Trying to make sense of the carnage

[John]

It is pretty amazing what an inept coach has done to this proud program. And Joe D said last night there is likely more to come. All of this was entirely predictable of course. And sad to say some of it has to fall at the feet of Jim Calhoun. Had he had the decency to retire in March instead of playing games to make it impossible to keep Ollie from getting the job, things might be different. Some of it rests with Manuel who lacked the spine to actually stand up to Calhoun. Of course the biggest piece of the mess goes to Ollie himself. He has no concept of modern offense, no idea of how to recruit what he needs and can't coach players up. As a coach he is Calipari without the talent.

Inept, but with a National Championship banner. Kind of puts a little rain on your narrative parade, no?

 

[tykurez]

I see freescooter's alert went off

 

[KingAG]

As usual F me for posting this and take everything with a freaking grain of salt because I'm sure I will be jumped all over but here we go. Ollie sold himself as a fatherly Calhoun 2.0 is the word i hear (not my word,what i hear). Which he is and the players like him. Guys like Napier really show that fatherly side. Ollie took these guards under his wing and they like him as a mentor. But this is the Trainwreck Calhoun had a couple hundred wins under his belt when he came here from Boston at the D1 level. He could coach he had an amazing X's and O's mind but that was fine tuned with his other jobs as head coach. Ollie does not have that skillset and experience yet. sure he could learn it but the players are pissed because there are times I have heard they feel like he is lost in huddles and does not always have a game plan. Ollie needed to be a head coach and win two hundred games or a hundred games at a Charlotte or a mid low major like school. And I think Calhoun kind of screwed him over by taking the third guy on the bench(ollie) and putting them as the head coach. He's being asked to have his first car at 16 be a Ferrari.
So here's the root of the issue I hear that the players to not feel like they are developing and being coached at practice and at games at the level UConn should. Nobody's going to blast ollie on the way out because they like the guy there are issues with development and coaching

Lots of the time Ollie's gameplan wasnt issue tho, it was execution. When we made shots Ollie looked like a genious. Guys stepping out of bounds, making idiotic passes, and not understanding basic defensive principals has nothing to do with gameplan. Thats basketball IQ. The hardest think to teach a basketball player is how to be a smart player. For example, im sure our players know how to cut to the basket, but they dont understand timing. Kevin Ollie cant teach timing and instincts. The players know better than i donoc course, and im sure their concerns have some validity to them. But Ollie has shown he can coach and the coach who coached us to a title hasnt changed nor have his philosophy. THE PLAYERS HAVE

 

[SouthBayHusky]

I wish we were not paying him $3.1 million a year to figure it out. I do not think under any circumstance he will get four more years to try to figure this out. I think he knows as well as anyone that the time to perform is now. I feel like were in a catch 22 though, on the one hand I do think he will figure it out in a few more years, but on the other hand if he doesn't it would be that much harder to bring this program back in to get a quality coach. I'm definitely in the concerned camp.

 

[Adios]

Give Benedict a raise.

 

[jibsey]

No one holds KO responsible for key players' injuries and the season falling apart, but the reason a lot of players transfer is PT and we just had 2 starters transfer that were both slated for significant PT. Players leaving Duke and Kentucky are 4 and 5 star guys buried on the bench. Now KO says and I concur that defense wins championships and both of those guys leaving were negative in that respect. You can say well those guys didn't buy in to the philosophy. KO brought them on board. He analyzed, worked up, and said they were a fit. Waiting for more news, hopefully not, but either this is a needed change with benefit or we have chaos going on.

 

[husky99]

Lots of the time Ollie's gameplan wasnt issue tho, it was execution. When we made shots Ollie looked like a genious. Guys stepping out of bounds, making idiotic passes, and not understanding basic defensive principals has nothing to do with gameplan. Thats basketball IQ. The hardest think to teach a basketball player is how to be a smart player. For example, im sure our players know how to cut to the basket, but they dont understand timing. Kevin Ollie cant teach timing and instincts. The players know better than i donoc course, and im sure their concerns have some validity to them. But Ollie has shown he can coach and the coach who coached us to a title hasnt changed nor have his philosophy. THE PLAYERS HAVE

I fully agree with you and like I said at the beginning this is what I heard and not what I believed.

