Rodney Purvis on campus

[KingAG]

I really liked Rodney as a player. Perhaps more than what I observed by the majority of members of this forum while he was in a UConn uniform.

I fear this heartfelt set of tweets by Rodney might catalyze a division between past alumni. I hope Bazz/Boat aren’t drawn into responding. Unless Bazz’s post championship behavior towards KO was not genuine he might be forced to challenge Rodney’s take.

He won’t. I think it’d be hard to challenge anything Rodney said unless you were there post 2014

 

[NJHoops]

Oh, Sid. As the saying goes, there are three sides to every story. However, when the same person has problems with every staff they’ve ever worked with… I guess some people are just really unlucky.

Anyway, it’s always great when former players get on campus. Let the current guys know they are part of something bigger and share experiences as guys who are on the other side of college and looking back. I’m not the biggest fan of “tweeting through it,” but it’s not my decision to make, he’s grown.

 

[Northbound]

It's no surprise from what we have heard here and elsewhere over the years.

In the past I was happy to give credit to KO where he had success and put blame on him where he failed but this just tells me what happened is no different than any of us laymen becoming CEO of Apple.

At first nothing would change, the place would just operate as usual, but 3-4 years in the cracks would become apparent then the dam would break since we'd have no idea what we are doing.

It was all an act.

This is 100% correct. I suggested and got friggin hammered at the time that you don’t hand over control of the college basketball equivalent of a Fortune 500 company to someone with no or if you want to be generous very little executive experience (the assistant years under JC).

I’ve thought since he forced KO hiring it was JC’s biggest mistake, but it also shows his loyalty. You’re allowed to have some level of hubris when you’ve built a legacy like JC did over time.

The love the NBA players gave KO I took with a grain of salt. My co-workers may love me it doesn't mean I should run the company.

I did think “i guess i was wrong” and probably posted such here after the title. What can’t be denied whether you love or hate KO is he was a big part of UConn history as a player, a title next to his name as a coach, he didn’t develop players and ultimately cratered the program. Talk about a complicated legacy.

 

[8893]

It’s amazing how hard so many of us fight to make it seem like every situation is black or white, despite our own lives and experiences repeatedly teaching us that most things are gray.

 

[ctchamps]

He won’t. I think it’d be hard to challenge anything Rodney said unless you were there post 2014

I was Referencing Rodney’s tweet that Bazz was the coach of the championship team. He certainly was the player the team followed. Our best teams had leadership like that. Players like Kemba, Caron, Khalid, Emeka fit that mold. It’s my belief Andre will someday be included in that list.

But following a player is different than elevating a player publicly to be the teams coach. It’s not just a dig on KO but the other members of the coaching staff.

If Bazz agrees with Rodney’s assessment than I hope he confirms it. If not I hope he doesn’t respond because the last thing I want to see is a schism with former players.

 

[Pgh2Storrs]

It was a perfectly constructed roster, built by the GOAT coach. Ollie had no clue what he was doing after Bazz left

My feelings on KO post-2014 are that he was just frustrated by the whole thing and it got too big, too fast. He thought the program was going to run on cruise control after the title and had no idea how to pivot when the 5 star guys like Diallo, Reddish, Bamba, etc. went elsewhere.

I think we all knew it was a rotten situation from the outside looking in, but to hear a guy like Purvis “spill the tea”, as the kids say, really is eye opening. I’ve always said that the guys that stuck thru the awful AAC years and the transition have as much or more respect from me than the guys from the glory years because it was just an absolute train wreck. Guys like CV, Jalen, Purv, Alterique, etc. should always be embraced by the fans/program because they really did a lot to keep a bad situation from being much worse.

