Richard Pitino please

[watertown 1987 guy n]

Fully support him being here but he does need to get some special results and soon. It is year 6 and high time to contend in a real way at the top of the conference. Not 11-7 and 4 games out in 5th. Time to win and i think the roster is loaded for it and he has a far better staff then before.

Your measuring device is off or your just out of touch w/ the Big10 landscape. The real benchmark is making the tournament and winning a game, 2 would be awesome. The Big 10 is loaded this year with Top 30 teams and all, with some luck, could be a Sweet 16 team. Even if they don't win the Big10 there is no shame in finishing in the top 5-6, that goes for any team besides Michigan and Michigan St. The Big10 currently has 9 teams that could very easily finish the season in the Top 30.
Michgian
Michigan St.
Iowa
Ohio St.
Purdue
Wisconsin
Minnesota
Indiana
Nebraska

 

[builtbadgers]

I only see 2 teams better on paper . Other coaches have won more with less in several power conferences. It is time to do it now.

 

[PoockItInfor6]

I’m very happy with Pitino! He’s built a really nice team, with a nice mix of young and old talent, seems to be loyal man, a good person, and think he’s doing a nice job on and off the court. In his first year or two I did think he was out coached at times, but haven’t seen that in the last couple of years. His recruiting has been good to very good, and I’d he can get a Hurt, Holloman, or Suggs to stay home... The sky is the limit on what he can do here.

 

[Winasota Gopher]

I only see 2 teams better on paper . Other coaches have won more with less in several power conferences. It is time to do it now.

It’s amazing that even your compliments of the gophers are underhanded comparisons to wisconsin and Virginia.

Your schtick is terribly tired.

 

[vagopher]

I like Pitino. I think the future is bright.

 

[builtbadgers]

It’s amazing that even your compliments of the gophers are underhanded comparisons to wisconsin and Virginia.

Your schtick is terribly tired.

Was actually thinking of what Lute Olson did in earlier years, Larranaga, Keady in years he did not have all americans but now that you mention it you can add Ryan and Bennett if you like. Great coaches would win huge with this roster. Get it done, year 6. Do not read my posts if they are tiring. I just do not give money to the program and hand out high praise for 5 years of winning nothing and 31-59. Still paid this year and expect great things. The programs i support demand excellence.

 

[bc2211]

Was actually thinking of what Lute Olson did in earlier years, Larranaga, Keady in years he did not have all americans but now that you mention it you can add Ryan and Bennett if you like. Great coaches would win huge with this roster. Get it done, year 6. Do not read my posts if they are tiring. I just do not give money to the program and hand out high praise for 5 years of winning nothing and 31-59. Still paid this year and expect great things. The programs i support demand excellence.

I respect your posts and always find them insightful. Completely reasonable to have your own set of expectations if you are donating money. That said, I’ve had a set of lingering questions for you, meant to be taken honestly.

It seems as though you’ve been treated to and surrounded by hall of fame coaches your whole career (whether by choice or opportunity, i haven’t fully gathered). You frequently compare Pitino to these HOF coaches, with the implication that Minnesota only needs to reach out and simply offer the next Tony Bennet a contract and we could be better.

With that said, in a given offseason, how many coaches are available that meet your bar of excellence? How many others show their potential to meet that bar throughout their careers? How many other programs are after those guys each year? How likely is it that Minnesota lands one of these guys in a given offseason? How likely is it that Minnesota lands one of these guys in my lifetime?




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[Winasota Gopher]

Was actually thinking of what Lute Olson did in earlier years, Larranaga, Keady in years he did not have all americans but now that you mention it you can add Ryan and Bennett if you like. Great coaches would win huge with this roster. Get it done, year 6. Do not read my posts if they are tiring. I just do not give money to the program and hand out high praise for 5 years of winning nothing and 31-59. Still paid this year and expect great things. The programs i support demand excellence.

So hof coach or bust for you huh? You’ve been donating to the Gophers for years and we’ve not even sniffed the level of coaches you consistently reference. It’s unfair expectations, and certainly not the bar you just jump to unless you get lucky. Pitino COULD be on that level I just highly doubt it at this juncture, but that’s not a reason to condemn him.