 

[KingAG]

I fully agree with you and like I said at the beginning this is what I heard and not what I believed.

Thanks for the insight 99 greatly appreciated

 

[Tenspro2002]

Not breaking news.....and I'm not mad at him for it. Anyone with half a brain should have figured out that Ollie wasn't gonna step in and be a great game coach. He's never done it before. I'm willing to give him time as long as the recruiting and player development is on point. He deserves in my opinion at least four more years to see if things are moving in the right direction. Anything less than that, just isn't fair and would be a lose situation. The only way I would fire him before that, is if it were clear that we were going backward or not moving forward. I personally think things will get better if we wait. He's only been here about five years. JC wasn't at the top of his game after five years either. JC picked him because he knew Ollie would eventually figure it out. You live and you learn and he is doing exactly that.learning on the job. We deserve after the program JC built to stay on top, but I think JC knew bumpy roads were ahead, but if we stick with Ollie, it would be worth it in the end. I am willing!

A top 5 program over the preceding 20 years shouldn't have settled for someone for whom it would take 5+ years to figure out how to coach.

4 years is way too long. He gets 2 to get us back to national prominence. Otherwise, someone else will get the chance.

 

[uconnever]

A top 5 program over the preceding 20 years shouldn't have settled for someone for whom it would take 5+ years to figure out how to coach.

4 years is way too long. He gets 2 to get us back to national prominence. Otherwise, someone else will get the chance.

And they will fail to reach Uconn standards also. People act like what JC did was easy. As easy as finding the right coach. I would bet there's probably a handful of coaches that could come here and get it back to where we all want it. And those guys are probably happy where they are. JC is gone and so is our program as we knew it, but that doesn't mean it can't be successful and Ollie is the right guy in my opinion. It's just gonna take time.

 

[tykurez]

A top 5 program over the preceding 20 years shouldn't have settled for someone for whom it would take 5+ years to figure out how to coach.

4 years is way too long. He gets 2 to get us back to national prominence. Otherwise, someone else will get the chance.

To be fair - he's been on the 2-year tenspro2002 performance plan for 2 years now.

 

[Stainmaster]

A top 5 program over the preceding 20 years shouldn't have settled for someone for whom it would take 5+ years to figure out how to coach.

Well, you know what? They did. So there's really no use whining about it.

 

[tzznandrew]

I fully agree with you and like I said at the beginning this is what I heard and not what I believed.

I think that he knows his x's and o's, I think he can work with kids in practice and inspire them. I think he can develop impressive game plans.

His big weakness--and it's big--is in-game. Time outs. Managing minutes. Adapting on the fly. Those are things you develop over time (if at all) and they're the sort of thing that some good coaches struggle with, but great coaches have down pat.

It doesn't surprise me at all that these things might be problems, and that the optics aren't great. But I also think that if he got higher IQ players it would relieve the stress on some of this. He has to be worried about way too much in game.

He made mistakes and errors with Shabazz/Boatright that I don't think he would now, but overcame them because those two, when on the floor with Daniels, Giffey, Kromah, and Nolan didn't make simple mistakes.

 

[MuchoDogYears]

[QUOTEWe need basketball players with athletic ability not athletes with a little basketball ability[/QUOTE]

Exactly. Exceptional basketball skills first and foremost. Not size. Not athletic ability. Have an SMU looking team where all 5 players on the court can shoot, rebound, pass, and handle.

 

[husky99]

I think that he knows his x's and o's, I think he can work with kids in practice and inspire them. I think he can develop impressive game plans.

His big weakness--and it's big--is in-game. Time outs. Managing minutes. Adapting on the fly. Those are things you develop over time (if at all) and they're the sort of thing that some good coaches struggle with, but great coaches have down pat.

