Whalen April 6th Presser

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She's also doing an interview on Barreiro's show. Dan got to the point saying it seems like Whalen the coach needs a Whalen level player to stir the drink. Whalen said she thinks she has some and mentions Katie Borowicz.
 

Ignatius L Hoops said:
She's also doing an interview on Barreiro's show. Dan got to the point saying it seems like Whalen the coach needs a Whalen level player to stir the drink. Whalen said she thinks she has some and mentions Katie Borowicz.
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I like Katie, haven't quite seen that level but it is awful early in her career and I hope she is correct.
 

Ragnor said:
I like Katie, haven't quite seen that level but it is awful early in her career and I hope she is correct.
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FWIW, she was talking about her intangibles, dont think she was saying Katie is gonna be a hall of fame player or anything. Whalen mentioned her leadership ability, her tenacity and her ability to get under her opponents skin.
 

I found the presser interesting. She talked about what qualities they look for in a student athlete. She made it seem like what they look for now is different than what they looked for when she first started. Given that, it’s almost like she’s saying that she would have never recruited some of those that she did. So maybe them leaving is good from that aspect too.
 


Granted, Lindsay may have misunderstood the question but it went something like this:

Barreiro asked: It appears to me that Lindsay Whalen the coach needs a Lindsay Whalen the player to galvanize everything needed on the court. Is that person there right now? Whalen: Yes. I think there’s a few…Katie Borowicz; Katie B we call her. She’s a competitive leader, shooter, tenacious, she’ll get under your skin.

Whalen then went on to talk about the four freshmen arriving this summer and reminding us that they are freshman. Anyway, it's a reminder (not that we need one) that unless we strike gold in the portal....
 


I don’t think you can watch this and conclude Lindsay the coach is going to be successful.
“All we have been doing is working the portal.” So, do you anticipate recruiting 4 or 5 transfers? “No…well….maybe….ya, I guess I could see that”
She’s all over the place. No accountability. “Players are leaving from everybody’s team.
That’s all every coach is doing right now. (Replacing players who transferred.)
I found it depressing to listen to.

Totally, appreciated her grit and competitive ness as a player. Congrats on The Hall of Fame. I just do not foresee Lindsay turning it around as a coach.
 

She still has time to turn it around with her top 10 class of MN kids. She's done well with the MN kids and hope that can continue.

Optimist view would be that she had never been any sort of coach before taking this job. She didn't have any relationships solidified and started from the ground up. (Ben Johnson was an assistant and recruiter) The freshman class is now a class that she had built relationships with through their entire HS careers. That gives me hope that the tide will turn.
 



60's Guy said:
I don’t think you can watch this and conclude Lindsay the coach is going to be successful.
“All we have been doing is working the portal.” So, do you anticipate recruiting 4 or 5 transfers? “No…well….maybe….ya, I guess I could see that”
She’s all over the place. No accountability. “Players are leaving from everybody’s team.
That’s all every coach is doing right now. (Replacing players who transferred.)
I found it depressing to listen to.

Totally, appreciated her grit and competitive ness as a player. Congrats on The Hall of Fame. I just do not foresee Lindsay turning it around as a coach.
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I agree 60's Guy. You can wish all you want Whalen supporters, but she simply does not possess the characteristics or ability of a coach. The fact there are three non impact players left and one senior deciding not to return should be all the evidence you need.
 

60's Guy said:
I don’t think you can watch this and conclude Lindsay the coach is going to be successful.
“All we have been doing is working the portal.” So, do you anticipate recruiting 4 or 5 transfers? “No…well….maybe….ya, I guess I could see that”
She’s all over the place. No accountability. “Players are leaving from everybody’s team.
That’s all every coach is doing right now. (Replacing players who transferred.)
I found it depressing to listen to.

Totally, appreciated her grit and competitive ness as a player. Congrats on The Hall of Fame. I just do not foresee Lindsay turning it around as a coach.
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This exchange can be found at the 13.44 mark in the video above.

I don't think you should quote it when your quote doesn't even include ~1/10th of the answer. It isn't a smooth answer but there are many factors going through her mind when landing on a number and she communicates what she think is the most important factor, FIT, and that will govern the decision. I'm sure she doesn't want to bring in players that will gum up the works with poor behavior.