 

[jayfromfla]

I’ll believe much of the UConn success in the first two years post Calhoun was because of Calhoun. It was his players and his assistants who ran the team. In addition, coach Calhoun was right behind th bench passing on game strategy. As Ollie distanced himself and moved out Calhoun staff Our hof coach became a fan and distanced himself from the team

 

[Gurleyman]

It was a perfectly constructed roster, built by the GOAT coach. Ollie had no clue what he was doing after Bazz left

That’s a little bit unfair. The last year of JC, we were playing a two big lineup (Drummond, Oriakhi) with Roscoe at the 3 and we really struggled. Then there was a mass exodus - Roscoe, Oriakhi, and Bradley transferred (Bradley didn’t play but took away a big body), and Drummond and Lamb went pro. Giffey and Daniels were buried in 2011-12, but they had to play, and we had no choice but to go small with Daniels as a stretch 4, and Olander at the 5. It was very much not a JC-style lineup, who liked two traditional bigs and a big 3 man (Rudy-Sticks-Roscoe). Ollie’s team had to play a lot differently at both ends due to going small - and maybe his assistants played more of a role in shaping the teams those two years than KO did. But he wasn’t able to pick up where the program left off because it was an entirely different type of team.

As for his coaching in 2014, I still think back to the Florida game - the Gators defensive scheme took Bazz out of the game by aggressively doubling the high screens, and we looked like we were going to struggle to score 20 points after the first 10 minutes. But we made adjustments, attacked more from the wings with Boat and DD, dug in defensively and flipped the script. In the second half when Florida was desperate and threw a zone at us, we were immediately prepared and beat it with three lobs. Whether it was all Bazz and his IQ (there was a beautiful No look lob from Boat as well), the assistants, or whoever - we looked well coached during that whole run. We might have blown the doors off Kentucky if Boat and DD didn’t both get two fouls up 15 in the first half, and we dominated Nova with Bazz on the bench in the foul trouble. When adversity came (Bazz foul trouble, Michigan State surging up 9 in the second half, Florida dominating early, Kentucky comeback, etc.), we answered.

But subsequent evidence makes it harder to give KO as much credit as we gave him at the time (hard to believe now, but we were totally panicked that he was going to take an NBA job). By the end, we never responded to any adversity at all - we’d just lose by 30 once things started going off the rails. The entire era was just weird. Did the divorce really change him that much - did he just rest on his laurels after winning the title and not want to work hard any more - was Bazz masking his deficiencies? Whatever the answer, or combination of answers, the program cratered and is still trying to recover.

Brimah’s putback against Saint Joe’s changed a lot of trajectories. Without that bucket, Bazz is mostly forgotten, we never see Boat’s defensive wizardry, those memorable Garden games never happen, and KO is probably out sooner and regarded as a big mistake, instead of a mixed bag.

 

[8893]

If Shabazz was our coach in 2014, this is where the season ends imo:

I've said it before, but if nothing else, I think Ollie was the perfect person to manage the relationship between these two Alpha dogs, which was the biggest key to winning that National Championship.

Giving Bazz a breather after after that, and keeping Boat in the game, was a great move, and I don't know if a Calhoun or a Hurley makes that same decision.

 

[ctchamps]

That’s a little bit unfair. The last year of JC, we were playing a two big lineup (Drummond, Oriakhi) with Roscoe at the 3 and we really struggled. Then there was a mass exodus - Roscoe, Oriakhi, and Bradley transferred (Bradley didn’t play but took away a big body), and Drummond and Lamb went pro. Giffey and Daniels were buried in 2011-12, but they had to play, and we had no choice but to go small with Daniels as a stretch 4, and Olander at the 5. It was very much not a JC-style lineup, who liked two traditional bigs and a big 3 man (Rudy-Sticks-Roscoe). Ollie’s team had to play a lot differently at both ends due to going small - and maybe his assistants played more of a role in shaping the teams those two years than KO did. But he wasn’t able to pick up where the program left off because it was an entirely different type of team.

As for his coaching in 2014, I still think back to the Florida game - the Gators defensive scheme took Bazz out of the game by aggressively doubling the high screens, and we looked like we were going to struggle to score 20 points after the first 10 minutes. But we made adjustments, attacked more from the wings with Boat and DD, dug in defensively and flipped the script. In the second half when Florida was desperate and threw a zone at us, we were immediately prepared and beat it with three lobs. Whether it was all Bazz and his IQ (there was a beautiful No look lob from Boat as well), the assistants, or whoever - we looked well coached during that whole run. We might have blown the doors off Kentucky if Boat and DD didn’t both get two fouls up 15 in the first half, and we dominated Nova with Bazz on the bench in the foul trouble. When adversity came (Bazz foul trouble, Michigan State surging up 9 in the second half, Florida dominating early, Kentucky comeback, etc.), we answered.