It doesn't surprise me at all that these things might be problems, and that the optics aren't great. But I also think that if he got higher IQ players it would relieve the stress on some of this. He has to be worried about way too much in game.

He made mistakes and errors with Shabazz/Boatright that I don't think he would now, but overcame them because those two, when on the floor with Daniels, Giffey, Kromah, and Nolan didn't make simple mistakes.

I think he has been coached by some of the best x's and o's coaches in the game nba and college . it takes time to learn to coach that to other people

 

[businesslawyer]

As usual F me for posting this and take everything with a freaking grain of salt because I'm sure I will be jumped all over but here we go. Ollie sold himself as a fatherly Calhoun 2.0 is the word i hear (not my word,what i hear). Which he is and the players like him. Guys like Napier really show that fatherly side. Ollie took these guards under his wing and they like him as a mentor. But this is the Trainwreck Calhoun had a couple hundred wins under his belt when he came here from Boston at the D1 level. He could coach he had an amazing X's and O's mind but that was fine tuned with his other jobs as head coach. Ollie does not have that skillset and experience yet. sure he could learn it but the players are pissed because there are times I have heard they feel like he is lost in huddles and does not always have a game plan. Ollie needed to be a head coach and win two hundred games or a hundred games at a Charlotte or a mid low major like school. And I think Calhoun kind of screwed him over by taking the third guy on the bench(ollie) and putting them as the head coach. He's being asked to have his first car at 16 be a Ferrari.
So here's the root of the issue I hear that the players to not feel like they are developing and being coached at practice and at games at the level UConn should. Nobody's going to blast ollie on the way out because they like the guy there are issues with development and coaching

It shouldn't be necessary that KO be an x's and o's genuis to be a good coach. Not with staffs the size of a D-1 program. It would have been fine if Miller was capable of designing the O and D, and communicating it to KO during games. The fact that KO has pushed Miller out tells you that KO didn't think that was working.

What Calhoun was far, far greater at than X's and O's was looking at his roster, and then determining how the team was going to play, what the rotation was going to be and what players were going to have what roles. That is an art, not a science. X's and O's is more of a science -- it can be learned. I think the eye for building a team that JC had you are either born with or you are not.

My far bigger fear about KO is whether he is good enough at being able to look at all the paints and brushes on the first day of practice, and figure out what the final painting should look like and how you get there. It would be tremendously unfair to say that he probably won't be as good at it as JC, because that implies that anyone would be that good of it and no one was or is (and don't talk about Woodens and Ks who have rosters of McDonalds AAs to create a team from). But I think it is more than fair to ask if KO is ever going to be good enough at it.

 

[Tenspro2002]

Well, you know what? They did. So there's really no use whining about it.

When you act small-time, you get small-time results.

Somehow, you've never had a problem with this program decaying to that level.

 

[huskyrob1]

Juwan Durham isn't a center, never was a center and never will be a center. He was 196 pounds and had already blown out one of his knees when he committed.

As for Brown; there's no partial credit for recruiting a train wreck.

We should have grabbed Colson while we had the chance.

 

[tzznandrew]

I think he has been coached by some of the best x's and o's coaches in the game nba and college . it takes time to learn to coach that to other people

I don't think it's an x's and o's thing, though. bizlaw nailed my point.

He throws out wacky rotations sometimes, leaves people on the bench long after they should have gone in, and sometimes seems to lose people entirely. Part of coaching is that chaos, and he sometimes struggles at it, for whatever reason. And that needs to be fixed one way or another.

 

[businesslawyer]

It is pretty amazing what an inept coach has done to this proud program. And Joe D said last night there is likely more to come. All of this was entirely predictable of course. And sad to say some of it has to fall at the feet of Jim Calhoun. Had he had the decency to retire in March instead of playing games to make it impossible to keep Ollie from getting the job, things might be different. Some of it rests with Manuel who lacked the spine to actually stand up to Calhoun. Of course the biggest piece of the mess goes to Ollie himself. He has no concept of modern offense, no idea of how to recruit what he needs and can't coach players up. As a coach he is Calipari without the talent.

