for one minute can we please just admit..............

[willie99]

coaching doesn't matter? then explain to me how teams in this conference with marginal talent outperform year in and year out and uconn with 2 potential high lottery picks underperform......to just blame the team and not the coaching is flat out dillusional.

I'm sorry, who in the conference is better coached again?

 

[djct1999]

the fact that other teams constantly get open looks on the perimeter or that our offense is stagnant for the first 30 seconds then they play isolation or the fact that we have yet to adjust to any sort of zone is coaching.

 

[willie99]

so who are these superior coaches you speak of

 

[Henry]

It's the offesne. You can't win at this level scoring 64 points, not consistentlly. You just can't.

And you can't score playing one on one basketball.

 

[huskyharry]

Mau,
you are certainly passionate in your defense of the coaching staff and throwing all of the blame on the players, but you fail to address my points above about why the returning players are performing so much more poorly than they did in the first year.

I think it is pretty clear that both the coaches and the players are to blame.

 

[djct1999]

no one is suggesting there are superior coaches and you would/should be hardpressed(i think) to find any huskie fan who doesn't think the world of calhoun. but, read what is being written. the staff this year has done a poor job. i can name many games this year that we were outcoached. can you argue otherwise?

 

[mauconnfan]

Mau,
you are certainly passionate in your defense of the coaching staff and throwing all of the blame on the players, but you fail to address my points above about why the returning players are performing so much more poorly than they did in the first year.

I think it is pretty clear that both the coaches and the players are to blame.

I guess I can't address it because I'm not Roscoe and Alex.....maybe you should ask them because I know for a fact the coaches sit with them and go over film. And when coaches do this they show them what they should've done in situations and then it's up to the player to comprehend, react differently in the same siutation and react in a more positive way. Go to the gym, work on the moves, work on your footwork - if you don't think the coaches are trying to make them better you're all nuts. It works with some and others just never get it........

 

[baldinghusky]

the fact that other teams constantly get open looks on the perimeter or that our offense is stagnant for the first 30 seconds then they play isolation or the fact that we have yet to adjust to any sort of zone is coaching.

...yet to adjust to any sort of zone? Were you watching the Syracuse game?

 

[SouthTampaBill]

Most of our guys have grown up playing basketball and were bigger, faster stronger than any of their competition without learning the fundamentals like boxing out.

Now they are playing great athletes some of who were undersized (like Marquette) who have strong fundamentals and in addition many of these guys are upperclassmen who have been in the system for their third or fourth year.

So, I can't blame guys like AD who have to un-learn years of existing solely on size and talent but AO is another story. Just no excuse for what he continues to do on the court as a 6'9" 245 lbs guy getting pushed around, out rebounded and with next to no offensive skills

 

[businesslawyer]

the fact that other teams constantly get open looks on the perimeter or that our offense is stagnant for the first 30 seconds then they play isolation or the fact that we have yet to adjust to any sort of zone is coaching.

No, it's not. The coaches can't guard anyone. Coaches can teach and players have to execute. Is it possible that the coaches this year, after all their success, are teaching differently, and materially worse, than they did last year? Sure, that's possible. Is it more likely that the coaches are coaching similarly to the way they always have and these players just aren't getting it? It's far, far more likely.

When a teacher with a stellar record of getting a class ready for the AP test year after year in American History has one year where the class does much, much poorer, is it more likely that the teacher lost his skills all at once or a new class of students failed to work hard enough to learn from him?

 

[Matt (Chicago)]

Thank You!!!! Finally someone on here is making some sense. I have been thinking the same thing for quite some time now.....And to be honest I am NOT sold on Ollie being the next man up at all. Ideally I would like the coach out of Ariz. or the young kid in Memphis, but I really don't see either happening. But back to the point, this lack of execution falls on the coaches heads. This could be the worst half court offense, and lack of effort on D I've seen in quite some time

Glad to see such intelligent commentary. Clearly you're well educated on why these guys should be our next coach, being that you don't even know their names..

 

[Reno]

College basketball is mostly about recruiting. If you want to get on the coaching staff for anything get on them for that. Plenty of guys on this team are good complimentary players, but there isn't a guy on the roster who can play at a star level right now. Oriakhi, Smith, and Daniels all look like they don't belong on a team of UConn's stature.

