Shaq Aaron transferring

[zipp]

I don't really disagree with Kratz as far as trying to improve our recruiting. I'd like to see us target a little lower on the Top 100 food chain to find better L1C4 kids. Kids who will work hard by nature and don't feel as entitled.

But I don't feel I need to be griping about it as if Pitino isn't clued into what we need or doesn't care. I get put off when these opinions roll over into the b!tching and whining realm like we're not doing well enough. Or that we're entitled to something more as fans. That's bull$hit...

 

[thecycle21]

Finding kids that don't feel entitled is pretty challenging in today''s world. Unfortunately there were signs that Aaron was biiger than the coach. That should have been a red flag to Coach P. With that said you never know what a kid will do when you get him out of his environment. The other factor is the dad appeared to be just as frustrated as Pitino. I would say when the family is behind the coach things generally work out.

The staff really has to find kids and parents that fit Coach P. I just don't think the elite kids fit which isn't a bad thing for either Coach P or the elite kids. It is just not a good fit.

 

[KerryRhodes]

Funny how no one isnt labeling Agau or Gill, "not Louisville Men"

Why didn't Russ criticize Gill. He would have had the second most experience coming back.

As of now, Coach Pitino dropped the ball on Shaqquan, and none of you are going to admit it.

He said he was the next Cisco, who could play the 1,2, and 3 positions.

All this did was confirm to DeAngelo Russell, that he made the right choice.

Playing gym rats like 100 pound swopshire over 5 star Jennings got UofL a lower seed,
and a first round loss.

Now he'll more and likely sign even lower ranked players, so he wont feel obligated to
play them, when he cant motivated them or cant COACH them up...........

 

[Louisvillian]

Ok, Rick dropped the ball on Shaqquan. I can live with that. Unlike some, I don't see anything good about a highly recruited player like Aaron leaving the program it's just that I'm not one to worry about the daily soap opera that is the lives of 18 and 19 year old college athletes. I just can't do it with as much success as our Cardinal athletic teams have had lately.

Otherwise I would spend the rest of this baseball season fretting about whether Corey Ray was going to turn pro instead of enjoying the incredible roll Dan McDonnell's team is on. Life's too short or maybe I'm just getting old.

This post was edited on 4/9 10:58 AM by Louisvillian

 

[Kratz]

Originally posted by Ipartiedwithhopgood:
Criticizing Pitino's recruiting while he's in the midst of five elite eights in the last eight years crack me up. 3 FFs and 1 Title in 12 or 13 years, whatever it is.... our program has a total of 3 titles, so he's won us a third of our titles....

Kratz this is like calling out a hot blonde for having finger nails that are just a little too long. Or saying you're just really annoyed to find out she's wearing a black thong when your favorite color is purple or something.

Jesus man.

I never said the man can't coach. Im saying we're in the middle of a recruiting blunder right now. Since you want to talk history, let's talk history. RP had one other bad recruiting spell as well. Happened in the mid 2000's. 2005 was a final 4 year, then the recruiting mistakes caught up and where did we end up in 2006? In the NIT. We're right on the verge of that recruiting pattern catching up again.

Do you realize that as of now, the most experienced player on UofLs roster is Mathiang. UofL's most experienced player and already named captain for next season is a guy that averages about as many points as he does fouls per game. Think about that and tell me you don't see any issues with it at all.

I've got no problem bringing in the occasional JUCO or graduate transfer at all. But right now RP is SCRAMBLING to try to round out next seasons roster with them.

A top 10 program with a HOF coach at the helm shouldn't be scrambling in mid April to fill out a roster with graduate transfers for his team that starts practice in October.

You used the hot blonde analogy, Yeah she's been hot the last few years, but if that same hot blonde suddenly packs on 75 pounds and gets a bad case of acne, you still going to think she's hot or that she's messed up and needs to get herself back into shape?

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Originally posted by Kratz:

Im saying we're in the middle of a recruiting blunder right now. Since you want to talk history, let's talk history. RP had one other bad recruiting spell as well. Happened in the mid 2000's. 2005 was a final 4 year, then the recruiting mistakes caught up and where did we end up in 2006?