None of it rests on Manuel. It wasn't a question of him having the spine to tell JC it was time for him to move on so a proper search could be run. He didn't have the authority from his bosses to do that. For absolutely good and understandable reasons.

 

[businesslawyer]

And they will fail to reach Uconn standards also. People act like what JC did was easy. As easy as finding the right coach. I would bet there's probably a handful of coaches that could come here and get it back to where we all want it. And those guys are probably happy where they are. JC is gone and so is our program as we knew it, but that doesn't mean it can't be successful and Ollie is the right guy in my opinion. It's just gonna take time.

The only part you're wrong about is thinking there are a handful of coaches out there who could take over UConn and actually accomplish what Calhoun did, even with the starting line having been pushed ahead by Calhoun. Maybe there is one. Maybe.

It is about getting a successful coach, not replacing Calhoun. Calhoun can not be replaced. Anyone who will run off anyone who doesn't achieve what Calhoun did will be running off our coaches for the rest of their live for no purpose. We need a coach who can be successful here over a long term. Calhoun thought it would be KO. He may or may not prove right. We're not yet at the point where you can be sure.

 

[Tenspro2002]

None of it rests on Manuel. It wasn't a question of him having the spine to tell JC it was time for him to move on so a proper search could be run. He didn't have the authority from his bosses to do that. For absolutely good and understandable reasons.

That may be the case.

And if KO flames out and this program never returns to the level we've become accustomed to, that will absolutely tarnish JC's legacy.

 

[Uconn77Duke74]

Wasn't there a year around 2006-2007 where Calhoun had to essentially go through a house cleaning/transfer process as well and that led us to the 2009 Detroit Final Four? I'm hopeful this will lead to similar results.

 

[husky99]

It shouldn't be necessary that KO be an x's and o's genuis to be a good coach. Not with staffs the size of a D-1 program. It would have been fine if Miller was capable of designing the O and D, and communicating it to KO during games. The fact that KO has pushed Miller out tells you that KO didn't think that was working.

What Calhoun was far, far greater at than X's and O's was looking at his roster, and then determining how the team was going to play, what the rotation was going to be and what players were going to have what roles. That is an art, not a science. X's and O's is more of a science -- it can be learned. I think the eye for building a team that JC had you are either born with or you are not.

My far bigger fear about KO is whether he is good enough at being able to look at all the paints and brushes on the first day of practice, and figure out what the final painting should look like and how you get there. It would be tremendously unfair to say that he probably won't be as good at it as JC, because that implies that anyone would be that good of it and no one was or is (and don't talk about Woodens and Ks who have rosters of McDonalds AAs to create a team from). But I think it is more than fair to ask if KO is ever going to be good enough at it.

I was not implying that x's and o's was the only issue there are many issues. I made reference to huddles and game plans

 

[Kembacity]

I think I'm still waiting for Ollie to have a full stable of players to have at his disposal. I kind of feel like Ollie hasn't had the luxury of depth that Calhoun used to have to really yank players when they made a bad decision. I think that this quick yank was integral in Calhoun's ability to teach players lessons during games as the season progresses. I'm hoping that next year we have a little bit better depth but I understand that might be hard with the recent defections.

Another thing I hope Ollie shows us is flat out anger. In many many games this season I and I know others have felt we've been getting an unfair call from the refs. I want Ollie to just get that T when we've had 2-3 touch fouls called on us while our guys drive the lane, get knocked and get no call. Obviously you don't want T's when its getting down to the last few minutes of the game, but I kind of miss the days of Calhoun going off. Maybe he gets a T and we go from down 4 to down 6, but it always felt like the calls would come back after it, or the guys would be fired up by their coach get fiery. You can tell Ollie has that fire, I want him to let the refs have it next season, you aren't a rookie coach anymore, give it to them!

