Why is Luke such a basketball genius? I read that he played in high school, coached AAU in college, but the guy seems to be heads and shoulders above other coaches when it comes to offense. Is he just a lot smarter than the average coach? Trying to get a read of why he's so successful.
Luke Murray Genius?
- Thread starter knicksin7
- Start date
- Status
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2011
- Messages
- 7,633
- Reaction Score
- 26,130
Nobody will really know if he is a great head coach or coaching genius until he becomes a successful head coach. All we have now is speculation. There have been many great coordinators who have flopped as head coaches.
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2011
- Messages
- 5,966
- Reaction Score
- 14,982
- Joined
- Sep 21, 2011
- Messages
- 5,966
- Reaction Score
- 14,982
He sounds like a guy obsessed with putting in the work. Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.
FfldCntyFan
Texas: Property of UConn Men's Basketball program
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2011
- Messages
- 15,505
- Reaction Score
- 61,658
I believe its genetics.
HuskyHawk
The triumphant return of the Blues Brothers.
- Joined
- Sep 12, 2011
- Messages
- 35,510
- Reaction Score
- 94,561
He looks to the European game and gets his ideas from there. There's a reason the NBA keeps drafting Euro kids and the seem to be so offensively skilled. It's the way they approach the game. I don't think he's a genius or smarter than most other coaches, I think he's just out on the cutting edge of a trend that will continue to evolve in the U.S. game.
Soccer went through something like this when a Dutchman Johan Cruyff brought his approach to Barcelona.
.-.
Luke is smart, he loves the game, and he works hard.
He found a good coaching partner that would implement his ideas, and just as importantly, who is a proven successful teacher that emphasizes details and has a high standard for work ethic. The sets wouldn't be nearly as good if we didn't drill them to perfection and move at such a brisk pace in practice that we could add so much into the playbook. Dan also had to recruit the right guys that are able to absorb and retain that much information and then execute it.
He found a good coaching partner that would implement his ideas, and just as importantly, who is a proven successful teacher that emphasizes details and has a high standard for work ethic. The sets wouldn't be nearly as good if we didn't drill them to perfection and move at such a brisk pace in practice that we could add so much into the playbook. Dan also had to recruit the right guys that are able to absorb and retain that much information and then execute it.
- Joined
- Feb 20, 2023
- Messages
- 827
- Reaction Score
- 2,863
Really? My understanding is that our offensive rebirth coincided with him arriving at UConn. Is this wrong? My understanding is that Dan Hurley chose to implement his offensively philosophy, which in turn impacted the players they recruited. Is any of this wrong? I do not how one quantifies being a genius, but I can tell you this, Coach Murray's work product and DNA is all over this program.
6in25
Proud Owner of a Forever Seat
- Joined
- Feb 7, 2024
- Messages
- 388
- Reaction Score
- 2,830
- Joined
- Jan 25, 2021
- Messages
- 1,326
- Reaction Score
- 4,738
Hope he stays, maybe he won’t want to be a head coach. Wishful thinking.
- Joined
- Aug 24, 2011
- Messages
- 23,967
- Reaction Score
- 20,926
Why is he so successful?
”It just doesn’t matter. It just doesn’t matter. It just doesn’t matter. It just ….”
.-.
- Joined
- Sep 3, 2011
- Messages
- 9,568
- Reaction Score
- 32,534
Part of his genius may have been identifying Hurley’s potential, piggybacking and staying the course. Where much of Luke’s genius is hearsay and assumed, you can see Hurley’s vividly in his interviews, breaking down the XOs and how he runs a practice.
I don’t think it’s nearly as hard to identify new ways of doing, it’s much harder to teach, motivate, influence and lead kids to execute. And to build culture - it’s a different skill.
We shall see if he’s HC material on that end or if he’s more the Ernie Adams of the operation. We saw a number of “smart” guys leave Belichek to only fall on their face time and time again. Leading men is the harder part of the job.
I don’t think it’s nearly as hard to identify new ways of doing, it’s much harder to teach, motivate, influence and lead kids to execute. And to build culture - it’s a different skill.
We shall see if he’s HC material on that end or if he’s more the Ernie Adams of the operation. We saw a number of “smart” guys leave Belichek to only fall on their face time and time again. Leading men is the harder part of the job.
- Joined
- Aug 24, 2011
- Messages
- 13,628
- Reaction Score
- 40,140
The advantage that Luke has given us with his Euro influence is not permanent. We are just early to the party in how we've incorporated it and why we are successful executing it. I'm sure there have been programs looking at how we do things, why we've basically cruised to 2 straight titles and how we run our offense and the copycats will start to pop up.
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2011
- Messages
- 3,102
- Reaction Score
- 15,876
Kid is a genius.
- Joined
- Sep 22, 2011
- Messages
- 3,102
- Reaction Score
- 15,876
Nah. Luke isnt funny at all.
.-.
- Joined
- Mar 30, 2022
- Messages
- 907
- Reaction Score
- 3,487
Basically anybody can draw up fancy plays, the trick is getting the kids to execute them and to make the right reads consistently. And a lot of that is recruiting.
- Joined
- Jul 31, 2013
- Messages
- 2,718
- Reaction Score
- 6,904
Personally I think without Hurley this success doesn’t happen. I’m sure Kimani is a crucial ingredient in the secret sauce too, but I think Luke’s complex plays don’t work the way we see them working without the Head Coach instilling this cult-like devotion to being perfect in every way.
