Rock bottom?

[FriarJ]

I'd say this looks like rock bottom, but I've learned that I'm pretty bad at recognizing rock bottom.

I can certainly tell you what it is and this isn't it. The kids are not in trouble with the law all over campus, the school is not the laughingstock of College Basketball and neither is your coach. When there is no hope in sight and famous alumni who broadcast are ridiculing you on national broadcasts and you can't even recruit a top 200 level player and facilities that rival a division 3 school and then you hire an absolute sleazebag as an assistant coach so you can get a top recruit to even visit the campus probably just for another arranged BJ then we can talk about rock bottom.

I know it looks bad right now but from where I sit it is easily fixable. Currently the team just doesn't have the right makeup or chemistry. A lot of that has to do with injuries. and a lot of it has to do with some players simply not improving. That is not all on the coach, UConn has all the facilities and the coaching talent they need. Kevin Ollie has some growing to do no doubt, he has to get the kids he needs for how he wants to play. He needs to worry about how each and every player will work with all his other pieces while he is recruiting.

Oh hell no this isn't rock bottom, trust me and it won't happen to UConn. I expect that Ollie will have learned from this year and the team next year will be more like a typical UConn team that you are used to seeing.

 

[mauconnfan]

9 assists last night.

9 (Nine).

With arguably one PG playing, actually one guard in all reality and this is unusual? I mean think about the players involved there weren't a lot of great passers there and then to get an assist you need finishers too right? I mean no one made shots, how many assists can there be? They've had plenty of nights with assists let's not point them out last night without Vital even playing.

 

[storrsroars]

With arguably one PG playing, actually one guard in all reality and this is unusual? I mean think about the players involved there weren't a lot of great passers there and then to get an assist you need finishers too right? I mean no one made shots, how many assists can there be? They've had plenty of nights with assists let's not point them out last night without Vital even playing.

Need I remind you this was ECU, not Virginia.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Need I remind you this was ECU, not Virginia.

ECU with an interim head coach that hadn't won 1 game against the top 6 in the AAC this season.

There is just no way with Adams, Purvis, Jackson, Facey, Brimah playing we should lose that game.

Either the players aren't as good as we think, the coach isn't as good as we think or most likely it's a combination of both.

It's about as disgusting a loss as there has ever been for a UConn team.

I would say my posts over the years would show I'm usually a pretty level headed fan that doesn't make crazy statements on football or basketball, but this was a real low for UConn Basketball.

 

[The Funster]

To use a non-PC metaphor, Ollie didn't have a lot of bullets in the gun last night. He was short on healthy perimeter players and a crappy perimeter shooting team lit it up. Perfect storm and all that. However, Ollie has not demonstrated that he can build a team and take it on a good NCAA tourney run. He's got next year to show that he can do it with his guys. Short lease.

 

[yukonyc212]

ECU with an interim head coach that hadn't won 1 game against the top 6 in the AAC this season.

There is just no way with Adams, Purvis, Jackson, Facey, Brimah playing we should lose that game.

Either the players aren't as good as we think, the coach isn't as good as we think or most likely it's a combination of both.

It's about as disgusting a loss as there has ever been for a UConn team.

I would say my posts over the years would show I'm usually a pretty level headed fan that doesn't make crazy statements on football or basketball, but this was a real low for UConn Basketball.

That was ECUs 2nd top RPI 150 win of the season. Literally all their wins have come against top 200+ RPI teams. They are absolutely terrible, and it's about as worse a loss as Uconn has had in 30 years, considering we could have locked down a 1st round bye in the tournament.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

To use a non-PC metaphor, Ollie didn't have a lot of bullets in the gun last night. He was short on healthy perimeter players and a crappy perimeter shooting team lit it up. Perfect storm and all that. However, Ollie has not demonstrated that he can build a team and take it on a good NCAA tourney run. He's got next year to show that he can do it with his guys. Short lease.

This is where I disagree. He has demonstrated that in the past he can have a solid regular season (Year 1) and he has demonstrated come post season he can do great as well (Year 2).

I agree with you that next season is going to be a barometer to where we are headed. It needs to be a good season by UConn standards or I'll be extremely worried.