 

[tzznandrew]

Wasn't there a year around 2006-2007 where Calhoun had to essentially go through a house cleaning/transfer process as well and that led us to the 2009 Detroit Final Four? I'm hopeful this will lead to similar results.

It was more the 2009-2010 team clearing out for the 2010-2011 championship run.

 

[Confident Carl]

There was something wrong with last year's squad from the get go. People gloss over it because of the injuries but this team was outplayed (and lost) to Wagner and Northeastern. It wasn't a fluke, they did it twice. And this was a team with three seniors on the floor and a top five recruiting class. Preseason #18.

They played very softly with little intensity. They were sloppy, they gave up open shots and couldn't knock down open shots, and they were so-so or less on the boards.

I am happy the team has been gutted. It had to be done. But did they solve the problem?

Ollie's team's have always started slowly in conference. This year they started slowly against the cupcakes. That is not moving in the right direction. It's been a long time since we had a strong regular season. We need one. We tend to forget that Ollie is a first time head coach. He has never been through this. How he responds and how the team responds to him will be very telling. And we should have the answer by January. Until then it's all just noise.

Bingo - Too many Injuries - Need to get stronger- Strength coach fired
Toughness - Heart - Physical- Rebounding
Defense - Ollie losing rim protectors wants relentless D

You want to win National championships now, this is what we need. We need maturity
And leadership which is why I like having those 5th year seniors.

Losing Jackson and Enoch hurt at first but I am convinced that if Ollie uses a three guard attack he needs space eaters and tough strong bodies underneath. Don't underestimate KO's demand for toughness. Like Geno says, if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen. Don't get me wrong, I saw good athleticism In Jackson and Enoch. Maybe they would have gotten tougher, they are young, who knows? But if you take a look at South Carolina's team, who I picked as National Champion, this I believe is the kind of powerful team that KO envisions. Listen to what coach K said about South Carolina!

Great technique, heart, toughness: Coach K tips cap to Gamecocks

 

[JMick]

Bingo - Too many Injuries - Need to get stronger- Strength coach fired
Toughness - Heart - Physical- Rebounding
Defense - Ollie losing rim protectors wants relentless D

You want to win National championships now, this is what we need. We need maturity
And leadership which is why I like having those 5th year seniors.

Losing Jackson and Enoch hurt at first but I am convinced that if Ollie uses a three guard attack he needs space eaters and tough strong bodies underneath. Don't underestimate KO's demand for toughness. Like Geno says, if you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen. Don't get me wrong, I saw good athleticism In Jackson and Enoch. Maybe they would have gotten tougher, they are young, who knows? But if you take a look at South Carolina's team, who I picked as National Champion, this I believe is the kind of powerful team that KO envisions. Listen to what coach K said about South Carolina!

Great technique, heart, toughness: Coach K tips cap to Gamecocks

Everyone keeps mentioning 3 guard rotations which I think we should and will see, but our guards are small. It would be nice to add a 6'4/6'5 true SG. Granted, the staff tried with Diallo...

 

[tzznandrew]

Everyone keeps mentioning 3 guard rotations which I think we should and will see, but our guards are small. It would be nice to add a 6'4/6'5 true SG. Granted, the staff tried with Diallo...

And if you really want a 3 guard line up with any consistency, you really need a fifth guard.

 

[businesslawyer]

Wasn't there a year around 2006-2007 where Calhoun had to essentially go through a house cleaning/transfer process as well and that led us to the 2009 Detroit Final Four? I'm hopeful this will lead to similar results.

I don't think so. After '06, we lost our entire starting 5 and 7 of the 9 guys really in the rotation (keeping only Adrien and Austrie) to the draft and graduation. We had to start again. The team that lined up for the 06-07 season was maybe the worst team we had post '90 until this year, but its core of Thabeet, Adrien, Sticks, AJ Price and Dyson (with Craig and Edwards on the bench) became 8 of the 9 rotation players who 3 years later were in the Final Four.