FightFor6

Regardless of what happens, he'll always be a part of the Indiana family.

How dare you insult Steve Novak like that! He's basically a step-brother to this program. In all seriousness though, look at this squad. A bunch of knuckleheads and guys multiple years past their primes. The fact they not only were a cohesive team but won 54 games and made it to the conference semi-finals is a complete miracle.

So, Painter is definitely calling up Franklin right? Was his last official visit before he committed to IU.

Hard disagree on that one. If healthy, Franklin would likely be a 15+ ppg scorer and one of the better perimeter defenders on the team next year. He's one of the only back-court players in the past 4 years that has improved his game which speaks to his work ethic and temperament. That doesn't grow on trees.

I would assume this is not a good sign for CJ Gunn either. Wasn't Armaan's development a big selling point to CJ?

Well, ****. Armaan would have been on the top of my list to retain. That's a huge blow if true.

There are a lot of variables at play here, but referees and coaching are at the top of the list. In my opinion, this also feeds recruiting where the type of players attracted to the B10 thrive in a slower, muck-it-up style of play that doesn't translate when the competition is more athletic and runs a more free-flowing offense in the tournament. I'm also not a fan of the 20 game league schedule. I think it grinds teams down and limits the number of opportunities teams get to expose themselves to other conferences and playing styles.

I doubt that. "Come play at IU where we can't tell you the coach nor can we tell you if we'll still be here in a week."

I remember "People will be happy" being pumped down a feeding tube for Archie 4 years ago. Fool me once.. I have confidence Dolson will make a great hire. Just really hate that line when used in cryptic posts/tweets.

All of these people coming out of the woodwork to **** on information that quality posters decide to share with us need to seek help. Same thing with the "Brad was never considering IU crowd." That mentality is the problem with this fan base. Not the insiders and others who decide to be optimistic about something they are passionate about. Just a really sad look all around.

Yes, that's the barrier.

This is exactly what I would have expected if you truly feel like you're close to a white whale. Taking one pass and giving up just doesn't sit right with me. Who knows. Likelihood is still high this goes nowhere but if Dolson had one donor that got him north of $7M a year, I could absolutely see him raising funds from multiple other donors to add significantly to that amount. Edit: I also don't really read into anything that was said in that press conference yesterday. Insulting? Sure. Genuine? Really don't think so. Seemed like a lot of pandering to keep people off his back.

Musselman vs Beard on Sunday will be a closely watched game.

Yeah, disagreed. Treading water for a year until you have an A+ hire lined up could have ended up being a better option. The floor is very low now for the next couple years depending on who the hire is and what sort of turnover we see on the roster. Edit: Not saying this is what is going to happen. Just saying the immediate downside is much greater if you're now working down a list of guys that aren't your first choice.

This has been my only point in the last few pages. By all indications, there are a handful of very savvy, successful, experienced people involved in this process. Surely they anticipated a counter or a last ditch effort from Boston to retain him. That happens even with entry level employees giving notice every day. Did we really go into this with a "first and final" offer strategy? It is what it is at this point. I for one really appreciate everything you and @Chris007 have brought the last few days. The whole thing just smells bad to me right now.

Is there any sense if Dolson and crew are moving on after this or is there an appetite to take another pass at Stevens? It's just odd to me that we would be so close and cave in the 11th hour.

I would assume this process moves very quickly if we're truly moving on. If not, it will be obvious after about 2 weeks or so we're waiting around for the end of the NBA season. Most of the board seems to have jumped ship at this point but I don't have a problem waiting until June for BS if Dolson is confident he can get a commitment then. Most of the names thrown out would still jump at the opportunity in June if offered. It doesn't really matter to me if we miss the transfer window in an attempt to get the perfect candidate.

I guess. The NBA in my mind is ultimately a players driven league. At some point, an owner is going to say no coach is worth a certain $ amount when he can get 80% of the coaching value at 50% of the cost. It's also not like any of this is at the expense of the university. As long as you have donors footing the bill, force Ainge to shoot himself in the foot with a ridiculous HC salary.

3 days ago I was reading a lot of comments about how you make Brad Stevens say No and then go back again with a better offer multiple times if you have to. Why the change of heart now? Im playing catch-up because I had to step out for a while, but it sounds like we were 99% there only to be matched at the last second? Why wouldn't you do whatever is possible to go back and make the offer more enticing? Add another $1M+ per, add 2-3 years, up the buy-out, etc. BS is far and away the best option so not sure why we're throwing in the towel after the first no when supposedly conversations have been ongoing for 2-3 months. I'm not holding my breath for anything. Just don't understand the defeatist attitude for a program desperate to be relevant again.

I hope Twitter goes scorched earth on Goodman when this is all over. This guy has been openly rooting against Brad Stevens to IU all week. What a hack.

Breaking News: Jeff Goodman has **** sources.

I mean, this is fine. No reporter is going to stick their neck out for something where they don't have info. I find it hilarious that THAT interview is what they want to reference though. As if Brad Stevens was going to break it to those two knobs on a radio show.

You don't need more than 30 minutes heads up for a PC these days. Everything is on Zoom so all these guys have to do is find a quiet room to tune in and click a link.

Edit: Missed the post right above me. My bad!