I still support Pitino.

Imagine their aguish when their target lives to coach another year.
No need to imagine. It'll just be more of the same. Poor coaching, short on talent. Lather, rinse, repeat.
 

NO, Pitino is not perfect. But the idea he can’t coach is false. Yes, there are holes in his approach to date, but Richard Pitino was masterful in his first season with nothin’ in the cupboard when he arrived.
He was Big Ten Coach of the Year. To dismiss those two seasons and just flatly say he can’t coach is wrong.
OBVIOUSLY, based on the schedule he created last spring 100% his info was that Coffey was returning. Richard was all in for a deep tournament run challenging his stacked team.
Didn’t happen. He panicked and played a short bench early in an attempt to be competitive early. Wrong decision imo

Had he played Ihnen early (I know he had a boo boo to start the season—-he was healthy countless games on the the pine) we’d be talking differently about this year and next.

Freeman intrigues me. He sure looks like he could play post defense. He is our best free throw shooter ha ... not sure why you wouldn’t get him involved for the present and the future.
Richard has not coached well this season but he can coach. He has not lost his team. They compete.
At some point it does come down to somebody has to make a play. Pitino is a great coach today if Gabe makes one play, if Ihnen buries one more three, if Oturu scores when the game is on the line, if anybody could make a free throw.
(The idea the coaching staff isn’t doing everything possible to solve free throw shooting woes is laughable. Hoiberg knows nothing either...they don’t practice em either)
 

I thought this was interesting - from Marcus Fuller article in the Strib. Basically suggesting that players from one of the top AAU programs in the state are down on Pitino.

tipping came in 2017, with Champlin Park’s McKinley Wright. Wright visited the U and was seriously considering making a commitment before the Gophers landed New York point guard Isaiah Washington. Right or wrong, it caused a perception that Pitino valued out-of-state talent more.

The ripple effect was lasting. Washington was a disappointment and eventually transferred to Iona, while Wright has become an All-Pac-12 player at Colorado. And the Gophers have not landed a recruit from Wright’s D1 Minnesota AAU program since, including McDonald’s All-American Matthew Hurt, Zeke Nnaji, Tyler Wahl and Tyrell Terry last year — and Ben Carlson, Dawson Garcia and Steven Crowl this year.


The article also suggests that the change in assistant coaches has not helped in maintaining relationships with recruits.
I've always wondered or suspected that Richard--maybe he hasn't valued out-of-state talent over local talent per se, but I do think he's undervalued local and regional players, who have tended to generally be undervalued by national experts and rating services. Not the 5-stars so much, as they get all kinds of attention and scouting time, but the 3-stars like Wright and low 4-stars like Davison. Richard has simply seemed to follow the crowd and seems to have dismissed a lot of the talent here and thought of this area as the flyover country that we really aren't. It's all so ironic because that's one of the huge advantages of coaching here: being the only D1 program in a state full of overlooked talent just waiting to be discovered. A resourceful, savvy, and sharp-eyed coach could really clean up here.
 

NO, Pitino is not perfect. But the idea he can’t coach is false. Yes, there are holes in his approach to date, but Richard Pitino was masterful in his first season with nothin’ in the cupboard when he arrived.
He was Big Ten Coach of the Year. To dismiss those two seasons and just flatly say he can’t coach is wrong.
OBVIOUSLY, based on the schedule he created last spring 100% his info was that Coffey was returning. Richard was all in for a deep tournament run challenging his stacked team.
Didn’t happen. He panicked and played a short bench early in an attempt to be competitive early. Wrong decision imo

Had he played Ihnen early (I know he had a boo boo to start the season—-he was healthy countless games on the the pine) we’d be talking differently about this year and next.

Freeman intrigues me. He sure looks like he could play post defense. He is our best free throw shooter ha ... not sure why you wouldn’t get him involved for the present and the future.
Richard has not coached well this season but he can coach. He has not lost his team. They compete.
At some point it does come down to somebody has to make a play. Pitino is a great coach today if Gabe makes one play, if Ihnen buries one more three, if Oturu scores when the game is on the line, if anybody could make a free throw.
(The idea the coaching staff isn’t doing everything possible to solve free throw shooting woes is laughable. Hoiberg knows nothing either...they don’t practice em either)
Your point is moot.....Coaches at the highest level get paid a lot of money to win games....47-81 is not good enough...It doesn't matter if you think he is a good coach or not.
 