 

[go_gophers]

Everyone has the right to their opinion and I also appreciate perspectives other than my own. Sometimes I hear a reasoned explanation that I hadn't considered and it sways my own thinking. I also enjoy the occasional back and forth we see here. However, I do take issue with the implication that one person's opinion is more valid because they donated money. Good for you. I'm glad there are people that are in a place that allows them to show financial support. However, I have a hard time with what I perceive as a sense of entitlement (perhaps I'm reading it wrong). Your donation doesn't make you an owner (i.e. Packer Fans), nor does it make your opinion more or less valid than anyone else on this board. I could be reading too much into it, but sometimes I sense a bit of a superiority complex with some posters.

 

[Winasota Gopher]

Everyone has the right to their opinion and I also appreciate perspectives other than my own. Sometimes I hear a reasoned explanation that I hadn't considered and it sways my own thinking. I also enjoy the occasional back and forth we see here. However, I do take issue with the implication that one person's opinion is more valid because they donated money. Good for you. I'm glad there are people that are in a place that allows them to show financial support. However, I have a hard time with what I perceive as a sense of entitlement (perhaps I'm reading it wrong). Your donation doesn't make you an owner (i.e. Packer Fans), nor does it make your opinion more or less valid than anyone else on this board. I could be reading too much into it, but sometimes I sense a bit of a superiority complex with some posters.

I don’t read his comments as entitlement at all.

I think he’s very knowledgeable.

 

[go_gophers]

I don’t read his comments as entitlement at all.

I think he’s very knowledgeable.

I don’t disagree. I hope I clarified my comments well enough.


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[LongLiveMilesTarver]

I think Pitino actually is very similar to a lot of the players he has coached. Sure, he has flaws but he seems to make improvements as a coach year by year and game by game (even within the game).

I don't feel like the program has stagnated like I did with Tubby or hit rock bottom like with Monson. This team seems to be on a slow but steady incline with the unfortunate crash of last season.

I'm concerned about next season's recruiting class but I'm very satisfied with this year's. I feel like his players generally improve from the time they step on campus to the time they leave. If I were to hand out a letter grade it would probably be a B. He still has a lot of work to do to get this program to where we want it all to be but I feel it's in a better spot than when he inherited it.

 

[alchemy2u]

I think Pitino actually is very similar to a lot of the players he has coached. Sure, he has flaws but he seems to make improvements as a coach year by year and game by game (even within the game).

I don't feel like the program has stagnated like I did with Tubby or hit rock bottom like with Monson. This team seems to be on a slow but steady incline with the unfortunate crash of last season.

I'm concerned about next season's recruiting class but I'm very satisfied with this year's. I feel like his players generally improve from the time they step on campus to the time they leave. If I were to hand out a letter grade it would probably be a B. He still has a lot of work to do to get this program to where we want it all to be but I feel it's in a better spot than when he inherited it.

I agree in that Pitino has been in a learning mode these first years.


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[Minnesconsin fan]

recruiting seems to get tougher when you are a middle program than when you are really good or really bad. Really bad and you can sell kids on minutes available and be a team leader as a freshman, really good and you can sell minutes because the class ahead of you is going pro after one year. tough to be in the middle but you really want kids that think they can beat out the kid a year or two ahead of them. Identifying the over-achieving kid that is un-ranked or under-ranked is the key. Losing kids to the Arizona's of the world because of "team fit" are tough and having two top level AAU programs (Nike and Adidas) in the state with only one University to go to make it hard to keep everyone happy
"

 

[builtbadgers]

Everyone has the right to their opinion and I also appreciate perspectives other than my own. Sometimes I hear a reasoned explanation that I hadn't considered and it sways my own thinking. I also enjoy the occasional back and forth we see here. However, I do take issue with the implication that one person's opinion is more valid because they donated money. Good for you. I'm glad there are people that are in a place that allows them to show financial support. However, I have a hard time with what I perceive as a sense of entitlement (perhaps I'm reading it wrong). Your donation doesn't make you an owner (i.e. Packer Fans), nor does it make your opinion more or less valid than anyone else on this board. I could be reading too much into it, but sometimes I sense a bit of a superiority complex with some posters.