But subsequent evidence makes it harder to give KO as much credit as we gave him at the time (hard to believe now, but we were totally panicked that he was going to take an NBA job). By the end, we never responded to any adversity at all - we’d just lose by 30 once things started going off the rails. The entire era was just weird. Did the divorce really change him that much - did he just rest on his laurels after winning the title and not want to work hard any more - was Bazz masking his deficiencies? Whatever the answer, or combination of answers, the program cratered and is still trying to recover.

Brimah’s putback against Saint Joe’s changed a lot of trajectories. Without that bucket, Bazz is mostly forgotten, we never see Boat’s defensive wizardry, those memorable Garden games never happen, and KO is probably out sooner and regarded as a big mistake, instead of a mixed bag.

Can’t say enough how thrilled I am to see you back here. Hope you can find the time during the season to offer your insights. I take it you are still an AD somewhere.

We have a lot of intelligent posters who offer great insight but none come close to what you offered. Your depth of knowledge, your clarity of presentation, your patient responses to arguments against your posts whether they were expressed intelligently or not all added up to you being not only my favorite poster but the majority of this community.

Welcome back.

 

[UConn990411]

It’s amazing how hard so many of us fight to make it seem like every situation is black or white, despite our own lives and experiences repeatedly teaching us that most things are gray.

This one seems pretty black and white - Ollie did a really nice job in his first couple seasons, and then he simply stopped doing his job.

His recruiting after winning a national championship was lackluster, and he couldn’t retain or develop talent. Plus, his falling out with everyone from Calhoun to his players indicates he wasn’t the nice guy he was made out to me.

 

[KingAG]

This one seems pretty black and white - Ollie did a really nice job in his first couple seasons, and then he simply stopped doing his job.

His recruiting after winning a national championship was lackluster, and he couldn’t retain or develop talent. Plus, his falling out with everyone from Calhoun to his players indicates he wasn’t the nice guy he was made out to me.

I get his point though. KO is the easy scapegoat for purvo. He may have some valid points. But I’d also like to see him take some accountability for how his career turned out. It’s not KO’s fault he couldn’t stop stepping out of bounds or shof 37% from the field his junior season. KO shares a fair portion of the blame. BUT some of these guys just weren’t good enough. And in the end that may have been KOs greatest flaw. The inability to land UConn level talent. And even in that the AAC played a role. Nothing is black and white

 

[Huskybass]

If we are being honest, Kevin Ollie's recruiting after lhe National Championship was abysmal given the clout he should have had. The fact that there isn't a single player in the league from his tenure should speak volumes. Love me some Purvis for having the courage to speak the truth.

 

[Waquoit]

If we are being honest, Kevin Ollie's recruiting after lhe National Championship was abysmal given the clout he should have had. The fact that there isn't a single player in the league from his tenure should speak volumes. Love me some Purvis for having the courage to speak the truth.

I truly believe when he saw that clip from Luke Cage he thought the players would be coming to him.

 

[BuffaloHusky]

That “something” was his divorce

I will defend Ollie's run to my dying day. There is no reason that team with only one NBA player should have won a national championship and it may indeed be the least talented team ever to win a title.

With all that said, I remember being apprehensive as soon as I heard about the divorce and I'm speculating but I think Ollie became more jaded and self-absorbed. His attitude change definitely affected individuals on the team and the staff and the results were subsequent lackluster seasons.

I sincerely wonder "what if Kevin Ollie never was divorced" and I believe if that was an alternate reality, Ollie would still be at UConn but given the circumstances, I'm thrilled Dan Hurley is our coach.

 

[8893]

Love me some Purvis for having the courage to speak the truth.

He’s obviously free to say whatever he wants, however he wants, but I think it would be a lot more courageous for him to address it directly with Kevin Ollie instead of serially subtweeting him about it eight years later.

 

[krinklecut]

That “something” was his divorce

Or the same shift in whatever it was also lead to the dissolution of his marriage. We don’t know!

