Juwan Moye

lol, hang a banner!

To be fair, that may be the same issue with Woodsons defense as well. It’s absolutely something I’m worried about, especially our ability to defend the 3. Early in the season, all teams has to do was take a dribble towards the nail defender then make the easy pass to the wing for a wide open 3.

Yeah, there seems to be less value in trying to develop guys immediately when you can spend a couple hundred grand to get someone proven and then build up them up from there.

One dude saying he wouldn’t want to see Goode as a small ball 5 isn’t conclusive here. I’d have some worries about Goode at the 4 but would vastly prefer it over seeing the Malik/Ballo pairing. I still firmly believe our best lineups will be with Mgabko at the 4 and Ballo at the 5.

If Ballo were hurt for a game or two I wouldn’t be sad about a Rice, Carlyle, Goode, Mgbako, Reneau lineup. May need to see some zone to protect Malik but good luck guarding us.

We should be trying to play Mack at the 4 as much as possible. He’s a true modern 4, has the size to do it. He doesn’t have the quickness to play the 3 on the defensive end.

We should expect the success of other actual blue bloods if fans are going to act like we’re one. I’d define that as almost always a top-25 team and at least a couple of times a decade having a team that’s a legit threat to make the final four. This would align with the likes of Duke, UNC, Kentucky, Kansas, UConn, etc. although some of them may have even higher bars.

Since you like numbers, what numbers suggest our coach did a good job last season?

That’s good to hear, thanks for sharing.

I also didn’t mind the “true fans” comment as much, just thought it was tone deaf and unnecessary given the results on the court and the frustration within the fan base due to said results. He lost me when he kept ducking anything resembling accountability and blaming anything other than himself for what was happening. People attributed it to him being stubborn but I think it’s worse than that, it’s hubris.

To be fair to Woodson it looks like he has adjusted with regards to the roster. But beyond that, I fully agree that he’s been steadfast that there’s nothing wrong with his coaching, his system, etc. Last year was all on the players in his mind, and he said that publicly. (I don’t make the shots, need more talent in here, etc etc)

Yeah, people hoping for failure are taking it too far IMO.

As a non-Woodson fan, I agree with this. He has to get SOME credit for the portal haul. Now whether or not that translates into reasonable results remains to be seen but, at least on the surface, it looks like he’s learned from his roster construction mistakes last season.

Is making the tournament the goal? Could’ve sworn it was B1G and National titles. But if you’re content with a coach who is paid as a top-15 coach, with a top-5 NIL budget, squeaking into the tournament to get blown out by the likes of St Mary’s then we’ve got your guy!

Last year we were tested by KenPom 300+ teams who had reasonable shooting so we should at least know very early on if we’re at least better than last year. If we squeak by an Army or FGCU type, or almost lose to a Morehead St, it’s going to be a LONG year. I still remember people trying to convince others that those teams were underrated and the metrics were wrong. Delusional.

John Smith has done his job. No one knows basketball or wants to win more than John Smith.

This is the prudent point that people for some reason ignore. If Woodson were fired, what high level basketball program is considering him for their coaching position? The answer is zero. If you look at B1G coaches objectively you quickly see he’s in the bottom half, if not the bottom third, of head coaches in the conference. Still going to cheer for our team this year, as I do every year, but my only trepidation about the season at this point has nothing to do with the roster and everything to do with our coach.

How about being consistently in or around the top-25 and securing a 7-seed or better, otherwise he’s fired. Is that reasonable?

Feels like a shot at Woodson in this: "It felt like a perfect fit," McNeeley said. "Coach Hurley is a hard-nosed coach. That's the kind of coach I thrive under. The offensive system they run is perfect for my game. The culture of the team. The sets they run. They are going to help me get better on both sides of the ball. The whole coaching staff are good people."

Would be curious to know what the sunshine pumpers think. ”we won the offseason! ”cool, so if we don’t make the sweet 16 we fire our coach, right?” ”whoa whoa, let’s be reasonable here”

I don’t disagree, but I’m attempting to suggest a floor. Which in my mind, if that floor isn’t met, that should be a fireable offense. My worry is that we squeak in as a bubble team, win a game, and keep our coach around because “we improved” or some garbage. I WANT us to do well, but we can’t accept mediocrity with the level of investment IMO if we ever want to be considered an elite program again.

The expectation set by Woodson himself was to compete and win B1G and national championships. But then he wants to tell us he’s “done his job” for a 19-win season and misses the tournament, bizarre stuff really. So if we hold him to his expectation then we as fans should at least see that we’re clearly progressing towards the goals of a B1G title then a national title. We moved backwards last year, on top of other gaffes, thus the calls for him to be fired. But given the investment, both in coaches and players (were easily over $10m/yr), the absolutely floor for this team should be to consistently be in or around the top-25 with a 7-seed or better in the tournament. Even though I’m not a Woodson fan, I wouldn’t just fire him for a first round exit unless we get embarrassed again. But if he can’t secure at least a 7-seed in the tourney then he should have to win the BTT or make the sweet 16 to keep his job.

He’s got one of those names where you read it but you don’t even try to sound it out in your head.

Currently a mid major, considering a step up.

Yeah, I said that partially in jest but also somewhat truthful as it’d be so nice to watch aesthetically pleasing offensive basketball again. We haven’t had that since Crean. I think Malik could serve as our “backup Center” but even then, we still need a backup 4/5 who can man the middle when foul trouble or injury strikes. The issue here will be that you’re not getting a highly talented kid to come in and take that role. Maybe you’d get a highly regard freshman but I doubt it. That’s why I lean more towards staggering Ballo/Malik: Malik at the 5 is going to be more effective there than any person we’re likely to bring in at this point.