 

[UConn990411]

College basketball is mostly about recruiting. If you want to get on the coaching staff for anything get on them for that. Plenty of guys on this team are good complimentary players, but there isn't a guy on the roster who can play at a star level right now. Oriakhi, Smith, and Daniels all look like they don't belong on a team of UConn's stature.

Two of those guys you named were key pieces to a national championship run.

Other than that, you're wrong.

 

[tzznandrew]

College basketball is mostly about recruiting. If you want to get on the coaching staff for anything get on them for that. Plenty of guys on this team are good complimentary players, but there isn't a guy on the roster who can play at a star level right now. Oriakhi, Smith, and Daniels all look like they don't belong on a team of UConn's stature.

Wasn't Oriakhi honored with being on the Western Bracket team?

This is just silly. Two of those are national champions (and important to it as well), and the other one clearly has ability to play.

 

[djct1999]

good teachers adjust. if the test changes, teaching students what once was on the test wont be as effective as teaching what will be. your analogy as it pertains to basketball makes no sense. good coaches always adjust to the strengths of their respective squads. what you wrote is exactly the problem.......man to man defense and motion offense may have worked in years past on very different Uconn teams, but clearly isnt working with this group.

 

[businesslawyer]

Two of those guys you named were key pieces to a national championship run.

Other than that, you're wrong.

Competent coaches wouldn't be settling for recruits who help you win national championships. They should only be recruiting guys who can take you to multiple national championships. And forget that only one team has repeated in forever -- that's because no coach anywhere is good enough.

 

[Huskymaniac]

You don't have to bicker about details because the bottom line is that it ALL falls on the coaches...ALWAYS! That is true both when they win championships and when they fail to make the NCAA tourney.

For the down years, if the problem isn't coaching them once they are on the team, it is recruiting the wrong kids to start with. That isn't to say that the staff is either always good or always bad. A good coaching staff, like ours, can make mistakes or fail to get through to kids from time to time. When the issues pile up, you get the turd seasons that we seem to have occasionally. Some coaches (Coach K, the squid, Roy and a couple of others) recruit SO MANY blue chip players that they can't help but be able to put at least a good performing team on the floor. They don't really need to coach much because the kids are so good and they get so many of these highly rated kids that they can always afford to have a couple of them be duds. Contrary to what some believe, Calhoun does not cheat or bend the rules more than most other high D1 coaches. As such, he can't afford to make as many mistakes or fail to reach kids.

This year I think we have a combination of recruiting mistakes and failing to reach kids. Some players have gone backwards relative to last year and/or earlier this season. And some players don't seem to be able to deliver on their "hype". And there is evidence that there is a team chemistry cancer. That would be a recruiting mistake, if true.

This program has been wildly succesful. As such, the coaching staff has had to be wildly great. But you can't give them credit for the sucesses and not give them blame for the failures. The occasional dud team is also their responsibility. But what is also true is that we can't do anything about it. It is what it is......

 

[businesslawyer]

You don't have to bicker about details because the bottom line is that it ALL falls on the coaches...ALWAYS! That is true both when they win championships and when they fail to make the NCAA tourney.

For the down years, if the problem isn't coaching them once they are on the team, it is recruiting the wrong kids to start with. That isn't to say that the staff is either always good or always bad. A good coaching staff, like ours, can make mistakes or fail to get through to kids from time to time. When the issues pile up, you get the turd seasons that we seem to have occasionally. Some coaches (Coach K, the squid, Roy and a couple of others) recruit SO MANY blue chip players that they can't help but be able to put at least a good performing team on the floor. They don't really need to coach much because the kids are so good and they get so many of these highly rated kids that they can always afford to have a couple of them be duds. Contrary to what some believe, Calhoun does not cheat or bend the rules more than most other high D1 coaches. As such, he can't afford to make as many mistakes or fail to reach kids.

This year I think we have a combination of recruiting mistakes and failing to reach kids. Some players have gone backwards relative to last year and/or earlier this season. And some players don't seem to be able to deliver on their "hype". And there is evidence that there is a team chemistry cancer. That would be a recruiting mistake, if true.

This program has been wildly succesful. As such, the coaching staff has had to be wildly great. But you can't give them credit for the sucesses and not give them blame for the failures. The occasional dud team is also their responsibility. But what is also true is that we can't do anything about it. It is what it is......

The coach is responsibile for everything, but only truly controls long term performance. No one would disagree that Calhoun is responsible for the team's performance. But year by year performance is determined by the players. In any sport.