Post by BBFran on Mar 23, 2015 15:54:12 GMT -6
Everyone has a right to weigh in on this. Here's my first take.
First, Coaching: We have surely had our bumps and bruises during Rob's tenure, but just as surely some successes too. Let's be honest: coming off Pearl's tenure few Milwaukee fans would have wanted to hire Rob if you had told them what his ten year record would be. But much of that would have been fan hubris. Pearl was an extraordinary coach who also caught lightning in a bottle with some great players -- many of which Bo recruited. His exit at the first opportunity was, truth to tell, typical for a sudden mid-major success story, and he also knew that the foundation of the program was shaky. But if you don't get lost in the unique glare of the Pearl years, and look at the accomplishments of Rob's tenure objectively, it's probably about what a fan at a program at our level could rightfully expect, if not better: two tournament appearances, two regular season titles, two tournament titles. And his tenure includes a period when Butler was historically good.
But the important point is that it's not 10 years ago, it's now. I have seen the great majority of the games that Rob has coached either in person at home or on road trips, or by telecast or webcast. Rob has matured significantly through his tenure. There's no question he is a much better coach today than he was when he started. Lately he has especially shown the ability to make a team better as the year goes on, even under very challenging circumstances. You could also say that he still hasn't found a way to avoid poor starts, but I'll give him a bit of a pass last year under the unexpected circumstance of AA's redshirt and the brutal non-con schedule we played.
My bottom line opinion is that we could almost certainly find a new coach now who is better than Rob was when he started, but we would be extremely lucky to hire a coach who is better than Rob is now. In light of the roster we have returning (see below) I think we would be absolutely foolish to make a change at this time. We have made a heavy investment in Rob; I don't want to walk away when it may be about to pay off. It also bears mentioning that Rob, Duffy, Chad and Sharif are very good people who are very accessible to our fans. That means a lot in a mid-major program. That said, if the next year or two don't go well, all bets are off.
Second, Roster: Simply put next year shapes up to be our most talented roster in years -- very possibly since Rob's first year. While it will be very hard to replace Steve McWhorter seamlessly, we should have at least three players with all-conference potential in Matt, Austin and Akeem, and tremendous depth. The coaches got the point guard recruit they wanted, and between the two Jordans I think we will be okay. This is a roster that could beat any team in the league. Kudos to the coaches for the job they have done recruiting under challenging circumstances. (It bears observing that if a coaching change happened this year, as some have suggested, we could very well see that roster fall apart. Hello rebuilding project.) Now that we have the Arena, and with the solid roster we have and the upbeat feel on the team, this should also be a year when we will see the coaches able to focus successfully on high school players again. That's the surest way to build a program long term. There are Franklins and Hills and Kelms out there that we want and need at Milwaukee.
Third, Facilities: It hardly needs be said that having the UWM Panther Arena available to us long term is an enormous boon to the program. It impacts everything positively: perception, ticket sales, recruiting and simply the pride all of the constituents of our University, fans or non-fans, can take in the program. It is utterly essential that we hold on to the Arena. There is literally no alternative that would not result in the program withering quickly. The second part of the equation, equally essential in the long run, is practice space. It's the job of the Athletic Department and the AD now to keep the practice facility project moving forward as rapidly as possible. The practice accommodations for our program currently are ridiculous. Is there any other credible D1 program that has court time issues as challenging as ours? Once again, the ability of the coaches to persevere and get our players prepared notwithstanding that issue is a credit to them.
Fourth, Support: This encompasses many things. Fundraising is crucial. Academic support is crucial. Training table support is crucial. Administrative support is crucial. Compliance support is crucial. Publicity, press and media relations are crucial. Most of these are the responsibilities of the athletic department, which is also responsible for many other sports and student athletes. That makes the job very tough -- but they can never forget that men's basketball is our bell cow, so to speak. It's the only sport on campus that can bring the kind of high-intensity positive publicity to the University that truly makes intercollegiate athletics a worthwhile endeavor for the institution as much as for the student-athletes. I have had enough interplay with the people responsible for these roles to know that they are all very good folks. But it's very hard from my vantage point to say whether these jobs are being done as well as our program needs them to be done. I just don't know. At a moment when I think our coaching and player situations are solid, I hope our AD focuses on these administrative areas to make sure we are doing them right and doing them well.
