Why we should not be OK with losing right now

[Bonk]

You can say losing now is fine because the bigger picture is Hurley gets new guys in the next couple years and turns things around. But the more we lose the harder it gets to bring in top talent. There is somewhat of a catch 22; you need talent to win, but you need to win to attract talent. A 4* recruit does not want to jeopardize their one opportunity in college to play in the tournament by risking it and going to a team that hasn't made the tournament in four years.

Say what you want, but our 2020 recruiting class so far is solid, not great. Hurley has proved that his New Jersey recruiting connections aren't as strong as once touted, therefore we'll only start reeling in the big fish once Hurley either starts winning or develops a couple guys into the league. Most new coaches have some "new coach recruiting momentum" at first but new coaches like Crean have history of putting guys into the NBA, Hurley does not.

Bottom line: Being OK with missing the tournament or with losing to USF and justifying it with "we'll be better once the new guys come in" is a bad and somewhat delusional mindset for us to have. You can have the most charismatic coach in the world, but recruits want results. Results matter.

 

[Palatine]

Because no team ever should never be okay with losing.

 

[AustrieGOAT]

Completely agree. Setting your sights on anything but an NCAA tournament bid is a toxic mindset to have. What recruit wants to come to a school where the target for the year is to make it to the NIT? As fans too, how can we call ourselves a blue-blood, but then be okay with USF losses and mediocrity? Sure UConn basketball has lost its luster a bit in the past few seasons, but the moment we lower our expectations, we relegate ourselves from ever reaching the status of a top-tier blue blood that our history has proven us to be.

 

[BFieldHusky]

You can say losing now is fine because the bigger picture is Hurley gets new guys in the next couple years and turns things around. But the more we lose the harder it gets to bring in top talent. There is somewhat of a catch 22; you need talent to win, but you need to win to attract talent. A 4* recruit does not want to jeopardize their one opportunity in college to play in the tournament by risking it and going to a team that hasn't made the tournament in four years.

Say what you want, but our 2020 recruiting class so far is solid, not great. Hurley has proved that his New Jersey recruiting connections aren't as strong as once touted, therefore we'll only start reeling in the big fish once Hurley either starts winning or develops a couple guys into the league. Most new coaches have some "new coach recruiting momentum" at first but new coaches like Crean have history of putting guys into the NBA, Hurley does not.

Bottom line: Being OK with missing the tournament or with losing to USF and justifying it with "we'll be better once the new guys come in" is a bad and somewhat delusional mindset for us to have. You can have the most charismatic coach in the world, but recruits want results. Results matter.

I have to disagree with you on the 2020 class. You don't think having a top 50-75 wing player with super athleticism and what would be a Top 75 big is not great?

 

[Bonk]

I have to disagree with you on the 2020 class. You don't think having a top 50-75 wing player with super athleticism and what would be Top 75 big is not great?

It isn't great. Jackson has shooting woes, despite having high upside. And Javonte is not top 75. He is not ready for college b-ball physically. He's gonna be good down the road but from the footage I've seen he is not a great rebounder. He hasn't caught up to his body yet.
It's a solid class at this point, nothing program changing.

 

[uc1990]

I'm not really sure who is "OK" with losing? I don't think the coaches think it's OK? I don't think the players think it's OK? I know the fans don't think it's OK? Are you saying it's not OK so we should fire the coach? bench all the starters? I think this losing sucks but I think giving coaches who clearly are working really hard at making the team better(might not be great at all of the things that go into that yet) support is OK. I think cheering on players who are working really hard and showing them support(even though you can't stand some of the stupid plays they make) is OK. All this makes the first championship with Hurley that much better. Remember how great it was with Calhoun seeming like he should have won a few before the first? Hang in there. Enjoy the ride.
By the way next year we will be a young inexperienced team. Seems like they will be really talented though. Those teams lose a lot as well.

 

[krinklecut]

There's a big difference between being okay with losing and having realistic expectations. This was always going to be a frustrating year. I really have no idea how some of you got it into your heads that these team was going to be as good as you want them to be.