 

[mauconnfan]

Need I remind you this was ECU, not Virginia.

Need I remind you they threw the ball to Purvis he made exactly 3 shots of 15 or so, Adams missed everything in the 2nd half and Brimah catches it her the basket you might as well travel. Please, you have to make shots to get assists pretty simple doesn't matter if its against ECU or Cincy. They do share the ball better when they have guard stop play, and one with 2 legs helps too!!

 

[Son of Robert]

Gentlemen, when Calhoun passed the coaching baton to KO a primary reason was that KO had the Xfactors that Calhoun sought, developed, inspired and demanded from not only himself but his players. These factors are fierce determination and toughness. No quit. Add some talent and Look Out!! I think he saw that KO's entire basketball history epitomized this. Ollie has added Ricky Moore and Kevin Freeman who were certainly successful college players whose best assets were these same Xfactors. You don't beat Duke in that Championship game without those two. Moore's will and toughness was more important to his team than the pure talent of the Duke guards was to theirs. Fact.

KO is a young man with many years of coaching left. His recruiting would be phenomenal if Uconn as a program was better situated. His coaching is very good now and he's going to get better year by year. He is the best possible choice to coach Uconn basketball. So give it a rest mutts, you all don't know what you're talking about.

 

[freescooter]

I really think that what is happening is that people confuse Ollie the player and the man with Ollie the head coach. All positives on the first 2. It as a coach he is just not good.

 

[mauconnfan]

I really think that what is happening is that people confuse Ollie the player and the man with Ollie the head coach. All positives on the first 2. It as a coach he is just not good.

You're right what are we thinking thanks for the explanation.

On a side note it's you like many others who have no say in who is coaching at UConn and for that we can all be thankful.

 

[Milo65]

I really don't know what anyone expected from this team, injuries, no inside game, young, that must rely on streaky outside shooting to win. That's UConn 2016-2017

 

[August_West]

This season is really simple.
So utterly simple.

Purvis and Brimah did not live up to their projected roles in their senior season.

Purvis especially. When he is on, we win. When he is not it makes it very, very difficult. This dilemma is compounded by the subtraction of Gilbert and Larrier. We have had no choice but to ride Rodney through some terrible stretches. With Gilbert, Larrier, Jackson and Vital all at full strength it wouldve made it much easier to hide Rodneys deficiencies and amplify his strengths. We wouldve had mucho depth at the positions we are forced to play him 40 mins at.

I cannot hang this on coaching. They show signs of being coached up right. Its not KO's fault they cant keep it together as Seniors. Its just bad luck. Two really good kids who have shown flashes of brilliance in their careers here but could never make that final step to elevate their learning and talent into a consistent game. I really thought coming into the season Rodney was our Buddy Hield. He wasnt. For whatever reason. You depend on your seniors, especially in times of turmoil. And via injury there has never been turmoil like this year. Im certain they wanted to give and wanted to be dependable. They failed. Im sure it eats at them even more than us.

 

[Carrkus]

He'll be definitely a top draft pick with AB for the NBA no doubt! I suspect his presence or absence next year won't make much of a difference if he is surrounded by a bad cast of characters. He cannot carry this team alone.

You think Brimah is a 1st round pick? I would bet he doesn't even get drafted! He has ZERO offensive moves in the low post, he gets RBs taken away from him by guards, and he thinks he can block every single shot, which is why he spends so much time on the bench with foul trouble.... he MIGHT play in Europe next year, or the D league here. But top draft pick? Not on your nelly.....

 

[The Funster]

This is where I disagree. He has demonstrated that in the past he can have a solid regular season (Year 1) and he has demonstrated come post season he can do great as well (Year 2).

I agree with you that next season is going to be a barometer to where we are headed. It needs to be a good season by UConn standards or I'll be extremely worried.