Uh, he got duped by guys like Telfair, Amir, and Donta who ended up skipping college completely, and two of the three are STILL playing in the NBA. It isn't Rick's fault Brian Johnson blew up his knees man.

These were highly rated guys, when he got them they weren't considered blunders they just hit the road and in Brian's case he got career shattering injuries.

This is not the same thing. This is a few fringe players that didn't work out when they were here. Guys like Akoy and Anton, really? Pretty inconsequential casualties given the winning that we're experiencing.

As for the human element yeah we love all the guys and wish them well. The program is not going to suddenly drop behind Clemson for any extended period of time.

Can we at least see the first down play before punting the ball Kratz?

 

[Cue Card]

Originally posted by Ipartiedwithhopgood:

Originally posted by Kratz:

Im saying we're in the middle of a recruiting blunder right now. Since you want to talk history, let's talk history. RP had one other bad recruiting spell as well. Happened in the mid 2000's. 2005 was a final 4 year, then the recruiting mistakes caught up and where did we end up in 2006?

Uh, he got duped by guys like Telfair, Amir, and Donta who ended up skipping college completely, and two of the three are STILL playing in the NBA. It isn't Rick's fault Brian Johnson blew up his knees man.

These were highly rated guys, when he got them they weren't considered blunders they just hit the road and in Brian's case he got career shattering injuries.

This is not the same thing. This is a few fringe players that didn't work out when they were here. Guys like Akoy and Anton, really? Pretty inconsequential casualties given the winning that we're experiencing.

As for the human element yeah we love all the guys and wish them well. The program is not going to suddenly drop behind Clemson for any extended period of time.

Can we at least see the first down play before punting the ball Kratz?

Naaa, the sky has already fallen! LOL!!! We're doomed! We're gonna suck! We're not even going to win 10 games next year!!

LOLOLOLOLOL

 

[zipp]

Originally posted by KerryRhodes:
Funny how no one isnt labeling Agau or Gill, "not Louisville Men"

Why didn't Russ criticize Gill. He would have had the second most experience coming back.

As of now, Coach Pitino dropped the ball on Shaqquan, and none of you are going to admit it...
I think there's a big difference you're overlooking... Pitino and Russ don't think Agau and Gill can cut it even with hard work. They're not good enough.

Aaron ain't cutting it because he ain't working hard enough. That's why we're hearing it about him only.

Hard work is the foundation of the L1C4 and "Louisville man" stuff.

 

[zipp]

Originally posted by Kratz:
I never said the man can't coach. Im saying we're in the middle of a recruiting blunder right now...

Do you realize that as of now, the most experienced player on UofLs roster is Mathiang. UofL's most experienced player and already named captain for next season is a guy that averages about as many points as he does fouls per game. Think about that and tell me you don't see any issues with it at all.

I've got no problem bringing in the occasional JUCO or graduate transfer at all. But right now RP is SCRAMBLING to try to round out next seasons roster with them.

A top 10 program with a HOF coach at the helm shouldn't be scrambling in mid April to fill out a roster with graduate transfers for his team that starts practice in October.

You used the hot blonde analogy, Yeah she's been hot the last few years, but if that same hot blonde suddenly packs on 75 pounds and gets a bad case of acne, you still going to think she's hot or that she's messed up and needs to get herself back into shape?Recruiting is only a "blunder" if it translates to results on the court. It's more art than science, and there's no objective way to judge it otherwise. It's also irrelevant otherwise.

A stat showing a junior is the most experienced guy on the roster is meaningless in isolation. I'll keep saying it until you start using data... 75% of the nation's incoming freshmen don't remain at their schools four years. You're not indicting Pitino for a national trend, at least not with me in the discussion.

I'm glad to have a coach in his 60s "scrambling" to win games now, whatever that takes. Again, wins and losses are all that matters. You don't get style points for recruiting.

The analogy of U of L basketball as overweight and with acne is so far from reality it doesn't dignify a response...

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Originally posted by Kratz:

Yeah she's been hot the last few years, but if that same hot blonde suddenly packs on 75 pounds and gets a bad case of acne, you still going to think she's hot or that she's messed up and needs to get herself back into shape?