NO, Pitino is not perfect. But the idea he can’t coach is false. Yes, there are holes in his approach to date, but Richard Pitino was masterful in his first season with nothin’ in the cupboard when he arrived.
He was Big Ten Coach of the Year. To dismiss those two seasons and just flatly say he can’t coach is wrong.
OBVIOUSLY, based on the schedule he created last spring 100% his info was that Coffey was returning. Richard was all in for a deep tournament run challenging his stacked team.
Didn’t happen. He panicked and played a short bench early in an attempt to be competitive early. Wrong decision imo

Had he played Ihnen early (I know he had a boo boo to start the season—-he was healthy countless games on the the pine) we’d be talking differently about this year and next.

Freeman intrigues me. He sure looks like he could play post defense. He is our best free throw shooter ha ... not sure why you wouldn’t get him involved for the present and the future.
Richard has not coached well this season but he can coach. He has not lost his team. They compete.
At some point it does come down to somebody has to make a play. Pitino is a great coach today if Gabe makes one play, if Ihnen buries one more three, if Oturu scores when the game is on the line, if anybody could make a free throw.
(The idea the coaching staff isn’t doing everything possible to solve free throw shooting woes is laughable. Hoiberg knows nothing either...they don’t practice em either)
This might be the all time record "percent of wrong per word count" post in the history of the internet
 


I’m guessing I know the answer, but do the Pitino backers believe next years team will be better? Or is it all dependent on Oturu leaving/staying? Let’s say Oturu stays, what do you believe is an attainable record? What record would result in a successful season? For the sake of argument, let’s say the season record next year ends up identical to this season (whatever that ends up as), would you support firing him at that point?
 

We keep hearing "oh Carr and Oturu are so talented" every single game, yet same result. At some point you have to conclude that common denominator is the X's and O's.

Meanwhile, Wisconsin is in the hunt for a B1G title with... Brad Davison...
 

I’m guessing I know the answer, but do the Pitino backers believe next years team will be better? Or is it all dependent on Oturu leaving/staying? Let’s say Oturu stays, what do you believe is an attainable record? What record would result in a successful season? For the sake of argument, let’s say the season record next year ends up identical to this season (whatever that ends up as), would you support firing him at that point?
This is what I don't get. Even if Oturu comes back, they win maybe 3-4 more games. Is 18-12, 11-9 and an 11 seed really worth keeping him around for? And what comes after that? And in the more likely scenario, if Oturu leaves, they will struggle just to match this year's results, which will almost certainly get him fired on year from now.
 




NO, Pitino is not perfect. But the idea he can’t coach is false. Yes, there are holes in his approach to date, but Richard Pitino was masterful in his first season with nothin’ in the cupboard when he arrived.
He was Big Ten Coach of the Year. To dismiss those two seasons and just flatly say he can’t coach is wrong.
OBVIOUSLY, based on the schedule he created last spring 100% his info was that Coffey was returning. Richard was all in for a deep tournament run challenging his stacked team.
Didn’t happen. He panicked and played a short bench early in an attempt to be competitive early. Wrong decision imo

Had he played Ihnen early (I know he had a boo boo to start the season—-he was healthy countless games on the the pine) we’d be talking differently about this year and next.

Freeman intrigues me. He sure looks like he could play post defense. He is our best free throw shooter ha ... not sure why you wouldn’t get him involved for the present and the future.
Richard has not coached well this season but he can coach. He has not lost his team. They compete.
At some point it does come down to somebody has to make a play. Pitino is a great coach today if Gabe makes one play, if Ihnen buries one more three, if Oturu scores when the game is on the line, if anybody could make a free throw.
(The idea the coaching staff isn’t doing everything possible to solve free throw shooting woes is laughable. Hoiberg knows nothing either...they don’t practice em either)

The idea that Richard is a bumbling idiot that knows nothing is truly ignorant. He has some areas where he does well. His offensive stuff is pretty good and he's fine on sets after time outs. I've seen struggles with building a roster efficiently and getting a team to defend at a high level. He's not a clown, but I myself am ready to move on.
 