 

[Huskybass]

He’s obviously free to say whatever he wants, however he wants, but I think it would be a lot more courageous for him to address it directly with Kevin Ollie instead of serially subtweeting him about it eight years later.

Please. You apologists are really something else. The guy totally quit doing his job and collected millions of dollars anyway. Why do you think the players transferred out en masse? They saw that the guy was completely inept. The fact that some of you people can't see this 4 years later is mind-boggling. He was never qualified to be a head coach and Shabazz absolutely was running the show. I am so glad that Purvis called him out.

I'd love to hear George bBaney's honest take. Unfortunately, he is probably too much of a gentleman and too tactful to ever do that.

 

[aburks41]

Or the same shift in whatever it was also lead to the dissolution of his marriage. We don’t know!

Him being a cheat was not just contained to his coaching job. Let’s just leave it at that…

 

[8893]

Please. You apologists are really something else. The guy totally quit doing his job and collected millions of dollars anyway. Why do you think the players transferred out en masse? They saw that the guy was completely inept. The fact that some of you people can't see this 4 years later is mind-boggling. He was never qualified to be a head coach and Shabazz absolutely was running the show. I am so glad that Purvis called him out.

You missed my point, but I’m glad you got the chance to reveal yours again, so I’ll make mine on that issue clear— again.

I’m not apologizing for anything. I think Ollie is due some credit for the National Championship and the season prior to that, as well as whatever he did to that point to earn Calhoun’s faith. I saw his coaching and energy, and I saw the change. I don’t think he is due sole credit for those successes, as the athletes, personnel and Calhoun’s continued presence—and some luck—all combined to make it possible. But I think it’s wrong to suggest, as you and many others state repeatedly, that he is due no credit at all.

I also think that he is due the lion’s share of the blame for the death spiral we suffered thereafter. The AAC didn’t help, but he actively hurt the program by not doing his job, and I could see the lack of coaching and the lack of energy. And alienating Calhoun is inexcusable. He deserved to lose his job.

That’s the example that prompted my “black or white” post. I don’t think either situation is an all-or-nothing one.

As for Rodney, unless he has addressed his gripes directly with Ollie himself, what’s been posted here is not what I consider “called him out.” He hasn’t even had the courage to use his name. But I’m not much for tweeting as a way to handle personal issues in any event. That was the point of my reply to you.

 

[Huskybass]

I will defend Ollie's run to my dying day. There is no reason that team with only one NBA player should have won a national championship and it may indeed be the least talented team ever to win a title.

With all that said, I remember being apprehensive as soon as I heard about the divorce and I'm speculating but I think Ollie became more jaded and self-absorbed. His attitude change definitely affected individuals on the team and the staff and the results were subsequent lackluster seasons.

I sincerely wonder "what if Kevin Ollie never was divorced" and I believe if that was an alternate reality, Ollie would still be at UConn but given the circumstances, I'm thrilled Dan Hurley is our coach.

We had the best guards in the country, that's a very big part of winning a National Championship. We also had decades of D1 Head Coach experience on the bench in Blaney, Hobbs, and Miller. As those guys departed, the program declined.

 

[mauconnfan]

Him being a cheat was not just contained to his coaching job. Let’s just leave it at that…

Well done

Reading Rodney’s tweets there seem to have been some issues without a doubt. He I will listen to, Sid I won’t just wasn’t a good basketball player so his fault he didn’t see the court. The fact a player like Rodney didn’t get a lot better would seem to have some legitimacy. But also agree with @8893 he shouldn’t be addressing them on tweets this much after his career. But I like Rodney always did!

 

[UConn990411]

I get his point though. KO is the easy scapegoat for purvo. He may have some valid points. But I’d also like to see him take some accountability for how his career turned out. It’s not KO’s fault he couldn’t stop stepping out of bounds or shof 37% from the field his junior season. KO shares a fair portion of the blame. BUT some of these guys just weren’t good enough. And in the end that may have been KOs greatest flaw. The inability to land UConn level talent. And even in that the AAC played a role. Nothing is black and white

If Purvis was the exception in terms of underachieving players, then sure. But his main point was that they had a lot of talented players over the years, and none of them developing into NBA players is a testament to how poorly that program was run.

