year would get so boring, I'm glad we've taken a break from blue blood status, personally.

 

[temery]

They had a good run in the early 60’s. Got to three Final Fours beating road apples like UConn.

They were headed towards where Duke’s football program ended up and then he went 998-271.

Is the next argument that Dean Smith got fat off the Carolina brand?

He got lucky

 

[Mokum]

Yup and just like Kentucky they come up short in March most of the time because of inexperience.

3 more one and dones coming in next season.

Exactly. The one and done route is not the way to go.

 

[Mokum]

Don't laugh too much. They're still going to be a top 10 team.

Yeah but will they deserve it or is it because they are Duke?

 

[MattMang23]

Yeah but will they deserve it or is it because they are Duke?

Can it be both?

 

[willie99]

K's ok with fake students and the one and done

But allowing a lesser talented player who obtained a degree in 4 years to transfer and play a 5th year while working on a graduate degree? why that's blasphemy

Some people live in a parallel universe

 

[cohenzone]

Coach K has completely discredited himself as a basketball coach. Remember the commercial from years back when he said, "I'm not a basketball coach. I'm a leader who happens to coach basketball." I used to shout at the screen, "You're a basketball coach, you rat-faced twerp." Turns out he's not a basketball coach, either, never mind a leader.. He's an opportunist using the Duke brand in the hope of striking gold. That is all that's left of the revered Coach K.

Our coaches would have loved to have just about every one of those players and most of the BY would’ve been orgasmic when they committed
Hello Andre Drummond.

 

[cohenzone]

Ps. That Coach K ad was nauseating and I dont know why it didnt violate some NCAA rule or other. Probably did, but hey, it was Duke.

 

[jibsey]

Having a 5 Star big in the paint every year takes a lot of pressure off a coach. How bout a 5 Star point to go with that? Their worst case scenario is that the kids won’t gel until the second half and their seeding will be over a 3. That is a bad year. K gets credit for creating the situation in which the best of this country’s HS players are jockeying for a spot on the roster. Jay Wright is getting into Calhoun territory and that is to be respected.

 

[Kembacity]

Having a 5 Star big in the paint every year takes a lot of pressure off a coach. How bout a 5 Star point to go with that? Their worst case scenario is that the kids won’t gel until the second half and their seeding will be over a 3. That is a bad year. K gets credit for creating the situation in which the best of this country’s HS players are jockeying for a spot on the roster. Jay Wright is getting into Calhoun territory and that is to be respected.

I think I'd much rather have a 3rd/4th year PG who isn't destined to be a perennial talent but I'd take an SF and PF/C who is a 5* unicorn year in year out

 

[mauconnfan]

Our coaches would have loved to have just about every one of those players and most of the BY would’ve been orgasmic when they committed
Hello Andre Drummond.

Nah have to admit as a fan of the program Andre, while a great kid, hardly seems like a Husky to me. Oh I know he is, but the feeling is a ton different between he and Emeka from that point of view. Like to see the kids grow in our program I doubt I'd ever get used to the shuffling in and out of the kids after a year.

 

[cohenzone]

Nah have to admit as a fan of the program Andre, while a great kid, hardly seems like a Husky to me. Oh I know he is, but the feeling is a ton different between he and Emeka from that point of view. Like to see the kids grow in our program I doubt I'd ever get used to the shuffling in and out of the kids after a year.

That's my point. UConn and its fans wanted Andre even though he pretty clearly was one and done. As I said, BYers can woof about Calipari and Coach K all we want, but we went after a lot of the same kids they got. They just broke more rules to get them. For the last two years, would UConn have rejected trading our team for either of those?

 

[willie99]

Our coaches would have loved to have just about every one of those players and most of the BY would’ve been orgasmic when they committed
Hello Andre Drummond.

I want a student who's on campus more than 8 months, and AD originally indicated he would stay two years, then things changed. JC retired and a post season ban altered the direction of the program and AD's career.

And having AD for 8 months reinforced my position that I don't want one and done players. I didn't like having one, can't imagine having a bunch of them every year.

I happen to like our MO for success, I like watching kids develop, and that's not going to change

 

[cohenzone]

I want a student who's on campus more than 8 months, and AD originally indicated he would stay two years, then things changed. JC retired and a post season ban altered the direction of the program and AD's career.

And having AD for 8 months reinforced my position that I don't want one and done players. I didn't like having one, can't imagine having a bunch of them every year.

I happen to like our MO for success, I like watching kids develop, and that's not going to change

I totally agree. As I said, though, it's easy to trash the programs that have a had a lot of early departures when the BY salivated whenever it seemed like UConn was involved with a bunch of the same kids. Hopefully new rules will stop the junk and assure that college programs are stabilized. I'm not that crazy about two and dones. And UConn has used a lot of reverse one and dones also known as grad transfers.

 

[jibsey]

I want a student who's on campus more than 8 months, and AD originally indicated he would stay two years, then things changed. JC retired and a post season ban altered the direction of the program and AD's career.

And having AD for 8 months reinforced my position that I don't want one and done players. I didn't like having one, can't imagine having a bunch of them every year.

I happen to like our MO for success, I like watching kids develop, and that's not going to change

Our MO for success? That used to be getting players like Rip Hamilton, Donyell and KEA, and even with them we were less talented on paper than most of the blue bloods. Also remember that the one or two and done of yesteryear is different than that of today. If we can get back to that kind of talent in recruiting I will be dancing in the streets.