Year 1 was a tough year for obvious reasons and the Year 2 run was awesome but those were largely JC's teams. I really, really want to to see Ollie do it with all his guys. Here's the positive I can take from this year: before the injuries and just after the injuries the team was abysmal offensively, with the first two games being particularly embarrassing. Since the team has regained its equilibrium I believe that Ollie has coached them much better. There is better spacing and movement off the ball. The bigs are setting picks, are in a better position to rebound and are much more involved in the offense. They are playing team offense as opposed to swinging the ball around the perimeter until the shot clock reaches 10 and someone either goes one on one or jacks up an off balance 3. It's almost as if the injuries forced KO to really start coaching the team. He's on the clock next year. I expect to see him coach a full roster as well as he's coached this decimated one.

 

[ctchamps]

Earlier in the season, I simply cut to the chase and said I wasn't seeing an "entertainment product" that justified my attention when so many other options were available. I adjusted my scheduling and managed, joyously, to see the second half against Memphi and the final minutes & OT against Temple. If I'd turned off the TV at halftime of the Houston game, I'd be feeling pretty good about player & team development during this undeniably last season, but no... I had shifted to scheduling things around games. Doh.

Last night was pretty much dreadful after the 8-0 Vance Jackson run. Yes, there was the comeback after ECU was held down 5 consecutive possessions & stuck on 52, but I'd recruited Lady Hans to join me, and this Texas gal contributed a wonderful homemade chicken pot pie & deserved more than just the amusement of learning that TCU is the Horned Frogs when ESPNU switched over after that debacle.

I read this thread and actually find merit a number of posts getting Likes from people I Ignore. That's indicative of something, alarming, almost bottom-y. Rock, as well? I won't go there. Instead, I'll watch as the playing warrants and be thankful for eases in a busy leisure life if that's where things go.

This has indeed been a year for perspective building.

Nicely stated and imo a healthy way of living. However, like everything in life there is a distribution curve with regards to people's ease in being able to disassociate ourselves from something we are emotionally invested in.

 

[EBonz30]

You want to give Ollie credit for 2014 title that was with Calhoun players in the American conference no less, but you want the fanbase to accept mediocrity as the new normal as that's all he can do now. What's worse is this university gave him a 5 year 18 million extension in secret knowing how the fanbase would react. Cincinnati is in the American they are doing fine. SMU is doing fine. Hell Houston is on the upswing in the American. No, one thing you can count on from me is I will never accept St. John's or Georgetown status for UCONN now or moving forward. Ollie's so-called calling card his defense has been abysmal and a huge part of why every team lights us up from the perimeter. Nobody fights through screens or stays attached to their man with Vital as an exception. To mask poor perimeter defense Ollie switches to some horrible looking zone with announcers saying "Ollie is switching to his patented 1-3-1 zone" that makes the team look worst and enhances terrible defensive principles being shown.

PS: This type of thinking is what's ruining the program as it has infected the minds of the coaching staff and players as well.

Ollie is switching to zones because his perimeter players are playing 40 mins a game lol. Let's be real.

 

[uconnell]

I can certainly tell you what it is and this isn't it. The kids are not in trouble with the law all over campus, the school is not the laughingstock of College Basketball and neither is your coach. When there is no hope in sight and famous alumni who broadcast are ridiculing you on national broadcasts and you can't even recruit a top 200 level player and facilities that rival a division 3 school and then you hire an absolute sleazebag as an assistant coach so you can get a top recruit to even visit the campus probably just for another arranged BJ then we can talk about rock bottom.

I know it looks bad right now but from where I sit it is easily fixable. Currently the team just doesn't have the right makeup or chemistry. A lot of that has to do with injuries. and a lot of it has to do with some players simply not improving. That is not all on the coach, UConn has all the facilities and the coaching talent they need. Kevin Ollie has some growing to do no doubt, he has to get the kids he needs for how he wants to play. He needs to worry about how each and every player will work with all his other pieces while he is recruiting.

Oh hell no this isn't rock bottom, trust me and it won't happen to UConn. I expect that Ollie will have learned from this year and the team next year will be more like a typical UConn team that you are used to seeing.

Thanks friarJ.

 

[blackbird]

ECU with an interim head coach that hadn't won 1 game against the top 6 in the AAC this season.

There is just no way with Adams, Purvis, Jackson, Facey, Brimah playing we should lose that game.

Either the players aren't as good as we think, the coach isn't as good as we think or most likely it's a combination of both.