I will defend Ollie's run to my dying day. There is no reason that team with only one NBA player should have won a national championship and it may indeed be the least talented team ever to win a title.

With all that said, I remember being apprehensive as soon as I heard about the divorce and I'm speculating but I think Ollie became more jaded and self-absorbed. His attitude change definitely affected individuals on the team and the staff and the results were subsequent lackluster seasons.

I sincerely wonder "what if Kevin Ollie never was divorced" and I believe if that was an alternate reality, Ollie would still be at UConn but given the circumstances, I'm thrilled Dan Hurley is our coach.

I’m not trying to be dismissive of the impact personal matters can have on someone professionally, but he was getting paid millions of dollars to do a job that he stopped putting effort into for years. It feels like an excuse to say the divorce accounted for years of incompetence.

 

[MTBingNinja]

These Ferrari takes are gold!!!!

 

[HooperScooper]

Him being a cheat was not just contained to his coaching job. Let’s just leave it at that…

That was the rumor at the time. None of us know though. Unless someone wants to call Stephanie and ask.

 

[Travelman6]

I’m sure this site will have a field day with this one

Most of us kind of knew that and said as much, even THAT year.

 

[ctchamps]

You missed my point, but I’m glad you got the chance to reveal yours again, so I’ll make mine on that issue clear— again.

I’m not apologizing for anything. I think Ollie is due some credit for the National Championship and the season prior to that, as well as whatever he did to that point to earn Calhoun’s faith. I saw his coaching and energy, and I saw the change. I don’t think he is due sole credit for those successes, as the athletes, personnel and Calhoun’s continued presence—and some luck—all combined to make it possible. But I think it’s wrong to suggest, as you and many others state repeatedly, that he is due no credit at all.

I also think that he is due the lion’s share of the blame for the death spiral we suffered thereafter. The AAC didn’t help, but he actively hurt the program by not doing his job, and I could see the lack of coaching and the lack of energy. And alienating Calhoun is inexcusable. He deserved to lose his job.

That’s the example that prompted my “black or white” post. I don’t think either situation is an all-or-nothing one.

As for Rodney, unless he has addressed his gripes directly with Ollie himself, what’s been posted here is not what I consider “called him out.” He hasn’t even had the courage to use his name. But I’m not much for tweeting as a way to handle personal issues in any event. That was the point of my reply to you.

This link addresses the most salient point that has not been discussed up to this point and that is both Bazz and Boat stated it was KO that convinced them to remain with the program after JC’s retirement and UConn was placed on a post season ban.

No Number 4 if KO wasn’t able to Keep Bazz/Boat

Every thing you state echoes my position. At the very minimum we have no number four if Kevin doesn’t keep those two players. The only way anyone can not give KO any credit is to convince themselves Bazz was lying.

Bazz had a great relationship with KO. The hug they gave each other after winning the NC was genuine. My concern about Bazz speaking out against these tweets is based on the relationship these two had forged after JC retired.

 

[CL82]

It’s amazing how hard so many of us fight to make it seem like every situation is black or white, despite our own lives and experiences repeatedly teaching us that most things are gray.

I suppose that’s true but the absence of anyone coming to KO‘s defense makes me think that the gray may be very dark, like a charcoal gray, in this case.

Well, let’s give it time and see what others say, if anything.

 

[huskyinfl]

If I win the lotto I'm going to lock down courtside seats for the rest of UConn's existence and call it the Rodney purvis out of bounds zone. Ferrari parking only.

 

[CL82]

If Shabazz was our coach in 2014, this is where the season ends imo:

I've said it before, but if nothing else, I think Ollie was the perfect person to manage the relationship between these two Alpha dogs, which was the biggest key to winning that National Championship.

Giving Bazz a breather after after that, and keeping Boat in the game, was a great move, and I don't know if a Calhoun or a Hurley makes that same decision.

LOL, I haven’t seen that in years. The question is would modern refs have given Boat a flopping penalty.

You don’t even I’m not sure if that video is more support for Ollie‘s coaching, or the idea that Bazz was acting as coach.