Just for the record and as i have stated before, i do not think as a long time supporter that my opinion is any more valuable than anyones . Even when i disagree on every point. I do not get into personally bashing someone weather they love every aspect of the Gopher program or are down about all of it. Iam only sharing what i see and have seen where programs are at and how they have been built and how quickly that gas happened elsewhere in basketball and that was not the case here. I have stated that i still support Pitino here this year and expect a huge year. It is a requirement to win annually way above what has been done and understand that he was not a top choice. He now has his best staff and roster and is hopefully past recruiting low character kids and building some identity into the program. I not asking for great but often around here the fan base would accept .500 over the next 3 years and that is not acceptable. Not to me. Just my opinion.

 

[Goldteam]

Put me in the camp of posters that actually are pretty happy Richard Pitino is our coach. I actually thought last night was one of the better coaching jobs he has done. The Gophers looked dead in the water during the first half and were not scoring effectively. Credit to them for making significant adjustments at halftime and winning a game against a team with a pretty high ceiling this year potentially. The Gophers were trying to contain a beast inside (Dickerson) without their best option available (Curry) sitting on the bench. This year's team has won three or four games against Power 5 conference level talent by playing tough defense, rebounding the ball, and playing smart at the end of games. That makes me far more optimistic about this year's team than I would have been had they beaten five Mount St. Mary type teams by 30.

Overall, this looks like a tournament team to me. I'm also convinced this would have been a tournament team last year had Lynch's sexual bender not come back to haunt him and without the slew of injuries that occurred. Obviously I'm projecting this year and we can't redo last year but Pitino has set this team up for success the last few years, in my opinion. Recruiting mistakes haven't occurred the last few years like they did when he started. He has better depth as a result.

I'm looking forward to the rest of the year.

Ah, No!

 

[skauma]

I'm fine with Pitino, but extremely upset he didn't see the train wreck at PG coming. His plan for this year was to hope for a transfer to fill the depth, in Carr or Crandal.

 

[bfast]

For the life of me why can't people just look across the border at what Wisconsin does with 3 and 4-star recruits.

BASKETBALL IQ !!!

Is it any shock that freakishly athletic, one-dimensionally skilled players melt down when the heat turns on? Meanwhile, Minnesota kids that we didn't want very much, Reuvers and Davison, will be running circles around us as Sophomores. They're not going to the NBA, but they simply play smart, hard and know they need to be balanced in many areas.

It's been over a decade and we still haven't had a player that was as good as Vince Grier - and he was a transfer. That's pretty sad. Don't tell me Mbakwe, Mason or Murphy are as good because it's not even close. Grier could actually lift a team.

Sure, coaches don't have a tough time recruiting when you are a blue blood and get your pick, but it takes something extra special to leverage modest recruiting power into success. It looks like Fleck might be able to do this on the football side.

If the Gophers don't win 8 or more conference games, Pitino should be GONE!

 

[Gopherbbdude]

I'm fine with Pitino, but extremely upset he didn't see the train wreck at PG coming. His plan for this year was to hope for a transfer to fill the depth, in Carr or Crandal.

Not at all. Washington was his goto PG, but he is not panning out like he had thought. I think IW will be a solid PG..... When he is a Sr.

 

[cjbfbp]

For the life of me why can't people just look across the border at what Wisconsin does with 3 and 4-star recruits.

BASKETBALL IQ !!!

Is it any shock that freakishly athletic, one-dimensionally skilled players melt down when the heat turns on? Meanwhile, Minnesota kids that we didn't want very much, Reuvers and Davison, will be running circles around us as Sophomores. They're not going to the NBA, but they simply play smart, hard and know they need to be balanced in many areas.

It's been over a decade and we still haven't had a player that was as good as Vince Grier - and he was a transfer. That's pretty sad. Don't tell me Mbakwe, Mason or Murphy are as good because it's not even close. Grier could actually lift a team.