We're going to lose frustrating games. We're probably gonna win some we shouldn't. It's a weird team in the middle of a coaching staff transition with not a ton of upperclassmen talent. It was always going to be a weird year.

Hamper expectations and try to enjoy what you can. I don't think anybody is "ok with losing" though.

 

[Travelman6]

This team has the talent to at least get a bid as an 8-10 seed, that is not unrealistic, especially in a Topsy-turvey year like this where there is no clear strong team. At this juncture the team has not taken advantage of how..average... the overall field is (compared to most years). Most years THIS particular UConn team might be NIT but this is the year they can actually do something better.

It actually shocks me that that is seen as unrealistic. There are less talented teams doing better this year. Other coaches in their second years have had stronger turnarounds with less to work with....Hurley will get it done, it just feels slower than I thought it would take.

 

[UCfor3]

The talent is overrated by many on here. What have you seen on the floor the last 3 years to say we are talented enough? The proof is right there for all to see. We are undersized and underdeveloped physically. We have no frontcourt depth. We rebound poorly. We have point guard issues. We turn the ball over. We take awful shots. We don't shoot the ball particularly well. Mentally we tend to collapse when things snowball negatively. Our most talented players are freshman. How does that all add up to being talented enough?You don't play the game on paper or with high school rankings of yesteryear. You are what your record says you are. Perhaps it's not that complicated. Perhaps it's just as simple as we are just not that good and we just need more good players and we need those players to gain experience.

 

[Huskybass]

Play smart, share the ball, hit the boards hard and defend really well. With just those adjustments, UConn has a couple more wins right now. The talent is there to make the tournament, but so far the execution falls short.

 

[8893]

The talent is overrated by many on here. What have you seen on the floor the last 3 years to say we are talented enough? The proof is right there for all to see. We are undersized and underdeveloped physically. We have no frontcourt depth. We rebound poorly. We have point guard issues. We turn the ball over. We take awful shots. We don't shoot the ball particularly well. Mentally we tend to collapse when things snowball negatively. Our most talented players are freshman. How does that all add up to being talented enough?You don't play the game on paper or with high school rankings of yesteryear. You are what your record says you are. Perhaps it's not that complicated. Perhaps it's just as simple as we are just not that good and we just need more good players and we need those players to gain experience.

Play smart, share the ball, hit the boards hard and defend really well. With just those adjustments, UConn has a couple more wins right now. The talent is there to make the tournament, but so far the execution falls short.

I can’t disagree with a single point in either of these two posts, which appear to reach different conclusions. Which pretty much sums up why it’s hard to know what to expect right now.

 

[UCLJ0211]

I'm not really sure who is "OK" with losing? I don't think the coaches think it's OK? I don't think the players think it's OK? I know the fans don't think it's OK? Are you saying it's not OK so we should fire the coach? bench all the starters? I think this losing sucks but I think giving coaches who clearly are working really hard at making the team better(might not be great at all of the things that go into that yet) support is OK. I think cheering on players who are working really hard and showing them support(even though you can't stand some of the stupid plays they make) is OK. All this makes the first championship with Hurley that much better. Remember how great it was with Calhoun seeming like he should have won a few before the first? Hang in there. Enjoy the ride.
By the way next year we will be a young inexperienced team. Seems like they will be really talented though. Those teams lose a lot as well.

Memphis has found a way to win this year with a bunch of young guys

 

[McLovin]

I can’t disagree with a single point in either of these two posts, which appear to reach different conclusions. Which pretty much sums up why it’s hard to know what to expect right now.

Correct... we have lost to teams with much less talent than us and it's because we have not played as a cohesive team and our difference in talent isn't large enough to beat the less talented teams on talent alone.

A group of true 4* and 5* players who play hero ball could probably have won a few of the games we lost. A group of 3* and 4* players who play together as a team could probably also have won a few of the games we lost.

Right now the group of players we have is the ladder trying to play like the former.

 

[Bonk]

Perhaps it's not that complicated. Perhaps it's just as simple as we are just not that good and we just need more good players and we need those players to gain experience.

