Retrospect on the BasketVols

[BanditVol]

We won 7 SEC games.  FIVE of those were on the road (LSU, USC, MSU, Mizzou, Vandy) and two at home (Auburn and Arkansas).

We lost to LSU, Miss State, and USC at home in spite of beating them on the road.  I find this very confusing.

Of our 7 wins, only Arkansas and LSU on the road stand out as quality wins.  The others are below us in the standings.

As a Vol fan, I am grateful that we beat Auburn.  Losing to Bruce in our home arena would be painful.

But while I was very enthused about our SEC prospects early in the season, looking back I now realize that with the exception of the win over Arkansas we really only beat bottom feeders early in the season, and then we lost to two of them at home later in the season.

Overall I am NOT impressed with this season.  I do find our offense refreshing compared to Cuonzo ball.  Also I realize the talent level is down, and finally my opinion is and always has been that any coach in any sport has a honeymoon his first year.

I hope the NCAA stuff with Donnie gets resolved before it impacts recruiting too much, that he gets his own talent in here and does great, but I am not really sure I see much improvement over the last three years.

Edit:  I forgot to mention that our OT win at Vandy was good.  Not in the same category as Arkansas and LSU but better than the other wins. 

[Creek Walker]

Before this season started, no one expected Tennessee to make the NIT field, much less the NCAAT field. Things are right where I expected them to be at this point. OTOH, the way the team competed early before running out of gas proves that Tyndall is a great coach. He'll do good things at Tennessee if he's allowed to stick around.

[Tnphil]

Before this season started, no one expected Tennessee to make the NIT field, much less the NCAAT field. Things are right where I expected them to be at this point. OTOH, the way the team competed early before running out of gas proves that Tyndall is a great coach. He'll do good things at Tennessee if he's allowed to stick around.

^This

[BanditVol]

Before this season started, no one expected Tennessee to make the NIT field, much less the NCAAT field. Things are right where I expected them to be at this point. OTOH, the way the team competed early before running out of gas proves that Tyndall is a great coach. He'll do good things at Tennessee if he's allowed to stick around.

I was also thrilled with the start of the SEC season, but then at the time I thought Mizzou was a good team when we beat them on the road.  They are literally the worst team in the SEC.

Almost all our early wins, with the exception of Arkansas, were against very poor teams in other words.  As  I state above, the only impressive wins are Arkansas and LSU, and possibly Vandy.  Not impressed at all at this point.

And if a coach is going to be inconsistent, I would rather have one that finishes strong versus one that starts strong. 

[Clockwork Orange]

And if a coach is going to be inconsistent, I would rather have one that finishes strong versus one that starts strong.  

Get out of here with this shizzle. I don't want Cuonzo Martin within two time zones of this program, and if you really miss the guy then it says something about how much you know about basketball.

You really can't see that this team did well to win 15 games?

[Stogie Vol]

Considering the situation CDT walked into, I believe this team overachieved. I'm pleased with this season in regards to where the ship is pointing.

[Creek Walker]

Get out of here with this shizzle. I don't want Cuonzo Martin within two time zones of this program, and if you really miss the guy then it says something about how much you know about basketball.

You really can't see that this team did well to win 15 games?

No kidding. If Cuonzo were here this season, this team wouldn't have won 10 games.

(And I guess the Butler game doesn't count since it was non-conference? That looked impressive to me by any measure.)

[Memphisvolunteer]

I was also thrilled with the start of the SEC season, but then at the time I thought Mizzou was a good team when we beat them on the road.  They are literally the worst team in the SEC.

Almost all our early wins, with the exception of Arkansas, were against very poor teams in other words.  As  I state above, the only impressive wins are Arkansas and LSU, and possibly Vandy.  Not impressed at all at this point.

And if a coach is going to be inconsistent, I would rather have one that finishes strong versus one that starts strong. 

Come on Bandit, you seriously did not just say that?  You couldn't be further from the truth. 

First of all, the pre-season media picked us to finish 13th out of 14 teams, so by their standards, UT was only supposed to win a handful of games.  To finish 10th with this roster is a major accomplishment.  Also, I saw our coach draw up plays in Time out situations or inbounds play situations that proves he is a damn good coach.  When did our previous coach do that? Often times, he couldn't draw up a play to save his life. 

Martin took a team that had talent and barely got us to one tournament.  Martin took a Cal team that had their top 3 scores back and he can't get them to the tournament either.

[Black Diamond Vol]

As I've said before, I still see Donnie as an interim coach.  I won't consider him truly "ours" until he's clear of the NCAA.

I saw enough this season to hope that we keep him.  The way he assembled the roster out of thin air in a matter of a couple weeks, and the way he kept them going through all the injuries before they just hit the wall and could go no farther.  I think he showed a lot, x's and o's wise, and if given the freedom to recruit his own roster without the shadow of the NCAA looming, I think he'll have us consistently in the postseason. 