Sure, coaches don't have a tough time recruiting when you are a blue blood and get your pick, but it takes something extra special to leverage modest recruiting power into success. It looks like Fleck might be able to do this on the football side.

If the Gophers don't win 8 or more conference games, Pitino should be GONE!

I agree with much of what you've said but I wouldn't say we have many freakishly athletic one-dimensional players either. I would say only Omersa might fit that category. Murphy is quick jumper who is strong, efficient, has a good feel for the game, and has acquired a set of skills that suits him very well. I would push back against any claim that he is not a very good (at least at the collegiate level) player. Coffey has a decent set of skills (although he's limited by his relative one-handedness), good height, and good (but not great) athleticism. On the other hand, we do have a number of players on the team with below-to-well-below-average athleticism.

 

[alchemy2u]

For the life of me why can't people just look across the border at what Wisconsin does with 3 and 4-star recruits.

BASKETBALL IQ !!!

Is it any shock that freakishly athletic, one-dimensionally skilled players melt down when the heat turns on? Meanwhile, Minnesota kids that we didn't want very much, Reuvers and Davison, will be running circles around us as Sophomores. They're not going to the NBA, but they simply play smart, hard and know they need to be balanced in many areas.

It's been over a decade and we still haven't had a player that was as good as Vince Grier - and he was a transfer. That's pretty sad. Don't tell me Mbakwe, Mason or Murphy are as good because it's not even close. Grier could actually lift a team.

Sure, coaches don't have a tough time recruiting when you are a blue blood and get your pick, but it takes something extra special to leverage modest recruiting power into success. It looks like Fleck might be able to do this on the football side.

If the Gophers don't win 8 or more conference games, Pitino should be GONE!

Come on now, I think you are letting some bias cloud your judgement.

The red menace has had some success playing team basketball without a group of extremely athletic players. They know who they are, they have a very disciplined system that they plug players into, but they should not be our role model. They know they can’t recruit the top level players, but Pitino’s goals are higher. He wants to be another Louisville, Florida, Michigan State, etc... those programs have all lost (or soon will be losing) their legendary coaches. Yes, Pitino has been on a learning curve but you can now begin to see the flexible systems he wants to play.

You want to bet if Murphy’s jersey will be hanging in the rafters?


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[bga1]

Come on now, I think you are letting some bias cloud your judgement.

The red menace has had some success playing team basketball without a group of extremely athletic players. They know who they are, they have a very disciplined system that they plug players into, but they should not be our role model. They know they can’t recruit the top level players, but Pitino’s goals are higher. He wants to be another Louisville, Florida, Michigan State, etc... those programs have all lost (or soon will be losing) their legendary coaches. Yes, Pitino has been on a learning curve but you can now begin to see the flexible systems he wants to play.

You want to bet if Murphy’s jersey will be hanging in the rafters?


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I think you have something there. Pitino has been an understudy to his dad and Billy Donovan. Both are guys who recruited top notch players and set up systems to match. Up to now Pitino has not been able to get the level of players that can make it work consistently. Last year's team when fully assembled was on the verge of putting that together. This team misses Nate Mason even worse than I thought it would.

Murphy is an unusual player. Because he is undersized, he tends to want to receive the ball up around the free throw line and drive into the paint to bully in for a bucket. With our inability to threaten from the outside (other than Kalscheur) they sag for the Murphy drive. Once he goes, he doesn't tend to pass it back out, he just goes. This eliminates good inside out action. Coffey is the same. If those two, especially Murphy, had a good midrange game, they'd be deadly.

 

[march madness]

We are getting outplayed and out-coached. This wasn't an ohio st team that people had a ton of expectations out of. We really miss Curry and his 240lbs. The bigger Wesson is a tough matchup for Oturu, and Murphy isn't a great def player and he likes to reach and we need his offense.

Let's see, double Murphy, sag off everyone not named Gabe or Stull. Make Coffey go right.

We really miss Mason. When the rest of the team was in a lull he could get a basket or get to the free throw line.

 

[Go Gophs]

Come on now, I think you are letting some bias cloud your judgement.