We keep hearing "oh Carr and Oturu are so talented" every single game, yet same result. At some point you have to conclude that common denominator is the X's and O's.

Meanwhile, Wisconsin is in the hunt for a B1G title with... Brad Davison...
You can have each and every one of the lil feller. I don't want his ilk on MN teams.
 



Part of Pitino's problem with the roster is that he doesn't play enough guys. You have to play guys enough to get them to buy into their roles and stick around. He has to develop the roster better. He needs to tear it down and start rebuilding the roster. Coyle needs to decide if he wants Pitino to do this or another coach. I support what the AD chooses to do.
 

Anybody besides me wonder if there are some posters here with multiple handles that they use to like their own posts. I wonder because sometimes all of a sudden you see a bunch of names you do not readily recognize showing up to create posts or like other posts. Also, are there some posters here that purposely keep bashing the coach and the program because they want to drive recruits away from Mn. Just wondering what the real agenda is for some posters. As for me I will continue to support the current coach and players 100%. If the AD feels it is time to make a change based on his own criteria I will support that decision 100%.
 

Attendance numbers have dropped every year over the past 3. That's a big factor. There just hasn't been a lot to get excited about, and if Pitino stays next year I suspect that numbers will fall yet again. I can't see next years team winning more than this years, and that's the way to get us back at this point. This final Nebraska game at the Barn Sunday will show just how this year has gone attendance-wise.
I'll be supporting the team to start next year no matter who is coaching, but there would be a lot more excitement with a new coach, particularly depending on the hire. If there is no change, I assume the attendance will continue to go down weekly barring some unexpected play.
The lack of energy exemplifies exactly how this team has played under Pitino. They don't play hard. They rely on talent and players to make plays. We've had some good players under Pitino (Coffey, Murphy, Oturu), but clearly this is college basketball and not the NBA. You have to put kids in position to be successful, not just expect them to figure it out. That's my biggest issue. There's plenty of coaches we can bring in here that won't set up a program that way. It shouldn't be an issue finding a better coach than Pitino and I think it's fair to trust Coyle with that.
 

Anybody besides me wonder if there are some posters here with multiple handles that they use to like their own posts. I wonder because sometimes all of a sudden you see a bunch of names you do not readily recognize showing up to create posts or like other posts. Also, are there some posters here that purposely keep bashing the coach and the program because they want to drive recruits away from Mn. Just wondering what the real agenda is for some posters. As for me I will continue to support the current coach and players 100%. If the AD feels it is time to make a change based on his own criteria I will support that decision 100%.
Correct. One in particular: BADGER
 

Attendance numbers have dropped every year over the past 3. That's a big factor. There just hasn't been a lot to get excited about, and if Pitino stays next year I suspect that numbers will fall yet again. I can't see next years team winning more than this years, and that's the way to get us back at this point. This final Nebraska game at the Barn Sunday will show just how this year has gone attendance-wise.
I'll be supporting the team to start next year no matter who is coaching, but there would be a lot more excitement with a new coach, particularly depending on the hire. If there is no change, I assume the attendance will continue to go down weekly barring some unexpected play.
The lack of energy exemplifies exactly how this team has played under Pitino. They don't play hard. They rely on talent and players to make plays. We've had some good players under Pitino (Coffey, Murphy, Oturu), but clearly this is college basketball and not the NBA. You have to put kids in position to be successful, not just expect them to figure it out. That's my biggest issue. There's plenty of coaches we can bring in here that won't set up a program that way. It shouldn't be an issue finding a better coach than Pitino and I think it's fair to trust Coyle with that.
Time to put up or shut up for the AD. And those that steadfastly support him.
 