5 E8s in the last 8 years is not a few years, it's 5 of 8. That's excellence for an extended period of time.

And that blonde's most recent season was an E8.

You are refusing to acknowledge how good we've been and how long we've been good. You're just kind of, not looking at the things that count - the results and scores of the games.

 

[coach1983]

You guys don't understand the culture of sports in general.
Parents and kids are trying to find the best fit for them in hopes to get to the next level.
These kids have been the best since they were in grade school. The since of entitlement is overwhelming at all levels.
middle school, highschool and up, kids transfer all the time. Its all about the "me " attitude.

If the kids would just wait and be a little patient everything would workout in about the 3rd year. I understand coaching and have dealt with kids and parents who will do a nything to try kid their kid to next level.

Its the nature of the beast. Everything will be ok.

 

[Kratz]

Originally posted by Ipartiedwithhopgood:

Originally posted by Kratz:

Yeah she's been hot the last few years, but if that same hot blonde suddenly packs on 75 pounds and gets a bad case of acne, you still going to think she's hot or that she's messed up and needs to get herself back into shape?

5 E8s in the last 8 years is not a few years, it's 5 of 8. That's excellence for an extended period of time.

And that blonde's most recent season was an E8.

You are refusing to acknowledge how good we've been and how long we've been good. You're just kind of, not looking at the things that count - the results and scores of the games.

No I'm not. I've fully acknowledged (and celebrated) all the accomplishments over the last several years. What I'm doing that no one else seems concerned with is looking ahead. I don't like what I see for next year. The most experienced guy on the roster averaged maybe 4 ppg and he's already been named Captain. I see all of the guys that were brought in and supposed to be developed/groomed to step into these vacancies on the roster leaving en masse.

Pitino has a system that takes time to learn. Guys have to learn and be groomed over time. Look at Dieng and Russ: Prime examples of how RPs system works. When you have a system that requires guys that are willing to stick around, put in the work, and learn, you MUST RECRUIT guys that are willing to do those things. That's where RP has missed the boat over the last couple of seasons and it's showing itself with the way the 2015/2016 roster looks as of today. PG looks okay with Snider, but who's the back up? 2,3, and 4 spots are who? Center is ok defensively with mangok and chanu, but neither of them have shown any threat to score.

If things had gone to plan, the roster wouldn't be in question. Gill was supposed to have stepped into the 2 spot next year, Aaron was recruited to play the 3, Johnson and Agau were supposed to be competing for the 4. Johnson is the only one left out of that group so I guess he inherits the 4 spot by default with incoming Freshman Spalding being the back up.

RP had to simplify things this year because the team was too inexperienced. Now think of the lack of experience next year as compared to this year.

THAT'S the point I've been trying to make.

 

[Cue Card]

Originally posted by Kratz:

Originally posted by Ipartiedwithhopgood:

Originally posted by Kratz:

Yeah she's been hot the last few years, but if that same hot blonde suddenly packs on 75 pounds and gets a bad case of acne, you still going to think she's hot or that she's messed up and needs to get herself back into shape?

5 E8s in the last 8 years is not a few years, it's 5 of 8. That's excellence for an extended period of time.

And that blonde's most recent season was an E8.

You are refusing to acknowledge how good we've been and how long we've been good. You're just kind of, not looking at the things that count - the results and scores of the games.

No I'm not. I've fully acknowledged (and celebrated) all the accomplishments over the last several years. What I'm doing that no one else seems concerned with is looking ahead. I don't like what I see for next year. The most experienced guy on the roster averaged maybe 4 ppg and he's already been named Captain. I see all of the guys that were brought in and supposed to be developed/groomed to step into these vacancies on the roster leaving en masse.

Pitino has a system that takes time to learn. Guys have to learn and be groomed over time. Look at Dieng and Russ: Prime examples of how RPs system works. When you have a system that requires guys that are willing to stick around, put in the work, and learn, you MUST RECRUIT guys that are willing to do those things. That's where RP has missed the boat over the last couple of seasons and it's showing itself with the way the 2015/2016 roster looks as of today. PG looks okay with Snider, but who's the back up? 2,3, and 4 spots are who? Center is ok defensively with mangok and chanu, but neither of them have shown any threat to score.

