Re: Coach yelling at his players

[HuskyNan]

hopefully,then, the ones in the nba revere him so much that they'll donate some of those million dollar salaries to help with the construction of the new basketball facility. what a wonderful way to demonstrate their affection. we'll see ,won't we.

Sorry, that makes no sense whatsoever.

 

[boontonbomber]

Sorry, that makes no sense whatsoever.

why doesn't that make sense? carmelo anthony gave the lead gift of $3 million for the syracuse practice facility.

 

[UConn990411]

Is that the only example you could come up with?

Schools like Louisville, Kentucky, UNC, Mayland, UCLA, etc. have all managed to raise the money for state-of-the-art facilities without turning to their former players for help. Calhoun is the one whose been adamant that UConn does the same.

I'm sorry, but you're way off base here.

 

[pap49cba]

So the true test of whether a coach is respected/revered by ex-players is if they give back millions to the university? Nuts.

 

[Icebear]

Is that the only example you could come up with?

Schools like Louisville, Kentucky, UNC, Mayland, UCLA, etc. have all managed to raise the money for state-of-the-art facilities without turning to their former players for help. Calhoun is the one whose been adamant that UConn does the same.

I'm sorry, but you're way off base here.

So far as I know former players are alumni like everyone else and should be approached in that same manner. Everyone gives as they are able. I offered to put up $50 to start a Boneyard gift but no one else responded to the idea.

 

[zls44]

Blah, blah, blah.

Have you ever listened to former players (particularly the ones making millions in the NBA now) talk about Calhoun? They revere him in much the same way former UConn women's players revere Geno.

His style may be different, but he cares about his players the same. If you don't understand that, all that means is you know nothing about Calhoun and the men's program.

Bravo.

Talk with the former MBB players. Actually know them. Ask any of them about Jim Calhoun- any one of them. What you will get is an endless stream of love, appreciation and respect. You will find nothing else. Caron Butler cries- cries- anytime anyone asks him about how Jim Calhoun saved his life.

Oh, but he cursed at him. Please. Jim Calhoun and Geno Auriemma are far, far more similar than they have ever been different. They are the same passion, the same style, the same drive, in different accents/body types. It's true, and anyone who follows both teams knows it's true.

The unfortunate reality is that a percentage of the WBB fanbase is incredibly hostile towards the coaches, players, and even fans of the men's program. It's ridiculous. It's an air of elitism that is neither warranted nor deserved. There are MBB fans who take stupid shots at WBB as a whole, but I cannot remember anywhere near the number of examples of WBB fans taking SPECIFC shots at Jim Calhoun and his players. UConn players.

Enough.

They are two great programs at one great university. The crap flung at the men's program has gone on long enough and has no place here, or anywhere else.

Both teams have the same name on the front of the jersey. It's high time a lot of you acknowledged that.

 

[UConn990411]

Game, set, match zls.

 

[alexrgct]

Bravo.

Talk with the former MBB players. Actually know them. Ask any of them about Jim Calhoun- any one of them. What you will get is an endless stream of love, appreciation and respect. You will find nothing else. Caron Butler cries- cries- anytime anyone asks him about how Jim Calhoun saved his life.

Oh, but he cursed at him. Please. Jim Calhoun and Geno Auriemma are far, far more similar than they have ever been different. They are the same passion, the same style, the same drive, in different accents/body types. It's true, and anyone who follows both teams knows it's true.

The unfortunate reality is that a percentage of the WBB fanbase is incredibly hostile towards the coaches, players, and even fans of the men's program. It's ridiculous. It's an air of elitism that is neither warranted nor deserved. There are MBB fans who take stupid shots at WBB as a whole, but I cannot remember anywhere near the number of examples of WBB fans taking SPECIFC shots at Jim Calhoun and his players. UConn players.

Enough.

They are two great programs at one great university. The crap flung at the men's program has gone on long enough and has no place here, or anywhere else.

Both teams have the same name on the front of the jersey. It's high time a lot of you acknowledged that.

I am an admirer of both programs and both coaches, but I disagree with the paragraph I bolded on several levels. Rather than argue all of those levels and have this thread turn into an exercise in finger-pointing, I will simply pose one semi-rhetorical question:

How is it less of an issue to have to read constant potshots taken at women's basketball as a whole than it is shots taken at one (extremely well-compensated) man?

If anything, a lot of the comments about WBB enter the realms of elitism (the assertion the men's basketball is a fundamentally better game), chauvanism (obvious), and some sort of bizarre jealousy when the WBB program gets attention (the multi-page thread on the men's board after UConn beat FSU for its 89th win in a row was a prime example).

You're absolutely right- it is the same name on the front of the jersey, and the same university and state being represented. So why go out of one's way to debase the women's game as a whole? Isn't that not just insulting Geno, but also the women who represent our state and its flagship public university, both as basketball players and as women?

I'm not one for censorship (not that I believe private enterprises have to allow free speech), but there is a lot of blame to go around on this.

 

[zls44]

Here's the difference.

The MBB fans who don't like WBB, by and large, take meaningless pot shots but move on with their lives. They don't get why folks watch the games, but they don't mind that they do well.
The WBB fans who HATE Jim Calhoun and everyone around the program constantly take shots at him, the way he coaches, the "types of kids he recruits", etc. They make it a lot more personal. At least that's what I've seen through the years.