It's about as disgusting a loss as there has ever been for a UConn team.

I would say my posts over the years would show I'm usually a pretty level headed fan that doesn't make crazy statements on football or basketball, but this was a real low for UConn Basketball.

It was more like half Adams.

And this team without a 100% Adams can't beat anyone. Period.

 

[uconnell]

You think Brimah is a 1st round pick? I would bet he doesn't even get drafted! He has ZERO offensive moves in the low post, he gets RBs taken away from him by guards, and he thinks he can block every single shot, which is why he spends so much time on the bench with foul trouble.... he MIGHT play in Europe next year, or the D league here. But top draft pick? Not on your nelly.....

Watch it with that nelly stuff!

 

[buddy]

You think Brimah is a 1st round pick? I would bet he doesn't even get drafted! He has ZERO offensive moves in the low post, he gets RBs taken away from him by guards, and he thinks he can block every single shot, which is why he spends so much time on the bench with foul trouble.... he MIGHT play in Europe next year, or the D league here. But top draft pick? Not on your nelly.....

I was being facetious, just to clarify.

 

[David 76]

Are you talking about the game where we had four injured players and our two offensive guys were injured but still played 40 minutes because we had no one else?

Yeah we played badly.

 

[TheDude]

I just joined and this is my first post, expect many, a die hard UConn fan and grad. I remember the days of the old field house.
And all of those people who are down on KO now, all I know that if we fired him today, someone will hire him tomorrow.
There is a reason he was hand picked by Jim Calhoun.

 

[David 76]

Welcome!

 

[TheDude]

Welcome!

Thanks
As far as the title for this thread "Rock Bottom", I just would like to add, that if you have witnessed the Dom Perno years,
The you don't know what rock bottom is..."We will be right back, and better than ever" Kevin Ollie

 

[B1GEast]

Even when everyone was healthy this team played poorly.

On recruiting, we seem to put all our eggs in one basket and then up settling for less

I'm not sure what will be different, Brimah was here 4 years and seemed to regress. Facet was never replied upon until injuries, and then showed what he could do, it seems as though the staff has difficulty analyzing talent.

Other teams seem to recruit lessor talent and get more out of their athletes. I don't think we have the right coaches on our staff to change things.

Freshman AG and MD have injuries and I think the staff new about their injuries, not sure though. If that is the case, maybe we shouldn't recruit people with a history of injuries.

Benedict pulled the plug on Diaco and there seems to be a sense of urgency to win now, with realignment on the horizon, it would not surprise me to see a change if KO somehow repeats this season.

I really think that UConn would be a highly desirable school for any coach, it is a destination job, with name recognition and tradition and facilities in place.

I'm on the fence.

 

[David 76]

I'm with the Dude.
Yes UConn played very poorly for two games before the injuries. But they were all new kids or new together.
Barring another 3 or 4 season-long injuries, we will be much improved.

 

[CTBasketball]

Even when everyone was healthy this team played poorly.

On recruiting, we seem to put all our eggs in one basket and then up settling for less

I'm not sure what will be different, Brimah was here 4 years and seemed to regress. Facet was never replied upon until injuries, and then showed what he could do, it seems as though the staff has difficulty analyzing talent.

Other teams seem to recruit lessor talent and get more out of their athletes. I don't think we have the right coaches on our staff to change things.

Freshman AG and MD have injuries and I think the staff new about their injuries, not sure though. If that is the case, maybe we shouldn't recruit people with a history of injuries.

Benedict pulled the plug on Diaco and there seems to be a sense of urgency to win now, with realignment on the horizon, it would not surprise me to see a change if KO somehow repeats this season.

I really think that UConn would be a highly desirable school for any coach, it is a destination job, with name recognition and tradition and facilities in place.

I'm on the fence.

We do have difficulty analyzing talent. I think naming Brimah a captain his sophomore year unfairly cemented his spot in the starting lineup for his career.

Alterique's first shoulder injury occurred his sophomore year of high school, he didn't get surgery. He already signed when he dislocated it again at the Jordan Brand Classic. To the staff's defense, the shoulder was fine for over 3 years.

I think if we don't dance next year, with the talent we'll have, he should be on the hot seat.