But if the NCAA holds us at gunpoint again and slaps him with a show cause, I don't think we should go to the mat for him at the detriment of the program.  I mean, if Bruce F'ing Pearl wasn't worth fighting for, then Donnie sure as hell isn't either.  Sorry if that sounds harsh, but that's how I feel.

[HerbTarlekVol]

Get out of here with this shizzle. I don't want Cuonzo Martin within two time zones of this program, and if you really miss the guy then it says something about how much you know about basketball.

You really can't see that this team did well to win 15 games?

This times 10.  Cuonzo Martin is a damned joke of a basketball coach.  He'll be two and done at Cal if they give a rats ass about their basketball program. 

Tyndall is 20 times the X and O's coach that Cuonzo was, and if he can survive the NCAA's bullshizzle he'll end up being a better X and O's coach than Bruce Pearl was, as well.  If he can get to the point where he can recruit without the NCAA question's he'll be fine and UT will be more than a competitive basketball program again. 

[volsboy]

I think the coach will be fine. What still baffles me is why does the SEC continuously suck at basketball. It is embarrassing. Now even UF is struggling. I think Donnie can get the Vols to challenge for a top 3 finish in the conference if he stays long enough.

[BanditVol]

Get out of here with this shizzle. I don't want Cuonzo Martin within two time zones of this program, and if you really miss the guy then it says something about how much you know about basketball.

You really can't see that this team did well to win 15 games?

 I was more or less indifferent to Cuonzo.  I definitely didn't hate the guy, but didn't think he was outstanding either.

I also admit freely that his offenses were painful to watch.

What I did and do think was that he got a raw deal from Vol fans.  Any one of his seasons was better than this.  Tyndall is absolutely getting treated differently than Martin, it's hypocritical and I absolutely am calling BS on that.

Tyndall hasn't done shizzle in the win-loss column.  Just hold him to the same standard as Cuonzo last year and I'm good.   

[BanditVol]

Having said that, I do like what I have seen of Tyndall so far as to give him the benefit of the doubt. I also tend to be an optimist and truly believe that pessimistic attitudes can help create a losing environment.

But we lost by double digits in our final game on our home court to a team that only had 5 SEC wins coming in to the game.  They shot lights out in the first half and the announcers commented that their coach had spent a massive amount of time preparing them to beat our zone.

So no, I am not happy with how the season ended.

Maybe we can have a nice run in the SECT, sneak into the NIT and win a couple games.  I'd feel a lot better if we did.

[HerbTarlekVol]

Tyndall hasn't done shizzle in the win-loss column.  Just hold him to the same standard as Cuonzo last year and I'm good.   

In the span of about 3 weeks Tyndall pretty much put together a band of misfits and castoffs due to Martin's badmouthing UT to signees and recruits, and even lost probably the best of those when McKnight was declared ineligible, and ended up with a .500 team playing a solid schedule. 

Do you really believe that Double Live Cuonzo frickin' Martin could have been .500 with this team? 

Maybe Tyndall was treated differently because he acted like he wanted to be here and that he gave a damn, which is something that Martin never did. 

[Clockwork Orange]

Having said that, I do like what I have seen of Tyndall so far as to give him the benefit of the doubt. I also tend to be an optimist and truly believe that pessimistic attitudes can help create a losing environment.

But we lost by double digits in our final game on our home court to a team that only had 5 SEC wins coming in to the game.  They shot lights out in the first half and the announcers commented that their coach had spent a massive amount of time preparing them to beat our zone.

So no, I am not happy with how the season ended.

Maybe we can have a nice run in the SECT, sneak into the NIT and win a couple games.  I'd feel a lot better if we did.

Cuonzo inherited a program that had been to six straight NCAA tournaments, had a decent roster of returning players, and had Jarnell Stokes in the bag already. Donnie inherited the dogshizzle that Cuonzo left in his wake and had to start almost from scratch.

Fans are idiots, generally, and they weren't nice to Cuonzo, but he followed a coach that had quickly become a legend at UT. Any coach would have been judged harshly, but it was really bad for Cuonzo because he was a TERRIBLE COACH.

[BanditVol]

Cuonzo inherited a program that had been to six straight NCAA tournaments, had a decent roster of returning players, and had Jarnell Stokes in the bag already. Donnie inherited the dogshizzle that Cuonzo left in his wake and had to start almost from scratch.

Fans are idiots, generally, and they weren't nice to Cuonzo, but he followed a coach that had quickly become a legend at UT. Any coach would have been judged harshly, but it was really bad for Cuonzo because he was a TERRIBLE COACH.

A terrible coach that got us a whisper away from the Elite Eight in his third year.

And please don't understate the mess Pearl left. Our two best players quit (even before he was fired from what I heard) and I think a couple others left as well.

Yes, Donnie inherited dog shizzle.  I won't dispute that.  But even dog shizzle can do better than what I saw Saturday, particularly given that those same guys beat LSU on the road and Arkansas early in the season.   

