cthomas

Interesting article in IndyStar by Greg Doyle about coach Miller. He was wondering if CAM was rising to the challenge or beginning to melt down. Cited changes in behavior and intensity as his reason for speculation. Said he would be watching Wednesday night.

That's true, but we could meet them in the league championship game.

This has been a problem for a while. I especially hate the tv timeouts before a guy shoots a free throw.

Are the other teams in the conference experiencing the same kind of losses we are? If not, I can see some cause for concern. We were not super deep to begin with and depth is needed to compete with the big boys. Sampson James looked like the real deal to me and his loss is big.

We often play with a 'we'll get 'em next time' mentality both from play to play and game to game. Problem is that you eventually run out of 'next times'.

You have my sympathies and wishes for a speedy recovery. Wouldn't wish that on even a Purdue fan.

Hopefully this gets worked out to the satisfaction of all parties and everyone involved can move on with their lives a little wiser.

You might be on to something here. I have a grandson whose dad pushed him into football at a young age. He developed well enough to play in the North - South All Star game and earn a scholarship to Western Illinois. Left school after one year and is now in the Navy. His heart wasn't in it and probably never was. The talent to do something and the desire to sometimes doesn't match. For some kids basketball may be the ticket to an education or livelihood otherwise unavailable. We see only a very one dimensional view of these kids and make very hard line judgments about them. Several of Coach Knight's last few teams looked, and played, like they couldn't wait for the season to end. We often project how we would feel and react to the opportunity presented to these kids and it's really not fair at all. I'm just trying to say that the dynamic at play is more complicated than it seems.

I tend to fall on this side of the argument more often than not. We live in an age where people want everything and want it now. While IU basketball would no doubt benefit greatly by having Lander next year, I'm not sure he would benefit as much. I would prefer to let him grow and mature at his own pace. My senior year of high school was my most memorable and it had nothing to do with the sports I participated in. Life experiences matter and a real problem for talented athletes today is that the focus on a sport closes the door on other opportunities. I sincerely hope he takes his time, gets advice focused on his best long term interests, and makes the decision that is best for him.

Let me guess. Morton is better and they never wanted Lander. Probably threw in that Lil' Archie can't coach and they own us.

All I know about Brooks is what I have read here. How is he different than Smith from a skill standpoint?

Those whose star burns brightly also often do so briefly.

It wasn't always pretty, and there were things to complain about, but I'm not going to. PSU is a really good basketball team who plays pretty well on the road. This was a very high quality win. If this team can exact a little payback at Purdue, they will be rolling. Thompson and Hunter finally emerging has been and will be huge going forward.

Without knowing any details, this sounds very much like a domestic dispute. These are the most emotionally charged situations by a wide margin. I hope this can be fairly resolved without completely derailing Hendershot's future. That said, the details of the case may indicate that he crossed a line that he must be held accountable for and can no longer be part of the program.

I think we have a tendency to over analyze things like this. I was never on a team where a fight didn't break out at least once a week between guys on the team. It's just the nature of guys competing and being together so much in close quarters. And, I was never on a team where everyone liked everyone else on the team. Usually we had 3 or 4 guys who hung out together of the court, but certainly not everyone. To me, good chemistry refers to playing well together and not necessarily personal relationships.

This is the one that bothers me the most and a reason I'm not enthusiastic about "system" coaches. The hedging out on the court when our personnel aren't capable of doing it is frustrating. I haven't seen the flexibility of approach that I think is necessary to win games. Very disappointing.

This team looks like it is waiting for someone to take control and lead....and no one wants to. Until I see that leader emerge, I am not optimistic. I hope they surprise me tonight.

Agree with the part about being on the 'birds'. I think we would all enjoy that. :)

We talk a lot about heart and pride and how we don't have anyone to be that guy. But, think about how today's kids grow up playing the game. Think about their priorities. AAU is all about showcasing individual talent. It's part of the process of getting to the next level and then the one after that. They play a lot of games and they lose a lot of games. Losing doesn't matter that much if individually they look good and demonstrate their skills for whoever is watching. I just think the mentality is different from what most of us think. When I played, and I was not good, winning meant everything. Losing meant I wanted to fight someone. I'm not advocating that anyone punch somebody, but I just believe the kids don't care to the same degree as in the past. The priorities are different.

I have to wonder why anyone would want to be a coach and put up with the 24/7 nonsense that is college basketball today. I love basketball, used to anyway, and the money is good, but I love my family more. High level college basketball coaches can't possibly have any kind of reasonable family time. Makes me wonder just how these guys are wired.

People who support and follow athletic teams don't derive any pleasure when they lose. Nobody wants to spend hard earned money on an unpleasant experience. That to me is where we are, or are going, right now. And yesterday was historically about as bad as I can ever remember.

I understand that everyone just wants to win. How we get there is where the difference lies. This is not about being right or wrong, it's about how we get there. I don't want anything to do with the Sampson, or anyone like him, method. I won't support or follow a one and done factory. Maybe it can't be done without 'playing the game' these days. I don't care for the NBA and I hate that college basketball keeps getting closer and closer to that model. I respect that others see it differently. My wife constantly tells me, "It's not all about you"!

Me too, in a SMALL way!

Not sorry to see him go. I have no respect for that program or university given what has been exposed the past couple of years. A certain whiney basketball coach should join him.

I could see that as a possibility and would have some advantages. I, however, have a hard time understanding how we as fans are better able to determine coaching decisions than the coaches are. There are lots of things that I don't understand when watching the games concerning coaching decisions. But they have infinitely more information about the team than I do, so what do I know. Ultimately, CAM is the one whose head is on the line and he will succeed or fail doing things his way. It's fun (?) to speculate though, if anything can be fun at this point.