I really don't get why some people are so angry towards the men's program. It baffles me.

 

[Icebear]

Here's the difference.

The MBB fans who don't like WBB, by and large, take meaningless pot shots but move on with their lives. They don't get why folks watch the games, but they don't mind that they do well.
The WBB fans who HATE Jim Calhoun and everyone around the program constantly take shots at him, the way he coaches, the "types of kids he recruits", etc. They make it a lot more personal. At least that's what I've seen through the years.

I really don't get why some people are so angry towards the men's program. It baffles me.

I have rarely heard anyone take pot shots at JC or UConn MBB around here personally. Those who have made criticism have aimed it at particular behavior that they do not like. On the other hand I know a lot of people who really hate Jim Calhoun and what they ASSUME he stands for: kids stealing computers, kids doing drugs, kids doing some other negative behavior, a program that violates NCAA regs, etc. they only see the roughest crudest image of JC. Many are Duke fans only superficially because of the America's team media coverage the Duke men with K have gathered over the years. Those folks have only the most superficial awareness of anything involving collegiate sports and they don't want to because they don't care. They are not fans and for the most part never have been.

I cheer for UConn basketball women and men even if I enjoy the women's game more than the men's and I can't stand the NBA but still cheer for UConn players there.

zls, most of the men's fans are far younger than the women's fans and I think the differences you note are far more about the stage of life each group is in.

 

[HuskyNan]

Yeah, there are people that don't like JC here. Those people aren't fans of UConn MBB and they don't follow the team so all they know about the program is what makes headlines. Given some of the negative stories on the men's team in the couple of seasons prior to the last, the impression of UConn MBB isn't good but that's not the prevailing feeling here on the women's board.

There are 19 different posters in this thread but only 3 expressed what I would call strong statements against JC, calling him a bully or saying he uses intimidation That's hardly all WBB fans. Yet, mention the women's board on the MBB side and there are condescending or belittling comments every single time, without fail. And heaven forbid someone start a thread on the women's team before there's a chorus of "it's not a real sport" or "who gives a rat's ass?" or "take it over to the chick hoops board" type comments.

I'm the last one that wants a men's board vs women's board argument but sometimes it just gets tiresome to be constantly disparaged.

 

[Icebear]

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My main concern in the photo was that JC didn't have garlic and onions for lunch.

 

[alexrgct]

Agreed, Nan. I can understand people who don't think there's enough competition in the women's game. I reject as a reason not to watch but don't take offense to the "any men's team could beat the best women's team, so what's the point?" argument (though I will say I find it ironic that a fan of MCBB would think this- after all, any NBA team would crush any college team, but most people would rather watch UConn-Syracuse than Pistons-Wizards). But when it gets to a point of bashing women's sports or stating it's only worth watching if the women all look like Meghan Gardler or calling the people who post on this forum "eunuchs"- that's where I draw the line.

Bottom line, JC and Geno both worked miracles in Storrs. It wasn't a place with a ton of natural advantages or a history of success, but they both built powerhouse programs basically from the ground up and gave a state that was reeling from post-industrialism something to be proud of. I hope people realize how incredibly fortunate Connecticut is to have had these two men for more than 25 years, even if they don't personally watch both men's and women's ball.

 

[RoyDodger]

How many times have we heard past UConn players joking about being yelled at by Geno? I can't quite imagine what it might be like to be screamed at by a coach. But Geno's history proves that it works. I've always been somewhat amazed that the girls take it mostly with a straight face and keep on going, hopefully improving as a result. I suspect that Geno's personality comes through and that most of the girls learn that he's really a caring good guy with a dry sense of humor beyond the yelling. Why else would he be able to recruit such great young women for his basketball team and turn them into champions?

 

[RadyLady]

As I sit here drinking my coffee on a finally peaceful Saturday, I am thinking back to one of the spots ESPN did one year during the women's final four - it was where the players spoke about, joked about, imitated the behaviors of their coach. And I remember Keisha Swanier saying that a lot of folks think that Geno is a big jerk, but what she and the girls see all the time is that he is "a big mush" meaning (as I interpret it) a softie. Perhaps he tempers that a bit depending upon the mindset of the team, but I have absolutely no doubt that he cares very much for his players and wants nothing else for them but to succeed.

 

[HuskyNan]

OTHER FAMOUS DIANA TAURASI QUOTES: from WNBA.com

"He's an Italian softy. He tries to come off with all this machoism, but he smokes his cigar, drinks a little wine and that's all he is."
- On Geno Auriemma

 

[RadyLady]

Love it....

 

[Ozzie Nelson]

It was never easy to watch coaches get in my son’s face, but I knew it was just part of the college experience…and it was never easy for him either. I have no idea if it made him a better player…I know hard work and practice did. Having said that, one of the best coaches he ever had was a CT native, Greg Morhardt. This soft spoken man used hard work to change behavior and athletic approach…he was a joy to watch, a teacher and a mentor.

Geno has his own style…his players value his coaching style, and this is good enough for me. Indeed, what do I know about college coaching. I never did it.

 

[HuskyNan]

Geno has his own style…his players value his coaching style, and this is good enough for me. Indeed, what do I know about college coaching. I never did it.

A lot of people make statements about Geno (or JC) based on what they see during games or even just a few minutes during a game. Those minutes aren't representative of Geno (or JC's) relationships with their players in their entirety.

 

[RadyLady]

precisely