Back on the terrible coach thing...if we apply LOGIC, and not EMOTION, then Cuonzo was an average to above average coach.  Maybe that's not good enough for a UT spoiled by Pearl, but that's what I see when I look at FACTS, and not what I FEEL.

Facts like...he never had a losing season and almost won a regional in the Dance.  That's not "terrible" so long as we use our cerebellums and not let hormones or brain chemistry take over our medulla oblangatas.   

Hope that helps.

[BanditVol]

And CO, and everyone else, while I am at it, let me just go ahead and state openly that what just occurred at OU still exists everywhere.

That this was NOT a factor in the dislike of Cuonzo is HIGHLY UNLIKELY for a certain segment of our fan base.

My personal guesstimate (admittedly anecdotal) based on 33 years of living in the South is that it's roughly 15 to 20%.  FWIW. 

[Clockwork Orange]

A terrible coach that got us a whisper away from the Elite Eight in his third year.

And please don't understate the mess Pearl left. Our two best players quit (even before he was fired from what I heard) and I think a couple others left as well.

Yes, Donnie inherited dog shizzle.  I won't dispute that.  But even dog shizzle can do better than what I saw Saturday, particularly given that those same guys beat LSU on the road and Arkansas early in the season.   

Back on the terrible coach thing...if we apply LOGIC, and not EMOTION, then Cuonzo was an average to above average coach.  Maybe that's not good enough for a UT spoiled by Pearl, but that's what I see when I look at FACTS, and not what I FEEL.

Facts like...he never had a losing season and almost won a regional in the Dance.  That's not "terrible" so long as we use our cerebellums and not let hormones or brain chemistry take over our medulla oblangatas.   

Hope that helps.

Well I know I'm never going to change your mind-- you are hopeless when it comes to this topic. Cuonzo Martin is a bad basketball coach, and let's also not forget that he is the one that chose to leave here and tear our roster to tatters in the process. I hold absolutely no respect for that man as a basketball coach.

The jury is out on Donnie but this year was a solid coaching job. Most guys would have struggled to even put 5 on the floor.

[Clockwork Orange]

And CO, and everyone else, while I am at it, let me just go ahead and state openly that what just occurred at OU still exists everywhere.

That this was NOT a factor in the dislike of Cuonzo is HIGHLY UNLIKELY for a certain segment of our fan base.

My personal guesstimate (admittedly anecdotal) based on 33 years of living in the South is that it's roughly 15 to 20%.  FWIW. 

It's not a factor for me, and I've been disgusted by the assertion-- on your part just now and by national writers-- that race was a significant part of the dislike for Cuonzo. For some people, yes, and I hate those people as much as you do. Racism is no doubt alive and well and I see it with regularity. It's more subtle than it used to be but it's still everywhere.

But Cuonzo's fate here was about difficult circumstances and his own failures, and any impact his race made was on only a small fraction of the disgruntled.

[PirateVOL]

Agree.
Zo had a compelling personal story.  I lived for three years near the corrupt shizzlehole he grew up in and escaped from.  Kudos to him for accomplishing that.  However, he flat SUCKED as a basketball coach IMO.

[Creek Walker]

And CO, and everyone else, while I am at it, let me just go ahead and state openly that what just occurred at OU still exists everywhere.

That this was NOT a factor in the dislike of Cuonzo is HIGHLY UNLIKELY for a certain segment of our fan base.

My personal guesstimate (admittedly anecdotal) based on 33 years of living in the South is that it's roughly 15 to 20%.  FWIW. 

 

[Creek Walker]

Back on the terrible coach thing...if we apply LOGIC, and not EMOTION, then Cuonzo was an average to above average coach.  Maybe that's not good enough for a UT spoiled by Pearl, but that's what I see when I look at FACTS, and not what I FEEL.

Cal fans beg to differ.

[HerbTarlekVol]

It's not a factor for me, and I've been disgusted by the assertion-- on your part just now and by national writers-- that race was a significant part of the dislike for Cuonzo. For some people, yes, and I hate those people as much as you do. Racism is no doubt alive and well and I see it with regularity. It's more subtle than it used to be but it's still everywhere.

But Cuonzo's fate here was about difficult circumstances and his own failures, and any impact his race made was on only a small fraction of the disgruntled.

Yeah. There is no racism in California, you know.  

UT offered Cuonzo a half million dollar per year raise and a contract extension.  He wasn't mistreated in any shape, form, or fashion.  We should all hope to be "mistreated" like that.   He chose to leave - period.  

[volsboy]

Why can't a black man be a legitimate bad coach. I am sick and tired of everytime a black person fails or doesn't get the job it's because people are racists not because he is an actually bad coach. Some of his team's offensive production was painful to watch.

[Creek Walker]

Was Wade Houston fired after three years because UT fans are racist?