Without the full summer of working out and the intensity Hurley demands the kids buy in with, I don’t think the team knows the plays well enough or runs them hard enough for it to work the way it does.
Without the full summer of working out and the intensity Hurley demands the kids buy in with, I don’t think the team knows the plays well enough or runs them hard enough for it to work the way it does.
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2011
- Messages
- 16,967
- Reaction Score
- 39,525
He's a voracious studier and learner, and isn't afraid to apply concepts he's learned elsewhere to college basketball for the first time.
I noticed the second he came on board things started to change.
from RuffRuff: Part of his genius may have been identifying Hurley’s potential, piggybacking and staying the course. Where much of Luke’s genius is hearsay
The best Consiglieres like to whisper in the ear of "da Boss", make it seem like it was his idea, stay in the background and help get everyone moving in the right direction. My guess is that is Luke to a certain degree, able to communicate to Dan and the staff, and get it across to the kids as well, with Dans fingerprints over everything. Good partnership(obviously) Don't know as much about Kimani, but Tom Moores influences can't be understated. Unreal staff.
from RuffRuff: Part of his genius may have been identifying Hurley’s potential, piggybacking and staying the course. Where much of Luke’s genius is hearsay
The best Consiglieres like to whisper in the ear of "da Boss", make it seem like it was his idea, stay in the background and help get everyone moving in the right direction. My guess is that is Luke to a certain degree, able to communicate to Dan and the staff, and get it across to the kids as well, with Dans fingerprints over everything. Good partnership(obviously) Don't know as much about Kimani, but Tom Moores influences can't be understated. Unreal staff.
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2011
- Messages
- 7,633
- Reaction Score
- 26,130
All of that could be true but it doesn't guarantee he will be a great head coach. Time will tell. If all of the recent success is just the result of offensive philosophy (it's not) everyone can and will copy it and that schematic advantage will fade.
Alot of the success is Danny Hurley getting inside the heads of his players and bringing out the best in them. Not everyone has that gift.
Last edited:
.-.
- Joined
- May 27, 2014
- Messages
- 4,730
- Reaction Score
- 27,906
It's also a lesson in being around the right people who will challenge you and embrace you. Would he have been this successful at Louisville? Probably not, and that has nothing to do with intelligence or work ethic.
StllH8L8ner
You’ll get nothing and like it!
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2020
- Messages
- 3,236
- Reaction Score
- 18,681
cwh20
Six is good!
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2023
- Messages
- 314
- Reaction Score
- 1,227
The coaching has been great. Everything implemented has worked. The offensive concepts that few if any are using in college basketball mixed with the very good talent, BB IQ, determination and hard work are key to the B2B.
The IQ and awareness these past two teams have possessed has been fantastic to see. They get good looks at the hoop constantly. Another impressive thing is that they know how to use clock which for this team is pretty much maximizing the seconds being run off late in a game while ahead. That’s taking their time to inbound the ball, checking the ball to the ref, not shooting too quickly, etc and precious seconds just tick away.
A team could have plenty of talent but if you’re not using your smarts (the idiot CB of the Bears comes to mind) you’re giving the opponent the opening to win.
The IQ and awareness these past two teams have possessed has been fantastic to see. They get good looks at the hoop constantly. Another impressive thing is that they know how to use clock which for this team is pretty much maximizing the seconds being run off late in a game while ahead. That’s taking their time to inbound the ball, checking the ball to the ref, not shooting too quickly, etc and precious seconds just tick away.
A team could have plenty of talent but if you’re not using your smarts (the idiot CB of the Bears comes to mind) you’re giving the opponent the opening to win.
huskeynut
Leader of the Band
- Joined
- Aug 27, 2011
- Messages
- 7,598
- Reaction Score
- 33,379
I took a leaderfship course many years ago. Later I taught that course along with other presenters. The first unit of the course was Knowing and Using the Resources of the Group.
In refernce to Luke, I think that is exactly what he did. He saw what the players could do and adapted his system to the players. The past two seasons proved Luke knew exactly what he was doing. His offense is very difficult to defend. The movement, the screens are beyond what many have seen.
Hurley now recruits players that have the skills, including defense, to make the offense go.
Is Luke a genius? I'm not sure I'm qualified to say yes or no. What I do know is his offense is way ahead of other teams.
In refernce to Luke, I think that is exactly what he did. He saw what the players could do and adapted his system to the players. The past two seasons proved Luke knew exactly what he was doing. His offense is very difficult to defend. The movement, the screens are beyond what many have seen.
Hurley now recruits players that have the skills, including defense, to make the offense go.
Is Luke a genius? I'm not sure I'm qualified to say yes or no. What I do know is his offense is way ahead of other teams.
- Joined
- Aug 24, 2011
- Messages
- 3,493
- Reaction Score
- 8,755
This is a very interesting thread. Now the question had to do with Murry being a genius. It was nothing to do with him being a successful head coach.
I don't know much about him other than he's been a big factor in designing, implementing and help teaching the offensive along with the rest of the staff.
If he is behind UConn's offense scheme, which is unique to CBB and has been unstoppable the past two post seasons, then at a minimum, he's a very smart, effective and hardworking coach. I'm glad he's ours.
I don't know much about him other than he's been a big factor in designing, implementing and help teaching the offensive along with the rest of the staff.
If he is behind UConn's offense scheme, which is unique to CBB and has been unstoppable the past two post seasons, then at a minimum, he's a very smart, effective and hardworking coach. I'm glad he's ours.
.-.
- Status