You missed the point of my post. Saying "we just need more good players" is so delusional. As if they are just gonna fall out of the sky. The more we lose, the less these good recruits want to come play here. And unless hurley is willing to get his hands dirty with recruiting he'll have to entice recruits with results such as showing he can develop guys into the NBA or giving kids the chance to play in the tournament.
This "Rah rah come bring UConn back to where it once was" pitch is not sustainable.

 

[Palatine]

It isn't great. Jackson has shooting woes, despite having high upside. And Javonte is not top 75. He is not ready for college b-ball physically. He's gonna be good down the road but from the footage I've seen he is not a great rebounder. He hasn't caught up to his body yet.
It's a solid class at this point, nothing program changing.

We desperately need a back up center. Javonte would get minutes this year and make a difference.

 

[Bonk]

We desperately need a back up center. Javonte would get minutes this year and make a difference.

Disagree. He’s so young and lanky still, typically only rebounds when the ball falls right to him. Not saying that won’t change, he’s got high upside, just will need time

 

[superjohn]

Disagree. He’s so young and lanky still, typically only rebounds when the ball falls right to him. Not saying that won’t change, he’s got high upside, just will need time

He could still help, anyone with a pulse could do more than Carlton the past few games.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

You missed the point of my post. Saying "we just need more good players" is so delusional. As if they are just gonna fall out of the sky. The more we lose, the less these good recruits want to come play here. And unless hurley is willing to get his hands dirty with recruiting he'll have to entice recruits with results such as showing he can develop guys into the NBA or giving kids the chance to play in the tournament.
This "Rah rah come bring UConn back to where it once was" pitch is not sustainable.

If your point was that we should not be OK with losing right now, I'd offer that nobody is OK with it.
Your "Why" might have merit if being OK with losing were a thing.
It's not.

 

[8893]

If your point was that we should not be OK with losing right now, I'd offer that nobody is OK with it.
Your "Why" might have merit if being OK with losing were a thing.
It's not.

Unless we’re talking pro teams and draft position.

 

[Bonk]

If your point was that we should not be OK with losing right now, I'd offer that nobody is OK with it.
Your "Why" might have merit if being OK with losing were a thing.
It's not.

That’s just not true. There are many people that are suggesting wins and losses don’t matter this year as long as the young guys are improving. I’m arguing that winning games now matters

 

[UCfor3]

You missed the point of my post. Saying "we just need more good players" is so delusional. As if they are just gonna fall out of the sky. The more we lose, the less these good recruits want to come play here. And unless hurley is willing to get his hands dirty with recruiting he'll have to entice recruits with results such as showing he can develop guys into the NBA or giving kids the chance to play in the tournament.
This "Rah rah come bring UConn back to where it once was" pitch is not sustainable.

Well I wasn't responding to your post so I wasn't missing anything. We have stunk for 4 years yet we managed to get a good freshman class this year and have 4 hopefully good new players coming in next year(maybe another this spring) while a few of the upperclassmen are cycling out. That's a start. I understand the concept that recruiting elite players to a losing program is difficult. I understand the longer we lose the harder it gets. You didn't split the atom with that point but the reality is we are where we are. Our coach has done a pretty good job of convincing good players to play for a "losing" program so far. Our staff works hard. Hopefully they will continue to have success despite the adversity. You want delusional? Delusional is watching the same players for the last 3 years under 2 different coaches having the same results and thinking we are more talented than most everyone we play. At some point you have to look at the most common denominator. This fan base is sick of losing but the situation requires time and patience and that is tougher to reconcile for some. This was a TOTAL rebuild. When Hurley decided to keep the veterans and not clean house, this was always going to take longer than some were willing to stomach. I am hoping that it will come down to that old saying....Do you want something done fast, or do you want something done right.

 

[UConnDad]

I think the point is some say it's about building the culture, but you need to build a winning culture too.

 

[HouseofPain]

What concerns me is the total lack of confidence.

This team should be in the bubble range and is playing way below its potential.

Right now we are getting outworked and pushed around by average to sub average teams.

Some losses are good losses (i.e. Xavier and IU). The last two have been bad losses. Not okay.

 

[Excalibur]

Entire post based on false premise. Next . . .

 

[Stainmaster]

OP seems like he has great insight into how recruits make their decisions.