That's my take. I know there are other takes out there, and am legitimately interested in hearing them. But let's all agree to do this in a respectful way.
First, Coaching: We have surely had our bumps and bruises during Rob's tenure, but just as surely some successes too. Let's be honest: coming off Pearl's tenure few Milwaukee fans would have wanted to hire Rob if you had told them what his ten year record would be. But much of that would have been fan hubris. Pearl was an extraordinary coach who also caught lightning in a bottle with some great players -- many of which Bo recruited. His exit at the first opportunity was, truth to tell, typical for a sudden mid-major success story, and he also knew that the foundation of the program was shaky. But if you don't get lost in the unique glare of the Pearl years, and look at the accomplishments of Rob's tenure objectively, it's probably about what a fan at a program at our level could rightfully expect, if not better: two tournament appearances, two regular season titles, two tournament titles. And his tenure includes a period when Butler was historically good.
But the important point is that it's not 10 years ago, it's now. I have seen the great majority of the games that Rob has coached either in person at home or on road trips, or by telecast or webcast. Rob has matured significantly through his tenure. There's no question he is a much better coach today than he was when he started. Lately he has especially shown the ability to make a team better as the year goes on, even under very challenging circumstances. You could also say that he still hasn't found a way to avoid poor starts, but I'll give him a bit of a pass last year under the unexpected circumstance of AA's redshirt and the brutal non-con schedule we played.
My bottom line opinion is that we could almost certainly find a new coach now who is better than Rob was when he started, but we would be extremely lucky to hire a coach who is better than Rob is now. In light of the roster we have returning (see below) I think we would be absolutely foolish to make a change at this time. We have made a heavy investment in Rob; I don't want to walk away when it may be about to pay off. It also bears mentioning that Rob, Duffy, Chad and Sharif are very good people who are very accessible to our fans. That means a lot in a mid-major program. That said, if the next year or two don't go well, all bets are off.
Second, Roster: Simply put next year shapes up to be our most talented roster in years -- very possibly since Rob's first year. While it will be very hard to replace Steve McWhorter seamlessly, we should have at least three players with all-conference potential in Matt, Austin and Akeem, and tremendous depth. The coaches got the point guard recruit they wanted, and between the two Jordans I think we will be okay. This is a roster that could beat any team in the league. Kudos to the coaches for the job they have done recruiting under challenging circumstances. (It bears observing that if a coaching change happened this year, as some have suggested, we could very well see that roster fall apart. Hello rebuilding project.) Now that we have the Arena, and with the solid roster we have and the upbeat feel on the team, this should also be a year when we will see the coaches able to focus successfully on high school players again. That's the surest way to build a program long term. There are Franklins and Hills and Kelms out there that we want and need at Milwaukee.
Third, Facilities: It hardly needs be said that having the UWM Panther Arena available to us long term is an enormous boon to the program. It impacts everything positively: perception, ticket sales, recruiting and simply the pride all of the constituents of our University, fans or non-fans, can take in the program. It is utterly essential that we hold on to the Arena. There is literally no alternative that would not result in the program withering quickly. The second part of the equation, equally essential in the long run, is practice space. It's the job of the Athletic Department and the AD now to keep the practice facility project moving forward as rapidly as possible. The practice accommodations for our program currently are ridiculous. Is there any other credible D1 program that has court time issues as challenging as ours? Once again, the ability of the coaches to persevere and get our players prepared notwithstanding that issue is a credit to them.
Fourth, Support: This encompasses many things. Fundraising is crucial. Academic support is crucial. Training table support is crucial. Administrative support is crucial. Compliance support is crucial. Publicity, press and media relations are crucial. Most of these are the responsibilities of the athletic department, which is also responsible for many other sports and student athletes. That makes the job very tough -- but they can never forget that men's basketball is our bell cow, so to speak. It's the only sport on campus that can bring the kind of high-intensity positive publicity to the University that truly makes intercollegiate athletics a worthwhile endeavor for the institution as much as for the student-athletes. I have had enough interplay with the people responsible for these roles to know that they are all very good folks. But it's very hard from my vantage point to say whether these jobs are being done as well as our program needs them to be done. I just don't know. At a moment when I think our coaching and player situations are solid, I hope our AD focuses on these administrative areas to make sure we are doing them right and doing them well.
That's my take. I know there are other takes out there, and am legitimately interested in hearing them. But let's all agree to do this in a respectful way.