If things had gone to plan, the roster wouldn't be in question. Gill was supposed to have stepped into the 2 spot next year, Aaron was recruited to play the 3, Johnson and Agau were supposed to be competing for the 4. Johnson is the only one left out of that group so I guess he inherits the 4 spot by default with incoming Freshman Spalding being the back up.

RP had to simplify things this year because the team was too inexperienced. Now think of the lack of experience next year as compared to this year.

THAT'S the point I've been trying to make.

They will all have the summer to get stronger, plus landing Lewis helps with the guard spot a lot. It also appears Pitino isn't done just yet. Talk is heating up on the kid from Drexel who is a strong 6-6 scoring wing who plays solid defense. I expect Anas to be much stronger, and Johnson will get his shot at a lot more playing time too. I think we're going to be decent and with a little luck, we should be better than expected. One thing I won't do is question Pitino's ability to coach. He's proven he knows how to coach so I'm not worried about it here in April.

 

[Ipartiedwithhopgood]

Kratz we are going to be down next year.

We are the only team w/ four straight SSs...

We can't make deep runs every year.

 

[zipp]

Originally posted by Kratz:
...What I'm doing that no one else seems concerned with is looking ahead. I don't like what I see for next year...That's fine if you're any good at it. Otherwise, you're just flapping your gums.

So based on the respective rosters (which is your primary focus), did you correctly see that this year's U of L team would advance one game further than last year's team did in the NCAA tourney?

If you did, you're better than anyone else in this space...

 

[ACCCard]

Until the end product suffers, and it has been a while since that has been the case, Pitino hasn't "dropped the ball" on much of anything. The recent results trump the whining, complaining and second guessing. Some fans always seem to be anxious, untrusting, and negative. Positivity, appreciation and hope are healthier choices.

 

[Briggsky]

38% of D1 basketball players end up playing for at least two teams. Aaron was POY at home and thought he would just walk into the starting lineup. Rick obviously wasn't impressed with his work habits. You don't work in UL practices, you don't play. I wish him well and Rick mentioned that he had been in touch with his family. I think he still has a lot of potential, but he needs to grow up.

 

[Briggsky]

Re: just oo many players are leaving.

There is no pattern here that doesn't show itself across the college scene. 38% of D1 players now have played for at least two schools. When you consider the number of one and dones, that's pretty amazing. You are going to have a lot of unhappy players when you recruit top 50 players who all expect to start. Look at KY trying to platoon and keep egos happy. He was forced to start the Harrisons when they continued to suck. Aaron was supposed to be the shooter and he averaged hitting 31% from three in his two years.. Everyone know that Ulus would have made every player on the team better. The Harrisons were beaten by virtually every quick guard and were only saved because Cal had about 35 feet of McDonalds players on the front line to clean up their mistakes. This is what happens when you promise five new players starting jobs every year.

It appears that the longer players stay with Cal, the worse they do in the draft. He's taught the Harrisons virtually nothing in two years. Not winning with nine different Burger Boys is the worst coaching performance I've ever seen. WCS has developed virtually no offensive moves in three years. As soon as UK started facing top 10 teams winning became much harder. This team was simply not prepared for the Tourney. Čal's system works well as long as he plays weak teams. He has still finished the season losing five times in six years to teams with virtually no McDonalds players. Those five losses came against teams that had a total of one McDonalds player amount them. WVU had only one top 100 player on it's entire squad. He will always do well in pre-season but when coaching against great coaches always results in eventual failure in the tourney. When has Cal ever beaten any team with equal talent.

 

[Briggsky]

Re: just oo many players are leaving.

There is no pattern here that doesn't show itself across the college scene. 38% of D1 players now have played for at least two schools. When you consider the number of one and dones, that's pretty amazing. You are going to have a lot of unhappy players when you recruit top 50 players who all expect to start. Look at KY trying to platoon and keep egos happy. He was forced to start the Harrisons when they continued to suck. Aaron was supposed to be the shooter and he averaged hitting 31% from three in his two years.. Everyone know that Ulus would have made every player on the team better. The Harrisons were beaten by virtually every quick guard and were only saved because Cal had about 35 feet of McDonalds players on the front line to clean up their mistakes. This is what happens when you promise five new players starting jobs every year.