Question:
"How many transfers in the portal do you think (unintelligable...) you looking at 4 maybe 5?"

Answer:
"Yea, I mean Uumm, well you know I'm, (unintelligable interruption by questioner) well yea, we'll see specifics, you know, well obviously that would be, uumm.. that would be ss.. in the ball park of where we're going, I don't know, I want like, you know, like I said, that everything that our program stands for, like fit and like uumm that first and foremost so that's how we are going to go at this, and umm.. but but yea I think that would probably be, that would be, that would be a good number."

I had exactly the opposite reaction, I became more optimistic she will make the turn because she seemed more confident and determined.

I think the reset she has next year will be good although it would have been preferred the reset was 2 years ago but it took longer for her to develop the relationships for the freshman recruits to get the most talented ones coming in as well as develop and refine her style and plan.
 

So far Whalen's record W/L wise has been less than hoped for. But, let's give her some credit. Members of this board have been crying for a coach who would recruit in MN and keep the best players home at the U. In the last 15 or so years has any coach been able to do it? One might even argue that the previous two coaches nearly destroyed any hopes of in-state recruiting. Four of the five top recruits in the metro (and state?) are going to be playing for Whalen this year.
Hopefully, from here the W/L record will begin to improve.
 

60's Guy said:
I don’t think you can watch this and conclude Lindsay the coach is going to be successful.
“All we have been doing is working the portal.” So, do you anticipate recruiting 4 or 5 transfers? “No…well….maybe….ya, I guess I could see that”
She’s all over the place. No accountability. “Players are leaving from everybody’s team.
That’s all every coach is doing right now. (Replacing players who transferred.)
I found it depressing to listen to.

Totally, appreciated her grit and competitive ness as a player. Congrats on The Hall of Fame. I just do not foresee Lindsay turning it around as a coach.
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She's talking in circles without giving a firm answer on anything. It's pretty clear that she's in over her head at the moment. Random, stream of consciousness answers aren't going to convince very many folks that things are heading in any direction, much less the right direction. But they'll trot out the "but she's a first-time coach!!" line to justify it. All and all, it's a mess.
 



MRJ said:
She's talking in circles without giving a firm answer on anything. It's pretty clear that she's in over her head at the moment. Random, stream of consciousness answers aren't going to convince very many folks that things are heading in any direction, much less the right direction. But they'll trot out the "but she's a first-time coach!!" line to justify it. All and all, it's a mess.
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Question:
"How many transfers in the portal do you think (unintelligable...) you looking at 4 maybe 5?"

Her response at the end of walking through her thinking is: "that would be a good number" that is as firm as the question. I prefer an insight on her thinking maybe you prefer a series of Yes, No or maybe answers.

In my opinion, hardly a mess. Disappointing so far but this is the reset I think she needed. If the same thing happens next spring (losing best players) then I will be really concerned.
 

I'm a Whalen fan who hopes her court smarts and leadership as a player will stay pay off as a coach. She has never been good in interviews and I do find myself hoping she communicates with her teams better than she does interviewers.
 

Ragnor said:
Question:
"How many transfers in the portal do you think (unintelligable...) you looking at 4 maybe 5?"

Her response at the end of walking through her thinking is: "that would be a good number" that is as firm as the question. I prefer an insight on her thinking maybe you prefer a series of Yes, No or maybe answers.

In my opinion, hardly a mess. Disappointing so far but this is the reset I think she needed. If the same thing happens next spring (losing best players) then I will be really concerned.
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No, I prefer an answer that is pointed and focused, not some meandering "yeah maybe, I'm not sure, something, culture and right fit, but yeah, four or five sounds good" answer from a coach whose current roster almost doesn't have enough players for intramurals, much less a power five schedule. Sorry, but I don't get any sense she has a coherent plan from what I heard.

Of course, I could be wrong, but I'm not seeing much to inspire confidence at all with that answer.
 
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Scalia was Whalen's first recruit, and that has bonded the two.

Scalia, then at Stillwater High School, was the first player Whalen called after being hired to be Gophers coach in April 2018. Whalen, new to the recruiting game, distinctly remembers the call. "We probably said two words,'' Whalen said. "I didn't know what to say. We talked for maybe a minute. Seriously, it was like, 'How are you? How's it going? How's your family? What's for dinner?' "
 

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