Part of Pitino's problem with the roster is that he doesn't play enough guys. You have to play guys enough to get them to buy into their roles and stick around. He has to develop the roster better. He needs to tear it down and start rebuilding the roster. Coyle needs to decide if he wants Pitino to do this or another coach. I support what the AD chooses to do.

Wisconsin played less than us last night.
 

This is what I don't get. Even if Oturu comes back, they win maybe 3-4 more games. Is 18-12, 11-9 and an 11 seed really worth keeping him around for? And what comes after that? And in the more likely scenario, if Oturu leaves, they will struggle just to match this year's results, which will almost certainly get him fired on year from now.
I agree with this completely. I think 7 seasons is enough to draw conclusions from. The chance of Pitino finishing top 4 in the conference in the future are relatively modest. The chances of him stringing together back-to-back "good" seasons, again, are somewhat modest. Possible, certainly, but if you're playing the odds, it's not likely. More likely than not, next year the record won't be appreciably better than this year. At which point, the seat becomes hot mid-season, and we're in this boat again.
 


Conference standings by season:
2020: 12/14 (as of today)
2019: 7/14
2018: 13/14
2017: 4/14
2016: 13/14
2015: 11/14
2014: 7/12

Two of the last three years (well into his tenure), they've been in the bottom 3 of the conference. What are we holding on to?
 

Anybody besides me wonder if there are some posters here with multiple handles that they use to like their own posts. I wonder because sometimes all of a sudden you see a bunch of names you do not readily recognize showing up to create posts or like other posts. Also, are there some posters here that purposely keep bashing the coach and the program because they want to drive recruits away from Mn. Just wondering what the real agenda is for some posters. As for me I will continue to support the current coach and players 100%. If the AD feels it is time to make a change based on his own criteria I will support that decision 100%.

Hopefully not too many people are wondering the same things as you because that would mean that they are foolish paranoids who are very troubled by something as ridiculously inconsequential as a message board.

The people who bash Pitino (I am one) do so because 1) they think he stinks and 2) can no longer stand looking at him after 7 years. They are not the colllege basketball equivalents of operatives from the Russian troll farms.
 



Hopefully not too many people are wondering the same things as you because that would mean that they are foolish paranoids who are very troubled by something as ridiculously inconsequential as a message board.

The people who bash Pitino (I am one) do so because 1) they think he stinks and 2) can no longer stand looking at him after 7 years. They are not the colllege basketball equivalents of operatives from the Russian troll farms.

My recommendation to cure your incurable malaise: identify and support a college team that, you know, has a history of winning. Quit expecting the chubby kid to win the 100m race. Ain't gonna happen.
 

It's time for a change, when you take into consideration that he had a losing B1G record last year it takes a bit of a bite out of the NCAA win. It's the whole body of work and it has been atrociously bad, this collapse is the last straw for me.
 

My recommendation to cure your incurable malaise: identify and support a college team that, you know, has a history of winning. Quit expecting the chubby kid to win the 100m race. Ain't gonna happen.

Well, that's not bad advice (I guess there are other teams I could root for) but I'm getting up there in years and I have invested a fair amount of time this last decade as a Gopher football and basketball fan. It would be nice to see a basketball coach who 1) can deliver the same level of fan elation that Fleck did this year and 2) fill fans with a sense of confidence in the future. I've seen enough of Pitino to believe that one good year with him at the helm does nothing to install confidence in success for the following year.
 

It's time for a change, when you take into consideration that he had a losing B1G record last year it takes a bit of a bite out of the NCAA win. It's the whole body of work and it has been atrociously bad, this collapse is the last straw for me.
I am happy to be in the discussion for NCAA most years with appearances as often as not and the occasional special team that can make a mark in the tourney (which has happened exactly twice in my adult life). I think the program is in decent shape and the team will be better next year, even without Oturu, who I expect to go pro.
 

It's time for a change, when you take into consideration that he had a losing B1G record last year it takes a bit of a bite out of the NCAA win. It's the whole body of work and it has been atrociously bad, this collapse is the last straw for me.

Team has played well for the most part this year. Not a perfect unit by any means but lack of experience (and late game coaching) have hurt them. Beilen wants the job but he's way too old IMO.
 




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