The red menace has had some success playing team basketball without a group of extremely athletic players. They know who they are, they have a very disciplined system that they plug players into, but they should not be our role model. They know they can’t recruit the top level players, but Pitino’s goals are higher. He wants to be another Louisville, Florida, Michigan State, etc... those programs have all lost (or soon will be losing) their legendary coaches. Yes, Pitino has been on a learning curve but you can now begin to see the flexible systems he wants to play.

You want to bet if Murphy’s jersey will be hanging in the rafters?


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Wisconsin recruits guys that can shoot and play team defense and are smart. Sure wouldn't mind having a few guys that could knock down shots and realize you have to move the ball in order to play efficient half court offense.

 

[golfing18now]

Ah, No!

You are right Goldteam......6-1 non-conference (will eventually be 10-1) with four wins against power conference teams, 0-1 in conference losing to the #16 team in the country on the road. Get rid of him!

Again....another over-reaction to an ugly four or five minute stretch. Once the evaluation was done to bring him back this year, he should be given the chance to play out the season. There are a bunch of good teams in the big ten this year. They will lose some of those games, particularly on the road. This isn't a final four team. But they aren't lining up against traffic cones. They will have good stretches and bad stretches. That's basketball. If they end up 6-14 in conference, I would likely have a different opinion. But sit back and enjoy the season.

This team needs Murphy to stay on the floor. He's not a shot blocker and shouldn't pick up stupid fouls trying to block shots. The drop-off between him and Omersa is huge right now. Curry will obviously help that problem tremendously. The point guard situation needs to be resolved. I personally would rather see more of Washington and less of Coffey running the point. I feel like two positions are weakened when Coffey runs the point. They don't need Washington to score 20 points a game. They just need him to play like Tum Tum did at Michigan State -- less shooting, more handling/distributing.

 

[Go Gophs]

No, don't get rid of him. I'm not in that camp either. But I would like to see some better play after 6 years. Compete every game. Ohio state didn't break a sweat last night. That's not acceptable for a team that wants to play meaningful basketball in March. Had they lost by under 10 and the game was highly contested, that's quite another thing. Last night though, we played the role of cupcake to the Buckeyes.

 

[Bad Gopher]

They know they can’t recruit the top level players, but Pitino’s goals are higher. He wants to be another Louisville, Florida, Michigan State, etc... those programs have all lost (or soon will be losing) their legendary coaches. Yes, Pitino has been on a learning curve but you can now begin to see the flexible systems he wants to play.

Have they set a timetable for when they're going to realize this grand scheme? I always go back to one characteristic of mental illness: grandiose plans and schemes that have no basis in reality. We're in year 6 and we've yet to see the full-court pressure defense that Richard himself said was one of the cornerstones of his plans for the program when he was hired.

And no, Michigan State should not be compared to Louisville and Florida. Up until the last few years, Izzo's teams have always been comprised of modestly recruited players who had particular skills and intangible qualities that made them coachable and conducive to the blue-collar system that MSU employs. However, like Louisville and Florida, they're fundamentally sound and consistent in effort and execution.

 

[SelectionSunday]

. ... I would like to see some better play after 6 years. Compete every game. Ohio state didn't break a sweat last night. That's not acceptable for a team that wants to play meaningful basketball in March. Had they lost by under 10 and the game was highly contested, that's quite another thing. Last night though, we played the role of cupcake to the Buckeyes.

This.

Among other things, Gophers are soft, with fragile psyche when things don't go their way. That needs to change. Gotta' compete worlds better then they did last night.

 

[upnorthkid]

This.

Among other things, Gophers are soft, with fragile psyche when things don't go their way. That needs to change. Gotta' compete worlds better then they did last night.

You guys all act like this **** doesn’t happen around college basketball to every team at times. I mean hell, Virginia did it last year to a 16 seed in the NCAA tournament and imploded just last year

 

[bleedsmaroonandgold]

You guys all act like this **** doesn’t happen around college basketball to every team at times. I mean hell, Virginia did it last year to a 16 seed in the NCAA tournament and imploded just last year

And I guaranty that Virginia fans were upset about that implosion (as they should be).