It appears that the longer players stay with Cal, the worse they do in the draft. He's taught the Harrisons virtually nothing in two years. Not winning with nine different Burger Boys is the worst coaching performance I've ever seen. WCS has developed virtually no offensive moves in three years. As soon as UK started facing top 10 teams winning became much harder. This team was simply not prepared for the Tourney. Čal's system works well as long as he plays weak teams. He has still finished the season losing five times in six years to teams with virtually no McDonalds players. Those five losses came against teams that had a total of one McDonalds player amount them. WVU had only one top 100 player on it's entire squad. He will always do well in pre-season but when coaching against great coaches always results in eventual failure in the tourney. When has Cal ever beaten any team with equal talent.

 

[Section 12 Jerk]

Is Bozich talking about Aaron here? LOL.

http://www.wdrb.com/story/29017155/bozich-donovan-swanking-and-college-basketballs-ball-of-delusion

 

[cardfaninmemphis]

Is Bozich talking about Aaron here? LOL.

http://www.wdrb.com/story/29017155/bozich-donovan-swanking-and-college-basketballs-ball-of-delusion

That was a good read. Thanks for posting that. I don't need to know who the kid is to grasp the egos on some of these kids.

Apparently, recruiting is more than evaluating talent, it is evaluating ego, motivation and rationality. These are kids that are being recruited. They can say what they think a coach wants to hear while thinking to themselves, "wait until I get there and show them all how it's done."

 

[RockvilleRed]

Wow...knucklehead for sure. Talent, humility, and work ethics make champions. Lacking anyone of those and you could wind up being a very tall guy in a blue collar job. Coaches can only evaluate talent when kids are in high school. Humility and work ethics only show itself in adversity.

 

[CACard]

Guys, recruiting is just like dating. You make educated guesses, but in the end it's all a crap shoot. Our coaches sell themselves and our program to the recruits. You are naive if you think the recruits don't love the attention and sell themselves just as hard to the coaches.

The coach talks with them, during the process, about the resources we have (weight room) and the effort we will put into transforming them into men and great players. The player tells the coach he is all over it. The player gets on campus and doesn't follow through and we suddenly blame the coach for poor recruiting of the 4-star player?? Please child.

 

[HedleyLamarr]

Aaron went to three high schools, will probably end up at three colleges, and never achieve very much at any stop along the way. We clearly had a recruiting problem, and CRP has replaced assistants with a top recruiter and a top evaluater. My guess is that Donovan Mitchell is about to make us forget about the prior years recruiting busts. Go Cards!

 

[BrakingAnkles]

Recruiting work ethic, attitude, and other aspects outside of basketball talent ended when focus turned towards talking to AAU coaches and not high school coaches and teachers. Unfortunately the dynamic of recruiting these days, if you want to get the kids to your school you have to convince their AAU coach that apparently has all the power over these players.

AAU coaches will tell you what you want to hear about a player they see 3-4 hours a week and every other weekend.. HS coaches will share what it is like to be around these kids 6-7 hours a day for 180+ days.

 

[J-Rye_UL]

Who else could this be about besides Aaron? Did IU or UK lose any highly touted transfers? Just embarrassing.

 

[RockvilleRed]

Embarrassing for whom?
You?...because you can't brag about any McDonald AA at UL?
UL?...because the school can't hold on to a player who doesn't want to work hard?
Aaron?...because he has to face his homeboys at home and explained why he can't cut it in Div I?

BTW, UK just lost several highly-touted transfer to the NBA. They just have to sit out the summer though.

 

[CardFan1130]

Glad he's gone. That guy was awful. No other way to put it.

 

[J-Rye_UL]

Embarrassing for whom?
You?...because you can't brag about any McDonald AA at UL?
UL?...because the school can't hold on to a player who doesn't want to work hard?
Aaron?...because he has to face his homeboys at home and explained why he can't cut it in Div I?

BTW, UK just lost several highly-touted transfer to the NBA. They just have to sit out the summer though.

Take it easy man. His comments were so ignorant that I'm embarrassed for him, whoever "he" is.