How would you rate Pitino ayear and a half in?

[Winasota Gopher]

Unless we are talking about being a Final Four bubble team.

Or cheerleaders.

 

[Bad Gopher]

Ya, I think I know what you mean. Clem, Monson, and Tubby came in to save the program after it seemed like it had hit bottom yet once again: the mess in Madison; Gangelgate; and the team simply giving up under Monson. To me, they were seen as saviors. I was just happy a coach with a good resume would come here to clean up a mess. They certainly didn't sit back, but compared to Pitino, they didn't seem to be as hungry. As others have pointed out, Pitino has come into a better situation, and even though he has the name, he seems to not take it for granted. He doesn't have the reputation yet, and he's going to work his ass off to get it. Clem took shortcuts; Monson started to coast right away; and Tubby just seemed to act old. Don't think young Rick is going to go down any of those paths. Plus, he's a cocky Eastern type with a great sense of humor and certainly knows how to use those attributes.

Clem came in VERY hungry. He was extremely ambitious with what he wanted to do with this program, as well as with basketball in this state. You look at where HS hoops is now compared with when he came to town, and it's not even the same thing. I attribute a good deal of that to him - mostly indirectly, but he made a huge difference in boostering basketball here. (The re-establishment of the NBA helped a lot, too.)